Estonia (race car)
Estonias are open wheel racing cars manufactured in Estonia. The first model, the Estonia 1, was built in 1958 during the Soviet occupation of the country. All together there are about 1300 cars. They were branded in western Europe as TARK, Tallinna Autode Remondi Katsetehas. Later the factory was privatized and renamed "Kavor Motorsport". Cars. There was a plan to design and build an Estonia 27 car, but it was never implemented. However, factory CEO Juhan Sein mentored the Tallinn Formula Student team for their first cars, and so heritage and knowledge were passed on to the  students. The TTTK/TTÜ F-Student team has been a success, being a top 10 contender early on. Technical. All of the Estonia race cars were produced under difficult situations. The Soviet planned economy made acquiring engines and other components nearly impossible. Everything had to be "wizarded out" by personal connections in the automotive industry. That being said, the Republic of Estonia was considered more open than the rest of the USSR, so it was more possible to have some information about western racing technology. For example, it was possible to smuggle in racing magazines from Finland. Also, Finnish television  broadcasts could be received in northern Estonia, so TARK engineers watched F1 championships. Because of this, modern F1 solutions made their way into Tallinn. Early Estonia cars used motorcycle engines or Wartburg 2-stroke motors. Riders (or mechanics) usually prepared the engines themselves. Later, mostly Lada 1300 or 1600 engines were used. 1300cc engines were used in "Formula Vostok" and class rules were quite strict, allowing only the stock camshaft. Later, the 1600cc class was more free, and engine power grew accordingly - up to 165 hp or even more. From the Estonia 16 onwards, TARK built their own gearboxes. They  took the ZAZ-968 gearbox casing, turned it 180° over, and used their in-house developed gear system. All the gears were quickly interchangeable for different ratios. All major components such as the steering rack, brakes, shock absorbers, ignition systems etc. were built at the TARK factory. They also made their own magnesium wheels. Professional drivers such as Toomas Napa or Toivo Asmer had special cars from factory, featuring wider wheels and lighter titanium and magnesium parts.