Ken Tyrrell, the team’s owner, became disenchanted with the poor performance of the March chassis during the 1970 season and decided to design and build his own car. He employed Derek Gardner to design it in secret at his own house. The project, codenamed “SP”, which meant “Special Project”, cost Tyrrell over £22,000 of his own money. The resulting car, named Tyrrell 001, made its debut at Oulton Park in a non-championship race. After the season had finished, Gardner redesigned some sections of the car, altering the airbox, remodelling the nose section, lengthening the wheelbase and slightly narrowing the monocoque. The redesigned cars became known as the 002 and 003, which were chassis numbers given to each of the cars made for the 1971 season. The team also switched tyre supplier to Goodyear after Dunlop withdrew from F1.
The 003 was fundamentally an evolution of the Tyrrell 001, retaining much of its core design. The primary differences lay in the redesigned nose section, the extended wheelbase, and the slightly narrower monocoque, aimed at improving aerodynamic performance and handling characteristics. The team accommodated the differing physiques of its drivers, Jackie Stewart and François Cevert, by building chassis tailored to their individual heights, with Stewart using the shorter 003 and Cevert using the 002. New front bodywork debuted on Stewart's 003 for the French Grand Prix, and this bodywork was put on Cevert's 002 for the following Grand Prix in Britain.
The Tyrrell 003 debuted at the 1971 Spanish Grand Prix and won at the first attempt. Driven by Jackie Stewart, it took six victories throughout 1971, capitalizing on struggles experienced by competitors Lotus and Ferrari. This performance secured Stewart’s second World Drivers' Championship.
The 1972 season saw Lotus return to form with Emerson Fittipaldi challenging Stewart for the championship. The Tyrrell 003 was not a match for the developed Lotus 72 and the Tyrrell team only won when the 72 failed to finish. Stewart still managed two victories with the 003 during 1972, but Fittipaldi ultimately claimed the championship title. By the end of 1972, the 003 had come to the end of its racing life, replaced by the newer Tyrrell 005 for the 1973 season.
Across its competitive lifespan, the Tyrrell 003 accumulated 54 points towards the World Championship. In 1972, the 003 contributed 24 points to the team’s total.† The other 19 points in 1971 were scored using the Tyrrell 001 and Tyrrell 002, and the other 27 points in 1972 were scored using the Tyrrell 002, Tyrrell 004 and Tyrrell 005.‡
The vehicle is currently on display at the National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh. While the Tyrrell 003 was a successful chassis, determining its definitive ranking as the “most successful” in the team’s history requires a more comprehensive analysis of all Tyrrell chassis’ performance data [automedia.revsinstitute.org].
Footnotes
† 54 points were scored using the Tyrrell 003; the other 19 points were scored using the Tyrrell 001 and Tyrrell 002 ‡ 24 points were scored using the Tyrrell 003; the other 27 points were scored using the Tyrrell 002, Tyrrell 004 and Tyrrell 005
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