Category Formula One Predecessor A22 | Constructor Arrows Chassis Carbon-fibre monocoque | |
 | ||
Designer(s) Mike Coughlan
Sergio Rinland Suspension (front) Inboard pushrod operated independent suspension. Carbon fibre wishbones with double tether restraint system both front and rear | ||
The Arrows A23 is a Formula One racing car, used by the Arrows team during the 2002 Formula One season.
Contents
Arrows racing history
Designed by Mike Coughlan, the A23 featured a Cosworth V10 engine, rather than the Asiatech unit used in the previous year's Arrows A22. The car bore the livery of the team's major sponsor, Orange. The car was completely designed around Jos Verstappen, who had a contract to race for the 2002 season. However, due to financial problems the team replaced him with Heinz-Harald Frentzen because he could bring more sponsorship money.
Driven by Frentzen and Enrique Bernoldi, the car scored only two championship points before financial problems forced the team to pull out of Formula One following the 2002 German Grand Prix.
The team's last attempted entry at the French Grand Prix saw both drivers deliberately fail to qualify as the team cut back on engine mileage and repair. On-board data acquisition showed the car to be quick in the first two sectors but noticeably slower in the third and final sector.
Minardi
Following the demise of Arrows, the A23 chassis and intellectual property rights to them were bought by Paul Stoddart, then the head of the Minardi team, as a potential replacement for his own team's PS03 chassis.
The chassis was renamed the Minardi PS04, although it was largely unchanged from its condition as raced in the 2002 season. A comparison test next to the Minardi PS03 proved it to be largely on the same level of performance as the PS03 but with worse reliability. Thus the decision was made to modify the PS03 for the 2004 season, resulting in the Minardi PS04B.
Super Aguri
Four years later, in 2006, the new Super Aguri F1 team bought the A23 cars and ran them, with major modifications, as the Super Aguri SA05 during the first half of the 2006 Formula One season.
Complete Formula One results
(key) (results in bold indicate pole position)