Tag Archives: Force India

Spyker/Force India

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2007 Spyker F8-V11/Force India VJM01

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

Photo – Bonhams

Spyker F1 bought out the Midland F1 team late in the 2006 Formula One season. This was a big leap for what was already a struggling boutique road car manufacturer. 2007 would be the team’s only full year running under the Spyker name.

Late in the 2007 season, Vijay Mallya stepped in to buy the financially doomed team, and it would be renamed Force India for 2008. Spyker raced their Ferrari-powered F8-VII (and VIIB) for the season with drivers Adrian Sutil (who scored Spyker’s only championship point) and Christijan Albers. Albers was let go halfway through the year and was replaced by Markus Winkelhock (for one race) and Sakon Yamamoto for the rest.

Force India’s first F1 entry was the VJM01, which was just an updated version of the previous year’s Spyker chassis. So they literally just updated the existing cars and reused them for the season. This particular chassis, VJM01-04, was a Spyker in 2007 and a Force India in 2008. It’s competition history includes:

  • 2007 French Grand Prix – 17th (with Adrian Sutil)
  • 2007 British Grand Prix – 15th (with Christijan Albers)
  • 2007 European Grand Prix – 17th, DNF (with Markus Winkelhock)
  • 2007 Hungarian Grand Prix – 22nd, DNF (with Sakon Yamamoto)
  • 2007 Italian Grand Prix – 20th (with Yamamoto)
  • 2007 Belgian Grand Prix – 17th (with Yamamoto)
  • 2007 Japanese Grand Prix – 12th (with Yamamoto)
  • 2007 Chinese Grand Prix – 17th (with Yamamoto)
  • 2007 Brazilian Grand Prix – 21st, DNF (with Yamamoto)
  • 2008 Monaco Grand Prix – 18th, DNF (with Giancarlo Fisichella)
  • 2008 Canadian Grand Prix – 14th, DNF (with Fisichella)

The highlight there is the 2007 European Grand Prix, one that featured a monsoon that saw a large number of the field end up in the gravel right after the start. Winkelhock pitted for wet tires at the end of the formation lap, a move that led to him leading the race when all hell broke loose. Then it was red-flagged and he lost his advantage, eventually retiring with electrical issues, probably because of the rain. It was Winkelhock’s only F1 start.

In period, this car would’ve had a 2.4-liter Ferrari V8 making about 750 horsepower (for both seasons). Now it’s just a roller with a $100,000-$125,000 estimate. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $70,379.

Force India VJM08

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2015 Force India VJM08B

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | September 17, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Another Bonhams sale in England and another car from the former Force India reserves. The VJM08 was the car used by the Sahara Force India F1 Team during the 2015 season, during which the team employed drivers Sergio Perez and Nico Hulkenberg. They upgraded the car to VJM08B spec after the first eight races. That upgrade was just revised aerodynamics.

Mercedes engines were used in conjunction with the VJM08 chassis. Mercedes, naturally, also used that power source, as did Williams and Lotus. This car no longer has an engine. It is chassis #2, and its competition history includes:

  • 2015 Australian Grand Prix – 10th (with Sergio Perez)
  • 2015 Malaysian Grand Prix – 13th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Chinese Grand Prix – 11th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Bahrain Grand Prix – 8th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Spanish Grand Prix – 13th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Monaco Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Canadian Grand Prix – 11th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Austrian Grand Prix – 9th (with Perez)
  • 2015 British Grand Prix – 9th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Hungarian Grand Prix – 13th, DNF (with Perez)
  • 2015 Belgian Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Italian Grand Prix – 6th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Singapore Grand Prix – 7th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Japanese Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Russian Grand Prix – 3rd (with Perez)
  • 2015 United States Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Mexican Grand Prix – 8th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Brazilian Grand Prix – 12th (with Perez)
  • 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – 5th (with Perez)

It can now be yours, as a roller of course. The estimate is $60,000-$82,500. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $89,919.

Force India VJM02

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2009 Force India VJM02

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | June 24, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

The current Aston Martin F1 team, who came into existence after sort of acquiring/taking over the Force India team, has been selling off leftover Force India cars. And why not? This, I think, is the third in the last few years.

The VJM02 was the team’s second car and was powered by a 2.4-liter Mercedes-Benz V8, which this car no longer has. It was used for the 2009 season, during which Force India employed drivers Giancarlo Fisichella and Adrian Sutil. The competition history for this chassis, #1R, consisted of testing events with Fisichella, Vitantonio Liuzzi, and Bertrand Baguette.

So it may be a roller, but it’s an otherwise complete modern F1 car from just before the KERS era (KERS was optional in 2009, and Force India did not use it). The estimate is $74,000-$110,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $59,564.

Force India VJM10

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2017 Force India VJM10

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | June 24, 2022

Photo – Bonhams

Force India was a Formula One team founded by Vijay Mallya and Michael Mol. They appeared on the grid for the 2008 season after having purchased the Spyker F1 team (which itself had formerly been Midland F1 and Jordan). The cars donned a pink paint scheme beginning in 2010 when sponsorship from water-treatment company BWT arrived.

This chassis, #4, was used in the second half of the season by Esteban Ocon, and it was originally powered by a turbocharged 1.6-liter Mercedes-AMG V6 with a KERS system. This chassis was also tested by George Russell during the season. This car was used in eight races in 2010, including:

  • 2010 Japanese Grand Prix – 6th (with Esteban Ocon)
  • 2010 U.S. Grand Prix – 6th (with Ocon)
  • 2010 Mexican Grand Prix – 5th (with Ocon)

It also scored points in the other five races in which it competed. It’s a roller now, so you just get the body and chassis. But it is being sold by Force India’s successor: the Aston Martin Formula One Team, who are apparently thinning the herd. The pre-sale estimate is $86,000-$125,000. Click here for more info.

Update: Sold $92,655.

Force India VJM-04

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2011 Force India-Mercedes VJM-04

Offered by Bonhams | Chichester, U.K. | July 9, 2021

Photo – Bonhams

You don’t often see “current” F1 cars coming up for sale (although we did just feature a 2010 Lewis Hamilton McLaren-Mercedes). This is one of the most recent such cars I can remember coming up for public sale. And it’s being offered directly from Force India’s successor team, what is now known as Aston Martin F1.

Force India was formed ahead of the 2008 season by Vijay Mallya after buying the Spyker team, and they were around through 2018 when the company was purchased by Lawrence Stroll and renamed Racing Point (which has since been rebranded as Aston Martin). The VJM04 was from the team’s third full season as a constructor and featured a 2.4-liter Mercedes V8 as well as a McLaren-sourced seven-speed gearbox. This car also had a Kinetic Energy Recovery System. Unfortunately, this one is a roller. No drivetrain included.

The competition history for this chassis, 02, includes:

  • 2011 Australian Grand Prix – 10th (with Paul di Resta)
  • 2011 Malaysian Grand Prix – 10th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Chinese Grand Prix – 11th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Turkish Grand Prix – 23rd, DNF (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Spanish Grand Prix – 12th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Monaco Grand Prix – 12th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Canadian Grand Prix – 18th, DNF (with di Resta)
  • 2011 European Grand Prix, Valencia – 14th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 British Grand Prix – 15th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 German Grand Prix – 13th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Hungarian Grand Prix – 7th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Belgian Grand Prix – 11th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Italian Grand Prix – 8th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Singapore Grand Prix – 6th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Japanese Grand Prix – 12th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Korean Grand Prix – 10th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Indian Grand Prix – 13th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix – 9th (with di Resta)
  • 2011 Brazilian Grand Prix – 8th (with di Resta)

So yeah, it ran the whole damned season with Paul di Resta. And had eight top 10 finishes and only one accident (Canada). Despite its lack of podiums, it’s still a pretty incredible machine. And it carries a nostalgic “classic” Force India livery. The pre-sale estimate is $120,000-$180,000. Click here for more info and here for more from this sale.

Update: Withdrawn.

Update: Sold, Bonhams Goodwood 2022, $105,560.