The reveal of each F1 team’s livery is always a much-anticipated moment at the start of every season. Certain designs have particularly caught the eye over the years, earning an iconic status amongst fans of the sport.
This got us thinking – which retro liveries would we love to see make a return on modern-day Formula 1 cars?
From the famous green 7Up design that adorned the Jordan 191, to the stunning metallic shimmer of the Toro Rosso STR12, we’ve rounded up 10 liveries from the past that would be our lead candidates for a comeback…
Renault R26
We begin with a livery that celebrates its 20th anniversary this year, marking two decades since it experienced championship success for the team now known as Alpine.
The Renault R26 sported a striking blue and yellow colour scheme, one that became a regular sight at the chequered flag as the squad racked up eight wins on their way to clinching both the Teams’ and Drivers’ Championship for a second consecutive season in 2006.
Fernando Alonso claimed the latter title and, while the Spaniard now races for Aston Martin, it would be a great nostalgic moment to see the popular livery make its return on the Alpine 20 years on.
Jordan 191
Speaking of Aston Martin, the history of the British squad can actually be traced back to the Jordan outfit. Founded by former racing driver Eddie Jordan, the team made their F1 debut back in 1991.
In later years, Jordan would become known for running a bright yellow livery (more on which later) – but for their maiden campaign, the predominant colour on the Jordan 191 was green, while the car also memorably featured the logo of sponsor 7Up on the chassis.
As well as becoming a fan favourite design – and one that would certainly look impressive on the current-day Aston Martin – Jordan’s maiden challenger has also become historic thanks to being the first F1 car driven by a certain Michael Schumacher on his debut at Belgium’s Spa-Francorchamps.
McLaren MP4-23
In recent years, McLaren have returned to their roots by resurrecting the papaya orange colour scheme that first appeared on their cars in the late 1960s, but the team have gone through various other identities across the decades.
One that is often heralded as a particularly iconic look is the silver livery that adorned the MP4-23, the 2008 challenger that Lewis Hamilton clinched his first World Championship with.
The chrome and red design – that prominently displayed the logo of sponsor Vodafone – also holds a special place in McLaren’s history statistics-wise, with the car being the last that the team claimed a Drivers’ title with prior to Lando Norris’ victory in 2025.
Williams FW14B
Like McLaren, Williams are a team with a long history in Formula 1, meaning that they too have been through different iterations in the years since their debut in 1978.
That means that there are plenty of famous liveries to choose from when it comes to designs we would like to see return, but we’re going to opt for the FW14B, a car that matched its striking appearance with stunning performances on the track.
Driven by Nigel Mansell to championship success in 1992, the blue, yellow and white colour scheme on the title-winning challenger looked even better with the addition of the #5 in red on the nosecone.
Brawn BGP 001
The story of Brawn GP’s one and only F1 season remains one of the sport’s greatest fairytales, with the squad – borne out of the former Honda outfit after the Japanese manufacturer’s sudden exit at the end of 2008 – achieving championship glory that few would have predicted.
A simple but effective design adorned the BGP 001, with the mostly white car featuring touches of a distinctive fluorescent yellow.
After their triumphant 2009 campaign, Brawn GP became Mercedes in 2010 following the Silver Arrows’ buyout of the squad – and while the Brackley-based outfit are known for the colours of that nickname, it would be fun to see the BGP 001 livery make its return on one of the team’s modern cars.
Benetton B186
In contrast to the simplicity of Brawn GP’s look, Benetton made a dazzling use of colour on the B186, their challenger for the 1986 campaign.
For the team’s first season under their new name – with the Benetton Group purchasing the former Toleman outfit at the end of 1985 – the car certainly caught the eye with its green livery that also featured splashes of bright colours across the chassis.
What made the design even more unique was that, on some occasions, the B186 also ran multi-coloured tyres that had been painted on the sides (see second image below). With the Benetton team going on to become Renault – and now Alpine – this livery definitely makes our list for those that we would like to make a comeback on today’s grid.
Toro Rosso STR12
Next up is a livery that became a fan favourite back in 2017. The Toro Rosso team – now known as Racing Bulls – caught the eye when they unveiled the STR12, with it featuring a noticeable evolution from the squad’s previous colour scheme.
Swapping the navy of old for a vivid royal blue – teamed with shades of red, silver and purple – the shimmering new look certainly stood out when Carlos Sainz and Daniil Kyvat took to the track.
The Red Bull sister team have showcased some popular designs during their time in the sport – with the predominantly white livery of 2025 also well liked – but the STR12’s colours are certainly something we would enjoy seeing again.
Jordan 198
As touched on earlier, Jordan were perhaps best known for their standout yellow colours throughout much of the team’s stint in Formula 1, a hue they first adopted in 1996.
While the look took on various forms in the years that followed, one version that remains particularly popular is that sported by the Jordan 198. This featured the iconic ‘Buzzin’ Hornets’ design, which included a striking black nosecone with a hornet pictured on the side.
The insect replaced a snake that had been a mainstay on the car’s predecessor, the Jordan 197 – and while we’re used to seeing the Prancing Horse on Ferrari’s challengers, we wouldn’t be against more creatures popping up on modern-day liveries.
McLaren M23
We have already discussed the changing colour schemes used by McLaren over the years – and another look that became synonymous with the team was the red and white livery first launched in the 1970s.
It is a design that is perhaps most greatly associated with the era of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, when a fierce rivalry developed between the team mates as they fought for the World Championship during their shared time at the squad in 1988 and 1989.
But for the sake of nostalgia, our pick for the version that we would like to see a return of is the very first red and white McLaren. The M23 – which also featured a touch of gold – claimed the outfit’s first championships in 1974, with Emerson Fittipaldi at the wheel.
Red Bull RB11 (pre-season testing version)
And finally, while it never actually raced, we have to mention Red Bull’s famous testing livery from the 2015 pre-season.
The Milton Keynes-based outfit got everybody talking when the RB11 emerged on the first day of testing in Jerez covered in a black and white camouflage design, a clever trick to hide any secrets of their new challenger.
Red Bull have since used other iterations of the camouflage look during shakedowns in 2018 and 2019, but it would certainly be fun to see the livery run in anger on a race weekend.
