1977 Brabham BT45

In 1972, Bernie Ecclestone bought the Brabham team, which he ran for fifteen years. In 1976, he signed an exclusive deal with Alfa Romeo to use their three-liter, 12-cylinder in their Brabham F1 cars. Many of his rivals were powering their cars with Cosworth engines, however, Ecclestone saw the advantage of using the engine, as it had a similar design to the Ferrari engine, which had just secured both titles. Another caveat was that the Italian built engine provided an alluring appeal to Brabham's Italian sponsor Martini & Rossi. Another motivating factor was that the engines would be supplied free of charge.

The reasons appeared compelling, but the twelve-cylinder was untested in Formula 1 competition. It had proven its potential in the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33 sports racer over the previous three seasons, even earning a dominant victory in the 1975 World Championship. Modifications and changes to the engine where needed, and Alfa Romeo's Carlo Chiti selected to follow the Ferrari route by using a 180 V-angle for the 12-cylinder engine design. The flat 12 had twin overhead camshafts, actuating four valves per cylinder, and due to its design, it had a relatively low center of gravity.

In the late 1960s, designer Gordon Murray went seeking a job at Lotus Cars. Instead, he was offered a job at Brabham after coincidentally meeting then Brabham designer Ron Tauranac. When Mr. Ecclestone took over the team, Murray was appointed Chief Designer. Murray would go on to design many Grand Prix cars, some of which would become World Championship Grand Prix winners. He remained with Brabham until leaving for McLaren as Technical Director in 1987.

Murray was given the task of designing the Brabham BT45, using the previous Cosworth-powered BT44 as a basis. The BT44 had a proven and competitive design, earning three Grand Prix victories during the 1975 season.

In a similar fashion to the Alfa Romeo engine design, Murray created a tub that would have a low center of gravity. It was slightly lower and wider than the BT44 and was given pontoon extensions in the back to help support the suspension and the weight of the engine. In the front was the suspension setup from the BT44B - a push-rod actuated and semi-inboard setup.

The 180-degree, light-alloy engine was given a Lucas Fuel injection system and developed 500 horsepower. It was given a Hewland 5-speed gearbox which was later replaced with a 6-speed setup. Girling ventilated disc brakes could be found at all four corners and were in-board at the rear.

The Gordon Murray design BT45 featured air-intakes mounted on the edges of the side-pods located on either side of the car. These were used to help provide additional cooling to the engine. This was a short-lived design feature and was quickly removed. The white Martini livery was also quickly replaced by a red paint scheme.

The factory Brabham team drivers for the 1975 season were Carlos Pace and Carlos Reutemann. Content with their performance, they remained the factory drivers for the 1976 season. Carlo Reutemann had finished third in points during the 1975 season after securing top-three finishes at 6 of the 14 races including a victory at the German Grand Prix. Carlos Pace had finished the season in 6th place. Highlights of his season including a victory at the Brazilian Grand Prix and a 2nd at the British Grand Prix.

The 1976 Brabham team was poised for greatness. They had a car that had a similar design to the car it was replacing, which had proven to be competitive. They had an experienced team with experienced and skilled drivers. The engine, although having a new design, had proven to be reliable and powerful in sports car competition.

At the start of the season, the team's Achilles heel quickly proved to be the engine. In comparison to many of the other cars, it had more weight and less power. The best result was at the French Grand Prix where Carlos Pace finished in third place. The team had finished the 1975 season in 2nd place in the constructor's championship but fell to 9th place for the 1976 season. Carlos Reutemann left the team at the end of the season to drive for Ferrari.

The team worked on the car over the winter and for the 1977 season, they fielded the BT45B. Changes to the car included a lighter gearbox and new mounts for the engine. The rear suspension had also been modified.

Drivers for 1977 included Carlos Pace, John Watson, Hans-Joachim Stuck, and Giorgio Francia. Carlos Pace was killed in a light aircraft accident early in 1977 near Sao Paulo, Brazil. He had participated in 73 Formula One World Championship Grand Prix races and won one race and achieved six podiums. He had earned a total of 58 championship points.

The Brabham team finished the 1977 season fifth in the constructor's championship. Their best performance was a second-place finish for the BT45B driven by John Watson at the French Grand Prix.

For the 1978 season, the team retained the Alfa Romeo powerplant and fitted it into a new car called the BT46. It soon became clear that modifications were needed, so they fielded the BT45C for the opening races. With the help of newly signed World Champion Niki Lauda, the BT45C and BT46 would earn Brabham a third-place finish in the constructor's championship.

by Daniel Vaughan | Apr 2016