Monthly Archives: February 2016

Check Tug Glance Dab – Mercedes 18/100 Spare

The 1914 Grand Prix de l’Automobile Club de France, was to be run over 20 laps of a 23 mile road course around Lyon.

In preparation for the race Mercedes sent their engineer Louis Vischer with two of their 1914 18/100 Grand Prix challengers to check the suitability of the cars to the conditions.

Mercedes 18/100, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Today’s featured 18/100 is one of those cars built with a 4 1/2 litre / 274 cui 4 four cylinder engine with a conservative single cam shaft operating four valves per cylinder designed by Paul Daimler and Fritz Nalliger.

This engine could turn at a maximum 3,000 revolutions per minute, RPM, double that achieved by any previous Mercedes.

Mercedes 18/100, Goodwood Festival of Speed

As well as spurning twin cam shafts as successfully used by Peugeot to win the 1912 and 1913 Grand Prix de l’Automobile Club de France, Mercedes unlike Peugeot also relied on brakes operating only on the rear wheels to slow the 18/100 which weighed a minimum mandated 1,100 kgs / 2425 lbs.

Because of the length of the track the car carried two spare tyres and a jack in case of punctures while out on the circuit. Mercedes were the first team to ever employing a strategy of scheduling a mid race pit stop regardless of the conditions

Mercedes 18/100, Eddie Berrisford, Goodwood Festival of Speed

In 1914 Mercedes became the first team to ever employ a strategy of scheduling a mid race pit stop for all of it’s cars regardless of the condition of the tyres.

Note although this car was a team spare today it carries the #41 BIS as used on the fifth team car driven by Belgian Theodore Pilette who is reported as having started the 1914 Grand Prix de l’Automobile Club de France with an already broken four speed gearbox which lasted only the first hour of the seven hour race before failing completely.

Mercedes 18/100, Eddie Berrisford, Goodwood Festival of Speed

Today this car is part of the Collier Collection and is seen with the collections chief restorer Eddie Berrisford at the wheel at Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Highly esteemed motor sport historian Doug Nye noted in the July 2014 edition of MotorSport that when sitting alongside Eddie at an event held in Lyon to celebrate the centenary of Mercedes 1-2-3 victory in the 1914 ACF GP he had to check the fuel pressure was at least 1 kg/sq cm and if not tug at the fuel pump “like an exasperated Dutchman at a slot machine”, act as a living rear view mirror, as there of course there was none, by glancing over his shoulder, then give two dabs on a foot operated oil pump that lubricated the the cam shaft and top end of the engine and all while being dug in the ribs by Eddie’s left elbow and all while hanging on with his right arm clinging on to the seat ledge behind the driver.

After completing his pre race tests Louis Vischer recorded that ” … the prospect of victory is there, given a skilled handling of the car.”

Thanks for joining me on this Check, Tug, Glance, Dab, edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at another Citroén. Don’t forget to come back now !

Remus – ERA R5B

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In 1936 today’s featured ERA R5B which became known as Remus was added to the 1935 ERA R2B known as Romulus at the White Mouse Racing stable for the Siamese Prince Birabongse Bhanutej Bhjanubandh Bira to drive.

ERA R5B, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

Like Romulus Remus was fitted with a 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui supercharged engine which remained in the car until 1979 when it was replaced by the 2 litre / 122 cui seen in the car today.

ERA R5B, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

Bira’s only notable success in the car was to win the 1936 Albi Grand Prix, after being left unused in 1937 Tony Rolt bought Remus and drove her to victory in the 1939 British Empire Trophy at Donington Park after it had been modified by Freddie Dixon.

ERA R5B, VSCC Spring Start, Silverstone

Tony and St John Ratcliffe Stewart “Jock” Horsfall both drove Remus on the Cockfosters Rally Demonstration Run on July 14th 1945 just two months after the end of hostilities in Europe.

ERA R5B, VSCC Spring Start, Silverstone

I F Connell briefly owned Remus in 1946 before selling her on to Peter Bell later the same year who entered her for John Bolster to race.

ERA R5B, VSCC Spring Start, Silverstone

Murray Walker in his autobiography “Unless I am very much mistaken” tells how while commentating for BBC Radio at Silverstone for the 1949 British Grand Prix John Bolster lost Remus in a big way and deposited himself “in a bleeding mess” at the foot of his commentary box, Murray’s understated commentary to the BBC Radio audience was “Bolster’s gone off !”.

ERA R5B, Charles McCabe, Silverstone Classic,

John retired from driving there after and the repaired Remus passed through a succession of documented owners before being bought by current owner Charles McCabe who is seen at the wheel above during a Silverstone Classic meeting.

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

Wetherby Record In Perpetuity – GN Wasp

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Jack Moor’s original Wasp was a motorcycle combination with a yellow and black stripped petrol tank and cigar shaped sidecar.

In 1923 he bought a 2 seat GN Vitesse which fellow comeptitor Basil Davenport advised be converted to a single seater, while carrying out the conversion Jack shortened the chassis by a foot.

GN Wasp, Winston Teague, Chateau Impney,

Later, to avoid perpetually finishing second to Basil in the 1.5 litre / 91 cui class, Jack enlarged his engine to 1510 cc / 92 cui so that he could compete in the up 122 cui class, which was not so keenly contested.

In 1931 the Vitesse based Wasp was wrecked against a telegraph pole after coming adrift of the towbar on the to Shelsley Walsh and Jack built a new vehicle based on a GN Akela.

GN Wasp, Winston Teague, Loton Park

After winning the 1.1 litre / 67 cui class at Shelsley Jack replaced the 4 valve cylinder heads with a pair of Norton motorcycle cylinder heads which involved building a new crankcase using pattern borrowed from Basil.

With the Norton heads fitted Jack set a new record at the Wetherby Speed Trials which will remain in perpetuity since the venue is now defunct.

GN Wasp, Winston Teague, Loton Park

After the 1939 – 45 hostilities Jack reassembled Wasp in just 33 days so that he could compete at Shelsley in 1946, but Jacks event ended with an impressive fire.

He rebuilt Wasp yet again with a box section chassis Morgan independent front suspension and Rudge motorcycle wheels.

GN Wasp, Winston Teague, Chateau Impney,

In August 1948 the engine blew up after a drive chain broke but once again the car, seen as the fore runner of G.N.A.T. which I looked at last week and Spider which I shall be looking at next week, was repaired.

Winston Teague is the current custodian of Wasp, seen in these photographs with him at the wheel at Chateau Impney and Loton Park, and he drives it no less enthusiastically than did Jack Moor, setting a record that still stands at Prescott in 2011.

My thanks to Tim Murray for lending me his copy of the 1971 edition of Special by John Bolster.

Thanks for joining me on this “Wetherby Record In Perpetuity” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow, when I’ll be looking at another ERA. Don’t forget to come back now !

Tre Porte – FIAT 128 3p Belinetta

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3 years after FIAT launched it’s 128 Sport Coupé model Volkswagen responded with a competitor in the form of the Scirroco which was launched several month’s before the introduction of the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit upon which it was based.