Best non-WDC winning car

[Kingshark]

I have seen plenty of threads discussing the best car of all time, the best driver of all time, the best driver who has never won a WDC. How about which is the best car to have never won a WDC?

As I am mostly ignorant about Formula 1 pre-2000, I'll only judge the best non-WDC winning cars of this century.

These are the five cars in the poll, which I believe, are the five best candidates for "best non-WDC winning car of the century"

1. The 2000 McLaren MP4/15
The car had stunning speed in virtually all conditions; it was fast in the dry, fast in the wet, fast on any type of circuit, fast over one lap and fast in the race. The only weakness of the car however, was that it was unreliable, especially early on in the season, which allowed Ferrari to ultimately clinch the WDC in the penultimate race. The MP4/15 finished runner-up in both championships and won 7 races.

2. The 2005 McLaren MP4/20
This car's pace was even more impressive than the McLaren of 5 years earlier. The MP4/20 started off slow, but once they got going in Imola, on raw pace they were virtually unstoppable until the end of the season. The biggest downfall of this car however, was its absolutely horrific reliability. They lost the WDC to Renault with 2 races to spare, which is a downfall for a car which had so much potential and won 10 races, the most races any car has ever won without winning the championship.

3. The 2006 Ferrari F248
The car started off slowly with tyre and reliability problems early on in the year. An upgrade for the European season put in almost on par with the Renault R26. After the mass damper was banned, Ferrari were virtually unstoppable. They won 7 out of the last 9 races beginning in Indianapolis. The championship was lost to Renault because of two main reasons, those being Schumacher’s mistakes early on in the season, and reliability misfortunes at the end of the year during the most crucial races of the season.

4. The 2007 McLaren MP4/22
This car was the full package, it’s speed was on par with Ferrari, and the car was more reliable throughout the season. McLaren excelled in cold/wet conditions and mechanical grip circuits, but generally trailed Ferrari in hot conditions and downforce circuits. However, the team was involved in a Spygate scandal, and some very poor operational work from the McLaren pit wall in the final two races of the season caused the WDC to slip through their fingers. The MP4/22 is the only car on this list which ended up being disqualified from the WCC, but still won 8 races and scored more points than Ferrari.

5. The 2008 Ferrari F2008
Ferrari were heavy favorites heading into 2008, and while the pace of the car in dry conditions certainly did not fail to deliver, a multitude of other things did. The F2008 was almost always the car to beat when the sun shined, it however struggled a lot to heat the tyres in wet conditions. Likewise the car’s reliability, although not woeful, was certainly not perfect. The main reason behind them losing the WDC to McLaren was because of a poor operational team, and many driver errors from both of their drivers. Overall, the F2008 finished the year with 8 wins, and is the only car on this list who salvaged the constructor’s championship.

6. The 2012 McLaren MP4/27
Straight out of the box in Melbourne, the MP4/27 was the car to beat. Mid-season they struggled a bit with the unpredictable Pirelli tyres, but once Pirelli became more conservative Germany-onward McLaren were either fastest or equal fastest in all of the remaining races, apart from the infamous Asia leg (Japan, Korea, India) where they struggled with problems on the car and lagged behind Red Bull. Overall the MP4/27 was the fastest car throughout the majority of the season and won 7 races, but they managed to throw away the championship with absolutely abysmal operational work from McLaren along with very unpredictable reliability. Overall, they even finished behind Ferrari in the standings despite winning more than double the races.

Finally, these are the honorable mentions which did not quite make the final cut:

1. 2003 Williams FW25
2. 2009 Red Bull RB5
3. 2010 Ferrari F10
4. 2010 McLaren MP4/25
5. 2003 McLaren MP4/17D

(That's is how I’d rank them, from best to worst)

[Sombrero]

I'm a little bit surprised - where is the McLaren MP4/17D ?

[Kingshark]

I'm a little bit surprised - where is the McLaren MP4/17D ?

Did not make the cut, that car was simply not fast enough.

It was fast in the first 3 flyaway races, but once they reached the European season Ferrari and eventually BMW Williams surpassed them, and McLaren were left as the clear 3rd best car on the grid.

[Juzh]

Was a toss up between mp4/20 and 27. Gave it to 2005 mp4/20 because it ultimately had even more pace than 27 compared to the rest.

[Miguel]

I would have voted the FW25. At the time, I got the feeling that only the drivers plus a weird DSQ at Indy made Williams lose the WDC that year. Let's not forget Montoya was clear of the field in Suzuka when his engine gave up.

[FrukostScones]

2009 Red Bull RB 5 by quite a margin.

[Tyler]

The Mercedes W05!

[beelsebob]

The -27 for me. Hamilton should have won the championship by nearly 200 points in that beast. Shame the team screwed up so much.

[SectorOne]

RB5 and MP27 for me. Some fantastic cars despite not winning.

[xpensive]

The 1976 Ferrari 312T2, by helluva margin.

[GitanesBlondes]

The Ferrari 126C2 easily.



Whether Gilles would have won or not is up for debate. What cannot be debated is that Didier Pironi had what should have been, and nearly was an insurmountable lead in the driver's championship. If he doesn't run into the back of Alain Prost at Hockenheim, he wins that world championship....and we don't suffer the ignominy of watching Keke Rosberg take the title of worst world champion in F1 history.

[xpensive]

The 1979 Williams FW07;

[tim|away]

1995 Williams FW17






The Williams FW17 was a Formula One car designed by Adrian Newey with which the Williams team competed in the 1995 Formula One season. It was driven by Damon Hill, who was in his third year with the team, and David Coulthard, who was in his first full season after a part-time role in 1994.

With what was regarded as the best chassis in the field combined with the best engine, the 1995 season was disappointing for the team, who were beaten to both titles by Michael Schumacher and Benetton. Although the FW17 was superior in qualifying trim, taking 12 pole positions, Schumacher was usually more competitive on race day, and was able to win nine races against Hill and Coulthard's combined total of five. This situation was not helped by both drivers making several unfortunate errors during the course of the season.

For the Portuguese GP, the Williams FW17B was used for the first time. In its five races, it took four pole positions and two victories, but the titles were already just about out of reach due to the success of Schumacher and his Benetton B195.

[Tyler]

The Williams might have lost out to the Benetton that year but if the title was decided on looks instead it would have won hands down! A beautiful car (as are many Newey-designed cars) whereas the Benetton looks like a bath tub on wheels!

[Tyler]

The Mercedes W05!

In all seriousness though it's got to be a tie between the 2007 and 2012 McLarens for me.
The 2012 season is still a lot fresher in my mind so my vote ultimately went to the MP4-27.
I still can't believe the incompetence a team like McLaren displayed that year when it came to race days.

All I remember about the 2007 season is hearing non stop about F1's amazingly talented rookie, the sports answer to Tiger Woods. It came as quite a shock when Kimi came from nowhere to snatch away the title.
I picked out Kimi as a future WDC during his Sauber years so naturally I was very pleased by his accomplishment, even though it came at Hamilton's expense.

Co-incidentally apart from both being McLarens, both these cars were driven by Hamilton.
You couldn't ask much more from a rookie than to match the reigning 2 x WDC however and in 2012 he lost the title through no shortcomings of his own but plenty by his team!