FORMULA FIRST
Formula First is a non-winged, open wheel road racing class sanctioned by the Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) and NASA. The car is powered by a Volkswagen 1600cc air cooled flat four engine. The rules are designed to control costs and put the emphasis on the driver’s ability not their budget. The rules require a tubular space frame chassis and the use of many standard VW components. Engine parity is a priority and is aided by the use of a sanctioned carburetor restrictor. Even given these “spec” requirements the performance of a Formula First car on a road course is quite impressive.
TOMAHAWK P1
The TOMAHAWK P1 was first designed, built and raced by Jim Nash an industrial design engineer with 3M and an avid racer. Jim started his racing career driving a Lola T540 Club Ford in 1987, winning his region’s Rookie of the Year award. From there he advanced to a Ralt RT-5 that he drove in several professional events, including the 1990 Des Moines Grand Prix through the streets of Des Moines in the now defunct Bosch Super Vee Championship. Jim returned to a Formula Ford after 2 years qualifying for the SCCA Runoffs held at Mid Ohio in 2001, he won the Formula Ford East/West Challenge Championships in 2004 and 2005 as well as winning Driver of the Year Award in 2004 within his region!
The TOMAHAWK P1 (formerly known as the Mission MRC-09) is the culmination of Jim’s life long dream of designing a race car and he chose the Formula First class due to its sensible purpose, its logical rule set and its cost effective sustainable budget requirements. In 2015 the manufacturing and marketing rights were purchased by Hannum Autosport in Littleton, CO. The intent is to expand manufacturing and bring the advantages of the Formula First class to a broader racing audience.
LET'S GO RACING...
Although the rules established for the Formula First class are well written and aim to minimize cost and maximize parity, durability and performance, the variations of how one might “build-out” their TOMAHAWK P1 are many.
The two basic approaches are:
- Purchase all the needed components new from known sources, bolt them together and hit the track.
- Be more frugal, take advantage of the abundance of good used components that are available. This option not only saves on the initial cost of getting your car to the track for the first time, it also allows your car to evolve in its performance as you evolve in yours.
Regardless of the approach you choose the TOMAHAWK P1 and the Formula First class is the most cost effective, easy to maintain, quickest and fastest open wheel road racing experience available today!
The following table outlines the primary components needed to construct your TOMAHAWK P1 and gives the approximate investment while comparing new vs used parts typically available in most areas. These estimates are taken from known sources but obviously can not be guaranteed. Source lists are provided for new components with each TOMAHAWK P1 kit.
Estimated total $14,078
USED $10,403
STYLE
To complement the progressive design and style of the TOMAHAWK P1 a special selection of wearable’s have been created. Simple, crisp and modern, they look as sharp away from the track as they do on race day.
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