1967 Chaparral 2F

The Chaparral Company was founded in 1962 by American Formula One racers Hap Sharp and Jim Hall, but before there was a Chaparral Company, there were Chaparral cars. Hall had made a sizeable fortune in the West Texas oil industry and was determined to find similar success in pro racing. He was an engineering graduate of Cal Tech and a racing enthusiast who had competed with a 5.7-liter Maserati and a supercharged Lister-Chevrolet. He had witnessed Lance Reventlow's front-engined Scarabs dominate the competition and he wanted similar success. The Scarabs had been built by Southern California craftsmen Dick Troutman and Tom Barnes, and when Hall decided to build a racing special of his own, he enlisted the talents of these two individuals. The inevitable shift towards the mid-engine revolution had begun, but Hall favored the big-bore, front-engined design for his sports car contender. The prototype was initially called the Riverside Sports Racer but was later renamed the Chaparral - and later referred to as Chaparral 1. The name 'Chaparral' was in reference to the roadrunner, also known as a chaparral bird.

The Chaparral 1 was reasonably competitive for two seasons, with Hall winning the 1962 June Sprints and the Road America 500, both at Road America. For the latter, he was joined by Hap Sharp and would continue to race Chaparrals as Hall's partner for years to come. When Sharp and Hap Hall began building cars under the Chaparral (manufacturer) name, their models were known as the '2' (with models 2A through 2K).

During its career, Chaparral built racecars for sports racing, the SCCA/CASC Can-Am series, and Indycar. Among the accolades their cars would achieve was a victory at the 1980 Indianapolis with the winning Chaparral 2K 'ground effects' car driven by Johnny Rutherford.

Designed and built by Jim Hall and Hap Sharp

The first Chaparral '2' model designed and built by Hall and Sharp in Midland, Texas, was raced during the 1963 to 1965 road racing seasons, with versions of the car earning 22 victories in 38 races against world-class competition. Part of its success was due to its new approach to frame design, with its semi-monocoque chassis inspired by modern aircraft design, being molded from fiberglass-reinforced plastic. Andy Green lent his experience with composites for fiberglass chassis construction.

Girling disc brakes provided the stopping power and the front suspension used double wishbones while the rear employed trailing arms, a top link, and a reverse lower wishbone. The Chevrolet 'small block' 327 cubic inch V8 engine with Weber carburetors and high-compression heads was initially paired with a Colitti four-speed gearbox. After May 1964, a two-speed automatic transmission was installed and eliminated the clutch pedal.

Hall won the Laguna Seca national championship race and his Chaparral 2 teammate Roger Penske finished third. Penske also won the Nassau Governor's Trophy Race and the Nassau Trophy Race in 1964.

The Adjustable Rear Wing

Chaparral cars favored horsepower, lightweight construction, and aerodynamics, with many utilizing some form of integrated spoiler/wing design. The 2A was given a concave tail to resolve issues with front-end lift at high speed. The Chaparral 2C used an in-car adjustable rear wing which would lie flat for low drag on the straights and tip-up through the corners. With a clutchless, semi-automatic transmission, the wing was operated by the driver's left foot.

One of the company's most advanced designs was the Chaparral 2E of 1966, based on the Chevrolet-designed aluminum 2C chassis. The radiators were relocated from the traditional location in the nose to two ducted pods on either side of the cockpit. In the back was a pivoting variable-incidence wing mounted on struts directly to the rear suspension uprights which increased downforce to the tires while cornering. Additional downforce was created by the ducted nose at the front of the car which channeled air from the front of the car upwards. Like Hall's previous cars, a pedal-controlled the wing's angle, flattening it to reduce drag and increase top speed on a straight section, or to angle it while approaching corners. When the wing was flattened, the front nose air ducting was also closed off for streamlining. Many racing cars would use similar suspension-mounted pivoting wings on tall struts before they were banned. They were re-introduced, subject to regulations, under the name DRS (Drag Reduction System) in 2011.

The First Closed Cockpit Chaparral 2-Series

The first closed cockpit Chaparral '2 series' was the 2D of 1966. Its 5.3-liter aluminum alloy Chevrolet engine offered in excess of 400 horsepower. Phil Hill and Joakim Bonnier drove it to victory at the 1000 km Nürburgring in 1966, and it raced at that year's 24 Hours of Le Mans but was forced to retire after 111 laps.

The Chaparral 2F

The Chaparral 2F was a fiberglass chassis closed-cockpit 2D combined with the aerodynamic features of the aluminum 2E. Its rear-mounted moveable wing rested on struts and spanned the entire width of the car. Controlled via a foot-operated pedal, the wing would lay flat in a low-drag position when the pedal was pressed and reset to a downward angle when the pedal was released. Like its predecessor, the 2F's stability at speed was improved by the spring-loaded front air dam which would open at speeds in excess of 140 mph.

The car had fiberglass coachwork, a Chevrolet aluminum big-block 427 cubic-inch (7 liters) V8 engine, and a three-speed automatic transmission. Developing 525 horsepower at 6,000 RPM and weighing a mere 1,750 lbs, the 2F was extremely fast, but its large engine proved too much for the automatic transmission to handle. When the transmission issues were resolved, the 2F won its solo victory in 1967 at the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch (July 30th) with Hill and Mike Spence driving.

Two examples of the Chaparral 2F were built and only one has survived. Both cars were raced at the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1967, with Hill and Spence piloting the #7 car, and Bob Johnson and Bruce Jennings in the #8 car. The #7 car had the second-best qualifying time behind the Ford Mark VI of Mark Donahue and Bruce McLaren. During the race, the #7 car completed 225 laps in 18 hours before it was forced to retire. The #8 car completed 91 laps and 10 hours before its day came to an end.

The Chaparral cars were consistently among the most beautifully constructed and innovative racecars of the era. The designs were often considered too advanced and drew protests which led to the components being banned from competition. Among them was the Chaparral 2F which proved to be a potent contender with its victory at the BOAC 500.

by Daniel Vaughan | Jan 2023