Life and Its Unusual W12

Ernesto Vita's Life arrived in 1990 to showcase an unconventional engine and never once made it onto a Grand Prix grid.

Life took its name from its founder, Ernesto Vita, since vita is Italian for life. The company came to Formula One in 1990 to market a W12 engine designed by former Ferrari engineer Franco Rocchi, with three banks of four cylinders, short like a V8 but taller than a usual engine.

The car was far off the pace. Gary Brabham failed to prequalify twice and left, and the veteran Bruno Giacomelli took over for the rest of the year. Late in the season the team swapped the W12 for a Judd V8, without improvement. Life made 14 attempts during 1990 and failed to start any of them, then withdrew before the final two Grands Prix.

Drivers

• Bruno Giacomelli