The ex-Aguri Suzuki
1993 Footwork Arrows-Mugen Honda FA14 Formula 1 Racing Single-Seater

• Driven by Aguri Suzuki in Eleven F1 World Championship Grand Prix
• Recently crack tested
• Iconic V10-era Formula 1 racer

In the early 1990s, Former Le Mans-winning and Formula 1 racing driver Jackie Oliver's well-established Arrows team won sponsorship from Japanese businessman Wataru Ohashi's Footwork logistics and courier business. With Footwork backing came Mugen Honda V10-cylinder Formula 1 engines, and into 1993 the reigning joint Sports Car World Champion Driver Derek Warwick rejoined the Arrows team to partner established Japanese team member Aguri Suzuki.

Footwork Arrows' brand-new FA14 car, designed by the experienced ex-McLaren chief engineer Alan Jenkins, was waiting in the wings when the team ran its updated 1993 cars – the FA13Bs in the first two Grand Prix races of the season. The new FA14 as offered here then made its debut at Donington Park in the European GP. The design was lighter than its predecessor, with improved aerodynamics, new suspension and redesigned gearbox.

The FA14s proved initially to be strong midfield runners but when they acquired new active suspension in mid-season they began to show stronger form, especially in Warwick's hands. Footwork Arrows had originally been developing its own active suspension system but eventually opted instead for the time-saving option of buying the TAG/McLaren system as a high-tech bolt-on extra. Once adequately sorted out the system proved capable of clipping as much as 1.5 seconds off qualifying lap times on all circuits.

The system was first used in France where both drivers, Warwick and Suzuki, qualified inside the top 15 for the first time that year, and it really made its presence felt the following weekend at Silverstone where both drivers qualified in the top ten for the British GP. The team was therefore somewhat disappointed to come away with just a single World Championship point for Warwick's sixth place, while the unfortunate Suzuki had spun off.

Thereafter, both drivers qualified strongly and competitively, usually in the top ten, but mechanical reliability intruded all too frequently. The exception was in the Hungarian GP in which Warwick could well have taken third place before eventually finishing an admirable fourth. In the German GP Warwick and Suzuki collided after going off circuit independently at the same corner, but in Belgium driving car '04 – as offered here – Aguri Suzuki qualified sixth, ahead of his English team-mate, his best-ever grid placing. Sadly his car's hydraulics failed while he was running in fifth place during the race.

Again they tangled in a typically Monza opening lap squeeze in the Italian GP. Derek Warwick looked set to take sixth place in the Portuguese GP at Estoril before being kicked into touch by an ambitious Riccardo Patrese moving in his Benetton, while Suzuki was again sidelined by gearbox failure.

Warwick looked set for another top-six World Championship point-scoring finish in the Japanese GP only to be rammed yet again, this time by Eddie Irvine's Jordan. However, this 1993 season ended on a positive note with both of the Footwork Arrows-Mugen Honda FA14s finishing in the top ten in the Australian GP at Adelaide, Suzuki a fine seventh in this car and Warwick tenth.

Overall it had not been an easy year for Footwork and but for the team's relatively comfortable financial situation it could easily have been far worse. But an economic recession was beginning to bite in backer Ohashi's homeland of Japan which would lead to him ending his company's enterprising relationship with Formula 1.

As offered here this car is assembled around one of its original-type Mugen Honda engines but the power unit lacks its internal parts. The current owner had hoped to get it running, investing a significant amount of money in crack testing and preparation, in the hope of acquiring the necessary internal parts. Sadly the project was not completed but offers a fine opportunity for the potential bidders to put their own stamp on the car, either by trying to source or build up internals for the Mugen engine, or adopting a power unit from Judd or perhaps Cosworth.

The original unit was a 1993 72-degree V10-cylinder Mugen Honda MF-351H-B engine developing some 750bhp, and driving through a 6-speed Footwork/Xtrac transverse-mounted semi-automatic gearbox.

The full racing record of Footwork Arrows chassis FA14-04 – Suzuki's good qualifying performances in this car highlighted - was published contemporarily as follows:

1993

European GP, Donington Park – team spare car, as new.
Spanish GP, Barcelona – Aguri Suzuki – q. 19 – 10th
Canadian GP, Montreal – Aguri Suzuki – q. 16 – 13th
French GP, Magny Cours - Aguri Suzuki – q. 13 – 12th
British GP, Silverstone - Aguri Suzuki – q. 10 – spun off and retired.
German GP, Hockenheim - Aguri Suzuki – q. 8 – gearbox failure, retired.
Hungarian GP, Budapest - Aguri Suzuki – q. 10 – spun off and retired.
Belgian GP, Spa-Francorchamps – Aguri Suzuki – q. 6 – gearbox failure, retired.
Italian GP, Monza – Aguri Suzuki – q. 8 – collision with team-mate Warwick on first lap, retired.
Portuguese GP, Estoril - Aguri Suzuki – q. 16 – gearbox failure, retired.
Japanese GP, Suzuka - Aguri Suzuki – q. 9 – spun off, retired.
Australian GP, Adelaide - Aguri Suzuki – q. 10 – finished 7th – just missing a World Championship point