Sauber C36

Sauber C36

Marcus Ericsson testing the C36 at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya
Category	Formula One
Constructor	Sauber
Designer(s)	Jörg Zander (Technical Director)
Predecessor	Sauber C35
Technical specifications[1][2][3]
Chassis	Carbon-fiber Monocoque
Suspension (front)	Upper and lower wishbone and pushrod activated torsion springs & rockers
Suspension (rear)	Upper and lower wishbone and pullrod activated torsion springs & rockers
Engine	Ferrari 061 1,600 cc (97.6 cu in), 90° - V6 engine, limited to 15,000 RPM in a longitudinal layout
Electric motor	Motor Generator Unit–Kinetic and Motor Generator Unit–Heat
Transmission	Ferrari 8-speed quick-shift carbon gearbox
Weight	728 kg (1,605.0 lb) (incl. driver)
Brakes	Brembo Carbon brake discs, pads and calipers
Tyres	Pirelli P Zero (Dry/Slick) Pirelli Cinturato (Wet/Treaded) OZ Racing Wheels: 13"
Competition history
Notable entrants	Sauber F1 Team
Notable drivers	9. Marcus Ericsson 94. Pascal Wehrlein
Debut	2017 Australian Grand Prix
Races Wins Podiums Poles F.Laps 11 0 0 0 0

The Sauber C36 is a Formula One racing car designed and constructed by Sauber to compete during the 2017 Formula One season. The car is driven by Marcus Ericsson and Pascal Wehrlein,^[4] who joined the team after Felipe Nasr left the team at the end of the 2016 season. Antonio Giovinazzi drove the car in Wehrlein's place after a pre-season injury saw Wehrlein withdraw from the opening two rounds of the season as a precaution. The C36 made its competitive début at the 2017 Australian Grand Prix, and uses a 2016-specification Ferrari engine.^[2]

The C36 is the first Sauber built after the team's takeover by Longbow Finance S.A. Originally intended to be the last Sauber car to be fitted with Ferrari engines, after the team secured a deal to run with customer and up-to-date Honda powered engines for the 2018 season, the deal to run with Honda powered engines was cancelled on 27 July 2017 and eventually secured another year of Ferrari engines for 2018.

Design and development

The Sauber C36 will use the Ferrari 061 as its power unit, as opposed to the 062 model which was developed by Ferrari for the 2017 season. When Ferrari made the decision to completely redesign the 061 model, Sauber had already started development of the C36, designing the chassis around the 061 and its predecessor, the 060, both of which had a similar shape. However, the 062 model that Ferrari created did not fit the C36 chassis; in particular, the chassis mounting points for the engine did not fit the 062 engine. Sauber chose to keep the 061 engine instead of completely redesigning the C36 around the 062 model, arguing that the performance gains offered by the 062 model were slight and that the renewed emphasis on aerodynamic grip in the 2017 technical regulations would offset any performance deficit between the 061 and 062 models.

Competition history

At the Spanish Grand Prix, Wehrlein finished in 7th but was relegated to 8th after receiving a 5 second penalty for failing to enter the pit lane in the correct manner. It was the first points finish of the season for the financially strained Sauber team.

Wehrlein scored another point at the extremely chaotic Azerbaijan Grand Prix when he finished in 10th. This was also the team's first race after their team principal, Monisha Kaltenborn quit the team after 7 seasons, during the week of the Grand Prix.

Complete Formula One results

(key) (results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Notes

• * – Season in progress.
• † – Driver failed to finish the race, but was classified as they had completed greater than 90% of the race distance.

References