Formula 1 Car by Car: 1990-99

by Peter Higham

This instalment in Evro’s decade-by-decade series covering all Formula 1 cars and teams is devoted to a period when some normality seemed to return after the ground-effect and turbo excesses of the 1980s, except for one terrible weekend in the spring of 1994. The tragic deaths of Roland Ratzenberger and Ayrton Senna led to immense change with new emphasis on safety, including measures to slow down the cars and improve their structural strength, and numerous changes to circuits. In many ways Formula 1 became more as we recognise it today, especially as the decade’s dominant teams, McLaren and Williams, remain familiar. Besides the winning cars, there is always much fascination for fans in unsuccessful and obscure efforts, such as Andrea Moda and Venturi, and this authoritative and comprehensively illustrated book covers them all. 

• Year-by-year treatment explores each season in fascinating depth, running through the teams — and their various cars — in order of importance.
• McLaren: success for this team bookended the decade, delivering back-to-back titles for both Ayrton Senna (1990–91 with Honda engines) and Mika Häkkinen (1998–99 with Mercedes engines).
• Williams: as with McLaren, Renault-powered Williams cars brought four World Championship driver titles, for Nigel Mansell (1992), Alain Prost (1993), Damon Hill (1996) and Jacques Villeneuve (1997).
• Benetton: mid-decade, this British-based team won two titles for a sensational new talent, Michael Schumacher, powered by Ford in 1994 and by Renault in 1995.
• Ferrari: the longest-established marque, a participant in the World Championship ever since its inception in 1950, concluded a lean decade on an upbeat — and prescient — note by becoming 1999 Constructors’ Champions, with six Grand Prix wins that year.
• Other winning marques were few and far between, just Ligier (1996), Jordan (1998–99) and Stewart (1999).
• Over 550 colour photos from the incredible archives of Motorsport Images show every type of car that raced or attempted to qualify for a race, presenting a comprehensive survey.

Hardbound | 304 pages | 550+ color images