Page 1 of 1 For the opening rounds of the 1986 season, the Arrows team carried over the existing A8 that were already raced in 1985. Designed by Dave Wass, the A8 was the first Arrows designed specifically for a turbo engine and more importantly also the first to use a carbon-fibre composite monocoque chassis. Gerhard Berger scored an impressive second at Imola in 1985 but in its second year, the A8 was no longer competitive.
To regain some of the ground lost, Wass penned a new A9. Like the A8, it featured a carbon fibre composite monocoque that was designed in-house but built by specialists Advanced Composites. Where it differed from the earlier design was the rear suspension, which featured push-rod instead of pull-rod actuated dampers. As before, the engine used was a Heini Mader tuned four-cylinder, turbocharged BMW. This was mated to a revised Arrows gearbox with the Hewland internals installed ahead of the clutch.
The A9 was finally readied towards the end of July for a debut at the German Grand Prix with Thierry Boutsen at the wheel. He qualified 21st and behind his team-mate Christian Danner in one of the A8s. Boutsen's race ended early with a turbo failure. Danner raced the car at the next round but with a similar result. The push-rod rear-end proved troublesome but even fitting the Arrows A8 rear half did not improve the car. Boutsen raced it once more but again suffered from a turbo failure during the race.
After just three outings, the A9 was set aside in favour of the earlier and better handling A8s. The A9 was to be the last Arrows designed by Dave Wass, who was one of the team's founders. Ross Brawn was tasked to pen the all-new A10 for the 1987 season. With three race starts and no finishes, the A9 is just a footnote in the Arrows story. Page 1 of 1
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For the opening rounds of the 1986 season, the Arrows team carried over the existing A8 that were already raced in 1985. Designed by Dave Wass, the A8 was the first Arrows designed specifically for a turbo engine and more importantly also the first to use a carbon-fibre composite monocoque chassis. Gerhard Berger scored an impressive second at Imola in 1985 but in its second year, the A8 was no longer competitive.