Van Diemen Works Team

TVR · 7 Jun 2002, 17:25 (Ref:307586)

As from the end of the 2002 winter series The Van Diemen Works Team will become a private team with no more works support.
The team will continue in the F Ford Zetec championship and will still run Van Diemen cars.

Russfeld · 7 Jun 2002, 17:36 (Ref:307595)

why?

TVR · 7 Jun 2002, 17:41 (Ref:307598)

Times change and The Duckhams money will end at the end of 002 so the team must now be a commercial business and the Drivers will have to pay the same as outher teams , also it will be good for the formula as teams will all now be on the same ground, ie no more you can not beat the works team .

Russfeld · 7 Jun 2002, 17:52 (Ref:307605)

So why cant they still be works supported but have the drivers bring full budget? It seems a little odd for the factory to stop racing.

Unless being so far ahead of everyone else ends up hurting sales to privateers

gilles_is_god · 7 Jun 2002, 18:39 (Ref:307648)

Does this mean that the new ex works VD team will not get the already established good driver (with full budget) like every other team in the paddock.

Ian-S · 8 Jun 2002, 01:08 (Ref:307846)

Quote:

Originally posted by Russfeld
Unless being so far ahead of everyone else ends up hurting sales to privateers

You've hit the nail on the head there, no point racing in FFord unless your in a works car or very rich.

top-off · 8 Jun 2002, 21:29 (Ref:308331)

I will be sad to see the end of the works team , but I bet the team that grows from the old works team is somthing special ?
bet also that Jonathan Lewis has somthing to do with it .
I hear they have a new backer for the new team and its a cell phone plc ?
watch this space...

B/Mark · 12 Jun 2002, 18:14 (Ref:311826)

No longer being part of VD will level the playing field as the works team used to be subsidised by the car sales. They also did a good job partly because they were driven by Ralph to succeed so he could sell cars worldwide.
If the new team gets outside backing and continues doing a good job then they will still attract the better drivers and be able to charge top dollar. But the change does make them more vulnerable in the long run.

JR Ewing · 12 Jun 2002, 18:29 (Ref:311845)

VD is owned by Panoz. When Ralphy sold him the company he did not sell the team which had a time based deal which expires next month.
Duckhams money?
I can assure you works VD drives are not free - far from it!

B/Mark · 12 Jun 2002, 19:25 (Ref:311912)

I didn't say free, I said subsidised. When necesary they do loads of testing to sort out problems, get the designer and or Ralf out to sort things out. This has always given them the edge. They now have Trevor Van Rooyen building their engines. We all know how usefull he is. The average private team just can't afford such expense.

Andrew Kitson · 12 Jun 2002, 19:45 (Ref:311935)

The works VD team can be beaten anyway - what about the 2001 Championship! In a customer VD car. Not that long ago.
The Duckhams deal always was going to be wound up at the end of this year.A customer FF team with Jonathan Lewis at the helm and Trevor building the motors will always be strong.
Ironic really ...I helped out as 'gopher' when Trevor raced FF in 1977 in a semi-works Royale. He won the RAC series and lost out by 1 point to Mansell in the Brush Fusegear. He built his own Minister motors which were protested so many times by the works VD squad & Scholar - yet never found to be bent. It got quite nasty at times. Kenny Acheson then used his motor 'patch' to win all three FF series in '78. Strange to think
of Trev working so closely with them now! I know he thinks it is ironic too!

TVR · 12 Jun 2002, 21:26 (Ref:312001)

Lets hope if the works thing is over then the rest can get on and sell themselves and win some races, for the good of f Ford....

B/Mark · 13 Jun 2002, 18:57 (Ref:312915)

It's in the teams hands, but this move makes it just a gnat's easier.
VD have decided on updates only, not a new design, for 2003, this underlines the parlous state of FF world wide and the weakness of the offerings from other manufacturers.

JR Ewing · 14 Jun 2002, 07:25 (Ref:313306)

VDs have been 'updates' since the 99 model!
It's just that they made very minor alterations just to sell loads of new chassis and there has been loads of demand for the older cars......

gary love · 18 Mar 2021, 06:44 (Ref:4041127)

hi
can any one tell me who the works drivers wee for the Van Dieman 1988 F/Ford season in the UK.
I BELIEVE Derek Higgins was one but who was the other
0064274077879
Gary Love

**chunterer** · 18 Mar 2021, 09:00 (Ref:4041141)

Quote:

Originally Posted by gary love

hi
can any one tell me who the works drivers wee for the Van Dieman 1988 F/Ford season in the UK.
I BELIEVE Derrick Higgons was one but who was the other
0064274077879
Gary Love

I will have a fish about in some old programmes but I think one was Sospiri and there may have been a 3rd works driver?

mark_l · 19 Mar 2021, 22:45 (Ref:4041604)

From what I can find the other driver was Vincenzo Sospiri.

**chunterer** · 19 Mar 2021, 23:44 (Ref:4041611)

Turns out that Sospiri's was a John Village entered car.

Adrian Fernandez?
Pedro Faria?

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