The Tyrrell P34, the only six-wheeled car to enter a Formula 1 race, was sold for over $1.1 million at an auction held in Monaco this weekend.
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The Tyrrell P34 was built from chassis number eight, making it the first (and only) six-wheeled car to participate in Formula 1. Purchased by an F1 icon, South African driver Jody Scheckter, the car was auctioned in Monaco by RM Sotheby’s last Saturday (11).
The car’s curious design was created by Tyrrell’s technical director, Derek Gardner. He envisioned being able to package smaller wheels underneath the wing, and the second set of tires would compensate for the reduced contact area due to the smaller size.
There would also be a reduction in drag compared to airflow over the taller tires used by competitors. Additionally, Gardner reasoned that having two extra wheels would result in better braking. But most drivers struggled to enjoy the design.
“Braking was supposed to be better: it was good when you were braking in a straight line, but as soon as you turned, the little wheels slipped, and you had to come off the pedal, so there was no advantage there,” Scheckter told Motor Sport magazine in 2008, according to a story published on Formula1.com.
Fortunately, its strange appearance didn’t affect its performance: at the 1977 Swedish Grand Prix, two P34s finished first and second. Scheckter and his teammate, Patrick Depailler, had a total of 10 podiums that season, including second and third place respectively at the Monaco Grand Prix.
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