DBR9 - THE DEFINITIVE HISTORY by T.A.G. Verlag GmbH

>> David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, George Howard-Chappell, Ian Ludgate, Jason Hill, Mick Metcalfe, Sean Perrot, Mark Cromack, Andrew Parker, Stuart Lane, Arthur Shaw, Richard Groundsell, Gavin Fuller, Mark Lever, Sarah Durose, James Gritt, Allan Baird, Hodge, Graham Moore, Chris Fuller, Sam Redfen, Darren Page, David Sherburn, Graham Curtis, Alan Wyatt, David Johnstone, Martin Steve Jones, Charles Plummer, Mike Akehurst, James Plummer, Ian Bunton, Daniel Dole, Alan McGee, Robert White, Robert Milli Frédéric Makowiecki, Stefan Mücke, Fabio Babini, Philipp Peter, Ryan Sharp, Clivio Piccione, Alex Müller, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer Denis Délétraz, Jamie Davies, Gabriele Gardel, Christian Hohenadel, Stef Dusseldorp, Allan Simonsen, Christoffer Nygaard, Fer ve Zacchia, Enrico Toccacelo, Matteo Malucceli, Vincent Vosse, Yann Clairay, Christian Fittipaldi, Greg Franchi, Akihiro Tsu Gruber, Nelson Piquet, Nelson Piquet jr, Roland Bervillé, Diego Alessi, Gabriele Lancieri, Jean-Marc Gounon, Johnny Kane, Jo Rob Bell, Alex Frassinetti, Alexandre Negrão, Alexei Vasiliev, Nicolas Kiesa, Anthony Kinch, Casper Elgaard, Frank Diefenbac Harald Frentzen, Luke Hines, Piers Johnson, Riccardo Ragazzi, Richard Lyons, Stéphane Lémeret, Marco Seefried, Roald Goethe, Lucchini, Rik Bryan, Dirk Theimann, Alcides Diniz, Henry Barczynski, Jan Struwe, Antonín Charouz, Tiziano Minuti, Jack Lecon Bell, Steve Heggar, Rob Shirle, Graham Schultz, Kerry Adams, Marco Gadola, Nigel Stepney, Antoine Penven, Othmar Welti, Johan Dr Ulrich Bez, George Howard-Chappell, Ian Ludgate, Jason Hill, Mick Metcalfe, Sean Perrot, Mark Cromack, Stuart Allen, Dave W art Lane, Arthur Shaw, Richard Groundsell, Gavin Fuller, Mark Lever, Sarah Durose, James Gritt, Allan Baird, John Ogden, Jon Moore, Chris Fuller, Sam Redfen, Darren Page, David Sherburn, Graham Curtis, Alan Wyatt, David Johnstone, Martin Ellis, Ryan B Charles Plummer, Mike Akehurst, James Plummer, Ian Bunton, Daniel Dole, Alan McGee, Robert White, Robert Milligan, Steve Corb wiecki, Stefan Mücke, Fabio Babini, Philipp Peter, Ryan Sharp, Clivio Piccione, Alex Müller, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, Fabrizio G traz, Jamie Davies, Gabriele Gardel, Christian Hohenadel, Stef Dusseldorp, Allan Simonsen, Christoffer Nygaard, Ferdinando Mo Enrico Toccacelo, Matteo Malucceli, Vincent Vosse, Yann Clairay, Christian Fittipaldi, Greg Franchi, Akihiro Tsuzuki, Takeshi son Piquet, Nelson Piquet jr, Roland Bervillé, Diego Alessi, Gabriele Lancieri, Jean-Marc Gounon, Johnny Kane, Jonathan Cocker Frassinetti, Alexandre Negrão, Alexei Vasiliev, Nicolas Kiesa, Anthony Kinch, Casper Elgaard, Frank Diefenbacher, Giorgio Mon Luke Hines, Piers Johnson, Riccardo Ragazzi, Richard Lyons, Stéphane Lémeret, Marco Seefried, Roald Goethe, Janette Green, Jo Dirk Theimann, Alcides Diniz, Henry Barczynski, Jan Struwe, Antonín Charouz, Tiziano Minuti, Jack Leconte, Hardy Fischer, Phil Shirle, Graham Schultz, Kerry Adams, Marco Gadola, Nigel Stepney, Antoine Penven, Othmar Welti, Johannes Gruber, Massimo del Howard-Chappell, Ian Ludgate, Jason Hill, Mick Metcalfe, Sean Perrot, Mark Cromack, Stuart Allen, Dave Wilcock, Jody Eggingto Richard Groundsell, Gavin Fuller, Mark Lever, Sarah Durose, James Gritt, Allan Baird, John Ogden, Jonathan Woodward, Alistair Redfen, Darren Page, David Sherburn, Graham Curtis, Alan Wyatt, David Johnstone, Martin Ellis, Ryan Brookes, Elliott Mewse, Akehurst, James Plummer, Ian Bunton, Daniel Dole, Alan McGee, Robert White, Robert Milligan, Steve Corbett, Lucas Polglase, Fabio Babini, Philipp Peter, Ryan Sharp, Clivio Piccione, Alex Müller, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, Fabrizio Gollin, Stéphane Sarraz briele Gardel, Christian Hohenadel, Stef Dusseldorp, Allan Simonsen, Christoffer Nygaard, Ferdinando Monfardini, Jonathan Hi Matteo Malucceli, Vincent Vosse, Yann Clairay, Christian Fittipaldi, Greg Franchi, Akihiro Tsuzuki, Takeshi Tsuchiya, Chapman Piquet jr, Roland Bervillé, Diego Alessi, Gabriele Lancieri, Jean-Marc Gounon, Johnny Kane, Jonathan Cocker, Jos Menten, Marc xandre Negrão, Alexei Vasiliev, Nicolas Kiesa, Anthony Kinch, Casper Elgaard, Frank Diefenbacher, Giorgio Mondini, Jamie Campb Johnson, Riccardo Ragazzi, Richard Lyons, Stéphane Lémeret, Marco Seefried, Roald Goethe, Janette Green, John Muirhead, Davi Alcides Diniz, Henry Barczynski, Jan Struwe, Antonín Charouz, Tiziano Minuti, Jack Leconte, Hardy Fischer, Philippe Dumas, And Schultz, Kerry Adams, Marco Gadola, Nigel Stepney, Antoine Penven, Othmar Welti, Johannes Gruber, Massimo del Prete, Alfred Ian Ludgate, Jason Hill, Mick Metcalfe, Sean Perrot, Mark Cromack, Stuart Allen, Dave Wilcock, Jody Eggington, Matthew Cross, sell, Gavin Fuller, Mark Lever, Sarah Durose, James Gritt, Allan Baird, John Ogden, Jonathan Woodward, Alistair Grimshaw, Ste ren Page, David Sherburn, Graham Curtis, Alan Wyatt, David Johnstone, Martin Ellis, Ryan Brookes, Elliott Mewse, Richard Lu James Plummer, Ian Bunton, Daniel Dole, Alan McGee, Robert White, Robert Milligan, Steve Corbett, Lucas Polglase, Darren Turne Philipp Peter, Ryan Sharp, Clivio Piccione, Alex Müller, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, Fabrizio Gollin, Stéphane Sarrazin, Patrick B Christian Hohenadel, Stef Dusseldorp, Allan Simonsen, Christoffer Nygaard, Ferdinando Monfardini, Jonathan Hirschi, Miguel Ra Vincent Vosse, Yann Clairay, Christian Fittipaldi, Greg Franchi, Akihiro Tsuzuki, Takeshi Tsuchiya, Chapman Ducote, Christian Bervillé, Diego Alessi, Gabriele Lancieri, Jean-Marc Gounon, Johnny Kane, Jonathan Cocker, Jos Menten, Marc Goosens, Marcel Fä xei Vasiliev, Nicolas Kiesa, Anthony Kinch, Casper Elgaard, Frank Diefenbacher, Giorgio Mondini, Jamie Campbell-Walter, Jarek do Ragazzi, Richard Lyons, Stéphane Lémeret, Marco Seefried, Roald Goethe, Janette Green, John Muirhead, David King, Frédéri Henry Barczynski, Jan Struwe, Antonín Charouz, Tiziano Minuti, Jack Leconte, Hardy Fischer, Philippe Dumas, Andreas Hainke, K ry Adams, Marco Gadola, Nigel Stepney, Antoine Penven, Othmar Welti, Johannes Gruber, Massimo del Prete, Alfred Deboef, Hans Jason Hill, Mick Metcalfe, Sean Perrot, Mark Cromack, Stuart Allen, Dave Wilcock, Jody Eggington, Matthew Cross, Philippe Pos ler, Mark Lever, Sarah Durose, James Gritt, Allan Baird, John Ogden, Jonathan Woodward, Alistair Grimshaw, Stewart Gale, Jeff Sherburn, Graham Curtis, Alan Wyatt, David Johnstone, Martin Ellis, Ryan Brookes, Elliott Mewse, Richard Luxton, Simon Edward Bunton, Daniel Dole, Alan McGee, Robert White, Robert Milligan, Steve Corbett, Lucas Polglase, Darren Turner, Tomáš Enge, Karl Sharp, Clivio Piccione, Alex Müller, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, Fabrizio Gollin, Stéphane Sarrazin, Patrick Bornhauser, Robert Lec Stef Dusseldorp, Allan Simonsen, Christoffer Nygaard, Ferdinando Monfardini, Jonathan Hirschi, Miguel Ramos, Peter Hardman, Clairay, Christian Fittipaldi, Greg Franchi, Akihiro Tsuzuki, Takeshi Tsuchiya, Chapman Ducote, Christian Vann, Stéphane Orte si, Gabriele Lancieri, Jean-Marc Gounon, Johnny Kane, Jonathan Cocker, Jos Menten, Marc Goosens, Marcel Fässler, Nikolai Fomen Kiesa, Anthony Kinch, Casper Elgaard, Frank Diefenbacher, Giorgio Mondini, Jamie Campbell-Walter, Jarek Janiš, Jason Bright Lyons, Stéphane Lémeret, Marco Seefried, Roald Goethe, Janette Green, John Muirhead, David King, Frédéric Dor, Jac Nelleman, Struwe, Antonín Charouz, Tiziano Minuti, Jack Leconte, Hardy Fischer, Philippe Dumas, Andreas Hainke, Katharina Lichtner-Hoye Nigel Stepney, Antoine Penven, Othmar Welti, Johannes Gruber, Massimo del Prete, Alfred Deboef, Hans Mühlbauer, Pascal

Stuart Allen, Dave Wilcock, Jody Eggington, Matthew Cross, Philippe Postle, Rob Lewis, Ric Simpson, Andrew Jacks, Ed Turner, John Ogden, Jonathan Woodward, Alistair Grimshaw, Stewart Gale, Jeff Calam, Fiona Moore, Chris Deverson, Phil Morgan, Charles n Ellis, Ryan Brookes, Elliott Mewse, Richard Luxton, Simon Edwards, Barry Whitehead, Adam Standing, Pete Windle, Mark Hudson, igan, Steve Corbett, Lucas Polglase, Darren Turner, Tomáš Enge, Karl Wendlinger, Pedro Lamy, Andrea Piccini, Antonio García, r, Fabrizio Gollin, Stéphane Sarrazin, Patrick Bornhauser, Robert Lechner, David Brabham, Peter Kox, Christophe Bouchut, Jeanrdinando Monfardini, Jonathan Hirschi, Miguel Ramos, Peter Hardman, Christian Pescatori, Gregor Fisken, Terry Borcheller, Steuzuki, Takeshi Tsuchiya, Chapman Ducote, Christian Vann, Stéphane Ortelli, Liz Halliday, Nick Leventis, Thomas Accary, Thomas onathan Cocker, Jos Menten, Marc Goosens, Marcel Fässler, Nikolai Fomenko, Fernando Rees, Helio Castroneves, Rickard Rydell, cher, Giorgio Mondini, Jamie Campbell-Walter, Jarek Janiš, Jason Bright, Jiří Janák, Johnny Herbert, José María López, Heinz, Janette Green, John Muirhead, David King, Frédéric Dor, Jac Nelleman, Harry Leventis, Michael Fux, Peter Breuer, Giuseppe nte, Hardy Fischer, Philippe Dumas, Andreas Hainke, Katharina Lichtner-Hoyer, Georg Silbermayr, Jan Kalmar, Mark Lemmer, Jim nnes Gruber, Massimo del Prete, Alfred Deboef, Hans Mühlbauer, Pascal Zurlinden, Toby Phillips, Claude Roth, David Richards, Wilcock, Jody Eggington, Matthew Cross, Philippe Postle, Rob Lewis, Ric Simpson, Andrew Jacks, Ed Turner, Andrew Parker, Stunathan Woodward, Alistair Grimshaw, Stewart Gale, Jeff Calam, Fiona Moore, Chris Deverson, Phil Morgan, Charles Hodge, Graham Brookes, Elliott Mewse, Richard Luxton, Simon Edwards, Barry Whitehead, Adam Standing, Pete Windle, Mark Hudson, Steve Jones, bett, Lucas Polglase, Darren Turner, Tomáš Enge, Karl Wendlinger, Pedro Lamy, Andrea Piccini, Antonio García, Frédéric MakoGollin, Stéphane Sarrazin, Patrick Bornhauser, Robert Lechner, David Brabham, Peter Kox, Christophe Bouchut, Jean-Denis Déléonfardini, Jonathan Hirschi, Miguel Ramos, Peter Hardman, Christian Pescatori, Gregor Fisken, Terry Borcheller, Steve Zacchia, i Tsuchiya, Chapman Ducote, Christian Vann, Stéphane Ortelli, Liz Halliday, Nick Leventis, Thomas Accary, Thomas Gruber, Nelr, Jos Menten, Marc Goosens, Marcel Fässler, Nikolai Fomenko, Fernando Rees, Helio Castroneves, Rickard Rydell, Rob Bell, Alex ndini, Jamie Campbell-Walter, Jarek Janiš, Jason Bright, Jiří Janák, Johnny Herbert, José María López, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, ohn Muirhead, David King, Frédéric Dor, Jac Nelleman, Harry Leventis, Michael Fux, Peter Breuer, Giuseppe Lucchini, Rik Bryan, lippe Dumas, Andreas Hainke, Katharina Lichtner-Hoyer, Georg Silbermayr, Jan Kalmar, Mark Lemmer, Jim Bell, Steve Heggar, Rob l Prete, Alfred Deboef, Hans Mühlbauer, Pascal Zurlinden, Toby Phillips, Claude Roth, David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, George on, Matthew Cross, Philippe Postle, Rob Lewis, Ric Simpson, Andrew Jacks, Ed Turner, Andrew Parker, Stuart Lane, Arthur Shaw, r Grimshaw, Stewart Gale, Jeff Calam, Fiona Moore, Chris Deverson, Phil Morgan, Charles Hodge, Graham Moore, Chris Fuller, Sam Richard Luxton, Simon Edwards, Barry Whitehead, Adam Standing, Pete Windle, Mark Hudson, Steve Jones, Charles Plummer, Mike , Darren Turner, Tomáš Enge, Karl Wendlinger, Pedro Lamy, Andrea Piccini, Antonio García, Frédéric Makowiecki, Stefan Mücke, zin, Patrick Bornhauser, Robert Lechner, David Brabham, Peter Kox, Christophe Bouchut, Jean-Denis Délétraz, Jamie Davies, Gairschi, Miguel Ramos, Peter Hardman, Christian Pescatori, Gregor Fisken, Terry Borcheller, Steve Zacchia, Enrico Toccacelo, n Ducote, Christian Vann, Stéphane Ortelli, Liz Halliday, Nick Leventis, Thomas Accary, Thomas Gruber, Nelson Piquet, Nelson Goosens, Marcel Fässler, Nikolai Fomenko, Fernando Rees, Helio Castroneves, Rickard Rydell, Rob Bell, Alex Frassinetti, Alebell-Walter, Jarek Janiš, Jason Bright, Jiří Janák, Johnny Herbert, José María López, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Luke Hines, Piers id King, Frédéric Dor, Jac Nelleman, Harry Leventis, Michael Fux, Peter Breuer, Giuseppe Lucchini, Rik Bryan, Dirk Theimann, dreas Hainke, Katharina Lichtner-Hoyer, Georg Silbermayr, Jan Kalmar, Mark Lemmer, Jim Bell, Steve Heggar, Rob Shirle, Graham Deboef, Hans Mühlbauer, Pascal Zurlinden, Toby Phillips, Claude Roth, David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, George Howard-Chappell, , Philippe Postle, Rob Lewis, Ric Simpson, Andrew Jacks, Ed Turner, Andrew Parker, Stuart Lane, Arthur Shaw, Richard Groundewart Gale, Jeff Calam, Fiona Moore, Chris Deverson, Phil Morgan, Charles Hodge, Graham Moore, Chris Fuller, Sam Redfen, Daruxton, Simon Edwards, Barry Whitehead, Adam Standing, Pete Windle, Mark Hudson, Steve Jones, Charles Plummer, Mike Akehurst, er, Tomáš Enge, Karl Wendlinger, Pedro Lamy, Andrea Piccini, Antonio García, Frédéric Makowiecki, Stefan Mücke, Fabio Babini, Bornhauser, Robert Lechner, David Brabham, Peter Kox, Christophe Bouchut, Jean-Denis Délétraz, Jamie Davies, Gabriele Gardel, amos, Peter Hardman, Christian Pescatori, Gregor Fisken, Terry Borcheller, Steve Zacchia, Enrico Toccacelo, Matteo Malucceli, n Vann, Stéphane Ortelli, Liz Halliday, Nick Leventis, Thomas Accary, Thomas Gruber, Nelson Piquet, Nelson Piquet jr, Roland ässler, Nikolai Fomenko, Fernando Rees, Helio Castroneves, Rickard Rydell, Rob Bell, Alex Frassinetti, Alexandre Negrão, Alek Janiš, Jason Bright, Jiří Janák, Johnny Herbert, José María López, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Luke Hines, Piers Johnson, Riccaric Dor, Jac Nelleman, Harry Leventis, Michael Fux, Peter Breuer, Giuseppe Lucchini, Rik Bryan, Dirk Theimann, Alcides Diniz, Katharina Lichtner-Hoyer, Georg Silbermayr, Jan Kalmar, Mark Lemmer, Jim Bell, Steve Heggar, Rob Shirle, Graham Schultz, KerMühlbauer, Pascal Zurlinden, Toby Phillips, Claude Roth, David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, George Howard-Chappell, Ian Ludgate, stle, Rob Lewis, Ric Simpson, Andrew Jacks, Ed Turner, Andrew Parker, Stuart Lane, Arthur Shaw, Richard Groundsell, Gavin Fulf Calam, Fiona Moore, Chris Deverson, Phil Morgan, Charles Hodge, Graham Moore, Chris Fuller, Sam Redfen, Darren Page, David ds, Barry Whitehead, Adam Standing, Pete Windle, Mark Hudson, Steve Jones, Charles Plummer, Mike Akehurst, James Plummer, Ian l Wendlinger, Pedro Lamy, Andrea Piccini, Antonio García, Frédéric Makowiecki, Stefan Mücke, Fabio Babini, Philipp Peter, Ryan chner, David Brabham, Peter Kox, Christophe Bouchut, Jean-Denis Délétraz, Jamie Davies, Gabriele Gardel, Christian Hohenadel, Christian Pescatori, Gregor Fisken, Terry Borcheller, Steve Zacchia, Enrico Toccacelo, Matteo Malucceli, Vincent Vosse, Yann elli, Liz Halliday, Nick Leventis, Thomas Accary, Thomas Gruber, Nelson Piquet, Nelson Piquet jr, Roland Bervillé, Diego Alesnko, Fernando Rees, Helio Castroneves, Rickard Rydell, Rob Bell, Alex Frassinetti, Alexandre Negrão, Alexei Vasiliev, Nicolas t, Jiří Janák, Johnny Herbert, José María López, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Luke Hines, Piers Johnson, Riccardo Ragazzi, Richard Harry Leventis, Michael Fux, Peter Breuer, Giuseppe Lucchini, Rik Bryan, Dirk Theimann, Alcides Diniz, Henry Barczynski, Jan er, Georg Silbermayr, Jan Kalmar, Mark Lemmer, Jim Bell, Steve Heggar, Rob Shirle, Graham Schultz, Kerry Adams, Marco Gadola, Zurlinden, Toby Phillips, Claude Roth, David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, George Howard-Chappell, Ian Ludgate, Jason Hill

DBR9 GT1

Foreword

In our normal lives it is neither our profession nor our passion to write books. Our paths crossed be-

cause of this special car. We felt compelled to produce this book because of our fascination with the

DBR9. The time was right because the homologation licence for the DBR9 had expired but the memo-

ries were still fresh in the minds of those who had been involved. Thanks to superb co-operation from Aston Martin and Prodive we were in a position to really immerse ourselves in the subject. We believe

that nobody else has ever before tried to explore a race car with such intensity, whether it be the aerodynamic evaluation or the virtual rebuilding of it in 3D.

As soon as we finished the first interviews it became obvious that there were more people around

feeling the same as we did. It doesn’t happen very often that a racing car of such timeless beauty containing all the necessary ingredients, built from one of the most famous sportscar manufacturers in

history, turns out to be an extraordinarily successful contender from the very first race. Saying this, one has to consider that in 2004 when the decision was made to build the DBR9, Aston Martin was a niche player in comparison with all the other competitors in worldwide GT racing. Nevertheless it beat them all and won the most important race, the Le Mans 24 Hours, twice.

Extracts from some of the most remarkable statements we heard during the last two years of research underline the passion for the DBR9:

>> I saw the drawings of the car and I thought, I have to have one of those! << Rik Bryan, car owner

>> There are still people today who say that the Aston was the most fascinating car ever to have been in our workshop. The 12-cylinder engine, the sound of the car and the look of the car are simply inspirational!<< Dirk Theimann, Team Manager Phoenix Racing

>> If I won the EuroMillions, the DBR9 is the car I’d buy. <<

Darren Turner, works driver

>>Technologically, the cars were simply sensational. <<

Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, team owner Jetalliance Racing

>>It was pretty cool, a great car. In fact, it was a fantastic car. <<

Mark Lemmer, team owner Barwell Motorsports.

>> She was really aggressive and asked a lot of the driver to be at two hundred per cent. She was really a bit nervous. Amazing engine with a lot of torque and a lot of power and the gearbox really fast, really quick and the brakes very good. The DBR9 is my favourite car of my career. << Frédéric Makowiecki, racing driver

>> It was fantastic for us to run what for me is a legendary car. << Philippe Dumas, Team Manager Hexis Racing

That is why this book had to be written …

Christoph Mäder

Thomas Gruber

DBR9 – The Definitive History

2004–2012

p:06

Table of contents

Contents

>>â&#x20AC;&#x160;

The initial idea

008

Aston Martin DB9 CoupĂŠ

018

Development DBR9 GT1

032

Homologation

054

Engine

062

Drivetrain

082

Suspension

092

Aerodynamics

100

Handling

118

Technical updates

128

GT1 racing

140

Works and customer teams

154

Chassis numbers and teams

240

Race history

262

Statistics

270

p:07

p:08

The initial idea

The initial idea Some 50 years after the DBR1 had won the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans, Aston Martin made a wholehearted return to motorsport with the DBR9.

>> I have loved Aston Martins for many, many years. I have the old Astons, everything. And I’ve always wanted to go racing with Aston.<< David Richards

The idea to develop a version of the DB9 suitable for a motorsport programme came

directly from Aston Martin. However, one couldn’t deny that a certain fan of the Brit-

ish marque helped the process along. David

no money. We can’t do it. [Parent company]

car preparation specialist with a formidable

Richards’ proposal was to go GT racing with a

Richards, the man behind Prodrive – a race-

record in rallying and touring cars – owned

an array of Aston Martins of all ages, dating from the 1930s to more contemporary mod-

Ford won’t give us the money to go racing.’” production car, but Aston Martin only had the DB7. He had to wait for the right time.

els. At the time, this charismatic businessman

That time, when Aston Martin could use rac-

Prodrive commitments with the role of chair-

desire for brand building, would come under

and driven automotive visionary juggled his

man of Aston Martin. “I've loved Aston Martins for many, many years,” he said. “And I’ve al-

ways wanted to go racing with Aston Martin.” He had already approached the company with a proposal to build a car. “They said, ‘we've

ing to celebrate its heritage as well as feed a new management. But only after the ethos of the whole company had changed.

Dr Ulrich Bez, an ex-Porsche manager and

board member, was installed by Ford’s top management as the new CEO of the British

brand in 2000. When he took up his new role,

p:09

Flat bottom

The floor of the car was basically divided into three sections. The front splitter (here without the “bullet”), the completely flat middle part and the diffuser.

Wheels & Brakes Wheel front

12.5‘ x 18‘

Wheels rear

13‘ x 18‘

Tyres front

29/65-18

Tyres rear

31/71-18

Brakes Brake disc front

380 mm x 37 mm

Brake disc rear

380 mm x 37 mm

Operating temp.

p:052

Brembo, 6 piston calipers

600°– 900° C

The development

Dimensions

Engine DBR9

Length

4687 mm

Engine

V12, air restricted

Width

1978 mm

Valves

Height

1110 mm

Bank angle

Wheelbase

2471 mm

Bore

Front overhang

1036 mm

Stroke

60° 94 mm 71.96 mm

Weight (FIA)

1100 kg

Displacement

5993 cm3

Weight (ACO)

1150 kg

Intake valve Ø

37.0 mm

Fuel capacity*

100 ltr.

Exhaust valve Ø

32.0 mm

Intake valve lift

13.0 mm

Exhaust valve lift

11.5 mm

*The FIA always stipulated the 100 ltr. tank. The ACO decreased the volume to 90 ltr. for 2007 and onwards.

Compression* Fuel

13:1 102 Octane

Max. power*

585 hp @ 6000 rpm

Max. torque*

700 Nm

Rev limit Weight*

7200 rpm 200 kg

* Approximate figures. Power and torque figures vary depending on the air restrictors’ diameter. Weight and valve lift figures refer to C respectively E-spec.

p:053

â&#x20AC;&#x160; >>

George Howard-Chappell

The fia GT reg an aero form

Aerodynamic development

The general shape of the car had to be retained. Front and rear bumpers were free, as long as they kept the general appearance. At the axles the car could be widened by 100 mm. Furthermore, a flat floor, splitter, rear wing and diffuser were allowed.

p:0100

chapter

ulations were ula.

p:0101

p:102

Aerodynamics

Aero

Aerodynamic development

Aston Martin Racing decided on a new approach when designing the aerodynamics of the DBR9. The car was developed purely using CFD. No wind tunnel models were produced. It was a big decision – perhaps driven by fi-

Chief engineer Ian Ludgate remembered: “It

the time. With the limited budget in mind and

mit to a full CFD car rather than doing some

nancial constraints, but nonetheless bold for

the ever-shorter development timeframes

usual in motorsport (in the case of the DBR9

>> It was very forward thinking of George to commit to a full CFD car rather than doing some traditional aero work.<< Ian Ludgate

we look at a relatively generous nine months) George Howard-Chappell opted to use computational fluid dynamics (CFD) in the design

was very forward thinking of George to comtraditional aero work". Aston Martin Racing took pride in its estimation of being the first to have developed a race car to compete at this level using primarily CFD.

process instead of the traditional wind tunnel

Very early on specialist company Advantage

teams made use of.

its first car to be developed exclusively in CFD.

work that race teams and also Formula One

At the beginning of the new millennium the

standard was to rely on a combination of wind tunnel figures of scale models and running track tests. At that time, CFD was seen as a useful tool to back up wind tunnel work

and was used for evaluating individual components. The method was deemed inappropriate for a complete car since computer hard-

ware was the limiting factor as it was unable to perform the necessary calculations within

an adequate timeframe. Nick Wirth was the

CFD came on-board. The DBR9 would become Aerodynamics engineers Dr Rob Lewis, Philipe

Postl and Matthew Cross worked on the DBR9 project on behalf of Advantage CFD in close

collaboration with Ian Ludgate’s Prodrive en-

gineering team in Banbury. Matthew Cross looked back: “Seven years ago when we did the car, it was a bit of a watershed for us. It

was the first time that we had been aware of a car being done completely in CFD and go-

ing straight to the track. It moved us from

being analysts of why did this part work and

first Formula One designer to rely solely on this concept, but this was some five years later with the Virgin Formula One contender of 2010.

p:103

1 2

1 CFD stream traces 2 The passenger cabin affects the flow around the rear wing 3 Visualised vortices at rear wing end plates

why that part didn’t work, verifying, backing up what the wind tunnel was doing, to being

let off the leash and being able to work with the guys here at Prodrive to actually develop aerodynamic parts of the car: what should the

bumper look like, what should the splitter be shaped like, what does the rear wing need to look like to maximize the aero performance. It really was a watershed.”

>> Seven years ago when we did that car in CFD, it was a bit of a watershed for us.<< Matthew Cross

Advantage CFD started life in 1998 finding its origins in the Reynard Motorsport Group. In

the late 1990s Reynard's chassis dominated the Champ Car series. At the same time Ken

Tyrell’s Formula One team transformed into

British American Racing (BAR). Reynard and

BAR were the names behind Advantage CFD. The aim was to become the first name in CFD

consultancy for the motor racing industry. As Reynard went bankrupt in 2002, BAR took

ownership of CFD. A few years later British

American Tobacco reduced its sponsorship

involvement and Honda started to take over. By 2007 Honda concentrated its virtual design

power to the Formula One team and Advantage CFD displayed the following message on

its website: “Following a review of Advantage

CFD activity, the provision of external CFD consultancy services will be terminated on March 31st, 2007. This will enable the Honda Racing F1

Team to devote all of its CFD resources to its race objectives.” Since then, the company has

evolved into TotalSim Ltd, based in Brackley, England. In 2012 it employed 13 engineers.

The first contact between Prodrive and Advantage CFD was in 2003. “Our relationship with

Prodrive started with some rear wing work on the 550, carrying out some reverse engineer-

ing by laser scanning it and then designing a

Le Mans rear wing for it,” said Mathew Cross. He admitted that the baseline information of

the previously developed Ferrari 550, the car

that won the GTS class at Le Mans in 2003, had been useful to them. Aston Martin Racing certainly benefited too from Advantage CFD’s involvement with the BAR Formula One team Beautiful vortices spilling over the endplates of the rear wing.

p:104

as a great deal had been invested in new hard-

chapter

1 Mk II sill and Mk I front bumper divert the air sideways away from the car, Spa 2005. 2 2007 Le Mans front bumper without dive planes, closed fender louvres and Mk III sills for less drag.

ware, essential for the extraordinarily high

number of iterations. Rob Lewis explained in

Race Tech Magazine in 2006 (issue number

splitter models was significant compared with the zero expense of five virtual splitters.

065): “This project was a unique opportunity

It had always been a major concern for Advan-

come of age. Aston Martin Racing’s decision

software. Facts and figures were nice, but by

for us to demonstrate that CFD really has to bypass the scale model wind tunnel and

focus on going from CFD straight to track is a major turning point for us.”

By-passing the wind tunnel was obviously ac-

companied by omitting the model manufac-

turing stage, one of the advantages of CFD. Traditional aerodynamic development worked

cyclically. At first the shapes were drawn, and the subsequent models were handmade be-

tage CFD to visualise the data gained from its visualising airflow structures and animations, the software certainly helped the engineers' understanding. In a way, the flow visualisation provided more information than columns of numbers. As a consequence the trial and er-

ror phase in creating a particular shape could

be reduced drastically. Fewer models and options needed to be run before finding the desired significant performance gain.

fore finding their way into the wind tunnel.

The specifications that Prodrive had set out

gets the whole cycle started again. Ludgate

The aim for the DBR9 was to increase down-

If the figures attained did not meet the tarhad become a fan of CFD: “With CFD you can design a component during the day, send it

over to them [Company Advantage CFD] and they’ll run it overnight and get the answers the next day.” Furthermore, the method had

a very positive effect on budget. Matthew Cross added: “You might make six different

splitters to try in the tunnel, but only one of them is promising and then you have made

five scrap”. Clearly, the production cost of five

for Advantage CFD traded off several goals. force and minimise drag while keeping the car predictable for the driver. Stable and

usable downforce was required, preferably well balanced from front to rear. The main

development phase ran from January 2004 to September 2004. Aerodynamic evolution

These two pictures show a specially prepared rear wing at an aero test. This 2007 spec low drag rear wing was developed for Le Mans. The air flow was visualised with the help of a special paraffin-based oil flow green paint. Wherever the lines show a pattern, the airflow stayed attached. Areas missing lines show flow separation. This can be seen around the rivet that holds the gurney on the upper trailing edge of the rear wing profile.

p:105

1 Pressure visualisation of 2005 Sebring spec wing 2 "Hamster cheeks" bumper at Le Mans 2005 3 The bulges settled the airflow around the sides significantly reducing drag

continued to the point when the 24 Hours of

Le Mans was won twice in a row (2007 and

2008). The car was drawn completely in CAD. The software was able to take into account

the airflow through the engine bay and the

intake of air needed for the engine. The basic specification virtual model was evaluated in a variety of conditions. The model included air-

flow through the engine bay, rotating wheels and a moving ground plane. At a later stage the virtual model was tested at different atti-

tudes of yaw and pitch, yaw for simulating the car while turning and pitch for braking when the car’s longitudinal axis dipped below 0°.

Ian Ludgate tried to fine-tune the aero behav-

iour over the seasons: “We did a lot of work towards the end of the aero programme with

the car in different attitudes in CFD to make

sure that it didn’t have any major vices, so

that it didn’t suddenly lose all its downforce or suddenly gain load.” Either scenario could have led to unwanted situations in race conditions.

>> With drag it’s all about how much more downforce this part takes off. It’s about using the deltas.<< Matthew Cross

Procedure

Prodrive’s procedure was to generate a promising shape using Advantage CFD’s simula-

tions and then to verify it by running straightline tests. George Howard-Chappell had a

high opinion of Prodrive’s aero straight-line tests. The works cars were tested in straigt-

line runs at Millbrook, Mira, Turweston and Idiada in Spain to assess the promising parts TAG Books commissioned Spanish company Lince Technologies to evaluate and compare the 2005 Sebring spec high downforce wing (pic top) to the 2008 spec Le Mans LDF wing (pic middle) and the double foil wing that was run in the FIA GT world championship in 2010. A simplified model of the car was used, that did not consider the internal airflow (engine bay, air exits and louvres). Furthermore, the wing supports have also been ignored as they only have a slightly detrimental effect on the rear wing performance. According to Lince's experience this mock-up geometry was an acceptable simplification for aerodynamic evaluation of external devices located in the rear part of the car like rear wings.

and shapes Advantage CFD had conceived. Prodrive developed a system of adjusting the DBR9 to simulate the different attitudes of the car. Ian Ludgate: “Thinking back now, the

CFD process changed significantly over the

life of the project. Towards the end the correlation was getting pretty good.”

Results on the race track also proved that the correlation was not far off at the beginning ei-

ther, since the first race, the Sebring 12 Hours, was won. It was not a dominant victory, but

the pace was visible for all to see from the beginning on. The intention of these straight-

p:106

Aerodynamics

The rear quarter louvres according to ACO specification were allowed to be a little bigger than the FIA type.

DRAG

Downforce

Drag

Downforce Kg

400

2010 FIA 2008 Le Mans

300 200

100

150

speed

achieve this, the rear wheels were deliberately pointed outwards by a couple of degrees, “the

car is driving sideways, crabbing if you like”. The forces were measured by the loads in the

push rods. To calculate the drag figures the car performed a so-called ‘coast down’. “You run at a constant speed, lift off, and then you measure the speed reduction by the telemetry and by data acquisition. You know what the

frontal area is, so you can work out what the drag effect is.” To calculate this you just had to

know what formula Prodrive used. However, it would appear that all Prodrive engineers took a vow of silence, as no one was willing

to share the formula with the authors of this

book. They admitted that talking about cor-

relation is not about comparing absolute values. Matthew Cross: “We don’t necessarily get

too hung up on absolute numbers, CFD saying

x number of newtons. It’s about using the deltas.” Ian Ludgate put it pragmatically: “If it’s a gain over the baseline then that’s good.”

2010 FIA

2008 Le Mans

150

and drag on the car running in yaw or pitch. To

450 300

100

line runs was to test the effect of downforce

2005 Sebring

600

rearwing

2005 Sebring

200

250

300

V km/h

100

150

200

250

speed

Downforce is normally measured in Newton with a negative algebraic sign to demonstrate that the force is pushing down. For easier understanding this graph shows kg (1 kg = 9.81 Newton). All three wing types have been evaluated with the Gurney attached and with the low setting. The angle of attack for all three wings was able to be adjusted within a window of 5°.

Downforce is one thing drag the other. Prodrive and Advantage CFD did not have much time to put into the first rear wing. It produced a lot of downforce but at a high cost. The Sebring spec rear wing produced almost four times as much drag as the highly effective low downforce (LDF) wing that the works team ran for the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2008.

The faster the car traveled, the more downforce was generated. The first wing had the highest values producing over 450 kg of downforce at 250 km/h. The world championship wing and the 2008 spec Le Mans wing were producing similar values, approximately 30% lower.

The double foil rear wing for the FIA GT world championship for 2010 produced only as much downforce as the LDF wing but did so with twice the amount of drag.

The figures on these graphs can only be seen as an approximation as a lot of factors play into the real forces. The correct absolute numbers could only be measured with strain gauges in the wing pillars. The simplified model with the omitted rear wing struts ranges within 15% of the real values. One has to take into consideration that the 5° span within the used angle of attack is also accountable for a significant change in the values.

300

V km/h

Engineers focused on the aerodynamic efficiency which is the downforce to drag ratio. It was also called L/D ratio where the L stood for “lift” and the D for “drag”.

25 mm

90°

All rear wings had to feature a gurney with a height of 25 mm measured in a 90° angle to the wing plane. A gurney may seem little but it has a strong effect. It increased the downforce of the wing quite significantly.

p:107

Nürburgring

Spa francorchamps Zolder Donington Oschersleben

Dijon Magny-Cours

Mosport Portland

Le Mans Val de Vienne

Road Amercia

Algarve

Paul Ricard Jarama

Lédenon Valencia

Road Atlanta

Barcelona Sebring St. Petersburg

Works team & customer teams

FIA-GT1 LMS & ALMS San Luis

p:140

Vallelunga

Mid-Ohio

Houston

Mugello

Nogaro

Detroit

Laguna Seca

Adria

Monza

Lime Rock Salt Lake City

BRNO

Silverstone

Interlagos Mil Milhas counted towards LMS in 2007

Albi

chapter

American Le Mans Series (ALMS)

Le Mans Series (LMS)

FIA GT

Asian Le Mans Series Japanese GT

French GT Championship (FFSA) Mil Milhas

Stand-alone event

Key

Budapest Bucharest

Istanbul

Okayama

Fuji

Dubai

Bahrain

Zhuhai

Abu dhabi

DBR9 around the globe

The works team and Bell Motorsports ran the car in North America. Official partner and customer teams attended FIA GT, LMS, the Asian Le Mans Series, the Czech Endurance championship plus the Mille Milhas in Brazil.

p:141

AMR

Official works Team 2005 –2008 The official works team only campaigned the DBR9 from 2005 until 2008. After 2008 AMR did not race the DBR9 anymore.

p:156

Works team

FIA GT1

LMS

ALMS

Le Mans

Wins

Podiums

Poles

Points

250

Races

Team manager: Engineer: Chief mechanic:

George Howard-Chappell Dave Wilcock Jonathan Woodward

Darren Turner, Tomáˇs Enge, David Brabham, Stéphane Ortelli, Pedro Lamy, Stéphane Sarrazin, Peter Kox, Antonio García, Andrea Piccini, Karl Wendlinger, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Johnny Herbert, Johnny Kane, Patrick Goosens, Jason Bright, Nicolas Kiesa, Rickard Rydell

The official works Aston Martin Racing team operating from Banbury, England, won the Le Mans 24 Hours twice, the Tourist Trophy, the Sebring 12 Hours and five other American Le Mans Series races.

1 2 3 7 8 10

After Aston Martin’s works team had finished racing against the Corvettes the team trucks headed towards Banbury where they were parked on the premises of Prodrive. The com-

>> As a legal entity, Aston Martin Racing is a Prodrive business. All mechanics are from here. << Ben Sayer

plete works outfit was run by Prodrive and

its personnel. Some Aston Martin employees

might have joined at the race tracks, but these people were not mechanics or engineers –

was the American Le Mans Series in 2006. All

ployees from related departments. Prodrive’s

with a two car entry.

they were mostly marketing personnel or em-

public relations manager Ben Sayers on the

in all the works outfit competed in 19 events

matter: “As a legal entity, Aston Martin Rac-

Aston Martin Racing managed to win nine

is a Prodrive employee. Actually they wear

finished in first position at the first attempt

ing is a Prodrive business. Everyone in here

Prodrive clothing when they are based here. And the minute they leave here to go testing

or racing it’s Aston Martin Racing. All mechanics are from here.”

The scope of Aston Martin Racing’s campaign with the DBR9 is fairly manageable. AMR con-

tested the Le Mans 24 Hours four times in suc-

cession with a two car squad between 2005 and 2008. In its inaugural season in 2005 the works team also ran two cars in the USA in

of these 19 events in four years. A works car in the 12 Hours of Sebring plus the Tourist

Trophy, which was the third round of the FIA GT championship in 2005. In 2006 the works

team won five out of ten American Le Mans Series races but missed the title. The highlight

for the team was winning the GT1 category twice at Le Mans. After victory at Le Mans in

2008 the works team shelved racing the DBR9 to allow the team to concentrate on its LMP1 and GT2 operations.

the Sebring 12 Hours, the Petit Le Mans and at

The number of events contested might not be

phy and the Spa 24 Hours. The only complete

the opposite. The decision about which race

Laguna Seca and in Europe in the Tourist Trochampionship the works team ever contested

David Richards, Darren Turner, Stéphane Ortelli, David Brabham and George Howard-Chappell on the winner's podium of the 53rd edition of the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2005

very long, but the test programme was quite to contest was made in a group composed of

p:157

1 2

1 2 3 4

3rd round of FIA GT 2005 at Silverstone Lamy/Kox win the Tourist Trophy 2005 Works team at the Spa 24 Hours in 2005 Victorious car at Sebring refueling

Prodrive and Aston Martin employees. Aston Martin Racing Team Principal George Howard-

Chappell: “I would put forward a proposal and

it would be agreed by what we call a steering

group, which is the management of Prodrive and the management of Aston Martin. We would decide together, taking into account

the wishes of our sponsors and collectors

where we raced.” The bill was not covered by Aston Martin as one might assume from the appearance of the works team. Prodrive had

to be innovative in spreading the costs across many parties. Howard-Chappell: “It’s like a jigsaw puzzle. It’s a mixture of Aston Martin, in-

vestment by Prodrive, owners, straight collec-

tors of the car, sponsors and sometimes even drivers who bring sponsors. So it’s a mixture

of all those that make it work. It’s a cake. It’s difficult to calculate and sometimes you have to take some risks. It doesn’t always work out

exactly as you planned it. It’s not Audi paying

>> It’s not Audi paying Joest multi- million euros – just go, do motorsport, and come back with the trophy. It’s not like that.<< George Howard-Chappell

Joest multi-million euros – just go, do motorsport, and come back with the trophy. It’s not

like that.” The full season in America in 2006

was only possible because of Pirelli and Pok-

erstars. Intercontinental Hotels also made a

large contribution to cover the expenses in

the first years. It was superseded by Gulf Oil, which brought back the iconic light blue and orange paint scheme for 2008 and the second Le Mans GT1 win.

Victory at the first race came unexpectedly.

Prodrive knew that it had a competitive car, but so did the Corvette boys with their newly

developed C6.R and the race was, after all, on their home ground. The number 57 car ran

flawlessly, the Corvettes hit a little trouble

and the debut race for the DBR9 was won. The works team then shipped the cars back

to Europe to contest the third round of the FIA GT championship at Silverstone. George

p:158

Works team

Howard-Chappell points out that finishing

they shoot by like bullets.” Nevertheless, the

speed. The pace was almost identical to that

sitions to its arch rivals from Corvette as Aston

first and second was not down to outright of the competition. The works team just got

everything right with its pit-stops and its race

strategy. Next in line was the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Aston Martin Racing had focused on this highlight of the racing calendar, brought

a package of new aero parts and surprised the competition with its sheer speed. The works cars excelled with fastest lap at the pre-race test day, dominant pole position and fastest

GT1 lap times during the race. The speed traps

regularly recorded the DBR9 at 300 km/h,

team had to concede the first two podium po-

Martin Racing encountered a few problems along the way. The car of Darren Turner, Da-

vid Brabham and Stéphane Sarrazin knocked down a host of traffic cones, which led to two stop-and-go penalties and a broken front

splitter. Furthermore the car suffered a punc-

ture. The sister car of Peter Kox, Tomáˇs Enge and Pedro Lamy also suffered a catalogue of problems. The radio transmission and the

power-assisted steering did not work as they

while the Corvettes clocked up a disappoint-

ing 290 km/h. Corvette driver Oliver Gavin: “The DBR9s are super fast on the straights –

p:159

tion measures came later. “At the time there

Aston Martin Racing Team Principal George Howard-Chappell

wasn’t much air cooling coming in. Le Mans in 2005, I think was one of the hottest ones

on record. Being in an aluminium chassis didn’t really help the situation for dispersing the heat either. I believe someone mentioned

that the cockpit temperature for us was 71 ° C at one point. Most of us were on some sort of drip in between our stints. Doing one hour in

the car was pretty much the limit. Even at 40

minutes you were desperate to get out of the

car.” It was so hot that Turner drank over two

litres of fluid per stint. Normal would have been something less than 500 millilitres. “I

>> It was impressive how

never had to have a wee while driving in my

the Astons blasted past

career. And I did it four times during the race.

us during the night.<<

That sort of shows how extreme it was.” Turn-

Philipp Peter

should have, the front splitter broke and Pe-

er, Brabham and Sarrazin only finished fourth.

dro Lamy had a small off-track excursion. But

these incidents did not prevent the Aston

After missing out on a Le Mans victory, the

a possible win. By the 21st hour both works As-

corchamps with the cars in Sebring aero con-

Martin drivers from staying in contention for

works team entered the 24 Hours of Spa Fran-

tons and both works Corvette were all on the

figuration since the FIA homologation did not

same lap and covered by only three minutes.

allow the Le Mans aero package. The cars were

The DBR9 works cars lost the race in the 23rd

remarkably fast. Maserati driver Philipp Peter

hour when Sarrazin needed a new radiator fit-

who finished the race in second position: “It

ted and Enge was stranded on track attempt-

was impressive how the Astons blasted past

ing a 14th lap. He could have run out of fuel,

us during the night.” The pace was there, but

missing the right moment to pit because of

both cars suffered from an identical problem.

the bad radio, or it might have been the fuel

The brake balance bar was susceptible to the

pump as the press release stated.

moist conditions in the Belgian Ardennes and jammed. Works driver Peter Kox explained

Darren Turner remembered the physical strain

that they had adjusted the brake balance dur-

of the race as it was exceptionally hot. Cool-

ing wet conditions to the rear and it could not

ing air only entered the cockpit through the small ducts in the mirrors. All the heat insula-

ALMS 2006

ACO Standard for Corvette

31.8 31.2

DBR9

ACO Standard for DBR 9

30.8

Corvette DBR9

ACO Standard weight

The third round of the American Le Mans Series in 2006 at Mid-Ohio. Pedro Lamy’s mishap in free practice caught the eye of the TV editor in charge. The unconventional gravel bed excursion was rewarded with a headline in the slow motion replay: Those amazing men in their flying machines.

p:160

1190 1150 1125 1100

12h Sebring Houston C6.R

C6.R

Mid Ohio

Lime Rock

Utah

Portland

Road Am.

Mosport

Petit LM

Laguna

C6.R

DBR9

C6.R

DBR9

Winner

Weight

Corvette

30.7

Works team

1 3

2 4

1 2 3 4

Lamy and Sarrazin celebrate their win at Lime Rock Park in 2006 Photo finish at Lime Rock Park 2006 Chief mechanic Jonathan â&#x20AC;&#x153;Woodyâ&#x20AC;? Woodward waiting for "his 007" at Le Mans 2006 Lamy/Sarrazin win at Mosport 2006 on chassis DBR9/8

>> All the water had got under the floor between the floor and the chassis. You jacked one end of the car up and it was like a river coming out of the car.<< Alistair Grimshaw

p:161

1–109 List of chassis numbers

p:240

chapter

>> 19 DBR9 have been built The plan to produce and sell 12 works cars and 20 customer cars did not work out. Chassis numbers 1-12 were originally planned to be factory works cars, whereas the three digit numbers were used to name customer cars. 19 chassis have been produced, of which two chassis have been written off.

1 dnf

dns

position in GT1 class did not enter

did not finish

did not start

crashed in race disqualified

excluded from the result

Key

p:241

Chassis History

2005 2006 Fabrizio Gollin Fabio Babini Christian Pescatori Matteo Malucelli

1 3 Silverstone

c 24h Le Mans

2 3 Brno 3

- Oschersleben

- 24h Spa

- Paul Ricard

6 6 Dijon 7 5 Mugello 8 3 Budapest 9 4 Adria 10 4 Dubai

2007

Semi-Works car

Fabio Babini Jamie Davies Ferdinando Monfardini Diego Alessi Matteo Malucelli

1 4 Zhuhai 2 7 Silverstone 3 7 Bucharest 4 6 Monza 5 3 Oschersleben 6 c 24h Spa

Chassis DBR9/9 was owned by Italian Giuseppe Lucchini, the man behind Scuderia Italia BMS. It was one of four chassis campaigned

by the Italian team, which held semi-works

status in 2006 and 2007. The car driven by the faster driver pairing of Fabrizio Gollin and Fa-

bio Babini failed to live up to expectations and scored only four third place finishes in two FIA

- Adria

- Brno

- Nogaro

10 - Zolder

2008 2009 2010 2011

GT seasons. The most obvious reason for lack of pace was the choice of tyre.

The chassis missed three of the 2006 FIA GT

rounds due to dates clashing with preparations for the Le Mans 24 Hours. Since the car

already crashed heavily at the same corner

the 24 hours, it also missed the Paul Ricard

lier. The rear was severely damaged, but the

crashed heavily during the opening stages of round whilst it was being rebuilt.

There could be no complaints about the qual-

ity of technical preparation of the BMS cars. Chassis DBR9/9 finished every race it contested, except of course when it crashed out.

It was destroyed at the Blanchimont corner during the Spa 24 Hours in 2007 after having

p:250

during Thursdayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s free practice two days ear-

team repaired it on site only to lose it for a second time during the opening hours of the 24 hour race. Prodrive wrote the chassis off. It

was believed that it was rebuilt as a show car

and remained with Giuseppe Lucchini's car collection.

6 24h Le Mans

Result

Others Round

24 LM Result

Result

LMS Round

FIA Round

Round

ALMS

Result

Several podium finishes in FIA GT Writen off after severe crash

Result

Chassis history

Chassis History

Result

Others Round

24 LM Result

Result

LMS Round

FIA Round

Round

ALMS

Result

Le Mans 24 Hours winning GT1 car

Result

2005 2006 2007 David Brabham Darren Turner Rickard Rydell

1 24h Le Mans

2008 2009 2010 2011

Immaculate race history Works car

Chassis DBR9/10 was only entered in one

race, the most important one of all, which it finished by claiming the GT1 class victory

honours. David Brabham, Darren Turner and Rickard Rydell presented Aston Martin with

a well-deserved first Le Mans victory at the third attempt with the DBR9.

As of today, the car is still in the possession of Aston Martin Racing and/or the owning consortium of Prodrive and can be seen in

Prodriveâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own museum at its premises in

Banbury, UK. Despite doing just this one race the mileage in 2012 was 13,790 km.

p:251

Drivers race by race

DBR9 DRIVERS WORLDWIDE No.

p:272

Driver

Chassis

Team

Race

Series

Result

Diego Alessi

DBR9/6

BMS Scuderia Italia

Oschersleben

FIA 2007

6th

Diego Alessi

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Spa

FIA 2007

dnf

Thomas Accary

DBR9/2

Hexis

Silverstone

FIA GT1 WC 2010

2nd

Thomas Accary

DBR9/2

Hexis

Spa

FIA GT1 WC 2010

5th

Thomas Accary

DBR9/2

Hexis

Paul Ricard

FIA GT1 WC 2010

9th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/6

BMS Scuderia Italia

Oschersleben

FIA 2006

5th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/6

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Spa

FIA 2006

4th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/6

BMS Scuderia Italia

Paul Ricard

FIA 2006

5th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Silverstone

FIA 2006

3rd

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Brno

FIA 2006

3rd

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Le Mans

24 LM

dnf

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Dijon

FIA 2006

6th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Mugello

FIA 2006

5th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Hungaroring

FIA 2006

3rd

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Adria

FIA 2006

4th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Dubai

FIA 2006

4th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Adria

FIA 2007

3rd

Fabio Babini

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Brno

FIA 2007

11th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Nogaro

FIA 2007

4th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Zolder

FIA 2007

dnf

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Zhuhai

FIA 2007

4th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Silverstone

FIA 2007

7th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Bucharest

FIA 2007

7th

100

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Le Mans

24 LM

6th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Monza

FIA 2007

6th

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Oschersleben

FIA 2007

3rd

Fabio Babini

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Spa

FIA 2007

dnf

Roland Bervillé

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

13th

Roland Bervillé

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Mil Milhas Brasileiras

Mil Milhas 2007

1st

Casper Elgaard

DBR9/3

Larbre Competition

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

3rd

Raul Boesel

DBR9/102

Capuava Racing Team

Mil Milhas Brasileiras

Mil Milhas 2006

dns

Rob Bell

DBR9/101

Cirtek

1000 km Nürburgring

LMS 2005

1st

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Zhuhai

FIA 2005

dnf

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Dubai

FIA 2005

11th

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Bahrain

FIA 2005

1st

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Mil Milhas Brasileiras

Mil Milhas 2006

1st

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Silverstone

FIA 2006

4th

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/103

Race Alliance Motorsport

24h Spa

FIA 2006

8th

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/2

Larbre Competition

1000 km Monza

LMS 2007

2nd

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/2

Larbre Competition

1000 km Valencia

LMS 2007

3rd

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/2

Larbre Competition

1000 km Nürburgring

LMS 2007

3rd

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/2

Larbre Competition

1000 km Spa

LMS 2007

2nd

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/2

Larbre Competition

1000 km Silverstone

LMS 2007

7th

Christophe Bouchut

DBR9/3

Larbre Competition

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

3rd

Statistics

No.

Driver

Chassis

Team

Race

Series

Result

David Brabham

DBR9/1

Aston Martin Racing

12h Sebring

ALMS 2005

1st

David Brabham

DBR9/1

Aston Martin Racing

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2005

3rd

David Brabham

DBR9/1

Aston Martin Racing

24h Spa

FIA 2005

6th

David Brabham

DBR9/1

Aston Martin Racing

Petit Le Mans

ALMS 2005

2nd

David Brabham

DBR9/1

Aston Martin Racing

Laguna Seca

ALMS 2005

4th

David Brabham

DBR9/2

Aston Martin Racing

Silverstone

FIA 2005

2nd

David Brabham

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Silverstone

FIA 2006

4th

David Brabham

DBR9/101

Team Modena

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2006

4th

David Brabham

DBR9/4

Team Modena

1000 km Jarama

LMS 2006

3rd

David Brabham

DBR9/10

Aston Martin Racing

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

1st

David Brabham

DBR9/8

Aston Martin Racing

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2008

1st

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

12h Sebring

ALMS 2008

3rd

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/101

Team Modena

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2008

8th

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

St. Petersburg

ALMS 2008

dnf

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

Lime Rock

ALMS 2008

dnf

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

Road America

ALMS 2008

2nd

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

Mosport

ALMS 2008

3rd

Terry Borcheller

DBR9/5

Bell Motorsports

Detroit

ALMS 2008

3rd

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Nogaro I

FFSA 2007*

dnf/5th

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Lédenon

FFSA 2007*

dnf/4th

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Dijon

FFSA 2007*

6th/3rd

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

13th

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Val de Vienne

FFSA 2007*

2nd/3rd

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Albi

FFSA 2007*

dnf/11th

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Nogaro II

FFSA 2007*

1st/7th

Patrick Bornhauser

DBR9/1

Larbre Competition

Magny-Cours

FFSA 2007*

10th/1st

Jason Bright

DBR9/2

Aston Martin Racing

12h Sebring

ALMS 2006

2nd

Helio Castro-Neves

DBR9/101

Cirtek

Mil Milhas Brasileiras

Mil Milhas 2006

1st

Jamie Campbell-Walter

DBR9/4

Cirtek

1000 km Spa

LMS 2006

4th

Jonathan Cocker

DBR9/106

Barwell Motorsport

Zhuhai

FIA 2007

8th

Jonathan Cocker

DBR9/106

Barwell Motorsport

Tourist Trophy

FIA 2007

10th

Yann Clairay

DBR9/2

Hexis

Nürburgring

FIA GT1 WC 2010

7th

Yann Clairay

DBR9/2

Hexis

Algarve

FIA GT1 WC 2010

6th

Yann Clairay

DBR9/2

Hexis

Navarra

FIA GT1 WC 2010

2nd

Yann Clairay

DBR9/2

Hexis

Interlagos

FIA GT1 WC 2010

13th

Yann Clairay

DBR9/2

Hexis

San Luis

FIA GT1 WC 2010

1st

Jamie Davies

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Adria

FIA 2007

3rd

Jamie Davies

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Brno

FIA 2007

11th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Nogaro

FIA 2007

4th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/8

BMS Scuderia Italia

Zolder

FIA 2007

dnf

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Zhuhai

FIA 2007

4th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Silverstone

FIA 2007

7th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Bucharest

FIA 2007

7th

100

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Le Mans

24 LM 2007

6th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Monza

FIA 2007

6th

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

Oschersleben

FIA 2007

3rd

Jamie Davies

DBR9/9

BMS Scuderia Italia

24h Spa

FIA 2007

dnf

*The FFSA held two races per weekend, hence two results for each venue.

p:273

Team rankings

Rd 3

Rd 4

Rd 5

Rd 6

Rd 7

Rd 8

211

114

Corvette Racing

Chevrolet Corvette C6.R

7.0L V8

USA

ACEMCO Motorsports

Saleen S7-R

7.0L V8

USA

Carsport America

Dodge Viper GTS-R

8.0L V10

USA

Pacific Coast Motorsports

Chevrolet Corvette C5-R

7.0L V8

USA

Aston Martin Racing

Aston Martin DBR9

6.0L V12

GBR

Rd 9 Rd 10 Total Chassis

65 1, 2

Le Ma ns La gu na Se ca

Am eri c

Mo sp

Rd 3

Rd 4

Rd 5

Rd 6

Rd 7

Rd 8

Rd 9 Rd 10 Total Chassis

Pe tit

Rd 2

ort

r tl an d

ock Ut ah

Engine

Lim eR

Car

Mi d

Team

ton

Nation Rd 1

ou 12 H

Corvette Racing

Chevrolet Corvette C6.R

7.0L V8

USA

189

Aston Martin Racing

Aston Martin DBR9

6.0L V12

GBR

186

Konrad Motorsport

Saleen S7-R

7.0L V8

GER

Aston Martin DBR9

6.0L V12

GBR

Pratt & Miller

Chevrolet Corvette C6.R

7.0L V8

USA

Ma Le

tit

tro

ort sp

na S

ca eri Am

Team Modena

hio

3 4

USA

ock

Rd 8

6.0L V12

Rd 7

Maserati MC12 GT1

Rd 6

Doran Racing

ton Rd 5

Lim

ach

Rd 4

USA

us Ho

7.0L V8

rgh Lo

Chevrolet Corvette C6.R

Be Rd 3

Rd 9 Rd 10 Rd 11 Rd 12 Total Chassis

258 38

18 13

101

Le tit

oit

eca

Rd 6

Rd 7

Rd 8

Rd 9 Rd 10 Rd 11 Total Chassis

Chevrolet Corvette C6.R

7.0L V8

USA

Bell Motorsports

Aston Martin DBR9

6.0L V12

USA

Race Distance

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

5th

6th

7th

8th

9th

10th

Standard distance

4 hours

23 (25)

19 (21)

16 (18)

13 (15)

11 (13)

9 (11)

7 (9)

6 (8)

5 (7)

4 (6)

12 and 10 hours

26 (30)

22 (26)

19 (23)

16 (20)

14 (18)

12 (16)

10 (14)

9 (13)

8 (12)

7 (11)

Rd 5

De tr

sp o

gu na S

Ma ns

ca er i Am

hio

Rd 4

Point allocation

p:292

dO Mi

Rd 3

Corvette Racing

The higher points in brackets for Sebring, Petit Le Mans, Road America and Laguna Seca were awarded in 2008.

eR Lim

Rd 2

The standard race distance was 2 hours and 45 minutes.

Nation Rd 1

Only the best placed car of a team scored points for the teams standings.

ock

ach

Be Ut

Engine

St.

Car

ter

rs Ho u Team

12 Pos

2008

sbu rgh

bri

Corvette Racing

Rd 2

Nation Rd 1

Pe St.

Engine

sbu

ter

ur Ho Car

Team

eca

g sS

rin

2007 Pos

2, 3

Pos

rs S

2006

eb ri

Pe tit

1 2

La g

Rd 2

Le Ma ns un aS eca

Am eri ca Mo sp or t

int

r tl an d

Se ars

ock

nta

Lim eR

Engine

Mi d

Car

, So

eb rin g Ro

Nation Rd 1

ou 12 H Team

At la

rs S

2005 Pos

no ma

American Le Mans Series

250 70

Acknowledgement

Without the help of the following people this book wouldn’t have been possible: Andrew Jacks, Alistair Grimshaw, David Lewington, Stuart Bailey, Tim Cottingham, Harald Dorfer, Dirk Freischmidt, Steffen Rilli, Matt Cross, Ben Sayer, Luigi Basile, Cliff Hawkins and Walter Heidenfels.

Imprint

T.A.G. Verlag GmbH Kohlmarkt 5/2 1010 Wien Austria

Concept Thomas Gruber, Christoph Mäder Author Christoph Mäder, Thomas Gruber Editing Ed Turner, Damien Smith, David Lewington, Christine Sharrock Design Christoph Mäder, Holger Ziemann, Cornelia Horn Graphics Christoph Mäder Rendering Dreidesign, Hamburg, Germany Aerodynamic analysis Lince Technologies, Spain Printing Beisner Druck GmbH, Buchholz, Germany All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights of copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means

(electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher of this book.

The information contained in this publication is correct to the best of our knowledge. Both author and publisher, however disclaim any liability incurred as a result of its use. Printed in Germany

ISBN 978-3-200-02797-8

p:293

Credits

Foto credits

Prodrive Ltd. (p. 8-13, 34-48, 58-59, 68-73, 89, 102, 105, 108-113, 130, 139, 146, 147, 149, 156-167, 242-244, 249, 251, 258, 261) Aston Martin Lagonda (p. 20-31, 66)

SRO (p. 117, 126-127, 153, 171, 179-183, 186, 188, 190, 196-197, 226-229, 231, 234, 236-239)

Christoph Maeder (p. 56, 64, 67, 75-79, 84, 85, 89-94, 97, 99, 111, 114, 117, 120-125, 132, 136, 139, 142, 145, 149, 150, 152, 169, 177, 179, 181, 198-211, 214, 224-225, 229, 247-248, 252, 254, 256-257, 260, 294-295)

John Brooks (p. 74, 114, 161, 168, 170, 171, 172, 176, 179, 184-185, 219-223)

Oliver Runschke (p. 114, 144, 145, 167, 215, 218, 222, 223, 230, 232-233, 235, 237-239, 244, 252, 260)

Antonin Grenier (p. 81, 151, 191-195), Éric Gilbert (p. 107, 116, 175), Greg Nichols (p. 175), Bob Heathcote (p. 175), Hisao Sakakibara (p. 255) Mark Rule (87, 89,

96, 117, 133, 174, 184, 245, 246), Larbre Competition (p. 214-217), Tim Cottingham (p. 253, 261), Thomas Gruber (p. 212), Alois Rommer & Florian Brucer (p. 113),

Mope (p. 87), Dirk Freischmidt (p. 48, 257), Tom Haapanen (p. 173), Stuart Bailey (p. 189), Steffen Rilli (p. 134, 244), Sören Herweg (p. 250), Charouz (p. 259), Phoenix Racing (p. 228, 229)

List of sources

“Aston Martin DBR9 Technical Manual” (Prodrive, 2006-2011)

“Competition Car Aerodynamics” (Simon McBeath, Haynes, 2006)

“FIA GT & GT3 Championships” (Andrew Cotton, Michael Cotton, Olivier Loisy, Frédéric Espinos, Apollo Publishing, 2007) “Xtrac 379 Aston Martin Racing DBR9 Gearbox Manual” (Xtrac, 2005) “Homologation form No. GT-016” (MSA, United Kingdom 2005)

“FIA Sporting regulations Appendix J - Art. 257 and Art. 258” (FIA) “Fiche d’homologation LM GT1-01” (ACO, 2005)

"Performance Equalisation in GT1 of the ALMS in 2006" (Gary Horrocks, Dailysportscar, 2006)

Periodicals

“Race Engine Technology” no. 10 Sep/Oct 2005, no. 25 Sep/Oct 2007, no. 41 Sep/Oct 2009 “Race Car Engineering” vol 15, no. 7 July 2005

“Race Tech Magazine” no. 61 Aug/Sep 2005, no. 65 in 2006, no. 135 January 2012 “Sport Auto” 8/2005, 9/2005 “Car and Driver” 10/2003

“FIA Sport Newsletter” (FIA, no. 4, 2006)

Interviews

Between December 2011 and August 2012:

George Howard-Chappell, David Richards, Dr Ulrich Bez, David King, John Muirhead, Ian Ludgate, Matthew Cross, Jason Hill, Andrew Jacks, Alistair Grimshaw, Ben Sayer, Ed Turner, James Gritt, Rik Bryan, Othmar Welti, Nigel Stepney, Jack Leconte, Dirk Theimann, Mark Lemmer, Lukas Lichtner-Hoyer, Philippe

Dumas, Alex Müller, Darren Turner, Philipp Peter, Stefan Mücke, Frédéric Makowiecki, Christoffer Nygaard, Robert Lechner, Chapman Ducote, Marco Gadola, Arthur Shaw, John Ogden, Hardy Fischer, Graham Schultz

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights of copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of the publisher of this book.

The information contained in this publication is correct to the best of our knowledge. Both author and publisher, however disclaim any liability incurred as a result of its use.

Printed in Germany

ISBN 978-3-200-02797-8