Every Safety Car Ever Used in Formula 1 (2024)

Formula 1 has a raft of important safety features that keep drivers from harm over a grand prix weekend. There are barriers across the circuit to absorb the impact of a crash, the halo device fitted to every car protects each driver’s head and medical teams are on hand for a quick dispatch if anything goes wrong.

Arguably, one of the sport’s most famous safety features is the iconic Formula 1 safety car, which leads the drivers on their parade lap before the race and is called on whenever there are hazards on track.

The F1 safety car is as much a part of the sport as checkered flags, dubious sponsors and Martin Brundle’s chaotic grid walks. But did you know, it hasn’t always been a mainstay of the grand prix?

In fact, the first official F1 safety car didn’t run until the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix, which was the sport’s 237th race!

Over the years that followed, the role of the F1 safety car has so far been held by 21 different cars from nine manufacturers.

So, here’s every single car that’s worn the safety car hat since 1973.

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Used in: 1973 Canadian Grand Prix

The Formula 1 safety car made its debut at the 1973 Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport Park in Ontario. Back then, it was a bright yellow Porsche 914, which had been released by the German automaker in 1969.

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Used in: 1976 Monaco Grand Prix and 1995 Belgian Grand Prix

There was a three year gap before the next official F1 safety car rolled out the garage, and it was another Porsche. This time, it was a 911 that ran in the 1976 Monaco Grand Prix.

A second Porsche 911 served as safety car in the 1995 Belgian Grand Prix, which was won by Michael Schumacher.

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Used in: 1981 Monaco Grand Prix, 1982 Monaco Grand Prix and 1983 Monaco Grand Prix.

Probably one of the coolest cars to ever serve as F1's official pace-setter is the Lamborghini Countach. Between 1981 and 1983, three Lamborghini Countach supercars stepped up to the plate for the Monaco Grand Prix.

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Used in: 1992 French Grand Prix and 1992 British Grand Prix

The role wasn’t always held by exotic supercars, however. In 1992, Ford offered an Escort RS Cosworth for Formula 1's safety car at two races that year. Finished in white with two orange lights on its roof, the Escort safety car served at the French and British Grands Prix.

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Used in: 1993 Brazilian Grand Prix

Another year, another new safety car. This time, it was at the Brazilian Grand Prix where Formula 1 debuted another example. This time, it was the Fiat Tempra, which was assembled in Brazil between 1991 and 1998.

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Used in: 1994 San Marino Grand Prix

By 1994, Formula 1 still didn’t have a permanent safety car in place. So when the San Marino Grand Prix came round, it was the turn of Opel to offer up a car for this purpose. Probably the lowest point in the F1 safety car’s history.

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Used in: 1994 Japanese Grand Prix

The fifth generation Honda Prelude served as F1 safety car at just one race. Held at Suzuka, the 1994 Japanese Grand Prix was won by Damon Hill in the Williams after he started the race in second.

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Used in: 1995 Canadian Grand Prix

The last exotic Italian safety car burst onto the scene at the 1995 Canadian Grand Prix. Built between 1990 and 2001, the Lamborghini Diablo was fitted with a 5.7-liter V12 engine that produced 485 hp. In contrast, the Ferrari V12 fitted to the team’s F1 cars that year churned out 700hp.

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Used in: 1996 Argentine Grand Prix

From one extreme to another. The final temporary safety car came in 1996, when a Renault Clio donned the lights and stickers as it led the pack at the Argentine Grand Prix.

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Used in: 1996 Formula 1 season

For the remainder of the 1996 season, a Mercedes-Benz was used as F1's official safety car. This marked the start of a long lineage of Mercedes safety cars, which continues to this day.

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Used in: 1997, 1998 and 2003 Formula 1 seasons.

For three season, F1 used the Mercedes-Benz CLK 55 AMG as its safety car of choice. Fitted with a 5.4-liter V8 engine, the CLK 55 produced 362 hp and could hit 62 mph in 5.4 seconds.

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Used in: 1999 and 2000 Formula 1 seasons.

At the turn of the millennium, F1 was still using Mercedes-Benz safety cars, including the CL55 AMG that ran in the ‘99 and 2000 seasons. This was also the first car driven by current F1 safety car driver Bernd Mayländer.

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Used in: 2001 and 2002 Formula 1 seasons.

This is one of my favorites on this list, the SL 55 AMG from the 2001 and 2002 Formula 1 seasons. The road-going variant of this car had its top speed limited, but rumors swirl that the 5.4-liter engine can power it up to 208mph.

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Used in: 2004 and 2005 Formula 1 seasons.

First released in 1996, the Mercedes-Benz SLK made its debut as the F1 safety car in 2004. This face-lifted variant was said to have a front end inspired by the very cars it was parading round race tracks every other weekend.

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Used in: 2006 and 2007 Formula 1 seasons.

Another personal favorite in Mercedes’ long line of safety cars is the CLK 63, this was also the one that was in action when I started to get really invested in F1. The safety car was also given a power boost this year, thanks to the new 6.2 liter V8 Mercedes had to play with.

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Used in: 2008 and 2009 Formula 1 seasons.

Released in 2008, the SL 63 was the latest and greatest from AMG, so an obvious choice for F1's next safety car. The SL 63 lead the pack as F1 went through one of its biggest controversies in recent years, Crashgate at the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix.

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Used in: 2010 to 2014 Formula 1 seasons.

Up until this point, the F1 safety car had been missing one thing (well, technically two): gullwing doors. With the arrival of the SLS AMG in 2010, that error was rectified. As well as gullwing doors, the high-end Mercedes brought with it a 6.2-liter V8 and a top speed of 196 mph.

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Used in: 2015 to 2017 Formula 1 seasons.

Sadly, gullwing doors weren’t long for this world, and after two years the SLS AMG was replaced with the new AMG GT S. This car has remained a fixture of the F1 paddock in one guise or another ever since.

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Used in: 2018 - 2020 Formula 1 seasons.

A hot new version of the AMG GT meant it was time for a hot new safety car to take to the track in 2018. The AMG GT R used the same engine as the outgoing safety car, but managed to extract 577 hp and accelerate to 62 mph in just 3.6 seconds.

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Used in: 2021 - 2022 Formula 1 seasons.

These days, this is the safety car you’ll see leading the current generation of F1 cars round racetracks around the world every other week. The AMG GT Black Series is an impressive car, but its 720 hp is still eclipsed by the 1,000 hp plus that the 2022 F1 cars produce.

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Used in: 2021 - 2022 Formula 1 seasons.

But the AMG GT isn’t the only safety car in use this year, as we’re treated to two these days. The role is now shared between Mercedes and Aston Martin, which fields a Vantage finished in green as its idea for the perfect safety car.

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