In the mid-1970s, SEAT created a higher formula of single-seater racing with Formula SEAT 1800, aimed at providing continuity for drivers starting out in Formula SEAT 1430. The Selex ST-4 was the most popular car of the new formula, powered by the twin-cam engine of the SEAT 132-1800.

Formula SEAT 1430 was launched in 1971 as an entry-level category for single-seater racing. During its third year of activity, SEAT decided to create a higher category so that drivers trained in F-1430 could continue to improve and progress towards international motor racing.

Initially, the engine chosen for the new formula was the SEAT 1600 twin-cam unit from the SEAT 132-1600 and the 1430-1600. However, the more powerful 1800 version, which was also used in the SEAT 132 range (as well as in the SEAT 124 Sport 1800), was ultimately chosen. Thus, the F-1800 was to be a new formula with the performance of the international Formula 3 category.

As with the F-1430, SEAT made a significant contribution to promote participation in the new championship. Drivers received a SEAT 1800 engine free of charge, in addition to a Hewland clutch and gearbox with limited slip differential, a true racing-type transmission. In addition, the F-1800 offered substantial prizes.

The Barcelona-based single-seater manufacturer Selex, already the most active and successful in F-1430, was the earliest taker, and by the first race of 1974 it already had 15 units of the Selex ST-4 Formula SEAT 1800, designed by Jaume Xifré, ready to go. It was a single-seater with highly advanced technical solutions and high-quality materials. Its chassis was monocoque, with a wedge design and side radiators, while its great rival, the French Martini manufactured under licence by Flash Montlhéry in Barcelona’s Sant Cugat del Vallès, still had a tubular spaceframe chassis.

In addition to selling chassis to private drivers, Selex had a semi-works team to test and develop the car in racing. Sporting the Bendibérica colours, its drivers were Salvador Cañellas and Javier Juncadella. Cañellas, F-1430 champion in 1972, won the first Formula SEAT 1800 race on 19 May 1974, while Juncadella was the champion that first season, thanks to his consistency.

Formula SEAT 1800 was held for three seasons. In the first race of 1975, Cañellas took pole position with an evolution of the Selex ST-4, now with a wide nose that housed the front radiator, modifications that were also adapted to the existing ST-4s. However, a series of retirements led him to leave F-1800 to focus on rallying with the SEAT Competición team.

Thus, for the next two seasons, 1975 and 1976, the Formula SEAT 1800 champion was Kuru Villacieros at the wheel of a Martini, who in 1973 had been Cañellas’ successor as champion of the F-1430 championship. In 1977, the F-1800 was no longer organised, but SEAT continued to support drivers who raced F-1800 single-seaters in hill-climbs.

In short, Formula SEAT 1800 was a milestone in the history of Spanish motor racing, as an ‘improvement formula’ comparable to international Formula 3, in the same way that Formula SEAT 1430 was a valuable training ground for aspiring drivers in single-seater racing. In both cases, Selex was the most famous chassis manufacturer, with single-seaters designed by Jaume Xifré and developed on track by Salvador Cañellas.

The SEAT HISTÓRICOS Collection already had two Formula SEAT 1430 units, a Cordobán and a Selex ST-5. To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the F-1800’s debut, the team at Nave A-122 restored a Selex ST-4 F-1800 unit, with the specifications and livery of the 1975 semi-works Selex Bendibérica team and the number 1 sported by Salvador Cañellas.