The BT46B—also known as the Fan Car—was a cunning Gordon Murray
racer, designed to one-up the dominant Lotus 79 in the 1978
Formula One season. After a year of experimenting with the idea,
Colin Chapman’s squad produced in the Lotus 79 the first great
racing car built on the principle of ground effects. It is the
phenomenon whereby an increase in the speed of air under a car
causes a drop in pressure, allowing the atmosphere above to
press down, which allows the driver to take corners at vastly
increased speeds. Certainly an advantage in Formula One, which
tends to reward taking corners at the highest possible speed.
Gordon Murray at Brabham was probably the first rival designer
to understand the genius of the Lotus 79, which propelled Mario
Andretti and Ronnie Peterson to win after win, but his hands
were tied. Unlike the slender Cosworth V8 engine used in the
Lotus, his Brabhams were powered by pancake-shaped Alfa Romeo
flat-12’s. The powerful Alfa engine was too wide to allow him to
install upside-down win