Lot details Registration No: N/A Chassis No: None Stated Mot Expiry: N/A
British American Tobacco's (BAT) involvement in Formula One dates back to the Monaco Grand Prix of 1968, when Gold Leaf colours first replaced the familiar Green and Yellow of the Team Lotus entries. By the early '90s, Ken Tyrrell had relinquished much of the control of his grand prix team, and in 1997 was persuaded to sell out to BAT.
For the first season the cars were run as Tyrrells (even though Tyrrell himself was no longer involved) and powered by Ford engines. The drivers were Ricardo Rosset and Toranosuke Takagi. For 1999 they ran under the banner of British American Racing (BAR) for the first time, were powered by Supertec engines and driven by the potentially more competitive line up of Jacques Villeneuve, Ricardo Zonta and Mika Salo. However, the cars proved unreliable and the results were disappointing. From 2000 onwards the deal with Honda had been struck and the results started to flow, with placings in the Constructors Championship as follows - 5th (2000), 6th (2001), 8th (2002) and 5th (2003). Jenson Button partnered Villeneuve for the 2003 assault, with the popular Japanese driver Takuma Sato serving as reserve driver. 2004 was the team's most successful of all with Button and Sato amassing enough points for second in the Constructors' Championship and Button finishing third in the Drivers' Championship.
The BAR-Honda being sold is a circa 2003 Takuma Sato show/display car. It is without engine, gearbox and control pedals but is complete for show/display purposes with all bodywork intact. The steering wheel, column, rack and track rods are also in place and working. Opportunities to purchase recent F1 show cars are few and far between, the scope for which is virtually endless and covers everything from commercial display to personal ornaments and the ultimate seat for PlayStation racing games.
PLEASE NOTE: This lot is being offered for sale by Honda Racing (Honda UK) and as such VAT will be payable on the hammer price as well as the buyer's premium.
All successful bids must be paid in full by midday the day after the auction at the latest.
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