TYRRELL’S SIX WHEELED P34
> TYRRELL WAS THE PERPETUAL UNDERDOG IN F1,
hauled to its loftiest heights in the early Seventies by Jackie Stewart. But following the irascible Scot’s retirement, Uncle Ken was left scrabbling for a new secret weapon, and it arrived in the unlikeliest of forms.
The P34 was the brainchild of Tyrrell’s chief designer Derek Gardner, whose basic premise was to minimise drag by reducing the size of his car’s front wheels. By a truly massive margin.
Gardner reasoned that a much smaller frontal area not only made the P34 more slippery, but also improved downforce with air flow over the car markedly less disrupted. But a tiny 10-inch wheel was not without its problems, the worst of which was a drastic reduction in grip. So, to counteract this, Gardner simply added another pair. Greater contact patch, greater braking ability – job done.
Objectively speaking, the P34 looked ridiculous, but behind it lay sound reasoning and shrewd engineering. In 1976, the car took a 1–2 win at the Swedish GP, making hay on Anderstorp’s 1km straight. But the P34’s fatal flaw had yet to reveal itself. Over more winding circuits, one or other front wheel was regularly airborne, causing hair-raising high-speed understeer. Star driver Jody Scheckter walked at the end of the season.