Tag Archives: Bira

GP Winning Record Breaker – Delage 15 S8

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In 1925 the Association Internationale des Automobile Clubs Reconnus (AIACR), an international association of motor clubs founded in 1904, organised the first World Manufacturers’ Championship with four qualifying events, the Indianapolis 500, Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, French Grand Prix at Montlhéry and Italian Grand Prix run at Monza.

For the 1925 season Delage were running 2LCV V12 2 litre / 122 cui powered cars designed by Charles Planchon who after the cars initial failure in 1923 was replaced by Albert Lory who added twin superchargers and developed sufficiently for Robert Benoist and Louis Wagner to finish first and second in the 1925 French Grand Prix.

Delage 15 S8, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

The inaugural World Manufacturers’ Championship was claimed by Alfa Romeo with wins for Antonio Ascari and Gastone Brilli-Peri in Belgium and Italy respectively, both driving Alfa Romeo P2’s.

For 1926 the rules for the second World Manufacturers’ Championship mandated a down size to 1500 cc / 91.5 cui engine’s for which Albert Lory designed the 170hp twin supercharged 15 S8 with a straight 8 engine and five speed gearbox.

Delage 15 S8, Brooklands Double Twelve

Bugatti won the 1926 championship, Jules Goux winning the French Grand Prix and Spanish Grand Prix with Louis Charavel also driving a Type 39A to victory in Italy.

A Delage 15 S8 driven by Robert Sénéchal shared with Louis Chiron won the first Royal Automobile Club Grand Prix run at Brooklands in 1926.

Delage 15 S8, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

For 1927 Delage entered their 15 S8 models modified to run with a single super charger in all four European rounds of the World Manufacturers’ Championship.

Delage won all four races to secure what turned out to be the last World Manufacturers’ Championship to be awarded by the AIACR.

Delage 15 S8, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

Remarkably Robert Benoist was at the wheel of the winning car in France, Spain, Italy and finally at Brooklands, where he drove today’s featured chassis No.2 to victory lane.

By the end of 1927 Delage was virtually bankrupt and the company had to re focus it’s attention on building road cars and abandon racing in a works capacity.

Delage 15 S8, Brooklands Double Twelve

In 1936 a young Richard Seaman made a name for himslef driving a carefully rebuilt 10 year old 15 D8 to numerous victories over new models from ERA and Maserati.

Chassis No.2 seen here was bought by Malcolm Campbell in 1929 who sold it on to W B ‘Bummer’ Scott who set Class F 24 Hour World Record and 200 Mile World Records respectively at Montlhéry in 1931 and Brooklands in 1933.

Delage 15 S8, Goodwood Festival of Speed,

Prince Chula of Siam, cousin and entrant of “B Bira” was the next owner of the car from 1936 to 1939, hoping to emulate the fortunes of Richard Seaman the White Mouse Racing attempted an ultimately unsuccessful modernisation.

Alan V Burnard acquired No.2 in 1964 and was responsible for restoring it to it’s current condition having temporarily fitted an ERA engine and ENV pre selector gearbox.

After sourcing and rebuilding a correct type 15 S8 the ERA engine was replaced but the ENV gearbox remained, Alan Burnard generously bequeathed No.2 to the Brooklands Museum, where the car is seen in the 2nd and 5th photographs, upon his death in 2012.

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

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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 !

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Last New 4.5 Litre – OSCA 4500G

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Ten years after selling the company bearing their name to Adolfo Orsi in 1937, and remaining for those ten years as employees of the company, the Maserati brothers founded Officine Specializzate Costruzioni Automobili – Fratelli Maserati SpA better known as O.S.C.A in 1947.

Towards the beginning of the 1951 Grand Prix season Prince Bira had one of his three year old Maserati 4CLT/48’s fitted with a new 4.5 litre OSCA 60º V12 motor that produced 330hp to replace the regular 1.5 litre 4 cylinder supercharged motor.

OSCA 4500G, Stephan Rettenmaier, Silverstone Classic,

The Prince recorded a debut win with the new motor in the Richmond Trophy at Goodwood and raced with it on at least four further occasions scoring a best 4th in the 1951 Bordeaux Grand Prix concluding his season with a retirement from the 1951 World Drivers Championship Spanish Grand Prix after completing just 1 lap with engine failure.

OSCA 4500G, Stephan Rettenmaier, Silverstone Classic,

A little over a month before the Spanish Grand Prix O.S.C.A turned out with their own Formula One challenger, today’s featured 4500G powered by the same type of alloy block V12 as they had supplied to Bira.

Franco Rol qualified 18th of the 21 starters for the 1951 Italian Grand Prix and completed all but 13 laps of the full distance to be the last classified finisher, in a career high, 9th place.

OSCA 4500G, Stephan Rettenmaier, Silverstone Classic,

In the absence of sufficient commitment from manufacturers to continue with the 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui / supercharged / 4.5 / 274.5 cui litre normally aspirated Formula One powered cars, the 1952 and ’53 World Drivers Championships were decided by running the series for 2 litre / 122 cui Formula Two cars.

Consequently the last all new type to appear in the 1951 Formula One championship season and the only car built specifically to compete in Formula One races by the Maserati brothers remains the OSCA 4500G seen in these photographs at last years Silverstone Classic being driven by Stephan Rettenmaier.

Thanks for joining me on this “Last New 4.5 Litre” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

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Hydraulics & Pre Selectors – Maserati 8CM #3011

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Entering his third and final season of motor racing American born Whitney Willard Straight decided to pull out all the stops and create his own Grand Prix team with Reid Railton and the Earl of Brecknock for 1934 called Whitney Straight Ltd.

The team ordered no less than three Maserati 8CM’s of which chassis #3011 was the first, featuring a narrow 1933 specification 20″ inch wide chassis and a 3 litre / 183 cui straight 8 motor designed by Alfieri Maserati who died early in 1932 just before the first 8CM was completed.

Maserati 8CM, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

Unusually the 8CM was fitted with hydraulic brakes, a feature that had first been seen in the early 1920’s but an idea that had not been taken up by the likes of Bugatti on their Type 35’s for example.

Former Alfa Romeo mechanic Giulio Ramponi was employed to prepare the Straight cars and he was responsible for fitting a Wilson pre selector gearbox to #3011 and the remaining team cars.

Maserati 8CM, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

To the best of my knowledge Whitney drove the white and blue painted #3011 exclusively in 1934 and after recording a speed of 135.49 mph over a flying mile at Brooklands he won four events 2 at Brooklands one at Donington and another in East London, South Africa.

At the end of the year Whitney retired from the sport as he had promised his wife and #3011 passed onto Harry Rose who recorded a class win on the Shelsley Walsh Hillclimb in 1935.

Maserati 8CM, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

Richard Seaman, who had introduced Whitney Straight to motor racing while at Cambridge, drove #3011 to a victory at Donington Park in 1936 shortly before it was acquired by White Mouse Racing for the Siamese Prince Birabongse Bhanutej Bhjanubandh Bira.

Bira had the car painted blue and kept #3011 until 1947 winning events at Brooklands in 1937 and 1939 and following the end of hostilities recorded two second place finishes in the Brighton Speed Trials in 1946 and 1947.

Maserati 8CM, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

Kenneth McAlpine of the construction empire bearing the same name became the next owner of #3011 and raced the now black car through 1948 wining the Weston Super Mare sprint on what appears to have been his final drive in the car.

In 1951 Leslie W. Boyce drove #3011, painted red, for a final appearance at the Brighton Speed Trials where he finished with 8th fastest time.

Maserati 8CM, HGPCA Test Day, Silverstone

#3011 remained in the UK, spending some time on display in the Doune Motor Museum.

In the 1980’s #3011 went to San Francisco where it was reunited with it’s original motor that had been swapped out by Harry Rose in 1935.

Maserati 8CM, Robert Newall, Goodwood Revival

Today #3011 is one of the 10, from the original 17, 8CM’s built known to remain.

#3011 is owned by Christopher Jaques and is seen with Robert Newall at the wheel during the 2012 Goodwood Revival where it was demonstrated with the Silver Arrow’s some of which it was designed to, unequally, compete against in 1934.

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White Mouse Mystery – Aston Martin Ulster #LM18

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Aston Martin Motors Ltd was formed in 1926 by the Charnwood family from the remnants of Bamford & Martin who had originally created the Aston Martin marque. The new company moved to Feltham on the outskirts of London and under the direction of A C Bertelli a new 1.5 litre / 91 cui single overhead cam motor was developed that would be the foundation stone of a great deal of track success.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

The new company moved to Feltham on the outskirts of London and under the direction of well known racing driver A C Bertelli a new 1.5 litre / 91 cui single overhead cam motor was developed that would be the foundation stone of a great deal of track success.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

From 1928 to 1936 Aston Martin built a series of 21 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui racing cars with light weight aluminium bodies on production based Mk II chassis for use by the works team with the chassis numbers LM1 trough 21, all bar one of of these cars still exist and are known by various different names according to when they were built.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

In 1931 AC Bertelli and Maurice Harvey shared a 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui Aston Martin at Le Mans and won their class driving #LM7, when the model was known as an International. Sammy Newsome and Henk Widengren repeated the feat in 1932 with the “Le Mans” model chassis #LM10 equaling the 5th place overall of Bertelli and Harvey, amazingly in 1933 Aston Martin’s Pat Driscroll and Clifton Penn – Hughes also finished a class winning 5th overall, all though this time the finished one spot behind a Riley in the 1.1 litre / 61.6 cui class.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Despite completing the same 188 laps as in 1933 the best Aston Martin, the now privately entered chassis #LM10 driven by Reggie Tounge and Maurice Faulkner could only finish tenth in 1934, behind four Riley’s, two of them from the smaller class, a smaller class winning MG K3 and two 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui Singers.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

After the debacle Bertelli, who was born in Italy but only lived their until he was four, ordered the works team cars to be painted red to change their luck.
At the Tourist Trophy run over the Ards closed road course outside Belfast Ulster the three red team cars; LM16 driven by Thomas Fotheringham-Parker, LM15 driven by Pat Driscoll and LM17 driven by Clifton Penn Hughes finised 3rd, 6th and 7th respectively and won the team prize after which the LM series subsequently took their name.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Today’s featured car LM18 was built for the 1935 season an was driven at Le Mans by Jim Elwes and Mortimer Morris-Goodall to a distant 12th place finish overall. Charles Martin and Charles Brackenbury in the sister LM 20 finished 3rd overall to reclaim the 1.5 litre / 91.5 cui class award for Aston Martin.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Four team cars appeared at the 1935 Tourist Trophy three of which finished 4th, 5th and 11th to again claim the team prize, Clifton Penn-Hughes drove LM18 to 5th 1 second behind Charles Brackenbury driving LM20.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Aston Martin switched it’s attention to racing new 2 litre models in 1936, with the works cars continuing to be given LM chassis numbers, Le Mans was cancelled due to nationwide workers strikes, but the new cars were raced elsewhere alongside privately entered 1 1/2 litre Ulsters.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Frenchman Victor Polledry had acquired LM18 by 1937 and continued to race it up until the out break of war in 1939, scoring a known best 3rd place overall, 1st in class, in the Bol d’Or run at Montlhéry outside Paris in June 1938.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Victor raced the car on at least one occasion after the ’39 – ’45 war recording a 15th place finish and class victory, driving solo, in the Paris 12 Hours run at Montlhéry in July 1950.

Aston Martin Ulster LM 18, Silverstone

Some of you may have noticed the white mouse painted on the front of LM18, when I saw it I, incorrectly, assumed it signified some in period connection with Prince Bira and his patron HRH Prince Chula of Siam who ran the White Mouse Stable. It turns out that HRH Prince Chula of Siam did buy a factory built replica 1 1/2 litre Aston Martin Ulster, chassis #G5/588/U, for Prince Bira to race in the 1935 RAC TT where he retired with a broken oil pipe.

Thanks to Tim Murray, Roy C and Alan Cox at The Nostalgia Forum it transpires that the reason that LM 18 carries The White Mouse is most likely because LM 18 now owned by Nick Mason’s family has occasionally been teamed up with the original #G5/588/U owned and raced by Hubert Fabri for relay races at vintage meetings.

My thanks to Tim, Roy and Alan for their help in solving the White Mouse Mystery.

Thanks for joining me on this “White Mouse Mystery” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again for a look at another Aston Martin tomorrow. Don’t forget to look back now !

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