10 Of The Strangest Front Wing Designs F1 Has Ever Seen

1. Caterham CT05

The Caterham CT05 is a pretty easy target, but it’s not hard to see why. There are a few people who actually like the design, but even then, you can’t deny it’s a weird looking - and rather phallic - front wing. Fortunately, a mid-season update made it look a bit nicer.

2. Arrows A22

This was an aerodynamic update brought in for the 2001 Monaco Grand Prix. Someone thought it’d be a great idea to attach a tall wing to the front wing. Right in the driver’s eyeline. It was swiftly banned by the FIA, as you’d expect from any innovative piece of design.

3. Ensign N179

Add a small ladder to the front of an F1 car - sure, why not? This weird design from Ensign actually housed the radiators, with two small-ish wings at the end of the low nose tip. It just looked downright odd.

4. March 711

In the 1970s, teams were pretty experimental when it came to front wing designs as they looked to find the best aero solution. The 711’s front end resembled a tea tray with its weird, raised and flat section. The concept was short-lived.

5. Williams FW26

The FW26’s nose split opinion and surprised many when it was launched. The ‘walrus’ front wing looked a bit aggressive and strange. It didn’t work that well either and the team changed it mid-way through 2004.

6. Force India VJM07

Most of the F1 2014 grid looked pretty weird, and just behind the Caterham the Force India VJM07 was one of the worst offenders. The weird nose was too long and using black paint couldn’t hide how strange - and again phallic - it looked. Fortunately the rules were changed for 2015 to make the cars look better.

7. Honda RA108

The lower element of the Honda RA108 was pretty standard, but it was the mid-season introduction of the affectionately-nicknamed ‘Dumbo Wings’ that really made the car an eyesore.

8. Brabham BT34

Can you see why the BT34 was branded the ‘lobster claw’? The two boxes at the edge of the mid-section of the front wing housed radiators. It was an innovative design but the car was uncompetitive and it was replaced after a stint in 1971 and 1972.

9. Tyrrell P34

The P34 was strange and wacky for a number of reasons. Firstly, it had six wheels. So there’s that. But the front wing also looked quite striking (in an odd kind of way). It looked a bit like someone had put a snow plough on the front of the car, to clear the track.

10. Lotus E22

This front wing design was clever, and looked very different to the rest of the grid. The twin-tusks of the Lotus weren’t equal in length, to fit into the regulations, and certainly weren’t what we were expecting ahead of the 2014 season.

What other weird F1 front wing designs can you think of? Let us know in the comments.