This coming weekend Sothebys Australia will be auctioning off a unique piece of Australian motorsport history when they put Alan Jones’ ex-Formula One car under the hammer. Built in 1979 and raced in the same year, as well as Jones’ 1980 championship winning year, the Williams FW07 is expected to sell for close to one million dollars.
The FW07, designed by Patrick Head, was recognised for its aerodynamic ground effects and was good enough to bring Williams the first of its nine F1 constructors titles and first F1 drivers championship. The car up for auction is chassis number 4 (FW07/04) and was used by Jones to win the 1979 German, Austrian and Candian Grands Prix, as well as the 1980 Argentine Grand Prix.
FW07/04 saw an end to its competitive life after it was crashed in testing during the 1980 season. Jones has recounted it was the only time in an F1 car that he feared for his life after the front wheel broke loose and brushed his helmet as it flew over the car.
After its crash FW07/04 was rebuilt for show car purposes and includes a replica Ford-Cosworth DFV engine. The car was sold in 1981 and found its new home at the York Motor Museum in Western Australia.
The car is now available to purchase for the first time since its original sale and James Nicholls from Sothebys hopes there is strong interest in Lot #130, “It’s difficult to tell as this is such a specialist car—we certainly think it will be in the high hundreds of thousands, it could be $700,000 or higher than that. With the (Formula One) race in Melbourne bringing people into the country we’re hoping people are aware of the car, it’s a very prestigious car, a ground-breaking car driven by Alan Jones so it’s pretty significant here and internationally.”
[Source: Sothebys Australia | via carsguide | Pics: Sothebys Australia]
6 replies on “For sale: 1980 Williams FW07 driven by Alan Jones”
Nick, buy this! Don’t let it go to foreign hands!
You could get a Phase III for that much :p
wayne you need a new track car
includes a replica Ford-Cosworth DFV engine
What does that mean?
Its not real?
A proper DFV rebuild is about 40K or more so I’m told.
So only really buying the Chassis?
Yeah, replica probably is the right word, but my understanding is because the car has only been rebuilt for display purposes that the engine would not be fully operational, at least not to its former F1 spec.
The engine is not a replica but does not have internals or the injection system. It was put in the car for display purposes.
This would have to be the most important race car in Australia.