F1 V10 - WHICH IS BEST ?

A rare glimpse under the skin of the loudest and most obnoxious sounding F1 cars of all time - Formula One V10. Also... some gossip on the tech trade secret keeping Max Verstappen in the winner's circle... (besides awesome driving)

As a racing driver F1 has always been the pinnacle of motorsport and although I never achieved that goal (there's still time) I can thank you guys for the opportunity to drive these beasts on YouTube.

The folks are TDF are up for letting me loose in one of their cars and I've convinced them to let the audience decide so please vote in the comments and we'll survey them with Top Gear levels of science to determine which F1 car we'll be taking on track.

There are some real beauties in the TDF collection, not least their own creation which they've engineered to have more durability and far lower running costs - which means that we'll get to see more of the historic cars in action than ever before.

Let me know which car/s you want to see in action and we'll bring it on :)

1 - 1995 Jordan
2 - 1998 Williams FW20
3 - 1998 Minardi M198
4 - 1999 BAR 001
5 - 2001 BAR 003
6 - 2004 BAR 006
7 - 2011 Marussia - now TDF/One

Thanks to Car Vertical for supporting my channel

Thank you for voting !

Happy New Year :)

[mrflippant]

If the Stig wants to drive Jacques Villeneuve's car, then I say the Stig ought to drive Jacques Villeneuve's car.

[dmcasson]

Absolutely awesome. Love the whole idea of the TDF programme. Huge respect for James's knowledge of the old F1 cars, and the ability of the whole team to restore and reverse engineer these complex machines where necessary 👍

[simonmillington]

The best era in f1 motorsport was the late 90s early 2000s and the v10 monsters musical symphony, just seeing these cars back on track would be immense, drive your hero car Ben

[spracing]

Would love to see you drive the 1995 Jordan, especially as it has a period correct engine. Great video Ben.

[Maicon_Castelar]

The V10 2004 BAR for sure! For me one of the most beatiful F1 cars ever! Nice content as always, from Brasil.

[IanParker]

Great episode... fantastic to see these 'old' things being used. Love what TDF are doing (they are close to me too) I would say the Minardi, but I know you want to drive the Williams... so the Williams is my vote!

[Ginbaubabe]

JV explained his unique wheel paddle setup in one issue of F1 Racing magazine back in 2000 or 2001. It was to do with de-cluttering the clutch paddle-side so he can perform better starts. It also saved a few grams of weight. He also preferred a long-ish throttle pedal travel so he could better control the torque demand

[newagetemplar]

Got to be Buttons V10 for many reasons., great detailed interview too guys, car history like this needs preserving for future generations ❤
Ben just go steady on the clutch if u take one of these out, that silver supra you drove of Mr Broadbents had clutch failure when Danny took it out just after you 😂.

[Sakratic]

The Honda Bar would be my 1st pick! BTW, I've been a fan of yours before I knew your name like a few people haha! I name is just a name and for me it was your driving style and the way you attacked corners and utilized weight transfers in particular that made me a fan, your style was very understandable and intuitive to me because I guess, it was similar to mine which is rare in my small group of driving friends circle. Anyways loved that you decided to utilize the social media outlet like YouTube because we all wouldn't still get to see and learn more about you and your passions. And, notice only gave what would be my 1st choice? Its my driving/racing philosophy, which happens to be the same logic I use to navigate my life in general and that is that its all has become instinctual and intuitive, which deals with being very decisive, committing for better or worst, taking into account risk and reward and the particular variables involved at the current moment - I could go into more detail but as comments go, I know its already to lengthy. So I'd pick the Honda Bar and everything else would just be whatever they decide, because in the end, I'd be super appreciative that I got to drive an F1 car, period! Cheers Ben, and looking forward to all your future content!

[IronKnok]

This episode was great. Such fun. Thanks Stiggy

[trn]

Ben's understanding of the machines, drivers and history makes him the best presenter in the world for performance cars and race cars for mine. He knows more than me and I work for a renowned performance shop with a lifelong passion for motosport. Hats off man. Awesome episode. And James is an engineering stig! ❤

[E]

This was an absolute gem of a video. Love the videography as well. Thank you for producing such great content. Keep it up!

[LordandGodofYouTube]

3. The jordan, due to it being more original than the other cars and more representative of what it would be like in the day, that would be the car I'd like to drive. If the Williams or the newer BAR had all their original running gear they would top my list.

I still remember Adrian Reynard claiming that BAR would be on pole for, and win their first race in what would have to be one of the most spectacular examples of mixing up one's abilities and ambitions.

I'm really looking forward to watching whatever you drive.

[sydney]

IF I had to choose... I think 5, but if you'd rather go classic, I'd go 2! since they're both awesome pieces of kit!

(Also, phenomenal video Mr Collins!, seriously, high-quality deep dives on old F1 engineering is too scarce, and I'm soo happy we get to see so many different cars/lil throwbacks to them in their heydays!)

[pjccwest]

Great episode. Probably 1, but only Ben knows what's best for him. I started watching F1 around 98/99 with my mother when I was 9/10. A great time to discover motor racing, then I read Dr. Sid Watkin's book and started playing Gran Turismo 2, F1 99 and Driver 2, and Ace Combat 3. Discovered I had rare and unusual piloting skills, que the fun 🙂. I hope Ben gets to drive those cars, would be great.

[martincollins]

Fantastic video would love to visit that place, The 1995 Jordan is the standout for me. The 1999 BAR would be second as they both in original condition. I think that particular 95 Jordan chassis took 2nd place at Canada.

[solitaryclusterofneurons]

Have to say the 1995 Jordan. In my opinion, no era of F1 is perfect, but for me 1994-1997 was overall the closest to perfection for technical regulations; track width wide enough for the cars to still mostly rely on mechanical grip, but not so wide overtaking becomes overly difficult. Short enough wheelbase for the cars to be highly reactive. Driver aids banned aside from sequential paddle shifters. Slick tyres. Engine wise virtually limitless within the displacement limit as long as it was naturally aspirated. Some teams had full manual steering racks, albeit because they were backmarkers. The cars 1995 onwards were very safe sans HANS device without being severely overweight coddleboxes as 2018-present.

I know times change, but I hope F1 one day goes back to a similar ballpark wheelbase and track width as that 1993-1997 era, bans or significantly reduces power steering assistance, and instead of pushing for the hybrid assistance to reach 50% of the total powertrain power like the FIA wants for 2026, push for development to aim for increased power-to-weight density from the hybrid assistance by imposing tight weight limits on the hybrid components. F1 cars shouldn't weigh above the high-600kg range imo. They're already on the right path with cleaner aero. If we can't have V10's and V12's again, at least let us have cars which dart around with drivers having to earn their millions getting a workout from steering wheels ripping their arms all over the place. That's exciting to watch.

Seeing as none of these historic F1 cars are truly period correct anyway, I would love to see a final-spec 3.0 V10 20k screamer with some modern-day improvements mated to one of the early 3.5 era wideboy H-pattern cars.

[anon]

So much information, such high production quality. Ben & the Team, you've outdone yourselves again.

[alanowens]

The Jordan! But the Brawn is a close second.

[bmc]

Pretty cool to see that FW20. I’ve sat in that a few times and still have part of its front wing. For some reason it was sat underneath the Wind Tunnel at Williams for a while. I used to wander down there taking a break and sit quietly in it with a cup of tea in the evenings.