Tag Archives: Tour

Rosso Kev – Ferrari 250 GTO #3527

Todays car is the 7th of the original batch of 33 Ferrari 250 GTO’s built in 1962 and quelle surprise it does not belong to the well known drummer of the rock combo Pink Floyd.

Chassis #3527 painted Russo Cina, a colour usually associated with FIAT, was purchased by Austrian Gottfried Koechert in May 1962 who entered it into the 1000 kms at the Nurburgring the same month for himself and Umberto Maglioli. The car retired from its first race with ignition failure and soon after was sold to Ecurie Francorchamps.

Belgian Lucien Bianchi drove the Ecurie Francorchamps #3527 on three occasions in 1962 nearly winning the Tour d’France until he collided with a milk truck necessitating the removal of the nose so that the car could finish the event in 7th place. Bianchi’s final appearance in the car was in the 1962 Angola GP which he won.

The car was then sold to Scuderia Filipinetti in Switzerland before finding it’s way shortly afterwards during 1963 into the hands of Swiss banker Armand Boller who drove the car to 6 class victories in hill climb events up to the end of 1964.

After withdrawing #3527 from the 1000 kms at Monza in 1965 Boller had the car converted into a road friendly spec with wind up windows, leather interior and VW rear lights by the Swiss Garber coach works.

#3527 was sold to building plant magnate Anthony Bamford in 1966 and was sold on in 1973 and again in 1984 to Steve Pilkington who had the Garber modifications removed.

Current owner international conference magnate Baron Laidlaw bought #3527 in 2005 and has recently had the car restored and painted in fetching Rosso Kev as seen here during last years Tour Britannia event as it passed through Castle Combe.

Thanks for joining me on this Rosso Kev edition of ‘Gettin a li’l psycho on tyres’ I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

PS Don’t forget …

Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz

December 26th – January 2nd

Win a set of Paul Chenard Greetings Cards

Set 1 Sports & GT Cars

Set 2 Phil Hill World Drivers Championship 50th Anniversary Edition

Set 3 1934 Season

Set 4 Grand Prix Engines of the 1950’s

Set 5 Mike Hawthorn’s Race Cars

The Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz will comprise 8 categories.

Overall winner chooses one set of Paul Chenard Greetings Cards from the five sets shown above.

The cards measure 15.24cm x 11.43cm, come in packs of 12 with 3 copies of 4 designs in each set, plus A6 envelopes.

Which set will you choose ?

The free to enter Automobiliart GALPOT Seasonal Quiz will run from December 26th – January 2nd Entries close January 8th 2012, Winner announced January 16th 2012.

Full details on December 26th at GALPOT.

Bertones Ferrari – Dino 308 GT 4

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The mid engine 2+2 Dino 308 GT 4 stands out in the history of Ferrari for being the only Ferrari that was designed by Bertone, and this possibly only after pressure from Ferrari’s parent company FIAT had been applied.

Launched with Dino badges in 1973 to differentiate it from its V12 siblings the Dino was the first Ferrari to be powered by a V8. The Dino badges disappeared from the model in 1976.

The chassis was developed from the Dino 246 stretched to provide a 100.4 inch wheel base to provide accommodation for 4 and the transversely mounted engine.

The Dino 308 GT4 seen above at Castle Combe was driven by Andrew McAlpine and Ali Procter to a 20th place finish and class 8 victory in this years Tour Britannia.

While 308’s are not an uncommon sight in club motorsports only one 308 GT4 was prepared for international racing, chassis #08020 was entered by the North American Racing Team at Le Mans in 1974 where Giancarlo Gagliardi and Jean Louise Lafosse retired with clutch failure and in 1975 Cagliardi and Harley Cluxton failed to qualify eventually causing Luigi Chinetti to withdraw his whole team from the event just 80 minutes before the start of the race.

Between 1973 and 1980 2,826 308 GT4’s were produced, there was also an Italian spec 2 litre / 122 cui 208 GT4 built to take advantage of tax regulations. At around £20,000 pounds for a roadworthy example the 308 GT4 is probably the cheapest way of becoming a Ferrari owner today, though maintaining one might prove expensive as the motor needs to be removed for many maintenance tasks and it is not mounted on a sub frame as on some of the later Ferrari V8 models.

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

The Super Hugger – AJ Rivers Simoniz Chevrolet Camaro Z28 Replica

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While I was whizzing up to Castle Combe in the teaming rain a couple of weeks ago, I went flying past a rumbling cloud of spray that turned out to be this Chevrolet Camaro like the one once owned by former saloon car driver and race team owner Richard Lloyd.

It turns out the wide tyres were having trouble cutting through the water lying on the motorway and the Chevy was aquaplaning at speeds far lower than those I was travelling at in my borrowed Kia Picante with skinny tyres.

This is an early second generation 1970 Camaro,

fitted with a 5700cc / 350 cui V8 rated at 360 hp as part of the

Z28 performance package, a peak in the story of muscle car performance which with the onset of the 1973 fuel crisis would never be matched in the remainder of the 20th century.

The Chevrolet Camaro Z28 had a successful career in British Saloon Car racing, Frank Gardner used one to win the 1973 British Saloon car championship outright.

For 1974 the British Saloon Car Championship was open to vehicles in a much lower state of tune known as Group 1 regulations and several Camaro’s and one Plymouth Barracuda fought for top class honours, some of the Chevy’s including one run by Richard Lloyd, if I remember correctly, ran with either a 7 litre / 427 cui or a 7.4 litre 451 cui motor.

Back in 1973 while Richard was still running his car with a 5.7 litre / 350 cui motor he was scheduled to run in an event called the Avon Tour of Britain, that went round the entire country taking in races at many of the best circuits, rally stages and even a drag strip.

Richard fell ill prior to the event so he drafted in his team mate from the Spa 24 hours, up and coming British Grand Prix driver, James Hunt into the Simoniz Camaro at the last minute, James promptly ended up walking away with the victors trophy.

The car seen here is a replica of Richard’s AJ Rivers entered car that was built up for the 2005 Tour Britannia a mini Avon Tour of Britain for mostly historic vehicles.

Richard and his former entrant Alan Rivers competed in the Tour Britania from 2005 – 2007, but in 2008 Richard lost his life in a tragic plane crash that claimed the lives of several other well known figures from British Motorsport.

In memory of his friend Alan Rivers used the car one last time in the 2008 Tour Britania, before it was acquired by Stuart Scott and Steve Wood.

Stuart and Steve have entered this vehicle in every Tour Britannia since,

clocking class wins in 2010 and 2011.

Stuart hopes to take the Camaro to the Historic Festival at Lime Rock CT in September.

Thanks for joining me onto day’s Z28 edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil psycho on tyres’, I hope you’ll join me again tomorrow when I’ll be going Dutch. Don’t forget to come back now !

Towards Standardisation – Ferrari 250 GT PF Cabriolet Series I #9811GT

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A couple of weeks ago I looked at a Ferrari 250 GT Pininfarina Cabriolet Series 2 which is on view at the Haynes International Motor Museum.

Today’s featured car, seen competing in the regularity competition on the recent Tour Britannia, is the earlier Series I model which is immediately distinguishable by it’s recessed headlights and headlight covers. Notice the chromed edge on the bonnet / hood air intake belies the fact that this in essence a production road car.

This particular Right Hand Drive (RHD), car was delivered painted Yellow to a customer in Johannesburg, South Africa in 1957.

Only 40 examples of this model were built including 4 prototypes of which only two or three appear to have been built to RHD specification. This particular chassis appears to be the 15th in the production run. These models were far from standardised in the traditional sense.

There were for example two distinct variations of the stylised tail lights fitted to the Series I 250 GT PF Cabriolets.

Early examples of this model were supplied with 2 rear quarter bumpers to match the pair of front nudge bars however later examples such as the one seen above were supplied with full width items.

Hong Kong businessman Sir Michael Kadoorie became the owner of this vehicle in 1998, he and co pilot Brian Lewis were not classified in the overall Tour Britannica results. Sir Michael counts among his collection of vehicles a Type 57 Bugatti, a 1932 Rolls Royce Phantom II Thrupp & Maberly and a 1934 Hispano-Suiza J12 Van Vooren Cabriolet.

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

Ian vs Danny – Tour Britannia Castle Combe

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Back in 1973 a multidisciplinary event was organised that brought together the world of racing and rallying called the Avon (tyres not cosmetics) Tour of Britain in which competitors took part in a wide range of production (safety modified only) vehicles in a wide range of race, rally and even drag events across the length and breadth of Great Britain.

On Saturday Tour Britannia a similarly organised event for historic, classic & modern vehicles based this year in Wales and South West England visited Castle Combe on Saturday morning, when the race track was used as a rally stage thanks to the addition of three temporary chicanes and in the afternoon as a more conventional race track.

Headlining the racing fraternity on the inaugural event in 1973 were former two time Grand Prix World Champion Graham Hill in a Datsun Bluebird, regular Grand Prix participant Howden Ganley in a Citroen XM, similar to the #29 US spec vehicle of Andrew Brodie and Robert Lowdell above

and future world champion in his rookie year making a big name for himself James Hunt in a Chevrolet Camaro belonging to the injured Richard Lloyd, similar to the vehicle of Stuart Scott and Steven Wood above which Richard Lloyd recreated in 2005 shortly before his untimely death. James in the Camaro was the winner of the inaugural event in 1973. Scott and Wood were awarded the Competitors Choice Concours award.

The following year the publicity generated by the event in 1973 galvanised Ford into preparing two Escort RS2000’s for British UK Rally Champion Roger Clark and Saloon Car Racing Champion Gerry Marshall that were inseparable for most of the races with Roger pipping Gerry to the post in the final standings. Though in far higher states of tune than the original 1974 Escorts the vehicles of Phil & Mick Squires left and David Smithes & Eric Woolley right provided an evocative reminder of the epic battle in 1974. Phil & Mick won their class in this years event.

The highlight of the two races held on Saturday was the drive of former British Formula 5000 champion Ian Ashley in his Caterham R500 from the back of the grid to the lead in just two laps, above the ever on form Ashley is seen lining up the leading Porsche 911 RSR before the completion of the second lap.

the #42 Porsche was driven by another name driver,

no less a name than former New York City cab driver, 1985 Indy 500 winner and 1988 Indycar Champion Daniel John ‘Danny’ Sullivan III from Louisville Kentucky ! Danny won his class in this years Tour Britannia which finished at Silverstone, yesterday afternoon.

My thanks to Simon Lewis who’s heavily discounted ticket allowed me to visit this event.

Hope you have enjoyed today’s Tour Britannia edition of ‘Gettin’ a lil’ psycho on tyres’ and that you will join me again tomorrow for a look at a classic Plymouth with a push button shift. Don’t forget to come back now !

Gettin' A Li'l Psycho On Tyres

Art Tidesco blogs on all things motoring