The FW09 was built as an evolution of the 1983 Williams FW08C, utilizing an aluminium chassis reinforced with carbon fibre at key stress points. The design shift came about due to Williams’s agreement with Honda to use their V6 turbocharged engine. This necessitated a redesign of the engine cover, as the Honda V6 was smaller, but more powerful (850 bhp / 634 kW / 862 PS) than the Cosworth V8 used in the FW08C (530 bhp / 395 kW / 537 PS). Aerodynamic improvements were also made to the front of the car, aiming for a cleaner airflow.
The core change for the FW09 was the introduction of the Honda V6 turbocharged engine. This engine, while powerful, presented challenges. The sudden bursts of power upset the car’s balance, and the engine’s power delivery was so abrupt that instances of twisting within the 1.5L Honda block were observed during races. The car’s bodywork also generated significant drag at high speeds. The chassis was constructed from aluminium, with carbon fibre strategically used to reinforce stress points.
The FW09 was first introduced at the 1983 South African Grand Prix, serving primarily as a shakedown exercise. Keke Rosberg qualified sixth and finished fifth, demonstrating the car’s potential. Teammate Jacques Laffite started 10th but retired early after spinning off at Crowthorne Corner. In 1984, Rosberg and Laffite continued to race the FW09. While both drivers appreciated the engine’s power, they struggled with the chassis’s handling characteristics. Reliability proved to be a significant issue, with Laffite only finishing five races throughout the season. Despite these challenges, the FW09 remained consistently fast on many tracks, achieving top speeds of 310 km/h (193 mph) at the 1984 South African Grand Prix, though slower than the 325 km/h (202 mph) achieved by the Brabham-BMWs in qualifying. Rosberg secured the car’s only win at the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix, marking both his and Honda’s first Formula One Grand Prix victory since John Surtees’s win at the 1967 Italian Grand Prix and Honda's first with a turbo engine.
A modified version, the FW09B, was introduced at the 1984 British Grand Prix, featuring ‘coke bottle’ sidepods inspired by McLaren’s designs. However, from this race onwards, Rosberg and Laffite only recorded one finish each, with neither scoring points. Rosberg finished 8th at the Dutch Grand Prix, while Laffite ended the season 14th in Portugal. During the 1984 Austrian Grand Prix at the Österreichring, Rosberg retired the car mid-race, citing dangerous instability at the circuit’s high-speed sweepers, a decision Patrick Head, the technical director, fully supported. Williams finished sixth in the 1984 Constructors’ Championship with 25.5 points, alongside race winners Ferrari and Brabham, in a season largely dominated by McLaren drivers Niki Lauda and Alain Prost.
[unverified] The corpus does not contain information about regulatory outcomes resulting from the Williams FW09.
The Williams FW09 was replaced by the all-carbon fibre Williams FW10 for the 1985 season, a car that proved more successful. The FW10 built upon the lessons learned with the FW09, particularly regarding chassis design and handling characteristics, and represented a significant step forward for the team.
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