Racing Past Fabulous Fifties
17. 1938 BWA
The BWA racing car was built in 1938 by Gib Barrett, John White, and Alan Ashton. Its chassis was constructed by Curry and Richards Pty Ltd, initially powered by a 1½L Meadows engine from a Fraser Nash. Featuring Lancia components, it was modified in 1946 and later redesigned as a monoposto in 1949. The car has raced at Bathurst (1951), Fishermen’s Bend (1954), and the 1953 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park. It changed hands multiple times, undergoing a partial restoration before Ron Townley acquired it in the 1980s, fitting a Lea Francis engine. Restored by David Lowe to 1949 specifications, it returned to racing in 1997 and remains active in historic motorsport. The BWA has been featured in various motorsport publications including John Blanden's 'Historic Racing Cars in Australia' and Australian Grand Prix by R&T Publishing.
Photo: 1953 AGP behind Stan Jones in the Maybach
57. 1960 Ferrari Testa Rossa (r)
The Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa, or 250 TR, is a sports racing car built by Ferrari from 1957 to 1961. It was introduced at the end of the 1957 racing season in response to rule changes of 3 litres for the 24 Hours of Le Mans and World Sports Car Championship races. The 250 TR was closely related to earlier Ferrari sports cars, sharing many key components with other 250 models and the 500 TR.
This particular vehicle started its life new as a 250GTE 2+2 delivered in LHD to Italy to its first owner, it was rebuilt to TR spec by Giovanni Giordanengo from Cuneo Italy. The body was entirely made from aluminium. The car found its way to the USA where it was owned by Carter Emerson from Chicago, whilst in the USA the car was further improved by Ferraris specialist Greg Jones from Stuart Florida. Every detail of this vehicle is exact as per the original vehicle.
6. 1955 D Type Jaguar (r)
Jaguars dominated the LeMans 24 hours in the 1950s securing an amazing five victories. The space age looking D Type won three years in succession (1955-57) after finishing a close second in 1954. This car is a replica based on the highly developed long nose Factory car from 1955. Running triple webers on the legendary Jaguar XK engine this lightweight 300hp icon still draws attention 70 years after its aerodynamic body first hit the track. Voted one of the 6 greatest racing cars of all time by Motorsport magazine. A car deserving of the status of legend!
DETAILS
Car Number 6
Engine 3400cc Jaguar
Driver Aaron Lewis
25. 1950 Jaguar XK120
This 1950 Jaguar XK120 was originally delivered in Melbourne to Bib Stillwell for the princely sum of one thousand five hundred and eighty six pounds (Australian).
This early XK 120 was campaigned early on in its life and its first outing was at Rob Roy in Victoria on January 29th 1951 where it beat three other XK120s and set a new class record. Not bad for a new car just months old.
20. 1957 Austin Healey 100/6
Built by Eric Rudd of Butler & Rudd and Developed by Peter Hopwood (1983 Australian Sports Car Champion) for the International Austin Healey Race at the 1998 FIA Bathurst 1000. International entries included Dennis Welch, who on the back of a dominant 53 straight wins in Europe, was the man to beat.
Over the weekend Peter Hopwood was able to get to grips with the newly built Healey, culminating in a final lap rush, passing Dennis Welch on the inside over Skyline and setting a Bathurst lap record but unfortunately, he was not able to hold onto the lead when he spun on oil left at the final corner. A valiant effort given that Peter was suffering from terminal cancer, and was in considerable pain whilst driving. Peter would pass away just 13 months later. Since then the car has been loved and developed over the years and raced regularly in historic racing events.
DETAILS
Car Number 20
Driver Glen Scott
56. 1956 Porsche 356A
Originally delivered to Hamiltons in South Yarra, and one of only four with a sunroof, this car was nicknamed "Red Sonja" in her early days, being a race car for many years with a ruby red colour scheme. Years later she put on some road tyres and was driven on weekends, and even as a daily car by previous owners. She was painted yellow, then blue and then black in the early 90's (which she currently is). Red Sonja was now simply, "Sonja."
In the early 90's Sonja was given a complete overhaul turning her back into a race car. She ran in four Dutton rallies (coming 1st in its class twice), two Targa Tasmania's and one Classic Adelaide to name a few of her many races. Sonja has been loved by our family, being kept in top notch nick, but retaining original patina, sticky Hoosier tyres and upgrades to the engine, brakes and suspension.
51. 1935 Sulman Singer
The Sulman Singer was built in England in 1935 by expat Australian Tom Sulman using an ex-factory Singer Le Mans motor. Sulman competed extensively in the UK (and once in Holland) mainly in speedway but also in many hillclimb events. After the war Tom returned to Australia and competed regularly in the car throughout NSW and Victoria including the 1947 Australian Grand Prix at Bathurst, where he placed 5th and the 1948 AGP at Point Cook, outside Melbourne, where he retired due to overheating. The car passed through several hands and was eventually purchased by Ron Reid in 1965. Ron raced the Sulman Singer extensively in both contemporary and historic racing events all along the eastern seaboard for decades, always with his trademark scarf flying behind him. Ron passed in 1999, the car remains in the family, and the scarf attached to the roll bar is a fitting tribute.
Driver Bill Reid
Car Number 51
86. 1957 Bowring Austin 7 Special
This car was built by John Bowring in 1957 from a 1937 Austin 7 Ruby to compete in the then Austin 7 racing class. The car competed extensively at Phillip Island, Templestowe Hill Climb and other circuits where it held many lap records. It also raced at the 1958 Melbourne Grand Prix at Albert Park. In 1988 it was purchased by an expat Australian living in Hong Kong and competed in Pasir Gudang Johore Malaysia in 1959, the Macau Grand Prix in 1990/1992/1993 and other events. The car was then brought back to Australia by John Bowring’s son Craig in 2012 and it ran in the AGP Historic Demonstration in 2013.
The car spent many years in the Warrnambool Motor Museum before being purchased by the current owner and recommissioned for competition. Driven by Sean Batagol the 16year-old grandson, who is enjoying his time in the car as his experience grows.
Driver Sean Batagol
39. 1949 MGTC Special
This car was built from a standard MGTC by Tony Ohlmeyer of SA for David Harvey to drive at the Nuriootpa AGP in 1950. Harvey came second in the AGP at a time when MGs dominated the racing grids in Australia. Ohlmeyer eventually built 7 short-chassis, light MG race cars. In 1953 Jack O’Dea as number 39, ran at the first Albert Park AGP in 1953. Jack Brabham acquired the car from O’Dea and in 1954 also raced with his Cooper Bristol at the same meetings. Then it passed to Harry Gapps, Jack’s friend, then to Jack Johnson and Ray Lewis at the end of its “first life”.
John Gillett and his friend Geoff Gaskell re-commissioned the car it has been campaigned widely since. As one of the few race car survivors from the first Albert Park AGP, it is wonderful to see the car at Albert Park in 2025, more than 70 years since that first race.
Photo: Albert Park AGP 1953
17. 1959 Cooper Climax T51
This car, chassis F2/14/59, was purchased new from the Cooper factory in 1959 by Australian racer David McKay on behalf of Victa Industries. After only two races it was sold to Bib Stillwell and, initially fitted with a 2.2 litre motor, became his main car for the 1960 Gold Star Championship.
In October 1960, Bib Stillwell purchased another Cooper - chassis# F2/7/59 from Sir Jack Brabham which was said to be the car he had used in the Grand Prix of Monaco 1959. The motor, suspension and wheels were transferred from this car to F2/14/59 and in it’s 2.5 litre form raced by Stillwell with significant success around Australia. The car raced at feature events such as the Gold Star events collecting victories and podium finishes regularly. The car has subsequently competed in the UK and Europe, including 2006 Monaco Historic and the 2006 Grand Prix at Pau.
3. 1958 Porsche 356
This 356 Speedster was originally delivered new to Melbourne Australia in 1958. Originally painted Ruby Red it was acquired in 1963 by Bill Flatman of Ballarat. Flatman repainted it blue and raced it for many years at Victorian Hill Climb events, culminating in a class victory at the Australian Hillclimb Championships at Templestowe in 1966.
Around 10 years later it was found in a chicken shed in Sandringham Victoria, then purchased by an Adelaide panel beater who undertook a slow 16-year restoration, painting it white. In the mid 1990’s the Speedster found itself at Dutton Garage in Melbourne from where it was purchased by the current owner who repainted it black and has owned it for 30 years using it for many car events such as concours, road rallies and track events such as the Australian Grand Prix.
17. Double 8 Special (r)
Originally conceived by renowned Adelaide engineer, Eldred Norman, the Double 8 consisted of a war-surplus Dodge weapons carrier chassis and two 110hp flathead Mercury V8s, making 220hp in tandem. An awesome creation, it saw action at hillclimbs, circuits and on Sellicks Beach. The car was entered in multiple Grands Prix - AGP Nuriootpa 1950, AGP Narrogin 1951 and the Malaysian GP in 1953 - this fearsome machine was ultimately scrapped unfortunately. That is until can-do Victorian inventor, Darren Visser, after seeing a period photograph, set about making - during Covid - a brilliant Double 8 recreation to present in full glory at the 2025 AGP.
Car Number 17
2 x Mercury 3900cc sidevalve V8s
Driver Darren Visser
23. 1959 Dalro
The Dalro special debuted on the Australian racing scene in late 1959, built by Alwyn Rose and Les Wiggett. Featuring a chrome-moly space frame reminiscent of the front-engined F1 Aston Martins of the era, the car was powered by a Jaguar XK120 engine, running on methanol or Shell TT fuel.
Alwyn first raced the Dalro at the 1959 Orange South Pacific Road Racing Championship, followed by the Bathurst 100, where he finished 5th outright and was the first frontengined car. He repeated this feat in the 1960 Bathurst race, finishing 6th overall. The car also competed in the 1962 Bathurst events, setting the fastest lap before a DNF in one race and finishing 5th in another.
In 1959, the Dalro featured in *On the Beach*, with Alwyn driving it for in-car footage used to simulate the Ferrari’s cockpit view. The Dalro has remained in active racing since 1958.
1. 1956 Maserati 150S/250S
This Italian works racing car with Fantuzzi body was sold new to Mille Miglia Motors in California to Chick Leson, who raced the car extensively at premier US events in the 1950s. The original engine and body still accompanied the car. The car was fully restored by Rick Hall in the 1980s, and the engine produces 220hp and has a top speed of 255km/h. In the early 2000s this historic sports race car was bought and raced by well-known US collector and telecommunications billionaire Bruce McCaw from Seattle.
In 2005 historic touring car racer Andrew Cannon bought the car housing it in Seattle at VRM and racing it extensively throughout America and Canada. Recently the car was imported into Australia and notably was used as the parade car for Sir Jack Brabham at Phillip Island for his lap of honour in 2014.
20a. 1955 C-type Jaguar (r)
This car is a faithful reproduction of Peter Whitehead’s personal C Type Jaguar XKC 039, which raced in Australia and NZ in 1956/7. Jaguar won the 1951 & 1953 Le Mans 24-hour in the C type Jaguar as a specialised competition model following their successful launch of the XK 120. A light fully triangulated spaceframe chassis was revolutionary.
The full aluminium body was shaped by the artisan Ray Finch in Adelaide from a wooden buck made directly from XKC 039. The timber-clad steering wheel was an exact copy from Duncan Hamilton’s C Type when his 1953 Le Mans winning car was visiting Adelaide – Ray Finch traced it by hand! The XK engine is 3.8 litres capacity, sandcast SU 2” carburettors and develops 200 bhp. Originality has been fastidiously maintained with original steering, torque arm suspension front and rear, and Panhard rod. The aluminium bonnet was restored from a car which crashed at Goodwood.
29a. 1948 Austin A40 Special
In 1948, Ken Wylie was commissioned by Melbourne Austin agents, Weir & Male Motors, to design and build an openwheeler racing car based on Austin A40 components. The Austin 1.2 litre four-cylinder engine was modified with special attention to the cylinder head, otherwise standard specification but for substituting a single Zenith carburettor for a pair of Amal units.
Wylie then made important performance modifications to the Austin engine, including a modified crankshaft and tubular duralumin pushrods, but most significantly the installation of a Marshall Rootes-type supercharger. This was driven by a chain to the front of the crankshaft and mounted in the nose, ahead of the radiator. In supercharged form, Wylie raced the Special for a further two years before it passed to Don McDonald – who competed in the 1953 Australian Grand Prix at the original Albert Park.
DETAILS
Car Number
Driver Barrie Young
11. 1959/69 Elfin Streamliner
The Elfin Streamliner, chassis #7, was ordered by Peter Manton of Monaro Motors Melbourne in September 1960 and became known as the Monaro MG. Built by Garrie Cooper, the car featured MGA Twin Cam components supplied by Manton, including wishbone suspension, wheels, and gearbox. It was powered by an MGA 1600 pushrod engine fitted with a K200 supercharger.
Manton debuted the Streamliner at the February 1961 international meeting in Ballarat, finishing 3rd in the Australian Gold Star race, just ahead of Gavin Youl’s Porsche 356. In August, he set a new record at the Rob Roy Hillclimb with a 27.96-second run. The car passed through several owners and was raced extensively by Rod Murphy, Tony Smeaton, Alex Jenkins, Steve Pike, and Max Freeland, who restored it in Tasmania in 1983. Since June 2022, Matt Scott has owned the car and returned it to the track.
151. 1955 Cooper Porsche
The Cooper Porsche was built in 1959 by Laurie Whitehead of Melbourne, using a Len Lukey chassis and a body modeled after the T43 Cooper, similar to the well-known Faux Pas, also here this weekend. Whitehead fitted the car with a 4cylinder, quad-cam Porsche Carrera engine, making it a unique blend of British chassis engineering and German performance. The brakes, gearbox, and other running gear were sourced from Porsche and Volkswagen, ensuring a wellbalanced and competitive setup.
The car made its debut at the Rob Roy Hillclimb in mid-1959 before its first major race at Phillip Island in January 1960, where it showed great promise, finishing 5th. Sadly the very complicated Porsche motor proved too much for Whitehead and the motor was apparently sold back overseas and the chassis moved on to Warren Grace who installed a Peugeot motor. The chassis was then acquired by Warren Grace, who installed a Peugeot engine. It remained in this form for years until Greg Mackie restored it with a Porsche 356 engine the version seen competing today.
41. 1947 So-Cal Special
Built in 1947 by George Reed, the legendary So-Cal Ford V8 Special has been a staple of Australian motorsport for over 75 years. Featuring a shortened Ford chassis, Mercury V8 engine, Wilson pre-selector gearbox, Edelbrock heads, and a triple manifold setup, this meticulously developed racer was finetuned with input from SoCal Speed Shop’s Alex Xydias. So-Cal competed in the 1952 and 1958 Australian Grands Prix at Mount Panorama, Bathurst. Raced continuously since its creation, it has been driven by some of Australia’s finest, including Frank Walters, who won the 1954 Racing Car Championship at Mt Druitt in it. Today, Louise Raper continues So-Cal’s legacy, competing in Historic events, Regularity trials, and Hill Climbs.
Driver Louise Raper
15. 1959 Gemini Mk2
Built in London by the Chequered Flag Garage in 1959, the Gemini Mk2 emerged at the end of the front-engine race car era. Only 28 were made, and this is the only known example in Australia. Its first recorded owner was Owen Turney (Buckingham, England) before Graeme Steinfort (Melbourne) purchased it in 1974 for £700 and brought it to Australia. It later passed to Tony Caldersmith and Roger Ealand before current owner Max Pegram, who continues to race it at historic events.
The car has competed at prestigious circuits, including Spa Francorchamps and the Goodwood Revival in 2009. In 2017, Max raced it across Australia and New Zealand in the International Formula Junior Meeting. With a high-revving 1100cc Ford Cosworth engine, twin Weber carburettors, and a distinctive body reminiscent of the Maserati 250F, it remains one of the prettiest and most celebrated cars on the track.
46. 1952 Cooper Irving
Lex Davison was the 3rd owner of this MKV Cooper & in the mid 50’s he commissioned Phil Irving to build a championship winning Hill climb car. Working to this brief, Irving, who was the designer of the HRD V twin engine, removed the 500cc JAP & replaced it with an 1100cc HRD Supercharged Black Lightning engine. The car was unbeatable with Lex at the helm and became more commonly known as the Cooper Irving.
DETAILS
29. 1958 Lola Mk1 prototype
The Lola Mk1 Prototype is the first sports racing car made by Lola, under the leadership and guidance of Eric Broadley, in 1958. The car was made with a steel tubular chassis, covered in a lowprofile, sleek, aluminium body. The 80 hp 1,098 cc Coventry Climax FWA four-cylinder engine was extremely compact. The car used a 4-speed manual transmission, and was lightweight, weighing in at a mere 812 lb (368 kg).
The Prototype was never painted when built as there was not time before its first race. It has raced since 1958 with the bare aluminium body. The Lola Mk1 was immediately competitive regularly beating the hitherto race winning Lotus Eleven. Customers beat a path to Lola and after the prototype 32 production cars were built. This car was the start of the many Lola successes in Formula One, Indy cars and Le Mans.
60. 1960 Elfin Streamliner
Career highlight is 10th place at the Australian Grand Prix in 1961. The winner was Lex Davison in a Cooper. This is one of 24 Streamliners built by Elfin Sports Cars in Adelaide. It has a tubular steel space frame with aluminium bodywork. By using mechanicals from common road cars is was a relatively affordable way to go motor racing. Being road registered, it could be driven to and from the track. It does not have much power but it only weighs 450 kg so performance is spritely. It has been restored back to its original specification after many years of racing modifications and repairs. It now looks like it did when first rolled out of the factory, including the original racing number 60.
DETAILS
Car Number 60
Engine 1172cc Ford sidevalve
Driver Paul Faulkner
16a. 1960 Cooper T53
This car was restored by Alf Francis in the mid-1970s and remained in Sutherland's collection until 1995 when it was sold to Terry Hefty (Lafayette, CO) who has raced it in historic events using a 2.5-litre Climax. This car carries a "F1/12/59" chassis plate with the first "1" appearing to be overstamped. It thus appears to be the second Centro-Sud T53 using the identity of their T51 F2-12-59.
Raced by Hefty in historic racing, such as the 2011 Rolex Monterey Motorsports Reunion, until early 2019 when it was sold to David Smoker (Adelaide, South Australia) and transported to Australia where it competed in the Philip Island Classic and various Australian Grand Prix demonstrations.
DETAILS
96. 1951 Jaguar XK120
This Jaguar XK120 Roadster was dispatched from the U.K. factory on the 28th of May, 1951 to Brylaws Sydney and sold on 3rd August, 1951 to Mr. Albert William Montgomery. Registration ABH 778 (NSW). Car had at least 3 further owners until 1972 when it was garaged. The car was rediscovered with assistance in 2005 (Vic reg. HVE 274) and purchased on 18th January by Trevor Montgomery, a nephew of the original owner and now driven by the next generation Huw Montgomery.
41a. 1950 Allard J2
This all aluminium bodied sports car manufactured in England by Sydney Allard was the first Allard J2 in Australia, competing at Bathurst in October 1950. In November 1950 Stan Jones competed at Australian Hillclimb Championship coming 2nd in class. It also raced at Bathurst in 1951 and was then sold to Geelong’s Tom Hawkes in 1952. Hawkes competed successfully throughout Australia and New Zealand in both circuit racing and hillclimbs for the next five years and in 1953 the car was entered in the Australian Grand Prix. 1954 saw a first in class, and new record, at Rob Roy Hillclimb. The Allard J2 has competed successfully over the past twenty five years having been seen regularly at Winton, Sandown, Phillip Island and Geelong Revival, driven by its current owner, Graham Smith.
