1983 Season

Team changes

Lotus enters the season without founder Colin Chapman, who died of a heart attack on 16 December 1982, aged 54. His right-hand man Peter Warr takes over as team manager.

Fittipaldi has closed due to insufficient funds. Ensign has been merged into the Theodore team. March Engineering, which had been building chassis for RAM Racing since 1981, ceases to badge the cars under its own name; from 1983 the chassis is labelled RAM, though the March name remains in the official entry list.

ATS switches from Ford-Cosworth V8s to BMW 1.5-litre turbo engines. Alfa Romeo trades its V12 for a freshly developed V8 turbo designated the 890T. Ligier loses its Talbot sponsorship and with it access to the Matra V12; the French team switches to Cosworth V8 engines.

Spirit Racing makes its Formula One debut with factory Honda backing. The team entered the 1982 European Formula Two Championship with Marlboro sponsorship, developed an F1 chassis, and begins a limited 1983 programme as preparation for a full 1984 season.

Driver changes

René Arnoux leaves Renault after four years, joining Ferrari — the 1982 Constructors’ Champion — as teammate to Patrick Tambay. Renault replaces him with Eddie Cheever, who moves from Ligier. The other Ligier driver, Jacques Laffite, has moved to Williams. Ligier fills both vacancies with Jean-Pierre Jarier, formerly at Osella, and Raul Boesel, formerly at March.

Calendar

Fifteen races are confirmed, one fewer than 1982. The South African Grand Prix moves from its customary season-opening slot to become the season finale, after teams requested additional time to prepare their cars for new technical regulations. The French Grand Prix moves forward from its usual late-June date to mid-April to avoid the southern French summer heat.

The Belgian Grand Prix returns to Spa-Francorchamps for the first time since 1970 — Zolder and Spa are now alternating as the venue — and is slotted after Monaco. The British Grand Prix is held at Silverstone rather than Brands Hatch; the latter remains on the calendar as the European Grand Prix after a planned third United States race in New York was removed from the provisional schedule. The Dutch Grand Prix moves to late August. The Swiss Grand Prix at Dijon-Prenois and the Caesars Palace Grand Prix in Las Vegas are both removed from the calendar.

Regulation changes

The defining change for 1983 is a complete ban on ground-effect technology, pioneered by the Lotus 78 in 1977. All cars must run a flat undertray; sliding skirts are outlawed. The ban was prompted by the dangerous downforce and cornering speeds reached in 1982, a season in which several violent and fatal accidents occurred. Four-wheel drive is also prohibited, as are cars with more than four wheels. The minimum car weight is set at 540 kg, and the rear warning light must output at least 21 W.