In December 1998, Honda announced its return to F1, this time as a factory team that would also develop its own cars. However, due to the sudden death of Harvey Postlethwaite, who played a key role in car development, among other circumstances, Honda abandoned its hopes to return as a factory team in April 1999, and instead announced its role to supply engines and jointly develop the car with British American Racing (BAR). In 2000, after a seven-year hiatus, Honda returned to F1 with BAR’s introduction of the BAR002 powered by a Honda engine.

In its second year of F1, BAR introduced the BAR002, an improved version of the previous year’s BAR001. Reynard’s Malcolm Osler, who was responsible for the design and development of the BAR001, continued to develop and improve the car, focusing mainly on reliability. The Honda engine’s compactness and low center of gravity made it possible to design the rear of the car, including the engine cover, side pontoons, and rear suspension smaller, resulting in a lower and more compact car compared to the BAR001. Honda also cooperated, sending several engineers to BAR, in the development of these components.

Although Honda had ended its second F1 era at the end of the 1992 season, it had developed the RA000E that powered the BAR002 as a new, high-potential engine through the experience and knowhow gained through Mugen, which had continued its F1 activities. The RA000E was a naturally aspirated 3L V10 engine with variable intake and air valves, highly refined with sufficient power and improved reliability. Nominal horsepower was claimed to be over 800 PS, but bench measurements at the time indicated that it was generating 880 PS.

Honda designated Honda Racing Development (HRD) in Bracknell, England, as the European base for its third F1 era, and prepared to achieve its goals by dispatching engineers and enriching its facilities.

In the first year of Honda’s third F1 era, Jacques Villeneuve and Ricardo Zonta gained promising results in the season-opener, finishing fourth and sixth respectively, but the increased weight to improve reliability caused problems such as lack of speed and cornering behavior. In response, the team aggressively updated aerodynamic parts to improve performance.

Entering the latter half of the season, in Round 9, France (Magny-Cours), the team made significant changes to the rear end of the car, starting with the side-pods. The lower side-pods, the protrusion covering the rear torsion bar, and the shape of the diffuser were clearly visible changes. These updates paid off, as Villeneuve finished fourth in France, raising expectations for the second half of the season.

The team further improved and added aerodynamic parts to increase competitiveness, and in Round 11, Germany (Hockenheim), the team added horizontally mounted plates to the front wishbones to reduce turbulence and improve cornering stability.

Other small aerodynamic parts such as winglets on the side-pods and turning panes were added and modified each race, and by the end of the season, the overall competitiveness of the car had been improved, and the team achieved good results, including consecutive points finishes.

In the first year of Honda third F1 era, the team’s best finish was fourth, just short of one of its goals, to finish on the podium. However, with 20 points gained by both drivers, the team was fifth out of 11 teams in the constructors’ standings, a great achievement for a team in its second year, and a promising result for the following years.