The Cooper T53 is a Formula One car built by British motorsport team Cooper for the 1960 Formula One season. Jack Brabham drove it to his second World Championship that year, and with teammate Bruce McLaren gave Cooper its second Constructors' Championship.
A T53 was purchased by Honda as part of its own F1 development efforts and can be considered the forerunner of Honda F1 machines.
Design and development history The T53 was lower and slimmer than its predecessor, the Cooper T51. It was equipped with a new tubular steel frame clad in aluminium panels. Suspension was by double wishbones, coil springs and telescopic dampers all round, a change from Cooper's usual transverse leaf spring at the rear. Power came from the latest version of 2.5 litre Climax FPF which developed around 240 bhp and drove the rear wheels through a Cooper five-speed gearbox.
Racing history In its first race, Jack Brabham drove the new Cooper race car to second place in the International Trophy at Silverstone in May. At its first World Championship event at Monaco, Brabham qualified second but in the race itself he was disqualified after spinning off and then receiving a push start. Bruce McLaren put in a strong race, finishing second to Stirling Moss.
Thereafter, Brabham reeled off five wins in a row to tie up the World Championship with two events to spare. McLaren was runner-up, and Cooper won the Constructors' Championship. Brabham also won the non-championship Silver City Trophy.
In 1961 Cooper turned to the T55 but the T53 became a big sales success for the Cooper team, with no less than eight teams running it. Most teams ran the car with the 1.5 litre Climax FPF Mk. II to comply with the new F1 regulations, but Scuderia Centro Sud sourced a Maserati engine instead. Although they had some success in non-championship events, the privateers were largely outclassed in the 1961 World Championship.
The T53 was also used by various teams in the short-lived Intercontinental Formula in 1961. Stirling Moss and Jack Brabham won all five races in the series with the car, fitted with a 2.7 litre version of the FPF engine. Several examples also made their way to Australia and New Zealand and took part in the Tasman Series.
Complete Formula One World Championship results (key) Year Entrant Engine Tyres Driver 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Points WCC Cooper Car Company Climax FPF 2.5 L4 ARG MON 500 NED BEL FRA GBR POR ITA USA48 (58)*1st Jack Brabham DSQ 1 1 Bruce McLaren Ret 2 3 4 2 3 Yeoman Credit Racing Team Climax FPF 1.5 L4 MON NED BEL FRA GBR GER ITA USA 14 (18) 4th John Surtees 11 7 5 Ret Ret 5 Ret Ret Roy Salvadori 8 6 10 6 Ret H&L Motors Jackie Lewis 9 Ret Ret 9 4 John M. Wyatt III Roger Penske 8 Camoradi International Masten Gregory DNQ DNS 10 12 11 Ian Burgess 12 Hap Sharp Hap Sharp 10 Bernard Collomb Bernard Collomb Ret NC Momo Corporation Walt Hansgen Ret Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati 6-1500 1.5 L4 Lorenzo Bandini Ret 12Ret8 0 - Ecurie Galloise Climax FPF 1.5 L4 NED MON BEL FRA GBR GER ITA USA RSA 29 (37) 3rd Jackie Lewis 8 Ret 10 Ret Hap Sharp Hap Sharp 11 Bernard Collomb Bernard Collomb Ret Mike Harris Alfa Romeo Giulietta 1.5 L4 Mike Harris Ret 0 - Scuderia Centro Sud Maserati 6-1500 1.5 L4 MON BEL NED FRA GBR GER ITA USA MEX RSA 0 - Ernesto Brambilla DNQ * Some points were scored using a Cooper T51
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