his jaw in a severecrash whe n
his throttle stuck open, and
Hawthorn’sgearbo x failed.
Owen declaredthat the P25
shouldn’t be raced againunti l
it could complete a distance
without breaking down.
Hawthorn – who said the
car hadtripled his laundry
bills – and Brooksquitat the
end of the season. Despitea
strengthenedchassis andlong er
wheelbasefor 1957, further
issues with thehandlingand
brakesmanifestedthemselvesin
the formof terrifyingmoments
for Flockhart and new recruit
Roy Salvadori. ByMonaco,
Colin Chapman had been
draftedin to consult andone of
his fi rst proposals was to junk
the suspensionarrangement
in favour of coil-over shock
absorbers. Salvadori had
already decidedto qu it and ,
when Flockhart was injured in a shunt atRouen, BRMsuff ered
further humiliation when no top-rank driver waswilling to sit
in a P25for the British Grand Prix.
Althoughthe enginewas redesignedfor 1958 with afi ve-
bearing crankshaft to smoothout t he vib rations,F1’sshift
from alcohol-based fuelsto Avgas brought cooling problems
which masked improvements elsewhere– and which weren’t
properlyund erstood orfi xed until 19 59. A new chassis,built up
arounda spaceframe with curved undertrays actingas partially
stressedelements (enabling thebodywork,previously riveted
to the frame, to be removedmore easily), plus revisionsto theSPECIFICATION
ChassisSteel ladder/spaceframe
(1958-onwards) semi-monocoque
SuspensionDouble wishbones, oleopneumatic
struts/coil springs andtelescopic dampers (f),
De Dion axle with transverse leaf spring/coil
springs andtelescopic dampers (r)
EngineBRM 25 inline 4
Engine capacity2491cc
Power275bhp@8,000 rpm
GearboxFour-speed manual
TyresDunlop
Weight690kg
Notable driversPeter Collins (non-
championship), Mike Hawthorn,TonyBrooks,
Ron Flockhart, Roy Salvadori, Jean Behra, Harry
Schell,Stirling Moss, Joakim Bonnier, Hans
Herrmann, Graham Hill, MauriceTrintignantRACE RECORD
Starts 54
Wins 1
Poles 1
Fastest laps 1
Podiums 3
Points 36F1 RACING DECEMBER 2019 79
“BRM
SUFFERED
FURTHER
HUMILIATION
WHEN NO
TOP-RANK
DRIVERWAS
WILLINGTO SIT
IN A P25 FOR
THE BRITISH
GRAND PRIX”
front suspensiongeometry,transformed thehandling. Cooling-
relatedunreliability blighted 1958but the following season the
P25 came goo d, enabling Joakim Bonnier to qualifyon po le fo r
the Dutch GP and win, having beenamong thefrontrunners
throughout. Itwas BRM’sfi rst world championship victory.
Elsewhere therear brakecontinued to be problematic, and
the mo re nimble and better-balancedrear-engined Cooper was
in the ascendant inthe hands of Jack Brabham. Eventually
BRM br oke up all bar oneof the P25sto cob ble togethera
mid-engined car, de signated the P48. The surviving example–
Bonnier’s Dutch GP winner, chassis 258– is pictured here.his jaw in a severecrash whe n
his throttle stuck open, and
Hawthorn’sgearbo x failed.
Owen declaredthat the P25
shouldn’t be raced againunti l
it could complete a distance
without breaking down.
Hawthorn – who said the
car hadtripled his laundry
bills – and Brooksquitat the
end of the season. Despitea
strengthenedchassis andlong er
wheelbasefor 1957, further
issues with thehandlingand
brakesmanifestedthemselvesin
the formof terrifyingmoments
for Flockhart and new recruit
Roy Salvadori. ByMonaco,
Colin Chapman had been
draftedin to consult andone of
his fi rst proposals was to junk
the suspensionarrangement
in favour of coil-over shock
absorbers. Salvadori had
already decidedto qu it and ,
when Flockhart was injured in a shunt atRouen, BRMsuff ered
further humiliation when no top-rank driver waswilling to sit
in a P25for the British Grand Prix.
Althoughthe enginewas redesignedfor 1958 with afi ve-
bearing crankshaft to smoothout t he vib rations,F1’sshift
from alcohol-based fuelsto Avgas brought cooling problems
which masked improvements elsewhere– and which weren’t
properlyund erstood orfi xed until 19 59. A new chassis,built up
arounda spaceframe with curved undertrays actingas partially
stressedelements (enabling thebodywork,previously riveted
to the frame, to be removedmore easily), plus revisionsto the
SPECIFICATION
ChassisSteel ladder/spaceframe
(1958-onwards) semi-monocoque
SuspensionDouble wishbones, oleopneumatic
struts/coil springs andtelescopic dampers (f),
De Dion axle with transverse leaf spring/coil
springs andtelescopic dampers (r)
EngineBRM 25 inline 4
Engine capacity2491cc
Power275bhp@8,000 rpm
GearboxFour-speed manual
TyresDunlop
Weight690kg
Notable driversPeter Collins (non-
championship), Mike Hawthorn,TonyBrooks,
Ron Flockhart, Roy Salvadori, Jean Behra, Harry
Schell,Stirling Moss, Joakim Bonnier, Hans
Herrmann, Graham Hill, MauriceTrintignantRACE RECORD
Starts 54
Wins 1
Poles 1
Fastest laps 1
Podiums 3
Points 36F1 RACING DECEMBER 2019 79
“BRM
SUFFERED
FURTHER
HUMILIATION
WHEN NO
TOP-RANK
DRIVER WAS
WILLING TO SIT
IN A P25 FOR
THE BRITISH
GRAND PRIX”
spensiongeometry,transformed thehandling. Cooling-
unreliability blighted 1958but the following season the
e goo d, enabling Joakim Bonnier to qualifyon po le fo r
h GP and win, having beenamong thefrontrunners
out. Itwas BRM’sfi rst world championship victory.
ere therear brakecontinued to be problematic, and
e nimble and better-balancedrear-engined Cooper was
cendant inthe hands of Jack Brabham. Eventually
oke up all bar oneof the P25sto cob ble togethera
ined car, de signated the P48. The surviving example–
s Dutch GP winner, chassis 258– is pictured here.