Monthly Archives: November 2014

Improved Qualifier – Shadow DN3 #5A

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The Shadow team finished it’s debut 1973 season with two 3rd place finishes, one 6th and one top 10 start with it’s original DN1 model.

Both 1973 Shadow Formula One works drivers Jackie Oliver and George Follmer retired from the Shadow Formula One programme to concentrate on the successful 1974 Shadow Can Am programme.

Shadow DN3, Sonoma Historics

American winner of the 1973 British and Canadian Grand Prix Peter Revson was employed as the Shadow Formula One team leader for 1974 and he was joined by 1973 Formula Two Champion Jean Pierre “Jumper” Jarrier.

The teams existing designer Tony Southgate devised today’s featured car the Shadow DN3 which featured a longer and wheel base and wider track than it’s predecessor.

Shadow DN3, Sonoma Historics

Peter Revson showed the new car was a vast improvement on the old qualifying 4th, 6th and 9th, in the first three events of the season, he retired in Argentina and Brazil and finished a distant 6th in the rain soaked non championship Race of Champions at Brands Hatch.

Unfortunately Peter was killed while testing his DN3 for the following race in South Africa an event from which the devastated team withdrew.

Shadow DN3, Sonoma Historics

Jean Pierre Jarrier and the team bounced back with a third place finish in the non championship International Trophy at Silverstone and was joined by Brian Redman for the next three races.

At Monaco Jean Pierre qualified 6th and finished an impressive third behind Ronnie Peterson and Jody Schekter.

After Monaco Brian, who finished a best 7th in the 1974 Spanish Grand Prix decided to quit the Shadow team in favour of a Formula A/5000 programme in the US with Jim Hall and Carl Hass which would net him three consecutive championships and a lot more cash than Shadow had available.

Brian was replaced by Bertil Roos for the Swedish Grand Prix where Jean Pierre qualified 8th and finished 5th.

Welshman Tom Pryce joined the Shadow team at the Dutch Grand Prix where Jean Pierre qualified 7th ahead of his team mate in 11th and both cars failed to finish.

Tom qualified a season high 3rd at the French Grand Prix where he was eliminated in his second consecutive start line collision.

Over the remainder of the season the teams qualifying performances slipped back and the teams remaining point came from Tom’s best 6th place finish in the 1974 German Grand Prix.

I believe the car seen at the Sonoma Historic Meeting by Geoffrey Horton in these photographs is chassis #5A first qualified 5th by Tom in the 1974 British Grand Prix where he finished 8th and driven by Tom to 6th in the German Grand Prix from 11th on the grid.

Tom also drive this car in the Canadian and US Grand Prix retiring from both and there is an unconfirmed possibility that this would have been the chassis James Hunt drove in an exhibition race supporting the 1974 Monterey Grand Prix for Formula A/5000 cars, coincidentally won by Brian Redman.

This exibition race between the Shadow Formula One cars and Shadow Can Am cars has been described as one of two grudge matches between Jackie Oliver and George Follmer who respectively won and finished 2nd in the 1974 Can Am championship.

For some reason Jean Pierre Beltoise was scheduled to drive alongside his countryman “Jumper” Jarrier in the teams second DN3, but when he could not make it due to injury one of the Shadow Teams 1973 Can Am drivers, James Hunt, was given the drive in the exhibition race.

James qualified fastest but finished second to “Jumper” but ahead of George in the surviving Cam Am Shadow DN4.

Looking at the photo in this link one can see Tom’s name is taped out on the side of the car James drove at Laguna Seca which alludes to the possibility the car he drove was quite likely chassis #5A, as I say this to not confirmation, but points to a better than even chance that he did.

Two years after the Laguna Seca Exhibition race chassis #5A appeared at the 1976 British Grand Prix, sans airbox, entered for Mike Wilds to drive by Team P. R. Reilly, unfortunately Mike was six seconds off the pace and unsurprisingly failed to qualify.

Mike then drove #5A in two Shellsport Group 8 races at Snetterton and Brands Hatch finishing 2nd and 6th respectively before the car appears to have been retired from competition.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton for spotting the today’s featured Shadow at Sonoma Historics and sharing these photograph of it.

Thanks for joining me on this “Improved Qualifier” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow for Maserati Monday. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Another Alternative C-Type – Sulprizio Hagemann GMC

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Like Walt Hansgen a few years earlier when United Engineering & Machine co owner Babe Sulprizio found he was too many dollars short to own a C-Type Jaguar he set to building his own special in 1955.

Sulprizio Hagemann GMC, Rolex Reunion, Laguna Seca,

Babe started by building a steel tube ladder frame to which he fitted Jaguar Mk VII independent front suspension and rear axle , a Morris Minor steering rack and a 5 litre / 302 cui GMC six cylinder ‘Jimmy’ motor mated to a 4 speed Moss gearbox.

It is said the ‘Jimmy’ GMC motor was chosen after the local Oakland Chevrolet assembly plant refused to supply a 265 cui V8.

For the bodywork Babe took his chassis with some sketched bodywork idea’s to expert english wheelman Jack Hagemann. Babe insisted the completed body be painted bright red which led to the car often being mistaken for a Ferrari.

I have not been able to establish any competition results for the car which appears to have been known as the Hagemann GMC or Sulprizio Hagemann GMC, if you know of any please do not hesitate to chime in below.

In 1976 the current owner bought the car and appears to have installed a Jaguar XK 120 motor, XK 150 disc brakes and tired of telling the inquisitive his car was not a Ferrari had it repainted in metallic British Racing Green.

Note this car is not to be confused with the 1957 Cozzi Jaguar Special which was also painted red and fitted with a Jack Hagemann body.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton for sharing his photo of the Sulprizio Hagemann GMC taken at last years Rolex Reunion at Laguna Seca.

Thanks for joining me on this “Another Alternative C-type” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow for a look at a Shadow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Aircon & Electric Windows – Ferrari 250 LM #5995

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Today’s featured Ferrari 250 LM chassis #5995 was originally supplied in 1964 to Count Volpi di Misurata patron of Scuderia Serenissima.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Roberto Benelli is believed to have driven the car for the Count in 1964 although at the moment I have no idea exactly when or where. In 1965 Cesare Toppetti and Maurizio Grana started the Targa Florio with it but retired after an accident.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Cesare finished first in class on the 1965 Bologna-Raticosa Hillclimb before sharing the driving with Maurizio to finish 2nd in the 1965 Mugello Grand Prix. This chassis last known event was with Cesare again at the wheel on Trieste-Opicina hillclimb in July ’65 although no result is known for this outing.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

At the 1965 Geneva and New York Motor Show’s Ferrari displayed 250LM chassis #6025 as a Stradale variant equipped as a road car carpets, full leather trim, electric door windows and a plexiglass rear window.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Two years later in 1967 today’s featured car was sent back to Maranello to be equipped as the original 250 LM Stradale as a road car with cast magnesium wheels and air conditioning added for further comfort in what must other wise be a an extremely hot interior.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

During the 1960’s the #5995 ended up in Maryland where an owner paid $8,000.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

In early 1981 the car was offered for sale by it’s British owner for £75,000 @ $120,000 but it did not change ownership until 1996 when it went to an owner in France who had the car painted in Silver with the French Tricolor as seen on in these photographs taken at Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Ferrari 250 LM, Goodwood Festival of Speed

By way of comparison in the last 12 months or so two Ferrari 250 LM’s have come up for auction, the unraced in period #6045 went for a hammer price of over $11 million in August and the 1968 Daytona 24 Hours class winning chassis #6107 fetched a model high $14.3 million in New York last November.

Thanks for joining me on this “Aircon & Electric Windows” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a one off Jaguar powered GT road car. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Seven Laps Led – Plymouth Savoy

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“There’s no such thing as a ‘Plain Jane’ in the Plymouth line-up for 1959!” Plymouth dealers were informed and the base Savoy model proved the point with similar levels of chrome to the top Belvedere and Fury models with standard two-tone instrument panel, foam front seat cushion, dual sun visors, dual horns, and dual front door armrests.

Plymouth Savoy, Sonoma Historics,

After making 9 starts driving Petty Enterprises Oldsmobiles in the second half of the 51 race 1958 NASCAR Grand National series and winning $760, Richard Petty, later The King, continued with a 22 race schedule in the 44 race 1959 season.

Plymouth Savoy, Sonoma Historics,

Like his Dad Lee Petty the 22 year old Richard swapped over from Oldsmobiles to running Petty Enterprises entered Plymouth’s mid season. Turns out the same Petty Enterprises Plymouth’s would run in 2 door hard top Savoy form for some races and with the roof unbolted and removed in Convertible Belvedere form for others.

Plymouth Savoy, Sonoma Historics,

Lee Petty won his third and final NASCAR Grand National title with 11 race wins in the 1959 season, while Richard finished 15th in points with 9 top ten finishes and the NASCAR Rookie of the year award with his winnings for the year at $8110.21.

In his fourth drive in the Plymouth Richard recorded his first seven Grand National lead laps in the Southern 500 at Darlington where he finished 4th.

Today’s featured ’59 Plymouth Savoy is painted and stickered up in tribute to Richard Petty’s Rookie of The Year winning ’59 season.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton for sharing his photographs of the Plymouth taken at Sonoma Historics earlier this year.

Thanks for joining me on this “Seven Laps Led” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for Ferrari Friday tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Coffee Croissant & Cars 11/14 – Avenue Drivers Club

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Around 8am on a sunny Sunday morning I rolled down the hill for the monthly, second Sunday of the month, Avenue Drivers Club meeting at Queen Square in Bristol.

Talbot, Avenue Drivers Club,

Among the hundreds of details I captured this horn from a 1921 Talbot.

Sunbeam, Avenue Drivers Club,

I’m not entirely sure what the story, behind this Lands End mascot sitting atop the radiator of a 1925 Sunbeam, is but he seemed to be enjoying the sun.

Ford, Avenue Drivers Club,

Ford branding circa 1953 on a Ford Anglia.

Jaguar XK120, Avenue Drivers Club,

This superb upgraded 1953 Jaguar was restored by Bristol Classic and Sports Cars Ltd is for sale or they will build you one like it from their stock, usual disclaimers apply.

Land Rover SWB, Avenue Drivers Club,

Another vehicle from 1953 was this 88″ short wheel base (SWB) Land Rover with a Station Wagon body.

Reliant Scimitar GT Coupé, Avenue Drivers Club,

Fast forwarding 13 years this is the fuel cap on a 1968 Reliant Scimitar GT Coupé of which just 118 were built.

MG B GT, Avenue Drivers Club,

Above a teddy bears picnic was being held in the back of a 1970 MG B GT.

Morris Mini Cooper S, Avenue Drivers Club,

Rarest of the Mini Cooper S models are the Mark III, internal door hinges, versions, like the the 1971 example above of which 1,570 were built between 1969 and 1976.

Austin Maxi, Avenue Drivers Club,

The humble Austin Maxi hatchback was the first all new product launched by the newly created British Leyland in 1969. John Lennon was probably the most famous owner of a Maxi, which he subsequently crashed into a tree. The power transverse Maxi power train was used to build a prototype AC and a prototype Ginetta.

Triumph TR6, Avenue Drivers Club,

Another car for sale was this attractive TR6, if you are interested in buying one message me and I’ll put you in touch with the owner, usual disclaimers apply.

Hillman Avenger, Avenue Drivers Club,

In 1976 the Hillman name was dropped in favour of Chrysler and the Avenger model was given a minor face lift while production was moved from Ryton on Dunsmore near Coventry to the former Imp / Chamoise manufacturing plant at Linwood Scotland. All of which must make this Hillman badged face lifted Avenger a bit of a rarity.

Bentley Brooklands R Mulliner, Avenue Drivers Club,

Before the introduction of the Bentley Arnage Bentley built a series of 100 long wheel base Brooklands R Mulliner models in 1998. All of them were RHD and all numbered. Not sure which won was in Queen Square on Sunday but it was a most impressive motor car.

Caterham Roadsport, Avenue Drivers Club,

Looking timeless above a Caterham Super Seven.

TVR Tuscan, Avenue Drivers Club,

Finally from 2001 this TVR Tuscan was one of numerous examples of the marque to turn up on Sunday.

Thanks for joining me on this “Coffee Croissants & Cars 11/14” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a homage to Richard Petty’s 1959 rookie season. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Dutch Rattle Free Coachwork – Delahaye 135M Pennock Cabriolet

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Four years after Emile Delahaye founded Delahaye to manufacture automobiles in France, P.J. Pennock & Sons founded Carrosseriefabriek P.J. Pennock & Zonen in the Netherlands in 1898.

Delahaye 135M, Pennock Cabriolet, Niello Concours at Serrano

In 1935 Delahaye built the first 135 Competition models which featured low chassis with independent front suspension and conventional solid rear axle which were competitive in events as the Monte Carlo Rally and the Le Mans 24 Hours.

Delahaye 135M, Pennock Cabriolet, Niello Concours at Serrano

After war the Delahaye 135 returned to production with the six cylinder motor now producing 130 hp in M spec, as before the war Delahaye customers had no choice but to send their Delhaye chassis coach builders as Delahaye had no in house coach building facilities.

Delahaye 135M, Pennock Cabriolet, Niello Concours at Serrano

The chassis of this particular 1947 Cabriolet was sent to Carrosseriefabriek P.J. Pennock & Zonen who had eliminated rattling body work by using a bare minimum of woodwork framing and by welding their creations direct to the customers chassis.

My thanks to Geoffrey Horton for sharing today’s photographs taken at Niello Concours at Serrano a couple of years ago.

Thanks for joining me on this “Dutch Rattle Free Coachwork” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again for Coffee, Croissant & Cars tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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’55 Gold Cup Winner – Maserati 250F #2515

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Today’s featured Maserati 250F chassis #2515 made it’s debut for the works team in the 1955 Argentinian GP where it retired with engine failure after Sergio Mantovani, Jean Behra and Luigi Musso had completed 54 of the scheduled 96 laps.

Roberto Mieres, Peter Collins, Stirling Moss and Carroll Shelby all drove #2515 in 1955 with Stirling Moss recording the best result with a win in the non Championship Gold Cup at Oulton Park.

Maserati 250F, Donington Grand Prix Collection

Francisco Landi and Gerino Gerini shared the car in the 1956 Argentine Grand Prix to score a season high 4th. After Francisco finished 7th in the Brazilian Grand Prix ownership of #2515 appears to have been passed over to Scuderia Guastalla in Italy.

Gerino and Umberto Maglioli drove the car on two occasions each over the remainder of the 1956 season with Gerino’s 5th place finish in Syracusse being the best result.

Ottorino Volonterio acquired the car after it had been rebodied for the 1957 season and it was entered in three events with the best, only, finish being 11th in the Italian Grand Prix where Ottorino shared the driving with André Simon.

André Testut failed to qualify the car for the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix, as he would his own 250F #2521 in the same event the following season.

From June to September 1958 #2515 was entered in four events by Scuderia Centro Sud with Maurice Trintignant finishing seventh in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa.

Gerino drove in the remaining three recording a best 6th place finish at Caen. Hans Hermann drove #2515, now entered by Joakim Bonnier, in the 1958 Italian Grand Prix from which he retired with a valve issue.

In 1959 Fritz d’Orey retired #2515, now entered by Scuderia Centro Sud again, from the British Grand Prix. The final known appearance of #2515 was in the 1959 Italian Grand Prix where Giulio Cabianca driving for Ottorino Volonterio finished 15th.

Tom Wheatcroft bought #2515 in 1965 and it is seen in this picture in the Donington Grand Prix Collection which he founded.

Thanks for joining me on this “Gold Cup Winner” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a Delahaye. Don’t forget to come back now !

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