“I remember at the time watching on TV and reading about it – it was fairly spectacular,” Hanson said.
“If you’ve ever driven round Estoril, you’d know how difficult that move would be in a Formula Ford car, never mind an F1 car,” said Hanson. “It’s not for the faint-hearted.”
Speaking more about the provenance of the car, he says its appeal goes far beyond its aesthetics and on-track achievements.
“The design of it, when you start to look underneath the skin, the attention to detail is incredible,” he says. “From the damper arrangement to everything else, it’s more like a Swiss watch rather than a racing car.”
Hanson also highlights that charming details featured on Williams cars of this period make them all the more special.
“The cool thing about this car is that every time they won a race they stuck a gold star inside the cockpit,” he reveals. “Every time they got a second there’s a silver one, and for each pole position, it got a red star. So it’s got three golds, two silvers and two reds.”
Stars on the cockpit’s left denote its achievements
Speedmaster Cars
Whilst chassis no3 has been in private ownership for a number of years, including at one point in McLaren F1 team boss Zak Brown’s stable, it has always been maintained by Williams Racing’s heritage department.
The car is in running condition, can be run with “minimum preparation” and will be eligible for being driven at heritage events.
As Hanson highlights though, the sheer aerodynamic grip produced at full-speed is what truly makes driving this car an unparalleled experience.
“The downforce on this car will quite simply will be on a different level to what most people have experienced.”
The Williams FW18-3 is currently on sale at Speedmaster Cars.