Minardi buys Arrows-esque chassis

Minardi picked up five Arrows A23 chassis, and the team spokesperson didn't mince words when he said: "Two of them are actually decent enough to run, while the rest are pretty much just scrap metal for parts."

Last season, Arrows was running the same Ford engines that Minardi is struggling with this year—engines that, frankly, haven't even sniffed a point yet. But now they’ve got Bernie Ecclestone holding a minority stake. The Arrows A23, which was designed by Mika Coughlan before his move over to McLaren, managed to snag two points and showed way more life than the Minardi-esque mess we saw back in July before things went south last year.

"We’re going to tear these cars apart and see if any of their design philosophy can help us squeeze some performance out of our current setup", the Minardi spokesperson remarked.

Minardi is being tight-lipped about the actual price tag for those five cars. They’ll only claim the purchase wasn't funded by their new minority owner and benefactor, Bernie Ecclestone, but rather "thanks to the generosity of one of our Dutch sponsors".

"

"Two of them are solid and ready to go—the rest are basically just for parts."

Is that basically the same logic they use at the local garage:
"Hey, will this fit the Jetta?"
"Nah, that's from a Passat."
"But could I make it work?"
"Well..."
"They're pretty close."
"Just drill another hole right here, sand down the edges a bit..."
"Yeah, it'll be fine—it works for me."😎>

Raymond Palmer8 said:"

Is that like that old philosophy from the local mechanic shop:
"Is this part actually good for a Jetta?"
"No, that's actually from a Passat."
"But could I make it fit?"
"Well..."
"They're pretty similar."
"So just drill another hole here, grind it down a bit..."
"Yeah, it'll work fine, works for me when I'm driving..."😎

🙂 🙂

Anyway, tell me what you guys think... what is the point of Minardi even being in Formula 1?
😕 😕 😕

It’s really all about nurturing talent—developing engineers, designers, mechanics, and everyone else within the crew. You can't just walk in on day one and expect to be an engineer at Ferrari; you have to put in the work and build up that expertise first!

Angel said:It’s basically a training ground for engineers, designers, mechanics, and everyone else on the crew. You can't just walk in off the street and start designing for Ferrari; you've gotta put in the years and really learn the ropes first!

Fair enough... but then what's the point of teams like Arrows, Jaguar, or BAR?

driftingnomad68 said:Alright, then what’s even the point of teams like Arrows, Jaguar, or BAR?

Arrows is basically just a parts bin,
Jaguar exists mostly to drive around looking pretty with all those sponsors—and
BAR is strictly there to give drivers and fans a massive headache.
Basically, yeah.

Raymond Palmer8 said:The whole BAR operation is basically just a machine designed to drive both drivers and the fans absolutely insane.

I can't argue with that! He's spot on.

😁

driftingnomad68 said:🙂 🙂

But honestly, I have to ask, what is the actual point
of even having a team like Minardi in the world of Formula 1? 😕 😕 😕

Is it just to make sure they meet the minimum entry requirements set by the Concorde Agreement? :-))))

driftingnomad68 said:Alright, then what's the point of teams like Arrows, Jaguar, or BAR?

Who are those guys? I've never even heard of them!

Angelic said:Who even are these guys? Never heard of them.

Never heard of them? You mean those teams that were practically outperforming your McLaren last season...😛
I'm pretty sure you knew exactly who they were.😛

Elizabeth Hughes mentions Montezemolo:
Never heard of them? Those are the teams that were practically better than your McLaren last season... 😛
I'm sure you've at least heard the name by now... 😛

Still haven't heard it!😁 To quote you: "...were practically better..." Well, I could easily argue that McLaren was practically better than Ferrari for the last two seasons, just like they were twenty years ago!🙂

he he😁

Angel said:I’m leaning the same way—it feels like McLaren was practically outperforming Ferrari for most of the last two seasons.

Now, if you could back that up with some actual data instead of just vibes, maybe I'd consider taking you seriously... 🙄

Gosh, Elizabeth Hughes, you really can be a total pain in the neck sometimes!

Never heard of them? I'm talking about those teams that were practically outperforming your McLaren last season... You've probably heard of them, though...

Now, back it up with some actual facts—then maybe I'll start believing you...😁

redheron12 said:Man, Elizabeth Hughes, you really can be such a massive pain in the neck sometimes!

Me, a pain in the neck? That’s rich coming from you. Are you just sticking up for the Angelic crowd now? You people are unbelievable... just clinging to one another regardless of whether it actually makes any sense or not... just huddling together for warmth, I guess... 😛

Angelic said:Who are these guys? Never heard of them!

Last season in Australia, Irvin was sitting in fourth in the Jaguar, while Webber managed fifth in the Minardi (Kimi took third, and Coulthard wasn't even in the top six . Down in Spain, Arrows grabbed sixth (Coulthard was actually third, and Kimi didn't crack the top six at all . In Monaco, Arrows finished sixth (Coulthard was first, and Kimi missed the top six entirely . Over in the United Kingdom, Villeneuve was fourth for BAR, and Panis, who was also running for BAR, took fifth... meanwhile, your McLaren wasn't even anywhere near the top six during that race. In Belgium, Irvin was sixth in the Jaguar (Coulthard was fourth, and once again, Kimi wasn't in the top six . Then in Italy, Irvin was third in the Jaguar and Panis was sixth for BAR (not a single McLaren driver in the top six . Finally, in the USA, Villeneuve was sixth for BAR (Coulthard was third, and Kimi still couldn't break into those top six spots ).

So, do you remember those teams now? Jaguar, Arrows, BAR, Minardi? They were consistently outperforming your McLaren at various points last season... 😛

Hold on a second—both you and this Angelic type (Lucifer???) are talking nonsense here.

Yours:
Teams like Arrows, Jaguar, or BAR were practically better than your McLaren last season...

Total nonsense!!

Angelic's:
I also think McLaren was nearly better than Ferrari over the last two seasons...

Nonsense!!

Gosh, Elizabeth Hughes, you really can be a total pain in the ass sometimes! — and that goes for you because you're dropping down to Angelic's level.

🙂

Quote : Rain Bow said:Hold on a second, both you and this Angelic type (Lucifer???) are talking absolute nonsense.

Yours:
Arrows, Jaguar, BAR, and the rest of them—those were the teams that were almost better than your McLaren last season...

So I corrected myself... and wrote "They were occasionally better than your McLaren last season..."

Quote : Rain Bow said:Gosh, Elizabeth Hughes, you really can be a total pain in the ass sometimes! I'm only saying this because you're starting to sink down to Lucifer's level.

Man, he can be irritating!
😎

I’m glad we finally cleared that up!

An Angelic type is going to lose it when they read this 😁

redheron12 said:Angelo is going to absolutely lose his mind when he stumbles upon this. 😁

You just can't go messing around with the junior varsity teams...