Editing Formula Three (section)

==History==
{{More citations needed section|date=April 2022}}
[[Image:Effyh500-front.jpg|thumb|A typical early car, the [[Effyh 500]] (1947–1952) was built in Malmö, Sweden and was one of the more successful cars. It had a lightweight tube chassis, aluminium bodywork and was powered by a 500cc 1-cylinder JAP engine.]]
Formula Three (adopted by the [[Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile|FIA]] in 1950) evolved from [[postwar]] [[auto racing]], with lightweight tube-frame [[chassis]] powered by 500 cc [[motorcycle]] engines (notably [[Norton (motorcycle)|Norton]]s and [[JA Prestwich Industries Ltd|JAP]] speedway). The 500 cc formula originally evolved in 1946 from low-cost "special" racing organised by enthusiasts in [[Bristol]],  England, just before the [[World War II|Second World War]]; British motorsport after the war picked up slowly, partly due to petrol rationing which continued for a number of years and home-built 500 cc cars engines were intended to be accessible to the "impecunious enthusiast". The second post-war motor race in Britain was organised by the [[VSCC]] in July 1947 at RAF Gransden Lodge, 500cc cars being the only post-war class to run that day. Three of the seven entrants were non-starters, and, of the four runners, all but one retired on the first lap, leaving [[Eric Brandon]] in his [[Cooper Car Company|Cooper]] Prototype (T2) trailing round to a virtual walk-over at an average speed of {{cvt|55.79|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}, though his best lap (which was the fastest recorded for any 500) was {{cvt|65.38|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

Cooper came to dominate the formula with mass-produced cars, and the income this generated enabled the company to develop into the senior categories. Other notable marques included [[Kieft Cars|Kieft]], JBS and [[Emeryson]] in England, and Effyh, Monopoletta and Scampolo in Europe. John Cooper, along with most other 500 builders, decided to place the engine in the middle of the car, driving the rear wheels. This was mostly due to the practical limitations imposed by chain drive but it gave these cars exceptionally good handling characteristics which eventually led to the mid-engined revolution in single-seater racing.
<gallery>
Image:Monopoletta BMW, Bj 1949, Foto 1978.jpg|'''1949''': Monopoletta-BMW
File:Cooper- Norton.jpg|'''1950''': Cooper Formula 500, Independent Rear Suspension, Norton Manx engine behind the driver..
Image:Tecno Aleste Bodini 1967 Formula 3 EMS.jpg|'''1960s''': [[Tecno (motorsport)|Tecno]]
Image:Ralt RT 1 1978 Formula 3 EMS.jpg|'''1970s''': [[Ralt]] RT 1
</gallery>

The 500cc formula was the usual route into motor racing through the early and mid-1950s (and stars like [[Stirling Moss]] continued to enter selected F3 events even during their GP careers).  Other notable 500 cc Formula 3 drivers include [[Stuart Lewis-Evans]], [[Ivor Bueb]], [[Jim Russell (racing driver)|Jim Russell]], [[Peter Collins (racing driver)|Peter Collins]], [[Don Parker (racing driver)|Don Parker]], [[Ken Tyrrell]], and [[Bernie Ecclestone]].

From a statistical point of view, Parker was the most successful F3 driver. Although coming to motor racing late in life (at age 41 in 1949), he won a total of 126 F3 races altogether, and was described by ''[[Motor Sport (magazine)|Motor Sport]]'' magazine (in his 1998 obituary) as "the most successful Formula 3 driver in history". Although [[Stirling Moss]] was already a star by 1953, Parker beat him more than any other driver, and was Formula 3 Champion in 1952, again in 1953, and in 1954 he only lost the title by a half-point. He took the title for a third time in 1959.

500cc Formula Three declined at an international level during the late 1950s, although it continued at a national level into the early 60s, being eclipsed by [[Formula Junior]] for 1000 or 1100 cc cars (on a sliding scale of weights).

A one-litre Formula Three category for four-cylinder carburetted cars, with heavily tuned production engines, was reintroduced in 1964 based on the Formula Junior rules and ran to 1970. These engines (a short-stroke unit based on the [[Ford Anglia]]<ref>Gauld, Graham, "Ford", in ''World of Automobiles'' (London: Orbis, 1974), Volume 6, p.696</ref> with a special 2-[[valve]] [[Cosworth]] or [[Holbay]] [[overhead valve|OHV]] down-draught [[cylinder head|head]], initially pioneered by Brian Hart, being by far the most efficient and popular) tended to rev very highly and were popularly known as "screamers"; F3 races tended to involve large packs of [[slipstream]]ing cars. The "screamer" years were dominated by [[Brabham]], [[Team Lotus|Lotus]] and [[Tecno (motorsport)|Tecno]], with [[March Engineering|March]] beginning in 1970. Early one-litre F3 chassis tended to descend from [[Formula Junior]] designs but quickly evolved.

For 1971 new regulations allowing 1600 cc engines with a restricted air intake were introduced. The 1971–73 seasons were contested with these cars, as [[aerodynamics]] started to become important.

Two-litre engine rules were introduced for 1974, still with restricted air intakes. {{As of
|2011|6
|alt=Today}} engine regulations remain basically unchanged in F3, a remarkable case of stability in racing regulations.

As the likes of Lotus and Brabham faded from F3 to concentrate on Formula One, F3 constructors of the 1970s included [[Alpine (automobile)|Alpine]], [[Lola Cars|Lola]], March, [[Modus Developments|Modus]], [[Group Racing Developments|GRD]], [[Ralt]], and [[Ensign (racing team)|Ensign]].
<gallery>
Image:Ralt RT 3 1986 Kris Nissen Formula 3 EMS.jpg|'''1980s''': Ralt RT 3
Image:Reynard F 903-001 1990 Michael Schuhmacher Formula 3 EMS.jpg|'''Early 1990s''': [[Reynard Motorsport|Reynard]] 903
Image:Red Bull Formula Three car.jpg|'''2000s''': [[Dallara]] F305
</gallery>

By the start of the 1980s however, Formula Three had evolved well beyond its humble beginnings to something closely resembling the modern formula. It was seen as the main training ground for future Formula One drivers, many of them bypassing Formula Two to go straight into Grand Prix racing. The chassis became increasingly sophisticated, mirroring the more senior formulae &ndash; [[ground effect in cars|ground effect]]s were briefly used in the early 1980s but were banned, in line with other FIA single-seater formulae; [[carbon fibre]] chassis started to be introduced from the mid-1980s.

Historically, March (up to 1981), Ralt (up to the early 1990s) and [[Reynard Motorsport|Reynard]] (1985–1992) had been the main chassis manufacturers in two-litre F3, with [[Martini (cars)|Martini]] fairly strong in France; Reynard pioneered use of [[carbon fibre]] in the mid-1980s replacing traditional [[aluminium]] or [[steel]] [[monocoque]] structures. [[Dallara]] however, after an unsuccessful Formula One project, focussed their attention on the formula in the early nineties and obliterated all the other marques with their F393. Within a couple of years, the chassis was considered a prerequisite to competitiveness, and today Dallara chassis are ubiquitous to the formula. In order to keep costs down, their chassis have had a three-year life-cycle, with only minor annual updates. It was agreed however to extend the life-cycle of the current F308 to four years to assist teams; this chassis however, has been replaced in 2012 with the new F312 chassis, intended to be run until 2017. Most F3 championships, most notably the [[British Formula 3|British]] series, offer a secondary class for cars from the previous life-cycle in order to provide a cheap point of entry for lesser funded teams and drivers.