Top six worst 12 cylinder Formula 1 cars from 1990s

One of my last posts recently was Top 6 Formula 1 cars that use V12 Engines, so this post is Top six worst 12 cylinder Formula 1 cars from the 1990s! Simple rules V12s, W12s engines and Flat-12 engine are all included, also one entry per manufacture and constructor.



Starting with number 6:

Number 6: 1992 Jordan 192 (Yamaha)
Story: Jordan 192 was designed by Gary Anderson. The Jordan 192 had the Yamaha 3.5 litre V12 engine underneath. After a successful debut season in 1991 with 191. Jordan team had lost their supply of Ford engines due to large debts. Instead Jordan signed a contract to run the Yamaha engines which was supplied for free. One of the main problems for was that the team had already begun work on the 192 in the expectation that it would continue to run the Ford V8 engine rather than a much larger V12 Yamaha.



Compared to their successful debut season, 1992 was a total nightmare for Jordan. The team struggled with reliability issues from the Yamaha V12 engine, both Stefano Modena and Maurício Gugelmin failed to finish in nineteen Grand Prixs', while Stefano Modena did not qualified in four of those. In the end Jordan 192 failed to score a point until the final race of the season in Australia, when Modena finished in sixth place. Overall, the Jordan 192 give Jordan only one point and an eleventh place in the constructors standings in 1992. Next season, Jordan use Hart V10 engines, while Yamaha move onto Tyrrell with their new V10 engines in 1993.

Number 5: 1991 Lambo 291 (Lamborghini)
Story: Lambo 291 was designed and built by Lamborghini for the Modena Team (quietly majority owned by Lamborghini themselves). The Lambo 291 was designed by Mauro Forghieri. The Lambo 291 had the Lamborghini 3.5 litre V12 engine underneath.



Lambo 291 best result was a seventh place finish at the United States Grand Prix for Nicola Larini in the teams first Grand Prix. While in their third Grand Prix at Imola, Eric van de Poele was in fifth place until the last lap when his fuel pump broke in his 291 resulting him to finish in ninth place in his Lambo. Overall, the Lambo 291 finished four times, retiring twice, twelve DNQs, fourteen DNPQs resulting fourteenth in constructors standings with no points for the Modena team.

At the end of the 1991 F1 season Lamborghini pulled the plug on the Formula 1 team altogether staying put as an engine manufacture for two more seasons.

Number 4: 1993 Lola T93/30 (Ferrari)
Story: Lola T93/30 was designed and built by Lola for the BMS Scuderia Italia team for 1993 replacing Dallara who designed their cars previously. The Lola T93/30 was designed by Eric Broadley. The Lola T93/30 had the Ferrari 3.5 litre V12 engine underneath.



The engine inside the Lola T93/30 wasn't the problem it was Lola T93/30 itself with the car's aerodynamics made it "virtually undriveable", as Michele Alboreto stated it was the worse F1 car he had ever driven. Seven DNQs throughout the 1993 F1 season, resulting its best finish was a seventh place for Luca Badoer at the San Marino Grand Prix.

By the end of 1993 F1 season, BMS Scuderia Italia team merge with the Minardi team giving this the last Lola F1 car to qualify in Formula 1 race. The Lola T93/30 took BMS Scuderia Italia team twelfth in constructors standings with no points.

Number 3: 1991 Footwork FA12 (Porsche)
Story: Footwork FA12 was designed by Alan Jenkins. The Footwork FA12 had the Porsche 3.5 litre V12 engine underneath. At the end of the 1990 F1 season, Arrows was renamed as Footwork, and had also secured a deal to run the Porsche V12 engines for 1991, replacing the Ford V8 engines had in 1990.



However, the 3.5 litre V12 Porsche engines in the FA12 was too large, heavy, underpowered and unreliable and possibly two 1.5 Porsche V6 engines that was use during McLaren days merge into one. By Round seven at the French Grand Prix in July, the Arrows team had decided to abandon the disastrous Porsche V12 engines in favour of a return to Ford V8 engines. Overall, the Footwork FA12 took Michele Alboreto, Alex Caffi and Stefan Johansson to five retirements and seven DNQs resulting the team finishing eighteenth in the constructors standings with no points in 1991, while Footwork-Ford V8s relationship resulted them to finish seventeenth in the constructors standings with no points with the Footwork FA12C. And the last time Porsche was in Formula 1.

Number 2: 1990 Coloni C3B (Subaru)
Story: Coloni C3B was designed by Christian Vanderpleyn. The Coloni C3B had the Subaru 3.5 litre Flat-12 engine underneath. At the end of the 1989 F1 season, Coloni had secured a deal to run Subaru Flat-12 Subaru engines for 1990 replacing the Ford V8 Ford engines had in 1989 with Subaru owning half of the team within the deal.



However, the 3.5 litre Flat-12 Subaru engines in the Coloni C3B was too large, heavy, underpowered and unreliable. Producing only 559bhp compare to Ferrari V12s engines that time producing 680bhp. By Round nine at the German Grand Prix in late July, the Subaru and Coloni's relationship broke down; following some political wrangling between the two companies, Subaru pulled out altogether, with Coloni team returning to Ford V8 engines for the rest of 1990 with Coloni team buying back their 50% stake of the team from Subaru. Overall, the Coloni C3B took seven DNPQ with Bertrand Gachot scoring no points finishing twentieth in the constructors standings in 1990, while the Coloni-Ford V8 relationship resulted them to finish eighteenth in the constructors standings with two DNPQs and seven DNQs for Gachot no points with the Coloni C3C.



Number 1: 1990 Life L190 (Life)
Story: Life L190 was designed by Gianni Marelli. The Life L190 had the Life 3.5 litre W12 engine underneath.



The manufacture tried to sold their W12 engines to F1 teams in 1989 with no one taking up the offer. Resulting Life building their own team for 1990 with no budget building their own F1 car, the Life team bought the still-born Formula One chassis from First Racing dubbed the F189 fitted in their W12 engine instead dubbed as the Life L190.

However, the Life L190 car was awful as the handling was bad and reliability was poor and Life engine itself only producing 480bhp compare to Ferrari V12s engines that time producing 680bhp. Resulting both Gary Brabham and Bruno Giacomelli DNPQ twelve times scoring no points finishing nineteenth place in the constructors standings in 1990. By round thirteen at the Portuguese Grand Prix, the team replaced their own engine with a more conventional Judd V8, with two more DNPQs with Bruno Giacomelli scoring no points finishing twenty-first place in the constructors standings in 1990. By round fifteen at the Japanese Grand Prix the team withdrew from Formula 1 altogether.



To give the 1990 Life L190 the worst Formula 1 car that use a twelve cylinder engine from the 1990s, even the worst Formula 1 car ever built!