Formula Ford 1600

Formula Ford was developed in the UK in the late 60's, with the cars making their race debut in July 1967. John Webb of Brands Hatch circuit, Geoff Clarke of Motor Racing Stables (the circuit's resident race driving school) and Fords Henry Taylor were largely responsible for its creation. Legend has it that Clarke decided to bolt an OHV 1500cc Cortina Engine into a 1966 Lotus Type 31 Chassis after becoming fed up with Students blowing up expensive F3 engines and was suitably impressed by the results.

Lotus Type 31

When the formula was first established, it ran on road tyres, used road engines, and a price cap was placed on rolling chassis - the intention was very much to create an affordable form of single-seater racing. Formula Ford is and always has been an open formula for chassis suppliers. Current suppliers include Van Diemen, Mygale, and Ray, but notable Chassis manufactures such as Lola, March and Brabham have all produced a chassis at some point over the last 40 Years.

Still the most commonly used engine is the 1600cc Ford Crossflow (Kent). Although the unit can be tuned to over 145 BHP with the addition of Twin Carbs, high lift cams and an overbore, the competition rules limit what work can be carried out. A good, well built crossflow can still produce approximately 115 BHP, which is 30+ BHP more than the original Cortina Engine!

Ford 1600 "Kent"

During the 1990's, Ford introduced the 1800 "Zetec" engine. This ran with a "twin cam" set up and fuel injection and was considerably more powerful. Although a good strong engine and in plentiful supply, the "Zetec" engined race cars have fallen out of favour in a relatively short time and many of the cars have been converted to run the "Kent" Engine. Present day Formula Ford uses Ford's new 1.6 Duratec engine.

Since it's 1967 inception, Formula Ford has become established as the first major step on the ladder to formula One and international race recognition. Of the many drivers to have benefited from Formula Ford apprenticeships, notables such as Emerson Fittipaldi, James Hunt, Jody Scheckter, Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Damon Hill and M Schumacher have all gone on to win the F1 title.