The FW13 was designed by Enrique Scalabroni and arrived mid-way through the 1989 season. It was conceived as a response to the increasingly competitive landscape of Formula One, where McLaren, Ferrari, and Benetton were all fielding strong contenders. The team wished to get any bugs out in testing before deploying the car in competition, leading to the continued use of the 1988-spec FW12C for the first twelve races of 1989. The FW13 was initially designed to incorporate active suspension, a technology Williams had explored with the FW12, but the team opted for conventional suspension due to ongoing challenges integrating active systems with naturally aspirated engines. This decision delayed the car’s race debut.
The Williams FW13 was powered by the Renault RS1 3.5-litre V10 engine, Renault’s first non-turbo Formula One engine, producing approximately 650 bhp (485 kW; 659 PS). A distinctive feature of the car was its oval-shaped air intake. For the 1990 season, the car was updated to become the FW13B, featuring revised sidepods and suspension upgrades, alongside Renault's updated RS2 3.5-litre V10 engine. The 1990 Renault V10 produced around 660 BHP at 13,000 RPM, approximately 40 BHP less than the class-leading Honda V10 used by McLaren.
The FW13 made its racing debut at the 1989 Portuguese Grand Prix, driven by Thierry Boutsen and Riccardo Patrese. After initial teething problems, the car proved competitive in the final two races of the year. Patrese and Boutsen finished second and third respectively at Suzuka), benefiting from a collision between Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna. Boutsen then won the final race of the year in Australia, with Patrese finishing third. These results allowed Williams to move ahead of Ferrari into second place in the Constructors' Championship, and Patrese achieved his best ever championship result, finishing third in the Drivers’ Championship.
In 1990, the FW13B secured wins for both Patrese, at the San Marino Grand Prix, and Boutsen, at the Hungarian Grand Prix, where Boutsen also claimed pole position. At the Hungarian Grand Prix, Patrese secured the fastest lap and finished fourth, contributing to a strong team performance. Despite this, Williams finished fourth in the Constructors' Championship, behind Ferrari and Benetton.
[unverified] The corpus does not contain any information regarding regulatory outcomes resulting from the FW13 or FW13B.
Following the 1990 season, the FW13B was replaced by the FW14 for the 1991 season. Testing of the FW13B with Nigel Mansell prior to his return to the team in 1991 revealed that the car’s setup had been overly conservative, with Boutsen preferring a very stiff front end. Mansell’s feedback led to a softer front spring setup and increased aerodynamic downforce, resulting in significantly improved performance, reportedly lapping the Paul Ricard Circuit almost a second faster than Mansell’s qualifying time in a Ferrari from the previous year. This suggested the team had not fully extracted the car’s potential during the 1990 season.
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