<< Prev Page 2 of 2 Bolted onto the chassis was Life's own W12 engine. This was constructed from three rows of four cylinders. Although Rocchi's engine was shorter than a conventional V12, it was also taller and heavier. Its biggest handicap was the sheer lack of power; it was rated at 480 bhp but some sources suggest it actually only produced 380 bhp. By comparison, the Honda V10 engine found in the 1990 World Championship winning McLaren produced close to 700 bhp.
Despite the disastrous debut, Brabham had another go in the W12-engined machine at round two of the World Championship. At his second attempt, he was not even able to complete a single timed and once again failed to get the car into qualifying. The son of three-time World Champion Jack Brabham had endured more than enough and stepped aside. Life's next driver, or victim, was Italian veteran Bruno Giacomelli, who was entered by the team from round three in San Marino.
Giacomelli had much more patience with the unconventional machine but ultimately could never reap the benefits. The closest he ever came to the top qualifiers was 18 seconds and he failed to pre-qualify at every attempt. For the final two European rounds, the W12 was replaced by an off-the-shelve Judd V8. The results were much the same and at its final outing, in Spain, the Life L190 was still 24 seconds of Ayrton Senna's pace. Needless to say, neither the team, nor the engine returned in 1991. << Prev Page 2 of 2
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Bolted onto the chassis was Life's own W12 engine. This was constructed from three rows of four cylinders. Although Rocchi's engine was shorter than a conventional V12, it was also taller and heavier. Its biggest handicap was the sheer lack of power; it was rated at 480 bhp but some sources suggest it actually only produced 380 bhp. By comparison, the Honda V10 engine found in the 1990 World Championship winning McLaren produced close to 700 bhp.