It's All In De-Livery

Formula One cars must be an advertising guru’s wet dream. Apart from being works of art in their own right, with their sleek, aerodynamic bodies, they are also the perfect clotheshorse on which to hang a sponsor’s identity.

Nothing says success quite like a Formula One car. The image is all glamour and only the best and brightest are allowed to play; so, who wouldn’t want to have an F1 car associated with their product?

Better yet, F1 cars are guaranteed to attract the attention of anyone in their vicinity. There is only one thing that I can think of that is better able to gain the attention of any male between the age of 15 and death.

Sadly, however, naked women are frowned upon as an advertising medium in many jurisdictions.

The car alone, however, is not in itself a guarantee of a good looking product. A quick look over this year’s offerings runs the gamut from stunning to, well, bland. And it can’t all be blamed on the tiny rear spoilers that the cars are now forced to drag around.

Toro Rosso and McLaren have both produced visually stunning examples of what can be done with a can of paint and a vivid imagination. Brawn GP and Force India are at the opposite end of the spectrum, while everyone else offers up various shades of something in between.

There have been some spectacularly odd efforts by the graphics teams over the years. The genius who came up with the two-sided Lucky Strike/555 BAR cars must have had a seriously bad day. Sure, it wasn’t what they originally wanted, but it was a very strange compromise.

Then there is the incredible sense of irony that was required when Honda pushed their green credentials with the Earth Dreams livery. Apparently, nothing quite says you’re environmentally friendly like an F1 car.

At least the Honda car looked okay. Brabham’s BT60 takes first prize for the worst ever F1 paint scheme, with their nausea inducing pink and blue effort. The beige Arrows A8 came a very close second. Call me old fashioned, but pink and beige should not be the main element of an F1 colour scheme.

There are, of course, those who don’t move with the times and stay true to their signature look; Ferrari, of course, is an obvious example. The deep red that is synonymous with the marque may have changed subtly over the years to more closely match Marlboro’s colour, but there was never any doubt that it was a Prancing Horse underneath.

Jordan’s bright yellow was equally recognisable, (I know that they were also green when 7-Up sponsored them) and while it may have been at the behest of Benson & Hedges, it had the added benefit of being easier for the other drivers to see while overtaking the perennial under-performers.

One car, however, sits above them all as arguably the most recognisable and memorable F1 livery of all. The John Player Special Lotus’ were simply stunning.

The elegant simplicity of the design produced a distinctive yet incredibly stylish look that has stood the test of time and would still turn heads on the track today.

No other F1 car gets close, at least I don’t think so, but maybe you disagree.