Williams FW18

Racing car


Category = Formula One | Car_name = Williams FW18
Constructor = Williams Grand Prix Engineering | Team = Rothmans Williams Renault
Designer = Patrick Head
Adrian Newey | Drivers = flagicon|UK Damon Hill,
flagicon|Canada Jacques Villeneuve | Test drivers = flagicon|France Jean-Christophe Boullion
Chassis = Carbon/Epoxy composite monocoque
Front suspension = inboard torsion bars operated by pushrod bellcrank, unequal-length wishbones
Rear suspension = inboard torsion bars operated by pushrod bellcrank, unequal-length wishbones
Engine position = mid-mounted
Engine name = Renault RS8/RS8B
Capacity = 3000cc
Turbo/NA = naturally-aspirated
Configuration = V10
Gearbox name = Williams
Gears = 6-speed
Type = manual
Differential =
Tyres = Goodyear
Fuel = Elf | Debut = 1996 Australian Grand Prix
Races = 16 (all variants)
Cons_champ = 1 (1996)
Drivers_champ = 1 (1996 - Damon Hill)
Wins = 12
Poles = 12
Fastest_laps = 11
Last_season = 1996

The Williams-Renault FW18 is a Formula One car designed by Patrick Head and Adrian Newey for the 1996 Formula One season. Powered by a 3.0 litre Renault V10 engine, the FW18 drew heavily on the 1995 Williams car, the FW17, but featured new driver protection as regulated by the FIA for the new season: The drivers sat lower in the cockpit, which lowered the car's centre of gravity, thus aiding the handling of the car. Newey's superb aerodynamics placed the car well ahead of the Benetton B196s of Gerhard Berger and Jean Alesi and the Ferrari F310 that Michael Schumacher and Eddie Irvine had at their disposal.

The FW18s were driven by Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve. The car proved to be the most successful of the entire 1996 field; winning 12 of the 16 races during the season, with Hill winning 8 and Villeneuve winning 4. The FW18 was also the car that won Damon Hill his first, and only, Drivers Championship title, making the first son of a World Champion to become a Champion himself. The FW18 was also the second of three cars during the 1990s to enjoy a 1-2 finish on its Grand Prix debut, the first being the Williams FW14 at the 1992 South African Grand Prix and the third being the McLaren MP4-13 at the 1998 Australian Grand Prix.

The FW18 is also one of three Williams cars featuring in the Codemasters game, TOCA Race Driver 3.

eason performance

Williams retained Damon Hill for 1996, who developed the car. It seemed to respond well to his smooth driving style, and was extremely reliable, as FW18s completed 1778 laps of a possible 2028, more than any other car that season. [" [http://www.f1db.com/exec/section/driver/action/statistic/value/1996/page/Driver_reliability Statistics -> Driver Reliability -> 1996] " F1db.com. Retrieved 3 November 2006] The car responded well to set-up changes and was competitive on all types of circuits, with at least one Williams driver, excluding Monaco and Italian Grand Prix, on the podium. The FW18 was equally as useful to his new team mate, Jacques Villeneuve.

The FW18 proved to be very successful during the season, as the car won twelve of the sixteen races and won the Constructors' Championship for Williams by a comfortable margin. Hill and Villeneuve fought a good natured but close title fight between them, which was decided in the Englishman's favour at the final round in Japan after Villeneuve's car lost its right-rear wheel. This was after Williams team manager, Frank Williams, took the controversial decision to not re-sign Hill for the 1997 season.

The FW18 scored 175 points in its time and was one of the most successful Formula One cars seen in the 1990's.

Complete Formula One results

() (results in bold indicate pole position, results in "italics" indicate fastest lap)

Footnotes