F1 star Oliver Bearman splashes out on £8k personalised ‘car’ for 16-year-old brother

Oliver Bearman’s younger brother Thomas is already benefitting from that F1 racer’s salary.

Oliver Bearman’s younger brother Thomas is also a racer currently competing at F4 level (Image: Getty)

Oliver Bearman’s brother is still only 16 but already has his own personalised set of wheels. That’s thanks to the Formula 1 star who has revealed he splashed out on a motor for his younger brother, Thomas, as an extravagant Christmas present – now that he has earned some cash from his Haas F1 salary.

In the early stages of only his second season on the grid, Bearman is thought to have one of the smallest salaries of any F1 driver with most estimations placing his contractual income at under £1million per year. But that is still more than enough for the new ‘car’ he bought for his brother.

“He’s too young [to have taken his driving test], he’s still 16,” Bearman told the Up To Speed podcast. “But, actually, I got him a little car for Christmas, because in France and Monaco, you can drive certain types of cars when you are younger.

“So I got it painted. I got his logo. It’s called a Fiat Topolino and the door is a rope. It’s made for the beach, so you take it down to the beach, and you can park where you want. He feels very happy about that.”

As alluded to by the F1 racer, Fiat say the Topolino is not actually a car at all, but “a light quadricycle designed for city travel”. It will give young Bearman eight whole horsepower and a maximum speed of 27.9mph from its electric motor, with a maximum range of 46 miles.

Oliver Bearman is shining in his second season as a Haas driver (Image: Getty)

They have recently been made available to buy in the UK with prices believed to start from around £8,000 for the lowest-spec model. However, while the younger Bearman brother will be allowed to use it on French roads, he won’t be able to drive it in the UK until he gets a full car or motorbike driving licence, with a provisional licence not enough.

It would also need to be insured, with the official Fiat website confirming: “To drive New Topolino on UK roads, owners are legally required to have at least third-party insurance – just like they would for a moped or motor scooter.”

And there’s also a catch on the battery front, with fast charging not supported. Fiat say, though, that the standard way of charging, through a European two-pin plug or a Type 2 wall box adapter in the UK, will be enough to completely charge the engine in under four hours

It may not be long, though, until Bearman will be earning enough to help his brother to upgrade in the future. While his salary at Haas is small for now, he is well-positioned for what would be a money-spinning promotion to a top team thanks to his excellent performances.

Bearman remains affiliated with the Ferrari Driver Academy and it is believed the Brit, 20, is being lined up as the eventual successor to the race seat currently occupied by Lewis Hamilton. The seven-time world champion, 41, is believed to have a contract until the end of the 2027 season, though there has been no indication as to when he plans to retire from F1.