Footwork FA14

1993 Footwork-Mugen-Honda FA14

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | April 16, 2023

Photo – Bonhams

Footwork was the name the Arrows team competed under in Formula One from 1991 through 1996. The name is actually that of their largest investor/sponsor, Footwork Express, a Japanese logistics company.

1993 was the second of two seasons that the team sourced their 3.5-liter V10 engines from Honda, which were branded as Mugen-Honda. Output was likely around 720 horsepower. This chassis, FA14-04, retains its engine, but that engine is lacking internals. So it’s essentially a roller.

The competition history for this one includes:

  • 1993 Spanish Grand Prix – 10th (with Aguri Suzuki)
  • 1993 Canadian Grand Prix – 13th (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 French Grand Prix – 12th (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 British Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 German Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Hungarian Grand Prix – 16th, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Belgian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Italian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Portuguese Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Japanese Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Suzuki)
  • 1993 Australian Grand Prix – 7th (with Suzuki)

So, no points for this car, and quite a string of bad luck. I kind of love relatively livery-less F1 cars from this era. They look so plain as to be almost homebuilt. But even a mid-pack car like this was highly sophisticated in its day. The estimate now is $145,000-$190,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $140,759.

Footwork FA15

1994 Footwork-Ford FA15

Offered by Artcurial | Paris, France | February 6, 2014

Photo - Artcurial

Photo – Artcurial

Arrows Grand Prix International was formed in 1977 by Franco Ambrosio, Alan Rees, Jackie Oliver, Dave Wass, and Tony Southgate. “Arrows” was a play on the first letters of their last names. The made their race debut in 1978. In 1990, the team received a large investment from Japanese businessman Wataru Ohashi and his logistics company, Footwork Express.

For 1991, the team was actually renamed from Arrows to Footwork Arrows. They competed under the “Footwork” name from 1991 through mid-1996, so technically, even though the catalog description here lists this as an Arrows, it’s actually a Footwork car. The engine is a Ford-Cosworth 3.5-liter V8. The car was a relative backmarker and this example (of the two built) was campaigned by Gianni Morbidelli. The only finishes of this car are:

  • 1994 German Grand Prix – 5th
  • 1994 Belgian Grand Prix – 6th
  • 1994 Portuguese Grand Prix – 9th
  • 1994 European Grand Prix – 11th

The other 12 races were DNFs, although Christian Fittipaldi fared better in the sister car, enough to take Arrows to 9th in the constructor standings at the end of the year. At any rate, if you want an easy-to-use late-model F1 car for fun, this one will run you between $80,000-$150,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Sold $209,119.

Bonhams 2012 Pebble Beach Highlights

I think this is a new record with regards to auction coverage turnaround time. This sale was held on August 17, just three days ago and here we are presenting results! Big thanks to Bonhams for posting the final numbers about as quickly as could possibly be expected. Both of our feature cars, the 1895 Buffum and the Gulf McLaren F1 Longtail, failed to sell. The top sale of the auction went to this 1966 Ford GT40 for a cool $2,205,000. It is chassis #GT40P/1033, if you’re keeping score at home.

1966 Ford GT-40

There were some pretty impressive motorcycle results at this sale as well. Top honors went to a 1940 Crocker “Big Tank” V-Twin for an eye-wattering $302,000.

1940 Crocker "Big Tank" V-Twin

There were two other Crockers that sold as well, both 1937 V-Twins. One sold for $302,000 and the one below brought slightly less at $291,000 (but it’s in a better color).

Road cars that really caught my attention included this 1931 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Touring Saloon by Mulliner. It sold for $178,800.

1931 Rolls-Royce Phantom II Continental Touring Saloon

There was also a super-rare 1949 Healey Silverstone that sold for $134,250.

1949 Healey Silverstone

But, by far, the coolest car Bonhams had on offer was this 1941 Tatra T87. These air-cooled beauties are magnificent. I really think it’s one of the loveliest designs of all time. They are quite rare in the U.S. and the price reflected that at $280,000.

1941 Tatra T87

Race cars were a major theme and some of my favorites included a 1964 Huffaker-Genie Mk 10 and an ex-Michele Alboreto 1990 Footwork-Arrows FA11B Formula One car. The Genie brought $142,500 and the Footwork $54,050.

1964 Huffaker-Genie Mk 10

The second-highest selling car of the sale was also a race car (as was the top-selling GT40). It was a 1966 Lola T70 Mk II GT that brought $324,000.

1966 Lola T70 Mk II GT

Two of the more obscure things to sell at this auction included an ex-Otis Chandler 1924 (circa) Ner-a-Car. These things are way cool and this one sold for $14,375.

c. 1924 Ner-a-Car

And finally, there was this 1914 Warrick 6hp Carrier Tri-Car Milk Float (which is kind of a mouthful of a name). It’s a British dairy truck – er, trike. The driver sits in the back and the product is up front. I’ve never seen one before. It sold for $25,300.

1914 Warrick 6hp Carrier Tri-Car Milk Float

For complete results, click here.