Yahoo Autos The Buzzin'est of Hornets: Jordan F1's 1999 Race Car Is Up For Auction
In 1999, Jordan's most successful season in Formula One, driver Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished first at both the French and Italian Grand Prixes, earning the team a well-rounded third in both drivers' and constructors' championships. Not bad-especially for a privateer team, one run by Eddie "The Eagle" Jordan, during former champion Damon Hill's last year as a driver.
The car pictured above is not the one Frentzen drove. (Frentzen's personal Jaguar XJ220, incidentally, now resides at the Petersen Automotive Museum.) Nonetheless, this car-modified, retrofitted, and devoid of its Mugen-Honda V10 engine-is a genuine F1 car with its own racing history, from an era where (most fans agree) they sounded the best, built by Jordan Grand Prix for the 1999 season and still chock-ful of its original racing components.
And with an interesting livery: according to auctioneer Bring a Trailer, "the 'Buzzin Hornets' livery was used in nations where tobacco advertising was not allowed, and replaced the Benson and Hedges livery normally worn by the cars."
Smoking kills, kids. But where would racing be without the bravado and appeal of cigarette sponsors? You've got just a day or two left to bid on this, which is currently sitting at $25,000 as of this writing. Bid bravely, bid boldly. And then, let the myriad possibilities wash over you: engine swap? Wall art? World's greatest Forza simulator? Invite us over to your mansion if you win the whole thing.
Images via Bring A Trailer
