1979 Ensign N179

In Formula One, the low-budget teams have a way of disappearing rather quickly unless they happen to touch on a moment of greatness that takes them from the ranks of the less-than to those with more than enough. Very rarely are there what could be considered 'survivors'; those that just seem to manage to hang on year after year. Morris Nunn, however, would prove to be one of those that would become the very definition of the 'shoe-string' budget.

Mo Nunn would first become a very successful car designer and builder within the Formula 3 ranks. This success within his Ensign Formula 3 team would lead to him being approached by Rikki von Opel to build a Formula One car to be run during the 1973 season.

Nunn would accept the opportunity and would set to work. Soon, he would unveil his first prototype, the Ensign N173. The car would debut at the French Grand Prix and would carry on through to the end of the season. Although Ensign had the support of the wealthy von Opel behind it, the team remained one of the lowest-budgeted teams of 1973, and yet, would manage to be around the next year, and then the year after that.

Production of racing cars is by no means a cheap endeavor, and yet, production is exactly one of the ways in which some producers help themselves to stay in business. Nunn's Ensign operation would be no exception. By the mid-1970s, Ensign was producing straight-forward competitive chassis available for customer purchase. Based around the sought-after customer Cosworth engine and the popular Hewland gearbox, Nunn would provide customers with a no-nonsense Formula One car.

Year after year, Nunn would manage just enough sponsorship money to keep Ensign developing cars and racing. The team fielded a flat-bottom car for 1978 followed by an all-new Ensign for 1979, the first all-new car since the 1975 season. It took advantage of ground-effect aerodynamic technology which Team Lotus had proven to be beneficial and successful during the 1977 season. Once again, Mo Nunn turned to Dave Baldwin for the design of the car.

Most of the design for the N179 was conventional and built around the Cosworth DFV engine and Hewland gearbox. Wing-shaped tunnels located on either side of the cockpit provided additional downforce. In order to make room for the tunnels, the radiators were moved to the front of the car. The stack of radiators would later prove to be an inefficient design.

During the opening two rounds of the year, Derek Daly drove a modified N177. At the South African Grand Prix, he drove the N179 where he failed to qualify. To resolve the issue with the radiators, scoops were added which provided only minimal improvement. Needing another solution, the radiators were moved back to the side-pods.

During the rest of the season, Daly, Patrick Gaillard, and Marc Surer managed to qualify the car for just a few Grand Prix events. It was replaced at the end of the season by the all-new N180. Instead of using Baldwin again, he was replaced by Ralph Bellamy and Nigel Bennett.

Only two examples of the N179 were built with only one of the two ever seeing competition. The other example served as a spare car.

by Daniel Vaughan | Feb 2017Source - Jeremy McMullen and Dan Vaughan