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The Williams FW16 was unfortunately the last car of Ayrton Senna, it was in this car that Senna in Imola has his fatal-accident and took him away from this world.
A very black day for all motorsport all over the world.
So this car how bad the memories are about this car should be in Senna's chapters like the most of his cars deserves too, especially the McLaren cars.
The Williams FW16 Formula One car was designed by Adrian Newey and competed in the 1994 Formula One season and was used by British driver Damon Hill to finish runner-up in the 1994 World Drivers' Championship.
As with the previous season, the number 0 car was driven by Damon Hill for the entire year, as reigning champion Alain Prost had taken his number 1 with him when he left the sport. The number 2 car was driven by Ayrton Senna, David Coulthard and Nigel Mansell.
Senna will only drive two full GP's in the Williams FW16, in his third GP at Imola he gets a fatal-accident and F1 lost one of the greatest driver in F1 history.
The car was designed around the major regulation changes that the FIA had introduced in the off-season, banning the electronic devices that had been used by the front running cars during the preceding two seasons.
The FW16 was a passive evolution of the FW15C that had preceded it. It featured revised bodywork, with a low profile engine cover and enclosed driveshaft and an anhedral rear wing lower element, the latter being hinted at in the preceding FW15C, and a narrower nose. In addition to these changes it featured an innovative rear suspension wishbone design and an improved version of the 67-degree V10 engine (RS6 3.5 V10) by Renault Sport delivering an estimated 820 HP. In addition it featured a fuel valve to enable the ability for mid race refuelling.
The FW16 featured power-assisted steering, hydraulically driven and reacting to input from electronic sensors, a system that drew heavily from the knowledge gained from the teams active suspension technology. It lacked the fully automatic gear change system of the preceding year and was restricted to a "semi-automatic" transmission.
The car proved to be a tricky proposition in early testing and in the early part of the season. A design flaw was discovered in the car's frontal section and there were attempts to remedy this in time for the ill-fated third race, the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix. Various other alterations were made by Adrian Newey and Patrick Head to alleviate the car's handling problems.
Senna commented as follows on the FW16 during early season testing:
"I have a very negative feeling about driving the car and driving it on the limit and so on. Therefore I didn't have a single run or a single lap that I felt comfortable or reasonably confident."
"I am uncomfortable in the car, it all feels wrong. We changed the seat and the wheel, but even so I was already asking for more room." "Going back to when we raced at Estoril last September (on testing the passive Williams at the same track 4 months later), it feels much more difficult. Some of that is down to the lack of electronic change. Also, the car has its own characteristics which I'm not fully confident in yet. It makes you a lot more tense and that stresses you."
Technical specifications
Chassis: Carbon fibre and Aramid monocoque
Suspension (front): Williams inboard torsion spring, double wishbone, operated by pushboard bellcrank
Suspension (rear): Williams inboard coil-spring, double wishbone, operated by pushboard bellcrank
Axle track: Front: 1,670 mm (66 in)
Rear: 1,590 mm (63 in)
Wheelbase: 2,920 mm (115 in)
Engine: Renault RS6 / RS6B / RS6C, 3,493 cc (213.2 cu in), 67° V10, NA, mid-engine, longitudinally mounted
Transmission: Williams transverse 6-speed semi-automatic
Fuel: Elf
Tyres: Goodyear
THE OTHER SENNA CARS ARE HERE:
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PD definitely not!
