The Brabham name is synonymous with extreme high performance and advanced vehicle dynamics. Nowhere is this more evident than in the aerodynamics of the BT62. Designed to balance form with function – great looks, brilliant surface performance and incredible levels of downforce – the BT62’s aero treatment provides outstanding on-track performance.
The BT62’s potential to smash lap records, most notably at the fabled Mount Panorama in Bathurst where the car went quickest last year, is no secret, but their customers have to experience this exhilaration for themselves. When they do, whether they be novice track drivers or pro-racers who’ve competed in the car, they all agree. Not only is the car easy to drive, it’s an exercise in dynamics that few other vehicles even come close to.
So how does the Brabham BT62 deliver such dizzying performance and smash records on The Mountain while still giving novice drivers that feeling of total confidence? The key is Aerodynamics.
One of the keys to BT62’s performance is grip and aerodynamics. That comes from a two-headed, but singular, conundrum that every serious sports car faces – balancing downforce vs drag perfectly.
Downforce uses nature to help the car by directing airflow to push the car into the track, enabling far better grip and stability. Drag is the tendency for air to slow the car down. Vehicle aerodynamics is all about managing airflow to provide the downforce and cooling that you need while allowing minimal drag.
The Brabham BT62 has numerous design features aimed specifically towards these ends.
The development and refinement of these aerodynamic elements took place as the vehicle engineering matured and the vehicle testing intensified, during which time engineers transposed the styled form of the BT62 into the Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) model environment. The model’s sensitivity was then correlated with real world data in order to ensure that the model was giving verifiable data and an accurate understanding of the airflow over the car.
With the CFD model honed, new engineering elements were introduced and detail changes made one at a time, working front to rear, to quantify their combined impact on overall performance and cooling. Whilst elements are introduced one at a time, effects are measured as a whole. The primary aim was to ensure that every change resulted in all elements working in harmony with the airflow.
The result is a body design that shapes the air as approaches and then moves through it. Low pressure air is moved out and around the car while high pressure zones at the front and rear act to glue the car to the road and keep it stable at high speed and in the corners.
The illustrations below show how low pressure air is streamed around the car as it passes through the air. The goal is to keep low-pressure air from the underfloor and rear wing while directing flow for cooling where it’s needed, with highest pressure air being used to create downforce on the wings and body surfaces.
As air hits the front the spitter, high-pressure air provides downforce for the front of the car. Air then washes through the radiator and vents through the front hood, where the vast majority is diverted around the sides of the car. Lower down, the end plates on the front splitter generate low-pressure vortices that manage flow along the side of the car, instead of allowing it to flow underneath where it would impact the floor and rear diffuser.
The underfloor of the car is completely flat, an important element in retaining low pressure. High air pressure on the under-surface of the car would cause lift. Maintaining low pressure underneath assists in maximizing downforce and is critical for vehicle stability at higher speeds. The low-pressure underfloor area contributes to a center of pressure that works with the car’s static center of gravity, contributing to the BT62’s amazing dynamics and high-speed stability.
Detail of the airflow from the front outboard vent shows how vortex-generating surfaces help to manage the front wheel wake. Again, the goal is to evacuate air as efficiently as possible and direct it around the side of the vehicle, and maintain low pressure on the underside.
The image below shows a heat-map style indication of pressure around the upper body that is generated by the CFD analysis. Higher pressure zones shown in red provide the greatest contribution to total downforce.
The BT62 was designed as a high-speed track car and as such, its emphasis is on high downforce. The bulk of its downforce comes from the rear wing, seen in red, above. This wing has a lift to drag ratio of 5:1, meaning that for every Newton of drag force, it creates 5N of downforce. This focus on downforce enables the car’s amazing cornering speed while pulling up to 3.5G’s.
Of course, with so much downforce in play, there is mechanical pressure on vehicle parts as the car compresses under aerodynamic load. At 300 km/h, the aero load results in 8mm deflection at the front and around 18mm at the rear. Deflection is sensitive to spring rates and addressed during the suspension setup but it highlights the importance of the BT62’s lightweight construction. The strength-to-weight ratio of materials like carbon-fiber makes the composite material an obvious choice for shedding load on critical parts while maintaining superior strength.
The result of all this is amazing grip and downforce figures that out-perform other high performance competitors. As the table above shows, that is despite having less overall power than most other rivals in its class. The BT62 is relatively lightweight and has a combination of elements – front splitter, end plates, turning vanes, flat underfloor, rear diffuser and rear wing – that work together to sculpt a path through the air that could be best described as engineering poetry. The vortex rooster tail shown on our test car below, during a wet run at Donington Park, England, reveals the effect better than any wind tunnel could.
While most supercars have maximum downforce around 600kgs at top speed, the BT62 has an incredible 1600kgs of useable downforce at 300 km/h.
And, in answer the classic question about driving upside-down – we estimate that with full fluids and driver on board, the BT62 generates enough downforce (or would it now be called upforce?) to drive upside-down at around 265 km/h.
Sir Jack Brabham’s reputation was not merely based on his personal driving achievements. Together with Ron Tauranac, Sir Jack designed and built the most advanced racing machines of his day.
Brabham Automotive continues the tradition, building the world’s most dynamic vehicles for the champions of tomorrow.
Building on a remarkable 70-year racing pedigree, David Brabham has announced Brabham’s return to manufacturing at a gala event in London, with the global launch of Brabham Automotive’s first product, the stunning BT62.
The Brabham BT62 continues the legendary ‘BT’ naming convention established by founders Jack Brabham and Ron Tauranac in the 1960s and honors the legacy of the marque’s greatest and most memorable cars.
With headline figures that point to the potency of the car, the new Brabham is pure-bred for the track and capable of setting blistering lap times. The BT62 boasts a power-to-weight ratio of 730ps per tonne, a dry weight of just 972kg and is powered by a Brabham naturally-aspirated 5.4 liter capacity V8 engine.
Heralding the start of an exciting new chapter for the iconic marque, the BT62 has been specifically designed, developed and tested to reward like no other. Designed from the ground-up and featuring a host of unique engineering details, the Brabham BT62 draws on the project team’s vast experience to create a car without equal. Crafted from lightweight carbon fiber, the BT62’s exterior surface and aggressive aerodynamic package combine to strike the optimal balance between function and form.
The Brabham BT62 has been designed and engineered to demand more from its driver. It’s a car for those who want to challenge themselves and their limitations to experience driving in its purest form.
Those fortunate enough to own a Brabham BT62 will join the Brabham driver development program, where their physical ability and determination will be raised to a place where the performance potential of both driver and vehicle can be fully exploited together as one.
With a base price of £1 million plus local taxes, and before options, production of the Brabham BT62 will be limited to just seventy cars in recognition of Brabham’s 70-year heritage; the first thirty-five of which will celebrate the thirty-five Grand Prix victories won by Brabham over its 30-year reign in Formula 1.
The Brabham BT62 unveiled on the night was liveried in celebration of Jack Brabham’s green and gold BT19 and his historic victory at the 1966 French Formula 1 Grand Prix at Reims, the year in which he made history in becoming the first (and to date only) driver to win a World Championship in a car of his own construction. First deliveries of the Brabham BT62 are expected later this year.
Led by multiple Le Mans winner, David Brabham, Brabham Automotive has been established as a manufacturer of high performance vehicles which challenge and reward the driver in equal measures.
With a long-term plan in place and a phased product development program already underway, the company’s ultimate goal is to see the iconic Brabham name return once again to compete on the race track, with the 24 Hours of Le Mans firmly in its sights.
The Brabham BT62 in more detail
As the next in the line of legendary racers, the Brabham BT62 carries more than just the Brabham name; it shares its DNA.
Working to the same brief as each of the BT-designated vehicles that came before it, David Brabham has led the team to design and develop a car to deliver blistering on-track performance. In producing the BT62, the team has followed the same pragmatic approach that saw Brabham achieve 35 Formula 1 Grand Prix wins and four World Championships.
Charged with overseeing the development of the Brabham BT62, Brabham Automotive’s Director of Technology and Engineering, Paul Birch, said, “Created from a blank sheet of paper, our first car takes Brabham into an exciting new era, whilst honoring and upholding the marque’s glorious past. Using contemporary materials, processes and technologies, and following a rigorous two-year engineering and development program, the resulting BT62 is a car that demands total engagement and commitment from its driver, delivering immense reward and satisfaction.”
Specification highlights
The Brabham BT62 is a mid-engined track car, with its power driven to the rear wheels via a rear-mounted race-spec transmission.
With a dry weight of just 972kg, the vehicle is incredibly light, and boasts a power to weight ratio of 730ps per tonne.
Power comes from a Brabham 5.4 liter V8 engine which produces 710ps (700bhp, 522kW) and 667 Nm (492 ft/lb) of torque.
With its performance-optimized body and aggressive aerodynamic package, the Brabham BT62 delivers over 1200kg of downforce.
Saving additional weight and with additive performance, brakes are carbon/carbon featuring 6 piston calipers front and rear.
The new Brabham BT62 will be proudly using Michelin racing slick tires, marking the start of the brand’s strategic partnership with Michelin as official tire supplier and technical partner to Brabham Automotive. Extensively used in testing for the BT62, Brabham Automotive looks forward to working with Michelin to develop tires to ensure the continued performance of its vehicles to the very highest levels.
Limited production run
Production of the Brabham BT62 will be limited to just seventy cars to celebrate the seventy years since Sir Jack Brabham launched his racing career in Australia in 1948 and the birth of Brabham Automotive in 2018.
The first thirty-five cars will be liveried in tribute to each of Brabham’s thirty-five Formula 1 Grand Prix victories.
Owners of the Brabham BT62 will join a tailored driver development and experience program to enable them to fully exploit the performance potential of this exceptional car. First deliveries are expected later this year.
