Guide: Mirage M3
Background
John Wyer’s decision to build a Group 6 Prototype for the 1969 racing season had not met with the initial success one might have expected; the Mirage M2’s best result from five outings at three races had been a seventh overall at the Nurburgring 1000km. Every other appearance had ended with a DNF, but most disappointingly, the car was simply not quick enough.
The M2 had been created in response to the FIA’s decision to ban large displacement Group 6 Prototypes at the end of 1967. Speeds had reached such dizzying heights that the FIA felt obliged to unilaterally rein in performance by imposing a three-litre engine limit.
However, the decision was made late (immediately after the Le Mans 24 Hours in June 1967) and several manufacturers decided to make alternative arrangements for the 1968 season.
Feeling that the decision blatantly favoured Porsche, Enzo Ferrari’s team played no part in the 1968 campaign whatsoever.
Meanwhile, John Wyer Automotive Engineering (JWAE) decided to switch tactics. With their Group 6 Mirage M1 ‘super GT40’ outlawed, attention temporarily turned to the regular Mk1 GT40.
John Wyer had acquired the Ford Advanced Vehicles operation along with the GT40 production rights in late 1966. As the GT40 was homologated in the Group 4 Sport category, which permitted engines of up to five-litres, Wyer reasoned that the old bruiser would still be in with a shout of victory as it now had a two-litre advantage over the Group 6 Prototypes.
He was proved correct and, in 1968, JWAE’s Gulf-backed GT40s won the World Sportscar Championship thanks to victories at Brands Hatch, Monza, Spa, Watkins Glen and Le Mans.
For 1969 though, the GT40 would definitely need to be replaced as rapid progress was expected from the Group 6 cars. Accordingly, JWAE sanctioned development of their own three-litre Prototype for 1969: the Mirage M2.
Unfortunately, Wyer’s chosen power unit, the Cosworth DFV, was in short supply and it wasn’t until June 1969 that the DFV-powered M2 made its debut.
Prior to this, the team had used BRM’s comparatively overweight V12.
The BRM engine was not the only problem though: the M2 was simply too cumbersome compared to the dominant Porsche 908/02 Spyders.
As a result, after the DFV-powered M2’s first race (at the Nurburgring 1000km on June 1st 1969), it was sent back to England for conversion to lightweight M3 specification.
Bodywork
Most significantly, the M2’s original Berlinetta body was converted to a Spyder in its transition to M3 trim.
The entire roof canopy was removed and replaced with a cut-down screen that wrapped all the way around to the rear bulkhead.
JWAE added a small triangular roll hoop behind the driver and a stalk-mounted rear view mirror in front of the dash.
To improve front-end grip, large canards were fixed to the corners of the nose.
The M3’s modified bodywork saved 36kg. Performance was further improved as a result of the reduced frontal area and additional downforce.
Chassis
Otherwise, the specification was largely unchanged.
The aluminium alloy monocoque and suspension had been the work of Len Terry’s firm, Design Auto.
Front suspension was via double wishbones while lower wishbones, top links and twin trailing arms were used at the rear. Coil spring / damper units were fitted all round along with anti-roll bars at either end.
For the M3, the M2’s anti-dive geometry was removed.
11.95-inch ventilated disc brakes were supplied by Girling.
The 15-inch diameter centre-lock wheels measured 9.5-inches wide at the front and 12.5-inches wide at the rear. Tyres were supplied by Firestone.
Fuel tanks with a combined capacity of 118-litres were mounted in the sills.
Engine / Gearbox
The 9-series F1-spec. Cosworth DFV was an all-alloy 90° V8 with DOHC four valve heads, dry-sump lubrication and Lucas fuel-injection.
It displaced 2993cc thanks to a bore and stroke of 85.7mm and 64.8mm respectively.
The compression ratio was 11.5:1 which gave a peak output of 430bhp at 10,000rpm.
The only concession made for endurance racing was a reduced 9250rpm rev limit.
A five-speed Hewland DG300 five-speed gearbox was used whereas earlier BRM-powered derivatives had run a heavier ZF unit like the GT40.
Interior
The cockpit was mostly left in bare aluminium.
The rudimentary dash was home to a variety of gauges, warning lights and flick switches. More flick switches were mounted on a central control panel.
The only upholstery was a seat trimmed with black corduroy fabric.
Like the M2, the M3 was right-hand drive with a right-hand gearchange.
1969 Watkins Glen 6 Hours
The M3 debuted at the penultimate round of the 1969 World Sportscar Championship: the Watkins Glen 6 Hours (July 12th).
As it was on home soil, the race was of particular importance to Gulf.
The JWAE squad arrived in the USA fresh from victory at Le Mans with a Gulf-backed GT40.
Although one of the old BRM-powered M2s was also in the Watkins Glen entry list (for David Hobbs / Mike Hailwood), JWAE ultimately opted to take just the M3 for number one driver pairing, Jacky Ickx and Jackie Oliver.
Proceedings got off to a bad start. After just a few practice laps, Ickx noticed the water pressure rising. Before Oliver had a chance to drive, the car was taken away for an engine change which ruled it out of the rest of the Friday session.
Nevertheless, Ickx’s brief stint at the wheel had been enough to post fifth quickest qualifying time for the race on Saturday.
Pole went to the Porsche 908/02 Flunder of Jo Siffert / Brian Redman.
A last minute panic ensued shortly before the race when it was noticed the pick-ups on both front upper wishbones were cracked. JWAE switched back to old wishbones and pick ups and made it to the grid just in time.
Ickx held fifth at the start. Then, after five minutes of racing, rain began to fall.
As a master in wet conditions, the Belgian must have fancied his chances. Ickx was first into the pits to switch tyres, but the stop was disorganised; there was only one knock-off hammer between the team.
With the race barely underway, JWAE had already lost two laps to the leaders. Moreover, Porsche‘s Dunlop tyres seemed to handle the wet just fine and they didn’t even stop.
Ickx had recovered to fifth position by the end of the first hour and Oliver took over at the 90 minute mark. However, another ten minutes was then lost for a left front damper change.
At this point, Ickx got back in to drive, but just before half distance, a broken camshaft meant the M3’s debut race was over.
Siffert / Redman took the win in the 908/02 Flunder (their fifth victory of the year).
1969 Zeltweg 1000km
At the final World Sportscar Championship race of 1969, the Zeltweg 1000km on August 10th, the M3 arrived with lots of detail changes.
New exhaust pipes were fitted and the front scuttle area ahead of the cockpit had been lowered for improved driver vision.
By re-routing the water pipes, the rear body section above the engine had been lowered by two inches.
The front wishbones reverted back to the original pattern. The top rear pick-up points for the front suspension were strengthened after trouble at the Glen.
Results were immediate. Ickx set the fastest time in Friday practice and no-one went quicker during the Saturday session.
When Oliver span on the Saturday, the back of the M3 was hit by the Porsche of Kurt Ahrens Jr. which resulted in damage to the exhausts and rear bodywork. This put paid to any further practice for either car.
After repairs, Ickx started the race from pole with the Filipinetti Lola T70 Mk3B GT of Jo Bonnier / Herbert Muller second and Johnny Servoz-Gavin / Pedro Rodriguez third in the works Matra MS650.
Ickx briefly lost the lead when the race got underway, but quickly regained his advantage. He and Siffert’s works Porsche 917 then ran nose to tail for the opening laps before Siffert took the lead on lap four.
The two drivers set a relentless pace at the head of the field and quickly broke free from the chasing pack.
Traffic soon became a problem and Ickx opportunistically re-took the lead on lap 24, at which point he started to pull away from Siffert.
On lap 42, Ickx stopped for fuel and Oliver took over.
Oliver retained the lead and passed the M3 back to Ickx at the end of his stint.
Before long, Ickx came rushing back into the pits with the steering column loose. Having led much of the race and set a new lap record, the Mirage was retired with 99 of 170 laps complete.
Siffert and Ahrens Jr. won at Zeltweg. It was the Porsche 917’s first victory.
In 1970 and 1971, the 917 would become the dominant force in sportscar racing; Porsche had played the rulebook to create a five-litre Prototype by simply meeting Group 4’s 25-car homologation requirement.
1969 Imola 500km
After the race-winning potential demonstrated by the M3 at Watkins Glen, JWAE decided to enter the car for one of the big end-of-season non-championship events: the Imola 500km on September 14th.
Ickx would drive the 100 lap race single-handedly against a field that most notably included quasi-works 908s from Porsche Salzburg, Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/3s from Autodelta and a brace of new works three-litre Abarth SE 016s.
Despite transistor problems, Ickx was fastest during Friday practice before the car suffered a broken camshaft.
A new DFV was installed for Saturday when Ickx went two seconds quicker than his closest competitor to ensure back-to-back pole positions for the fast-improving M3.
Andrea de Adamich lined up second in his Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/3 while Arturo Merzario posted third quickest time in the Abarth SE 016.
In the race, Ickx got a great start and immediately began to pull away.
By lap five, he was six seconds ahead of the chasing pack. His lead had grown to 15 seconds by lap ten and he continued to lap around 1.5 seconds faster than any of the other cars on track.
Ickx had established a 73 second lead by lap 50, which meant he could pit without losing position. The Belgian stopped for fuel on lap 51 and, although light rain had started to fall, he initially stuck with dry tyres.
The rain got progressively heavier over the next 15 minutes and Ickx was back in the pits for wets on lap 61. He then stopped again on lap 65 to close the Mirage’s air intakes which were letting in more water than air.
Although soon troubled by a waterlogged engine, Ickx once again proved himself a master of wet weather racing to open up a three-lap lead on his rivals.
However, the rain began to fall with such intensity that the whole of the circuit soon became awash.
For safety reasons, the organisers decided to stop the race after 71 laps. By this time, many of the better placed cars had aquaplaned off the track or been forced to stop because of wet electrics.
Ickx was declared the winner while Ignazio Giunti’s Alfa Romeo Tipo 33/3 placed a distant second after all the Porsches had spun off.
The Mirage M3 had finally proved itself a race winner against a top flight field.
Legacy
If three-litre Group 6 Prototypes had been the platform of choice for 1970, the Mirage M3 would likely have been a strong contender for World Championship honours.
The arrival of the Porsche 917 had radically changed the playing field though. For any team to beat Porsche in 1970, they would have to build 25 five-litre Prototypes.
Flush with cash from a Fiat buyout of his firm, Enzo Ferrari took up the challenge and commissioned the Ferrari 512 S.
The Mirage M3 was retired from active duty.
However, there was one more twist in the tale.
Having spent enormous sums on the 908 and 917, Porsche wanted a professional team to handle their racing programme for 1970 and 1971. Such a move would allow the factory to focus on development.
At the end of September 1969, Porsche announced JWAE had been signed to run the works 917s and 908/03s for the next two seasons…
Text copyright: Supercar Nostalgia
Photo copyright: Gulf Oil - https://www.gulfoilltd.com/ & Autosprint - https://autosprint.corrieredellosport.it/
