Author Archives: psychoontyres

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The Rover P4 range of vehicles was introduced in 1949 to replace the interim out dated P3 vehicles which had been rushed into production in 1948 as the Rover company sort to rebuild itself as a vehicle manufacturer having spent the years during World War 2 manufacturing aircraft.

Drawing inspiration from the 3rd generation Raymond Loewy designed Studebaker Champion launched in 1946, at the request of the Wilkes brothers who owned Rover, Gordon Bashford was responsible for what was known in the factory as the P4. The original P4’s came fitted with a central spot lamp mounted in the grill, but this feature was dropped early in production which eased the difficulties keeping the engine cool.

The P4 was continually being upgraded and from 1954 a distinct MkII version was available that was then restyled again into the form shown in these photo’s in 1957, a Mk 2.2 if you will.

Because of material shortages immediately after WW2 these vehicles incorporated a high percentage of aluminium content and were to be seen in competitions of the day including the 1955 Mille Miglia in which Lando Barsotti brought his #347 Rover 75 P4 home in 271st place. The 75 seen here was powered by a 2.2 litre /136 cui 6 cylinder motor featuring the same overhead inlet valves and side exhaust valve design as had been a feature of the earlier P3.

The final MK II P4’s were produced in 1959 with 9,974 Mk II’s produced over it’s five year production run.

I spotted this particular vehicle at the back of the Atwell – Wilson Motor Museum. I am not sure what they planned to do with it, good working examples of the type tend not to fetch more than £ 2000 so the cost of restoration would appear to be a little prohibitive.

Thanks for joining me on this Awaiting TLC edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil psycho on tyres’, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Racing Maloo – HSV Maloo

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Two weeks after starting the ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ blog I remember getting a huge thrill from discovering an HSV Maloo on the streets of Bristol and learning that it was the fastest pickup truck in the world.

Last weekend while at the Britcar British Endurance Championship Racing Weekend at Castle Combe I stumbled across another Maloo this time in full race trim including

slick tyres to compliment it’s 400 hp Corvette LS2 engine which according to one passer by in a Britcar T shirt is tuned to 600 hp good for reaching 60 mph in under 4 seconds.

When I got home I was surprised to learn that there is an Australian racing series for Ford and Holden pick ups, where pickups are known as Utes, which is part of a staircase to find talent for the top tier Australian V8 Supercar series.

Even more surprisingly I have found out that late last year an announcement was made by Britcar to the effect that they would organise a debut season for a UK V8Ute Series using only the rebranded Vauxhall VXR Maloo pickup model.

The cars were to be rented from Britcar with the rental cost including entry fees for a full season of races.

The plan was that at each meeting the Maloo’s would take part in three 40 minute races with mandatory pit stops for driver changes.

The projected series is on temporary hold, I look forward to an announcement from Britcar that the series will get a chance to go public and from Vauxhall that the VXR Maloo gets the opportunity to enter the UK market place.

Thanks for joining me on this Antipodean Racing edition of ‘Gettin a lil’ psycho on tyres’ I hope that you will join me again tomorrow ! Don’t forget to come back now !

Direct Injection Of Kudos – Mercedes Benz 300 SL

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In 1952 the underpowered 115 hp carburettor 3 litre / 183cui Sport Leicht Mercedes Benz W194 demonstrated remarkable versatility by winning the Le Mans 24 hours, the Eifelrennen sports car race at the Nurburgring and the Carrera Panamerica in Mexico racing against more powerful opposition from Ferrari and Jaguar.

These successes lay in the lightweight tubular steel chassis and a low drag body which was facilitated by canting the straight six cylinder motor at a 50 degree angle.

New York Mercedes distributor Max Hoffman suggested a road going version of the W194 would make a viable commercial impact in the United States and so the 300 SL was launched in 1954 with a the worlds first mechanical direct injection petrol engine which produced 175 hp.

In order to accommodate the high sided tubular steel chassis, designed by Rudolf Uhlenhaut, distinctive aluminium gull wings were used in conjunction with a tilt away steering column to facilitate access.

The spare tyre fills the boot / trunk space entirely meaning one had to travel light in the 300SL as demonstrated by the suitcase on the parcel shelf.

The 300SL was not without problems derived from it’s racing heritage the large volume oil system rarely got up to proper operating temperature on shorter journeys and in turn the oil would get diluted by the mechanical fuel injection by unburned petrol that remained in the cylinders when the engine was switched off. This meant that the 300 SL needed an oil change every 1000 miles.

But for all of it’s problems the aerodynamic shape of the 300 SL meant that with a 160 mph capability it was easily the fastest road car of it’s day when it was launched. 80% of the nearly 1400 units built went to the USA changing the image of Mercedes Benz from staid to sporty overnight forever.

For a look at a contemporary interpretation of the 300 SL checkout Dave Wolin’s wild Chevrolet powered 300 SL I blogged about a couple of weeks ago.

If your interested in the pre war silver arrows racing vehicles I strongly recommend a visit to Paul Chenard’s Automobiliart website and check out his ‘Silver Clouds‘ illustrated book of the 1934 Grand Prix season.

Thanks for joining me on this Direct Injection edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

The Lil’ Car That Scared The Fat Cat – Doretti #1196

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The Doretti was designed by former Bristol Omnibus apprentice Frank Rainbow while he was working for the Tube Investment Group. In January 1953 Frank was given 9 months to design and build the first Doretti car by Eric Saunders, managing director of the Swallow Coachbuilding Company which became part of the TI Group in 1946 after spawning S.S. Cars in 1934 which became Jaguar in 1945.

In 1952 Eric met Arthur Andersen of the Rome Cable Corporation, who was interested in the production of a vehicle specifically designed for sale in the USA and discussion turned to the production of a car to be designed by Frank with bodies to be made in Wales.

Using his connection with Sir John Black at Standard Triumph, Eric Saunders secured a supply of Triumph TR2 running gear for the Swallow Doretti, a name derived from a marketing company operated by Arthur Andersens daughter Dorothy Deen and Paul Bernhart which was to market the car.

Frank completed the first car with a Reynolds 531 chrome-molydenum steel tube chassis on schedule and it was exhibited alongside a Triumph TR2, which Doretti parent Cal Specialities Company was also responsible for distributing.

From 1954 to 1955 around 280 Doretti’s were built in a factory with a maximum of just 18 employees.

The success of the Doretti frightened Jaguar, which was by now a large customer of the same TI Group that facilitated the birth of the Doretti, into giving Tube Investments an ultimatum to disengage from the Doretti project or loose the Jaguar account. Doretti production halted overnight on the receipt of the ultimatum and thus the Doretti name lives on in around 180 of the cars that are thought to have survived.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s Cal Specialities Company edition of ‘Getting a ‘lil psycho on tyres’ and that you’ll join me again tomorrow for a look at another European sports car that changed the image of it’s manufacturer forever. Don’t forget to come back now !

Two Seat Grand Prix Car – Ferrari 312 P #0890

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Last week on Ferrari Friday we looked at the catastrophe that befell the Ferrari teams Grand Prix effort as a result of Enzo’s illness sabbatical in 1972.

The story of the Ferrari teams fortunes in sports car racing during this period were not quite so catastrophic but having red washed the World Sportscar Championship of 1972 winning all races except the Le Mans 24 hours, which the team did not enter allegedly because they did not believe their engine would prove sufficiently reliable, 1973 proved to be a disappointment.

Matra who had only entered, and won, the Le Mans 24 hours in 1972 made a successful bid for the World Sports Car Championship in 1973. While this was by no means as comprehensive a blue wash as Ferrari had achieved the year before.

The absence of ‘Fury’ Forghieri who had been exiled to the Fiorano test track by FIAT management during Enzo Ferrari’s sabatical was tangible in terms of Ferrari’s flagging sports car results.

This 1973 spec Ferrari 312 PB chassis #0890 was built for the 1972 season during which Art Mezario and Brian Redman drove the car to victory in the Spa 1000 kms.

Mezario also drove to a solo non championship victory at Imola in a 500 km race in this chassis, #0890 only disgraced it’s self once from six starts in 1972 with an engine failure at Kyalami.

During 1973 #0890 was raced a further five times with 2nd place finishes it’s best results at Dijon for Ickx / Redman and at the Nurburgring for Carlos Pace / Merzario a partnership which brought the car a 3rd place in it’s final front line race in the 6 hours at The Glen.

Chassis #0890 seen here at Goodwood Festival of Speed is easily recognisable being the only one of the six 312 P chassis that had the air intake modification to the drivers side chassis skin which appeared at the ADAC 1000 kms at the Nurburgring in 1973.

In 1972 Ferrari built six 312 P chassis so that there could be a team of three freshly prepared cars at each of the World Championship races. The PB initials were used by the press to distinguish the car from the previous 312 P model of 1971.

The 1972 Ferrari sports car team managed by Peter Schetty with Ermanno Cuoghi looking after the preparation of the cars was without doubt the class of the field,

their cars powered by a water cooled 3 litre /183 cui 48 valve flat 12 motor that was in essence a Grand Prix engine detuned for reliability. Five of the six 312 P chassis originally built in 1972 are known to exist today.

Thanks for joining me on today’s PB edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ and I hope that you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Gettin' A Li'l Psycho On Tyres

Art Tidesco blogs on all things motoring

Author Archives: psychoontyres

Giant Killing Potential ? – Jedi Mk4

Bi- Parting Tailgate – Volvo Amazon Estate / Station Wagon

Awaiting TLC #2 – Rover 75 P4

Racing Maloo – HSV Maloo

Direct Injection Of Kudos – Mercedes Benz 300 SL

The Lil’ Car That Scared The Fat Cat – Doretti #1196

Two Seat Grand Prix Car – Ferrari 312 P #0890