Surtees TS20

Surtees TS20

Surtees TS20 (Vittorio Brambilla), Brands Hatch, 1978
Category	Formula One
Constructor	Surtees
Designer(s)	John Surtees Ken Sears
Predecessor	Surtees TS19
Technical specifications
Chassis	Aluminium alloy monocoque
Axle track	Front: 1,651 mm (65.0 in) Rear: 1,613 mm (63.5 in)
Wheelbase	2,642 mm (104.0 in)
Engine	Ford-Cosworth DFV 2,993 cc (182.6 cu in) V8 naturally aspirated Mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission	Hewland FGA 400 6-speed manual
Weight	601 kg (1,325.0 lb)
Fuel	FINA
Tyres	Goodyear
Competition history
Notable entrants	Beta Team Surtees Durex Team Surtees
Notable drivers	Vittorio Brambilla Beppe Gabbiani Rupert Keegan Gimax René Arnoux
Debut	1978 Monaco Grand Prix
Races Wins Poles F.Laps 12 0 0 0
n.b. Unless otherwise stated, all data refer to Formula One World Championship Grands Prix only.

The Surtees TS20 was a Formula One car used by Surtees during the 1978 Formula One season. It was designed by John Surtees and Ken Sears.^{[1] [2]}

Racing history

The team used the Surtees TS19 for the first four races before it was replaced by the TS20, Only one chassis was available for Italian Vittorio Brambilla. The TS20 made its debut at the 1978 Monaco Grand Prix but Brambilla failed to qualify,^[3] The Italian finished 13th in Belgian.^[4] For the Spanish Grand Prix, a second car became available for Englishman Rupert Keegan. Both men finished the race with Brambilla seventh and Keegan 11th.^[5] At Sweden, the Englishman failed to qualify and the Italian retired with an accident.^[6] The French Grand Prix saw Brambilla 17th and Keegan retire with engine failure.^[7] At Britain, the Englishman failed to qualify and the Italian finished ninth.^[8] The German Grand Prix saw Brambilla retire with fuel system failure and Keegan fail to qualify.^[9] At Austria, the Englishman failed to qualify and the Italian finished sixth.^[10] The Dutch Grand Prix saw Brambilla disqualified after a push at the start of the race and Keegan did not start after crashing in the Sunday warm-up and injuring his hand.^[11] Keegan was replaced by Italian Gimax for Italy but failed to qualify and Brambilla retired after he, James Hunt, Riccardo Patrese, Ronnie Peterson, Hans-Joachim Stuck, Patrick Depailler, Didier Pironi, Derek Daly, Clay Regazzoni and Brett Lunger were all involved in an accident before the first corner. Brambilla suffered serious head injuries when he was hit by a flying wheel during the multiple collision on the opening lap but survived.^[12] Brambilla was replaced by Italian Beppe Gabbiani and Gimax was replaced by Frenchman René Arnoux for the final two races. For the United States Grand Prix East Gabbiani failed to qualify and Arounx finished ninth.^[13] For the final round in Canada, the Italian failed to qualify and the Frenchman retired with engine failure.^[14] Unable to get sufficient money, the team left F1 after the 1978 season, despite having a car built for 1979. After racing the car in the British Aurora series (formerly F5000) briefly that year, Surtees Racing Organization was closed for good.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key) (results in italics indicate fastest lap)

References

Surtees
Founder John Surtees Noted Personnel Len Terry Notable drivers John Surtees Derek Bell Rolf Stommelen Mike Hailwood Tim Schenken Andrea de Adamich José Carlos Pace Alan Jones Vittorio Brambilla Formula One cars TS7 TS9 TS9B TS14 TS14A TS16 TS19 TS20