BMW F1 Engine

22nd September 2003

The BMW F1 Engine

It took one craftsman at
WilliamsF1 oer 100
ho!rs to hand"make this
left"hand side
e#ha!st$$$and it%ll be !sed
for &!st one 'rand (ri#)
BMW Form!la *ne
engine deelopment in
facts and fig!res$
It packs more than +00
bhp, -eighs less than +0
kilograms and has a
ma#im!m engine speed of
1+,200 rpm$ The BMW
(.3 engine -ith -hich the
BMW WilliamsF1 Team is
pitching for the 2003
Form!la *ne World
/hampionship title -ill be p!t o!t to past!re after the final race 0 the 1apanese 'rand (ri# 0
in three -eeks2 time$
3p to no-, no more than broad skeleton data on this po-er pack from the M!nich Form!la
*ne factor4 hae been released$ 5head of the last t-o races of the season in Indianapolis 62.
September7 and S!8!ka 612 *ctober7, its profile is no- fleshed o!t$
Who -o!ld hae g!essed, for e#ample, that 1,+90 /5: dra-ings -ere made for this engine;
(rinted o!t and laid end to end, the4 -o!ld coer a distance of 1$3 kilometres$
Facts and figures:
*!tp!t of the BMW (.3 is oer +00 bhp$
Ma#im!m engine speed is 1+,200 rpm$
In a race, engine speed is limited to 1+,000 rpm$
Idle speed is <,000 rpm$
The engine -eighs less than +0 kilograms$
It completes a distance of 900 kilometres before !ndergoing reision$
Total prod!ction of the BMW (.3 is 200 !nits, ten of -hich the team takes to each race$
Before being phased o!t the engine -ill hae receied 1,3.. !pgrade modifications$
It comprises aro!nd 9,000 indiid!al components, 1,000 of them different$
The air intake ol!me is 1,++9 c!bic metres per ho!r$
Ma#im!m piston acceleration is 10,000g$
(iston speed peaks at <0 metres per second and aerages 29 metres per second$
E#ha!st temperat!res of !p to +90 degrees are reached$
Ma#im!m air temperat!re in the pne!matic s4stem is 290 degrees$
The !ltra"high"speed 130= t!rn at S!8!ka -ith its lateral load of <g poses the greatest
challenge to the oil s4stem$
The BMW (.3 end!red the highest f!ll"throttle proportion on the Mon8a circ!it at >3 per cent
per lap$
5t the Monaco 'rand (ri#, the WilliamsF1 transmission and BMW engine hae to -ithstand
an aerage 3,100 gear changes$
The engine block and c4linder head are made of cast al!mini!m and are man!fact!red at the
BMW Form!la *ne fo!ndr4 in ?andsh!t !sing a special thin"-all casting method$
BMW M!nich handles, among other things the man!fact!re of the crankshaft 6steel7,
camshaft 6case"hardened steel7 and camshaft coers, as -ell as processing of the c4linder
head and crankcase$ The oil s4stem and engine electronics also stem from BMW M!nich$
BMW .3 engine timeline from concept to c!lmination@
In the meantime the test phase for the BMW (.< engine -as la!nched$ Follo-ing s!ccessf!l
bench tests, it -as alread4 being tested on the track in its 200< season specification at Mon8a
on < September 2003$
Timeline
/oncept@ Ao and :ec 2001
:esign@ 1an thr! Ma4 2002
Model constr!ction at the BMW fo!ndr4 in ?andsh!t@ Mar thr! Ma4 2002
/omponents Man!fact!re@ 5pl th! 1!l 2002
Initial 5ssembl4@ 1!l 2002
First Bench Test@ 31 1!l 2002
Test (hase :eelopment Stage 1@ 5!g 2002 thr! 1an 2003
First :eplo4ment in /ar@ 1. Sept 2002
:eelopment to =ace =eadiness@ *ct 2002 to mid"Feb 2003
F!rther :eelopment@ mid"Feb to season2s final in *ct 2003