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Mcnamara
McNamara were based at Lengreiss on the Rhine and was started by Francis McNamara a US serviceman who had raced F Vees whilst posted to Germany. McNamara first built a number of successful Vees and then in 1969 a spaceframe design by Dan Hawkes was modified by Austrian Jo Karasek to become the F3 McNamara Sebring Mk3, the car showed promise and in 1970 a modified version, the 3B, was introduced. However by this time McNamara had moved up the ladder and in 1970 they built an Indianapolis car for STP to be driven by Mario Andretti and they modified Andretti’s F1 STP March 701. Unfortunately the Indy car proved a failure and the modified 701 was no faster than the original design. Later McNamara had problems with the sudden death of his wife, his own disappearance and the launch of an Interpol investigation.
1969
The first F3 design had a spaceframe chassis and the suspension was heavily based on Brabham lines and several early cars used some Brabham components. Front suspension was double wishbones with outboard spring/dampers. Rear suspension was by top link and lower wishbone with twin radius rods, springs and dampers were again outboard. It was clothed in a distinctive looking wedge shaped body and although there were no wins the car was by no means disgraced.
Wheelbase: 92 ins.
Track: front 57 ins. rear 56 ins.
Wheels: 13 ins.
1970
The MK3B was introduced for 1970 and featured revised suspension geometry. Quite a few cars were sold in Germany on the strength of the 1969 results, one win was recorded during the year, Gerold Pankol at Diepholz. Several other top six places were recorded notably by a young Niki Lauda. At the end of the year McNamara withdrew from F3.
Drivers
1969
Helmut Marko, Werner Riedl.
1970
3B
Wilfried Holder, Niki Lauda, Francis McNamara, Gerold Pankl, Werner Riedl, Peter Schäbitz, Lothar Schörg, Nikolaus Ukmar.
?
Ole Vejlund.
1971
3
Josef Resch.
3B
Horst Eiteneuer, Wilfried Holder, Klaus-Jürgen Rappensberger, Peter Schäbitz, Werner Schommers.
