1978-1979 – Formula 1 (Vol 2)

1978-1979 – The Turbo Arrives

Volume 2 of our 1978-1979 Formula 1 Series contains more original films and
videos from the Turbo era of Formula 1 racing. Volume 2 is another
excellent reference for how F1 races were run back in the 70’s.

1978 Argentine Grand Prix Highlights – (9 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – An excellent recap of the 1978 Argentine Grand Prix, with very clear
footage! Mario Andretti takes the win by a wide margin in the Lotus 78, with Niki Lauda (Brabham
BT45C) and Patrick Depailler (Tyrrell 008) coming in 2nd and 3rd respectively.

1978 U.S. Grand Prix – One Lap with Depailler – (3 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – One of my favorite drivers, Patrick Depailler takes his
Tyrrell 008 around one lap at the legendary Long Beach street circuit in
California. Stunning in-car footage, and fantastic sound!

1978 Belgian Grand Prix – Opening Laps – (10 min.)  
Condition (VG+) – The pace lap, and the opening laps of the Belgian
Grand Prix as broadcast on live German TV (German narration).

1978 Spanish Grand Prix – Opening Laps – (10 min.)  
Condition (VG+) – From the same source as the clip above, here we have the opening
laps of the 1978 Spanish Grand Prix as broadcast on live German TV (German narration).

1978 Swedish Grand Prix – Highlights – (5 min.)  
Condition (VG) – Highlights of the 1978 Swedish Grand Prix, these are LIVE excerpts of the race, as broadcast
live on German TV (German narration). This would mark the debut of the Brabham BT46B “fan car”. The BT46B
(driven by Niki Lauda) used a giant fan mounted under the rear wing to create artificial downforce through
suction. During this rather uneventful race, Mario Andretti led in his Lotus 79, but his car suffered a mechanical
failure. When oil was spilled on the track, the Lauda’a “fan car” seemed to be completely unaffected, and ran
around the circuit as though the track was totally dry. Lauda and the “fan car” went on to win by a staggering 34
seconds over 2nd place Riccardo Patrese, and 3rd place Ronnie Peterson. This would be the only race the “fan
car” would appear in, as it was deemed illegal by the FIA, and would never race again. Sadly, this would also be
the last F1 Grand Prix in Sweden. The deaths of popular Swedish drivers Ronnie Peterson (who crashed at
Monza) and Gunnar Nilsson (cancer) caused a loss of F1 interest in Sweden, and funding was pulled.

1978 Dutch Grand Prix – Highlights – (7 min.)  
Condition (VG) – Highlights of the 1978 Dutch Grand Prix, these are LIVE excerpts of the race, as
broadcast on German TV (German narration). Mario Andretti would take the win in his Lotus 79,
with Patrick Depailler (also in a Lotus 79) coming in 2nd. The beautiful John Player Special black
and gold cars were the class of the field. Lauda and Watson (Brabham BT46’s) take 3rd and 4th,
over 10 seconds behind. Andretti’s win would be the last win by an American F1 driver.

1978 Austrian Grand Prix – Highlights – (40 min.)  
Condition (VG) – Highlights of the 1978 Austrian Grand Prix, these are LIVE excerpts of the race, as
broadcast on German TV (German narration). This was a wild race! With rain threatening, the race
started with Team Lotus (Mario Andretti and Ronnie Peterson) on the front row. Andretti had a bad start,
and Peterson would take the lead. Within a few minutes, Andretti would touch wheels with Reutemann,
sending Andretti’s Lotus into the barriers. Heavy rain began to fall, and on Lap 4, Scheckter would spin
out and end up into Andretti’s crashed Lotus. Reutemann then spun, and the race was red-flagged. After
the downpour, the grid was reset. On the restart, there was another first lap collision involving Patrese.
The field came around with Ronnie Peterson in the lead, followed by Depailler and Lauda.
Ronnie Peterson would eventually take the win, the final victory of his short career.

1979 South African Grand Prix  – (40 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – The third race of the 1979 F1 season, this is a live broadcast,
edited for time, with Murray Walker on commentary. The new Ferrari 312T4’s
dominate,  Gilles Villeneuve takes the win, and teammate Jody Scheckter was not far
behind. Fantastic BBC broadcast, with the classic Fleetwood Mac music intro!
Note: There is a 4 minute highlight reel (on film) of this race on Volume 1, but we
recently obtained this 40 minute version and decided to include it here on Volume 2.

1979 Race Of Champions – Brands Hatch – (7 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – This is a live broadcast consisting of highlights of the
1979 Race Of Champions at Brands Hatch, England. This was a non-points
race, and the field consisted of 7 Formula 1 cars, followed by Aurora class
cars. Gilles Villeneuve would take the win, Nelson Piquet would take 2nd, and
Mario Andretti was 3rd. Murray Walker on commentary.

1979 Monaco Grand Prix  – (40 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – This is a live feed, edited for time, with Murray Walker commentary.
Jody Scheckter, the eventual 1979 F1 Champion, takes the win., while Clay Regazzoni takes
2nd. Classic footage of this circuit! Note: There is a short 8 minute version (with German
commentary) of this race on Volume 1, but we recently obtained this 40 minute version (with
Murray Walker commentary) and decided to include it here on Volume 2.

1979 German Grand Prix  – (28 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – This is a BBC broadcast with Murray Walker on
commentary, from Hockenheim Germany. It’s Alan Jones taking the win in
his Williams, his teammate Clay Regazzoni taking 2nd, Jacques Laffite 3rd
in a Ligier, and Jody Scheckter 4th in a Ferrari.

1979 U.S. Grand Prix East – Watkins Glen, NY – (10 min.)  
Condition (Excellent) – This is a live broadcast consisting of highlights of the 1979 U.S. Grand Prix East
at Watkins Glen, NY. Murray Walker, and an always entertaining James Hunt, are on commentary. The
race started in the rain. With Alan Jones leading, he came into the pits to change over to slicks. An error by
Jones occurred when he left the pits too soon, and his crew had not fully attached the right rear wheel.
Just after re-entering the race, Jones would lose the wheel, ending his chances of winning the U.S. Grand
Prix. The next bit of bad luck came for Scheckter on Lap 48. While running in 2nd place behind Villeneuve,
Scheckter’s tire separated from the rim! Jacques Villeneuve takes the win, with Rene Arnoux taking 2nd,
over 48 seconds behind Villeneuve. This would also be the last F1 race for the great Jackie Ickx.