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The covers come off PF1

The exciting new programme for car enthusiasts to own and drive a day Formula One Car 

ITV Formula One commentator Martin Brundle was at Silverstone on Wednesday (12^th December) to launch an exciting new motorsport programme called PF1 - a revolutionary and affordable opportunity for car enthusiasts to own and drive a modern day Formula One car.  

Cars International, a worldwide supplier of road and racing cars, set up PF1 in partnership with engine specialists Cosworth, who will be bringing its own successful motor sport pedigree to this unique programme.  Ex-Cosworth stalwart Bernard Ferguson will be a consultant for PF1, which will see Cars International market and maintain post-2000 Formula One cars for private owners. PF1 has already acquired a fleet of recent-model Jordans , Jaguars and Super Aguris, which are now affordable for more than just the super rich. 

Martin Brundle and Mark Hynes were on hand at Silverstone to put the PF1 livered 2004 Jaguar R5 through its paces, which roared to the sound of the refitted 2006 Cosworth TJ engine, which has been retuned to provide up to 875bhp.  

Having completed several laps of trouble free testing in the PF1 Jaguar R5, Martin Brundle commented, “Paul Osborn (co-owner of Cars International) and I go back a long way, so it was a pleasure to test the Cosworth-engined Jaguar R5. I’m here today to compare the PF1 car against other modern F1 machinery that I’ve track-tested recently. Well, there’s good news – this is definitely the real thing! I’ve track-tested a 2006 Super Aguri and a 2007 Williams this year, and the PF1-engined Jaguar R5 is in that ballpark.” 

Brundle added, “The V10 is more powerful and more tractable than a modern 2.4-litre V8 too, while the bespoke Avon slicks are both grippy and driver-friendly. I’m extremely impressed. The car gave me enormous confidence, and everything worked absolutely perfectly.” 

There were a number of recognisable faces from the world of motorsport watching the PF1 make its public debut, including Mark Blundell, Tony Jardine , and the CEO of Cosworth, Tim Routsis. ITV F1 expert Mark Blundell commented, “The car looked fantastic and the overall set up was very professional. You have to give credit to the Cars International team who have done an amazing job to pull off something special”. 

Mark Hynes, the experienced driver and instructor who has trained some the biggest names in Formula One, including Kimi Raikkonen and Lewis Hamilton, will head up the driver training element of the programme. PF1 will host exclusive events at famous circuits such as Silverstone and Spa, with each customer benefiting from training sessions in a PF1 owned F3000 Lola, before jumping behind the wheel of their own Formula One Car. 

To ensure the highest level of customer service the PF1 technical and maintenance team, which is made up of ex-F1 engineers and mechanics, will be headed up by Tim Preston, who has worked for Formula One teams Williams F1 and Sauber, and worked with F1 drivers such as Damon Hill, Juan Pablo Montoya and Jenson Button. 

Paul Osborn and Jonathan Kaiser, co-owners of Cars International, are the driving force behind PF1, and have pulled together an impressive list of companies from the world of motorsport to help deliver this unique offering. Supplementing the technical experience at Cosworth, the list of high profile partners supporting PF1 includes Air Partner, Oakley, AWS Racewear and Avon Tyres. 

Paul Osborn explained, “The idea is that we’re going to provide motorsport enthusiasts with the opportunity to own and run a late-model F1 car, without any of the associated problems. A lot of our customers are people who buy Lamborghini and Ferrari road cars and they often express the desire to have a go in a race car. Sometimes they actually do it. They usually start off doing track days and end up in something like a GT2 Porsche, because cars like that are relatively easy and cheap to run. 

“Owning and running an F1 car has always been exclusive to the super-rich - until now. The cost of purchasing a post-2000 Formula One car starts from £300,000 and there will be a nominal fee of £2,500 for membership to Club PF1, which will enable members to run their car at four events per year at famous circuits around Europe . 

“We appreciate this is not a small investment, but when you consider that our customers will own a Formula One car, complete with engine, and can sell them if they so desire, it starts to become a lot more affordable. It’s also worth noting that PF1 cars are only half the price of a Ferrari Enzo road car.” 

Quotes 

Tim Routsis (CEO, Cosworth):

“It’s great to see that F1 can still be fun, isn’t it? And not only fun, but relatively affordable too. Paul has done a great job in setting up PF1, and we’re delighted that Cosworth will be a major part of it. We’ve got the engines, and he’s hired a blue-chip group of ex-F1 technical people to support the operation, so we’re very confident that PF1 will be a success. “Cosworth has no stake in PF1, but we’ll be providing a lot of support as a key supplier. Although Cosworth has moved on to a stage where we’re now a technology company, rather than a purely racing company, we’re still very much aware of our roots and are therefore delighted to be a part of an F1-based programme once again in our 50th year.” 

Paul Smith ( Avon Tyres):

“We’ve engineered a bespoke tyre that will enable drivers with very varied levels of driving skill to be able to handle a modern F1 car. That’s not an easy task - because the performance envelope of such cars is very small, and you really have to be an F1 driver to be able to operate within it when it’s fitted with a conventional racing tyre. But we’ve engineered a slick tyre with a lot of low-speed mechanical grip and plenty of high-speed stability. We’re very excited about it.” 

Bernard Ferguson (consultant, PF1):

“I was at Cosworth for 23 years, but I’ve just turned 60 and left the company in September 2007. But I’ve been working with Paul on the PF1 project for about a year now. I met Paul at the 2006 Autosport Awards and we began discussing PF1 straight away. I’ll be working as a consultant - liaising between our customers and the PF1 engineering team, as well as working with my ex-colleagues back at Cosworth. “I think PF1 is a brilliant concept, and I did a lot to put the deal together earlier this year while I was still at Cosworth. Now that I’m no longer at Cosworth, I’m delighted to be able to continue my involvement with PF1 in a consultative capacity.” 

Marc Hynes (driver coach, PF1):

“Paul wanted to engage a driver who had driven F1 cars but wasn’t looking for a platform to launch himself back into F1. I guess I fitted the bill. Added to that, I’ve done a lot of driver coaching, which was also an essential point. I’m absolutely delighted to be driving F1 cars again. PF1 is a brilliant project. I think it will be a winner. 

“The engine - the Cosworth TJ V10 - is fantastic: really strong and very driveable. And the fact that top people like Tim and his group of other ex-Williams guys are involved gives me a huge amount of confidence.” 

Andrew Tate, PF1’s first customer who recently purchased a Jordan EJ13 Formula One car. The EJ13 was originally driven by Fisichella and recorded Ford and Cosworth’s last win in Formula One: “I never dreamt that I would get a chance to drive my own late model Formula One car. It only seems like yesterday that I was watching Fisichella on TV, winning the Brazilian Grand Prix in the Jordan . It’s still hard to believe that I now own that car and get to drive it around amazing circuits such as Spa.”

For further information about PF1, or Cars International, visit www.carsinternational.com