New star in an old car: Williams FW08
The FW08 won only one race in 1982, but that was enough for Keke Rosberg to win the drivers' championship. Ex-HRT and Caterham F1 racer Karun Chandhok compares the title-winning Williams with the cars of today
Two years ago, I had the chance to drive a Williams FW08 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and naturally jumped at the chance. It was an eye-opening experience and a fantastic opportunity to have a taste of what grand prix racing was like three decades ago.
The first thing that hits you is how bloody dangerous they were. When I was sat in it, before I put the belts on, I could lean forward and reach the front tracking rods, which tells you a lot about the safety! I couldn't believe how far forward these guys were, relative to the front axle line, and how exposed they were in terms of side-impact protection. It's a bizarre feeling as a modern driver even to sit in one of these cars.
Share Or Save This Story
Subscribe and access Autosport.com with your ad-blocker.
From Formula 1 to MotoGP we report straight from the paddock because we love our sport, just like you. In order to keep delivering our expert journalism, our website uses advertising. Still, we want to give you the opportunity to enjoy an ad-free and tracker-free website and to continue using your adblocker.