HONDA The Power of Dreams

In November 2002, Honda underwent an organizational change for the 2003 season. Takeo Kiuchi replaced Toru Ogawa, who had overseen the technical aspects of F1 activities, as project leader. Kiuchi was the engineer in charge of engine electronic control development and a driver’s engineer during Honda’s second F1 era. After Honda withdrew from F1, Kiuchi returned to Honda R&D, where he had been involved in the developing hybrid engines.

Development of the 2003 RA003E engine, however, was basically led by his predecessor, Kazutoshi Nishizawa, who was in charge of engine/powertrain development. In its third F1 era, engine development was focused on reliability, based on the concept that “you can’t win a race unless you finish it.” This focus was not competitive enough, and would not lead to race wins, so in 2002, Ogawa took on the challenge of widening the V-bank angle to 94 degrees. Although the results were not as good as intended, Ogawa and Nishizawa continued to spare no effort in introducing new technology in the second half of the season, and various data was collected, which was then utilized in the development of the 2003 engine.

The RA003E’s V-bank angle was reduced from 94 to 90 degrees, the same angle used by many competing F1 manufacturers at the time. 94 degrees had the effect of lowering the center of gravity compared to other teams, but it had vibration issues, and undeniable durability and reliability problems. Conversely, the narrower V-bank angle would result in a higher center of gravity of the engine, but Honda succeeded in keeping it at 177.2mm, nearly the same as the RA002E’s 177mm, by reviewing the layout of auxiliary components. At the same time, the team also focused on reducing the engine’s weight. The new design concept of the 2003 BAR chassis was the first work by the new technical director, and mounting the previous year’s engine on this chassis raised concerns about balance. Honda focused on weight reduction, and while the RA003E’s length was 604.5mm, 4.5mm longer than the RA002E, its weight was reduced by 12kg. This was the first time Honda succeeded in producing a lightweight engine less than 100 kg (99 kg). This was realized by the closed-deck structure adopted in the latter half of 2002, which shortened the bore-to-bore dimensions from 11mm to 9mm, as well as by new manufacturing technologies such as the use of cylinder heads with an integrated pneumatic valve return system. In addition to improved reliability, the new engine also delivered more power. The maximum rpm was been further increased to 18,800rpm, and the maximum horsepower was approximately 900 hp. This engine was capable of competing with the engines of the top teams.

Honda also reviewed its onsite staff working at the circuit: Shuhei Nakamoto, who had been with the team since 2002 as the Race and Test Team Manager for Honda Racing Development (HRD), became the Director of Engineering in 2003, overseeing the Honda staff at the track. Toyoji Tanabe, who had been Gerhard Berger’s engineer in 1990, during Honda’s second F1 era, was appointed Jenson Button’s engine engineer, and Yusuke Hasegawa, who would later lead Honda F1, was appointed Jacques Villeneuve’s engine engineer.

Under the new organization, Jenson Button, who moved to Honda this year, steadily accumulated points. He finished in the points seven times, including two fourth-place finishes (Austria and Japan) tied for his personal best results. In contrast, Villeneuve, in his fourth year at BAR, underperformed, finishing in the points just twice. This was the first time since his F1 debut in 1996 that Villeneuve earned less points than his teammate, prompting him to leave the team before the final round.