FORMULA 1 ENGINE CUTAWAY

Have you ever wanted to take a peek inside a Formula 1 engine? Up until now the insides of a Formula 1 engine have remained a guarded secret – until now! Take a look inside one of the best engines from the mid-2000s, the Cosworth TJ.

We stock race-used parts from Cosworth’s TJ and CA engines that can be displayed for all to see. Just keep an eye on our Memorabilia section of our on-line shop to see what’s currently available. Each part can be bought directly from the website shop and delivered straight to your door.

The Cosworth TJ

The TJ was the first used by Jaguar Racing in 2003. The team continued to use this engine when they morphed into Red Bull in 2005. It also saw active service powering the Jordan and Minardi teams in 2004 and 2005, respectively. Its final year of racing was in 2006, when Torro Rosso (formally Minardi) ran the engine against the V8’s.

It was a clean sheet design, learning on the lessons from the successful CK engine that had been used by Stewart Grand Prix / Jaguar Racing from 1999 to 2002. There were several important concepts copied from the CK, such as the unique central-beam cylinder head philosophy.

The TJ received an extensive amount of development, eventually allowing the engine to reach a maximum speed of 19,000 rpm and peak power in the region of 900 bhp.

Last of its Era?

When it was introduced in 2003 the TJ was the epitome of the “anything goes” regulations from that era. Devoid of rules that restricted the number of engines that could be used by each driver, the emphasis was very much of extracting the maximum out of each engine in just one session or race.

It wasn’t uncommon back then for teams to get through over six engines in one weekend (and that’s not allowing for unscheduled engine changes!). As a result, engines like the TJ were designed with performance over reliability in mind.

Midway through the life of the TJ, rules aimed at extending engine life started to creep in. In 2004 the FIA introduced the “two race” requirement that each engine had to attain. Engines like the TJ that were designed for outright power and performance had to be re-engineered to last longer.

In addition, restrictions in later years on low density materials plus minimum weights and centre-of-gravity heights meant that the lightweight features seen on the TJ became redundant in subsequent engines.

In its final year of service with Torro Rosso in 2006, the TJ’s maximum engine speed was capped at 16,700 rpm amid fears that it would outpace the newly-introduced V8 engines (including the 20,000 rpm CA from Cosworth).

However, the TJ lives on, and can be seen (and heard) running in the back of numerous historic Formula 1 cars.

Modatek are pleased to be able to help keep these engines alive for historic race series and demonstration events. If you need assistance then get in touch.