THE STORY OF THE DECADE

Bored with modern, looky-likey F1 cars? Then you need the ’60s: at the start of the decade, front-engined cars race mid-engined, and straight-sixes battle flat-fours and V6s. By the end of the decade, it’s V8s versus V12s – and even an H16. Engine capacity drops from 2.5 litres to 1.5, and then goes back up to 3.0 litres. Teams experiment with four-wheel drive and aero. With Colin Chapman, John Cooper and Bruce McLaren (below) all tinkering away in their sheds, barely a week goes by without someone coming up with a gas-turbine engine or anti-gravity paint. But the pace of change also brings tragedy: speeds increase, experiments fail and F1 drivers die at an average of one per year. Which is why it’s in the ’60s that safety becomes an issue for the first time.