<< Prev Page 2 of 2 In the off-season many teams traveled down under for the Tasman Series, which had a displacement limit of 2.5 litres. The European teams usually replaced the Coventry Climax V8 with a big four cylinder produced from the same manufacturer, but there was an Australian alternative developed by Frank Hallam and Phil Irving. Dubbed the Repco V8, it was originally derived from an all aluminium Oldsmobile engine. With the help of Brabham's engine man, John Judd, it was enlarged to displace just under the three litre limit. In this form it was good for around 300 bhp, which was by no means impressive, but it did produce a very flat torque curve. The engine was installed before the season started off and Brabham was one of the rare teams to actually have a three litre car at all. Compared the bulky competition, the one-off BT19 was very nimble and provided Jack Brabham with a string of wins and his third World Championship. Again he was the first driver to do so in a car bearing his name.
A few races into the 1966 season, the 3-litre car was joined by the BT20 built for teammate Denny Hulme. It served only for a few races and in the hands of the New Zeelander won only one race, the Monaco Grand Prix. Again following the trusty design principles a new single seater was designed for 1967; the BT23 for Formula 2 and the BT24 for Formula 1. The latter featured different suspension, brakes, wheels and gearbox to cope with the latest specification Repco engine, which now produced 330 bhp. The competition seemed to have gotten to grips with things and the days for Brabham seemed numbered. Fortunately the rock-solid reliability and nimbleness again proved too much for the more advanced competition and the BT24 scored three 1-2 finishes in the hands of Brabham and Hulme. Together with the Monaco win in the BT20, it was enough for Hulme to score his first Driver's Championship, just ahead of his boss. The team won the Constructor's Championship for the second year running.
For the following season a quad-cam version of the Repco engine was developed for the new BT26, but it proved a little too much for the small team and could never match the performance or the reliability of the Cosworth DFV engine. Once that engine was incorporated, the team was back to its winning ways. Although Brabham and Tauranec parted ways and sold the team to others, Brabham continued to be competitive well into the 1980s with the minimalistic designs that brought to the foreground. << Prev Page 2 of 2
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In the off-season many teams traveled down under for the Tasman Series, which had a displacement limit of 2.5 litres. The European teams usually replaced the Coventry Climax V8 with a big four cylinder produced from the same manufacturer, but there was an Australian alternative developed by Frank Hallam and Phil Irving. Dubbed the Repco V8, it was originally derived from an all aluminium Oldsmobile engine. With the help of Brabham's engine man, John Judd, it was enlarged to displace just under the three litre limit. In this form it was good for around 300 bhp, which was by no means impressive, but it did produce a very flat torque curve. The engine was installed before the season started off and Brabham was one of the rare teams to actually have a three litre car at all. Compared the bulky competition, the one-off BT19 was very nimble and provided Jack Brabham with a string of wins and his third World Championship. Again he was the first driver to do so in a car bearing his name.