(Motorsport-Entire.com) – In the first year of cooperation between the Jordan Body of workers and engine manufacturer Peugeot, Rubens Barrichello experienced a bitter defeat in the Big Prix of Hungary 1995 . The Brazilian battle to the third corner on the way to third place. But suddenly he suffered an engine failure and rolled across the finish line in seventh place. Formula One expert Gary Anderson explains why Peugeot only wanted to save his image.
“I can remember that well,” replies the Brit in his popular column “Place a query to Gary” on our sister portal 'Autosport' of the question from reader Michael Davis. He wanted to know if Barrichello could have finished third despite the engine failure. “The battle in our first year with Peugeot, we had to get to know each other.”
Peugeot had supplied McLaren with engines in the previous season and installed an automatic shutdown mechanism to avoid the embarrassment of a smoking person Motors escape on the track. Because after Martin Brundle's engine in the rear of his McLaren in the Brazilian race 1994 went up in smoke, the French company worried about its image .
“After that, they decided moreover that they didn't want to do this public disgrace of a smoking engine defect, so they installed various shutdown mechanisms to protect the engine,” explains Anderson.
In the end, according to the then Jordan technical director, the engine supplier was only concerned with usaImage. “They were more interested in protecting their reputation.” In the case of Barrichello, however, this precaution became a difficulty, because the Brazilian suffered a leak in the air valve system in the Hungary Big Prix 1995.
“The pressure became too low to close the flaps efficiently. The pressure already dropped a few Rounding it off before, but we didn't know that, and, more importantly, we didn't know that Peugeot also used this engine shutdown process in races. “
These mechanisms would normally only be used in Free practice sessions are used, Anderson explains, “but not in the race if there is a sensor problem or an incorrect signal.” In the case of Barrichello, the engine finally switched off and the podium battle was lost.
Only recently did the Brazilian suspect that he would have rolled third over the finish line without the Peugeot mechanism. After all, he only finished the race in seventh. The Body of workers later identified a problem in the oil circuit that led to the pressure problem.
Changes were made in the subsequent races so that such a problem never occurred again. “In addition, switching off the switch-off mechanism led to smoky damage – but at least battle was the reason for the failure in the race then the real one.”
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