Octane 256 October 2024

EXCLUSIVE! FIRST RIDE IN AUTO UNION’S SECRET SUPERCAR

DRIVING

ASTON MARTIN’S

20B5ULMLDOPGH

FERRARI’S V8 GREATS MARANELLO’S GLORIOUS 308, F355 AND 360 TESTED WHAT TO PAY AND WHERE PRICES ARE HEADING ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO ALL FERRARI’S JUNIOR SUPERCARS

PLUS F1 Academy star Chloe Grant tests an Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar C-type

ISSUE 256, OCTOBER 2024 £5.99 / AUS $14.99

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Chichester, West Sussex | 7 September | Catalogue Online

ZOUTE SALE Knokke-Heist, Le Zoute | 6 October | Final Call For Entries

1 of 12 produced in right-hand drive, circa 325 miles from new 2021 ASTON MARTIN V12 SPEEDSTER £700,000 - 900,000 *

No. 01 of 77 models; only 528 km and a single owner from new 2011 ASTON MARTIN ONE-77 €800,000 - 1,200,000 * Without Reserve

Forthcoming auctions

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* For details of the charges payable in addition to the final hammer price, please visit bonhams.com/buyersguide

THE BEAULIEU SALE | 13 - 14 September 2024 +44 (0) 20 7468 5801 | ukcars@bonhamscars.com AUDRAIN CONCOURS AUCTION | 4 October 2024 +1 (212) 461 6514 | uscars@bonhamscars.com

Issue 256 October 2024

PAGE

Contents 70

‘A THREE-SEAT MIDENGINED FASTBACK BRED FROM THE AUTO UNION RACING CARS OF THE ERA’ AUTO UNION TYPE 52

90

124

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Contents Issue 256

56

108

Features

94

FERRARI V8 GREATS 56 Back to back, three generations of the junior supercar: 308, F355 and 360 Modena

AUTO UNION TYPE 52 70 Ferdinand Porsche’s secret three-seat super-GT – finally a reality after 90 years

ECURIE ECOSSE C-TYPE 82 Hot-shoe Chloe Grant cuts her historic racing teeth on the seminal Jaguar racer

AUDRAIN MUSEUM 90 Octane reports from within the Rhode Island collection – ahead of the Audrain Concours

BULLDOG AND THE PUPPIES 94 Legendary 205mph supercar with its William Towns-styled, wedge-shaped baby siblings

THE OCTANE INTERVIEW 108

82

Ben Cussons, racing driver and outgoing chairman of the Royal Automobile Club

RANGE ROVER VELAR 114 Ultra-rare and storied pre-production survivor, now factory restored

MIDDLE EAST MARKET 122 Is burgeoning classic car interest in Dubai good for buyers and sellers elsewhere?

ALFA 1900SS ZAGATO 124 How the legendary Italian coachbuilder made a hero of Alfa’s post-war family saloon

114 9

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Contents Issue 256

18

Regulars EVENTS & NEWS 18 The month in pictures; diary dates; International Historic Motoring Awards

COLUMNS 43 Erudite emissions from Jay Leno, Derek Bell, Stephen Bayley and Robert Coucher

LETTERS 51 Alfa Romeo’s unlikely boat engine

OCTANE CARS 136 BMW Z4 gets a DIY suspension rebuild

OVERDRIVE 144 The charity Hope Classic Rally in a DB6

GONE BUT NOT FORGOTTEN 148 The life of Marcos co-founder Jem Marsh

GEARBOX 150 Racer and commentator Steve Parrish

ICON 152 Vandamm House, an icon in celluloid

CHRONO 154 The original – collectable – apple watch

168

BOOKS 156 This month’s essential reading

GEAR 158 Pages packed with desirables

THE MARKET 168 Insider knowledge, auction news, market stats, cars for sale, buy a Jeep Cherokee

AUTOBIOGRAPHY 202 Aston Martin company historian Steve Waddingham

158

156

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RM 65-01 Skeletonised automatic winding calibre 60-hour power reserve (± 10%) Baseplate and bridges in grade 5 titanium Split-seconds chronograph Function selector and rapid winding mechanism Variable-geometry rotor Case in blue Quartz TPT®

A Racing Machine On The Wrist

Issue 256 October 2024

FEATURING

ALEX TAPLEY

JOHN BARKER ‘Enzo denied his first mid-engined V8 the Ferrari badge. Generally, I’m not a great fan of flat-plane crank V8s either but this trio of Ferraris shows that they can be characterful, super-smooth and properly thrilling; the sound of one keening to 9000rpm will stop you in your tracks as effectively as a V12.’

Ferrari’s V8 junior supercars: pages 56-68.

EDITOR’S WELCOME

Who are you calling junior?

SO MUCH WATER has passed under the bridge that people tend to forget how adept Ferrari was at building not only big-engined GTs, racing cars and battle-hardened supercars but also joyously driver-friendly, beautifully balanced junior supercars. To be honest, I have always struggled with that moniker but you really need something that bridges the linguistic gap between sports car and supercar as well as embodying those cars that combine the characteristics of both without quite being either. And these Ferraris really fit the bill.

The original Ferrari 308 could be launched to 60mph in 6.7sec and topped out at 157mph, so it was no slouch even by today’s standards, but at the same time a BMW 2002 Turbo could challenge it in the sprint. And the 308’s top speed, though it trounced traditional sports cars, fell well short of supercar status.

Yes, it looked like a supercar, but that term couldn’t apply in an era when front-engined GTs from the same stable and blunderbuss Aston Martins were topping 170mph, and Ferrari’s and Lamborghini’s out-and-out supercars were dipping well into the 5s for 0-60 and nudging 180mph. Porsche, as always, had equal or even better numbers, but from a car that somehow managed simultaneously not to fit into any of those categories and yet be absolutely right for all of them.

However ambivalent I am to the term junior supercar – and I am a long way from coming up with anything better – it encompasses a wonderful group genre that I have enormous

affection for. Their creation was a gamble, of course: they could have been Jacks of all trades and masters of none, but instead, thankfully, they offered the best of both worlds.

I find the early Ferraris in particular a sublime driving experience. I remember more than a decade ago driving a 308 on Welsh mountain roads, having not sampled one for ages, and being blown away by the ease with which it could be driven very quickly and exhilaratingly.

I’ve always had a similar soft spot for the unloved GT4, too: few other cars from the era tiptoe through corners so deftly.

The success of these pioneers thankfully inspired a long line of similarly capable V8 middies (if we ignore the more extreme F40type elements) that have continued to be Ferrari’s best-sellers for good reason. Not solely because they are more affordable, though I am sure that helps, but simply because they are more usable, more reliable and easier and cheaper to maintain.

There can be virtue in compromise.

JORDAN BUTTERS ‘Perhaps the highlight of shooting the Aston Martin Bulldog was witnessing a grown man screech his van to a halt alongside it on the road because he couldn’t believe he’d seen his favourite childhood Top Trumps car in real life. He was over the moon!’

See more than merely the extraordinary Bulldog on pages 94-106.

MATT HOWELL ‘Walking along the pretty Rhode Island high street you’d never guess what awaits inside the Audrain Museum. Go through the traditional doors and you’re welcomed with the most extraordinary and diverse collection. What a wonderful place.’

Matt’s photography appears on pages 90-93.

James Elliott, editor in chief

COVER IMAGE ALEX TAPLEY

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The Month in Pictures

Ignition E V EN T S + NE WS + OPINION

18

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Concours of Elegance Germany 22-27 July This inaugural event on the banks of Lake Tegernsee had a splendid turnout, with Best of Show honours being taken by a one-off 1939 Lancia Astura Pinin Farina Cabriolet and the Chairman’s Award being snapped up by a 1938 Bugatti Type 57C by Gangloff. Like its British sister event at Hampton Court Palace, the German show was presented by watch company A. Lange & Söhne and showcased 150 cars at Gut Kaltenbrunn. Hans Jörg Hubner, owner of the winning Lancia, said: ‘It was an exceptional experience for our first visit to the Bavarian Alps. Lake Tegernsee provided a stunning location and scenery and the audiences all week were great.’

Miriam Mayer / Tim Scott

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Ignition The Month in Pictures

CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP LEFT

Rally of the Giants 28 July

Hosted at impressive Stonor Park and hosted by the All American Auto Club, this huge annual gathering is reputed to be the largest rally of American cars outside the USA. Chris Tarling / Yellow Hound

Hagerty Festival of the Unexceptional 27 July

The tenth running of the event, held at Grimsthorpe Castle, attracted thousands of spectators and more than 2000 cars, though fewer than 100 were contenders.

Top honours went to an unrestored 1982 Toyota Hilux, with a 1988 Renault Clio as runner-up.

Hagerty

Dolomites Grand Tour 5-7 June

The Italian Dolomite rally boasted some incredible driving and places to visit, including Passo delle Erbe, Tre Croci, Giau, San Pellegrino, Sella, Gardena and Furcia, as well as Cortina D’Ampezzo, Lake Misurina and Lake Carezza.

Canossa Events

HSCC Legends of Brands Hatch Superprix 13-14 July

Benn Tilley’s Merlyn Mk20 was in a huge Formula Ford grid for the Ray Allen Trophy.

He came second in the first race (to Cam Jackson’s Winkelmann WDF2) and won the second.

Jeff Bloxham 20

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Ignition The Month in Pictures

Classic Nostalgia 20-21 July MG TC-driving Howard Harman and crowd-pleasing NASCAR tamer Lee Maddox took very different approaches to ascending Shelsley Walsh during the superb annual festival that also celebrated 40 years of Prodrive.

Chris Tarling / Yellow Hound

22

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GOODWOOD REVIVAL ELIGIBLE STOCK

FROM TOP LEFT

1963 Iso Grifo A3/C Bizzarrini 1962 Jaguar E-Type “EGal” 1962 Jaguar E-type Coupe 1962 Ecurie Ecosse Tojeiro Buick 1962 Shelby 260 Cobra “Junkyard Dog”

FROM TOP RIGHT

1954 HWM-Jaguar (Entered) 1952 Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar C-Type 1962 Jaguar E-Type “CUT 8”

14 Queens Gate Place Mews London SW7 5BQ T:+44 (0)20 7584 3503 E:cars@fiskens.com W:www.fiskens.com

Ignition The Month in Pictures

FROM TOP

Goodwood Festival of Speed 11-14 July

The usual incredible array of vehicles took to the Duke of Richmond’s driveway, but the star of the show for many was US racing legend Richard ‘The King’ Petty. MG, celebrating its centenary, featured on Gerry Judah’s sculpture outside Goodwood House, while other big-name drivers included Red Bull’s Sergio Pérez and Max Verstappen, plus former team drivers David Coulthard, Christian Klien, Daniel Ricciardo and Mark Webber. The Cartier Style et Luxe was won by a 1937 Bugatti Type 57S Corsica.

PA Media

Dragstalgia 5-7 July

Santa Pod’s vintage weekend attracted some great machines including Ray Turner’s Green Onions in the Gasser Circus class.

Martin Hill demo’d the awesome FireForce 2 jet car.

Chris Tarling / Yellow Hound

24

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ACCEPTING CONSIGNMENTS

1936 Delahaye 135 S Compétition Estimate: £1,000,000 – £1,500,000 GBP Ex-Rob Walker and Prince Bira Works Delahaye 135 S car boasting Le Mans history

LONDON | 2 NOVEMBER 2024

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Ignition The Month in Pictures

CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP

Summer Trial 19-21 July

Colin Newbold and Tony Brooks (Lotus Elan +2) during HERO-ERA’s 2½-day trial for pre-1990 cars, operating from a base at Chester. More than 80 cars were kept busy, with father-andson Dick and Harry Baines winning in their Mini Cooper S. Ben Lawrence

Ludlow Tour 21 July

Passing by the well-known topiary hedge at Brampton Bryan during the Vintage Minor Register’s Pre-War Ludlow Tour is Tom Bourne’s 1931 Morris Minor two-seater.

Peter McFadyen

Noosa Concours 13 July

Best of Show at the second running of the event on Australia’s Sunshine Coast was the ex-Mullin Automotive Museum 1938 Bugatti Type 57C Aravis Special Cabriolet.

Iain Curry

26

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1976 McLaren M23 Price Available Upon Request

1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster Offered At: €1,595,000

1963 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster Offered At: £1,200,000

1960 Maserati 3500 GT Convertible Offered At: €795,000

2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Offered At: €339,000

1967 Porsche 911 S Coupe Offered At: £175,000

1973 Alfa Romeo 1600 Junior Zagato Offered At: €95,000

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Ignition The Month in Pictures

CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP

The Aurora 5-7 July

Scandinavia’s first international concours d’elegance took place on the Swedish Riviera and had nine classes, 350 cars and 10,000 visitors. There were two Bests of Show: a 2012 Bugatti Veyron Grand Sport ‘Wei Long’ (Best Hypercar) and a 1955 Lancia Florida coupé (Top Classic). Next year’s event will be held over 27-29 June.

The Aurora

Lydden Legend Festival 20-21 July

The home of rallycross (it started at Lydden Hill in 1967) honoured the sport’s glory years in style.

Michael Holden

Yorkshire Elegance 16-18 July

Now taking place at Grantley Hall, north of Harrogate, this is the festival that celebrates motoring and everything Yorkshire. The concours had 44 entries, from which a 1950 Ferrari 166MM Le Mans was Best in Show in a poll of owners.

Martyn Goddard

Donington Masters 3-4 August

Six Masters Historic Racing grids ranged from a 23-car group for the GT Trophy (pictured) to 11 for historic F1. Others were Gentlemen Drivers, Sports Car Legends, Pre-66 Touring Cars and Endurance Legends.

Jeff Bloxham 28

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1988 Rouse Ford Sierra RS500 Cosworth Group ‘A’ GUIDE PRICE £240,000 - £280,000

8th - 10th November 2024

THE ICONIC SALE AT THE NEC CLASSIC MOTOR SHOW Classic Cars, Collectors’ Cars, Motorcycles, Automobilia & Watches

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Ignition Events

Dates for your diary around Angoulême, the walled hilltop town in western France.

circuitdesremparts.com

13-15 September Cobble Beach Concours d’Elegance & Motoring Festival Held at Cobble Beach golf course in Ontario, Canada, and including a class for classic station wagons.

cobblebeachconcours.com

13-15 September Padre-Figlio A rally specifically for father-andson crews in Ferraris, and run on some of the best roads in the South of France.

happyfewracing.com

14 September Stanway Classic Car Show

VSCC Prescott Long Course Hillclimb, 28 September | Image: VSCC

28-31 August Salon Privé Blenheim Palace is again the venue for one of the UK’s premier concours. We’re looking forward to the ‘Legendary Liveries’ class.

salonpriveconcours.com

30 August – 1 September The Concours of Elegance Sixty of the world’s finest cars gather at Hampton Court Palace to contest the main concours, which will again be supported by the ladies-only Levitt Concours.

concoursofelegance.co.uk

30 August – 1 September Classic-Gala Schwetzingen Special displays at this concours in Schwetzingen, Germany, will include a tribute to Chrysler.

concours-delegance.de

30 August – 1 September Dix Mille Tours Circuit Paul Ricard hosts a race meet featuring all nine of the series organised by Peter Auto.

in Connecticut is followed by a concours and the Gathering of the Marques, which sees cars arranged around the circuit.

limerock.com

31 August

stanwayfountain.co.uk

There’s a special class for British motorcycles at this concours in Malvern, Pennsylvania.

14-15 September

radnorconcours.org

7 September

Held at the British Motor Museum, and celebrating the 90th birthday of the Ulster.

Rally for the Ages

britishmotormuseum.co.uk

1 September Brooklands American Day

A beginner-friendly regularity rally based at Bicester Heritage, and free to enter for crews with a combined age under 70.

hero-era.com

Beaulieu Autojumble The enormous sale of motoring bits and bobs returns.

beaulieu.co.uk

19-22 September Gran Premio Nuvolari The rally held in memory of Tazio Nuvolari starts and finishes in his hometown, Mantua.

gpnuvolari.it

Brooklands welcomes all sorts of US-made vehicles.

9-14 September Colorado Grand

20-22 September

brooklandsmuseum.com

Père-Fils

6-8 September

Pre-’61 cars set out from Vail for a 1000-mile blast through the stunning Rocky Mountains.

Caramulo Motorfestival

co1000.com

There’s hillclimbing action every day of the festival, plus displays of cars and an automobilia fair.

12-15 September

caramulo-motorfestival.com

6-8 September Goodwood Revival

Lime Rock Historic Festival The racing at Lime Rock Park

goodwood.com

30 August – 2 September

Radnor Hunt Concours

Aston Martin Heritage Festival

John Surtees will be remembered this year, the organisers bringing together cars and bikes from the series in which he raced during his uniquely distinguished career.

peterauto.fr

6-8 September

Classic cars are displayed at beautiful Stanway House in the Cotswolds. Entry to the afternoon show is just a fiver.

Like Padre-Figlio this rally is for fathers and sons, but it’s open to all marques.

happyfewracing.com

Chantilly Arts & Elegance Richard Mille

20 September – 14 October

This swish show at the Château de Chantilly (about an hour north of Paris) is open to the public on the Sunday only.

Austria to Turkey and back again following a trading route that dates from the 1500s and the time of Suleiman the Magnificent.

chantillyartsetelegance.com

bespokerallies.com

13-15 September

22-27 September

Circuit des Remparts

The Derek Bell Tour Octane’s own Derek Bell leads

Vintage and classic cars slide

Sultan’s Trail

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a drive around the northwestern parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

v-events.co.uk

23 September – 5 October Sahara Challenge A 2640-mile journey from Spain to Morocco, over the Atlas Mountains and into the awe-inspiring Sahara Desert.

hero-era.com

24-27 September Amsterdam to Paris Organised to mark the 125th anniversary of the 1898 ParisAmsterdam-Paris road race, and open to cars built before 1951.

classicevents.nl

25-29 September International St Moritz Automobile Week The superb Bernina Gran Turismo hillclimb and the Kilomètre Lancé sprint are taking a break this year as the organisers work towards a special anniversary celebration in 2025, but Automobile Week will still feature a tour and ‘Super Stick Shift’, a rally for supercars built between 1974 and 1995.

i-s-a-w.com

25-29 September Spa 6 Hours The endurance race that gives this meeting its name is scheduled for the Saturday.

spasixhours.com

27-29 September Founders’ Run

28 September VSCC Prescott Long Course Hillclimb The 2024 VSCC Speed Championship reaches a thrilling climax at Prescott.

vscc.co.uk

28 September Rustival 2 Following the success of the first Rustival, held this past spring, the friendly show returns to the British Motor Museum. As before, ‘If it has got wheels it is welcome!’

britishmotormuseum.co.uk

28 September Oktoberfest Assembly German cars arrive at Bicester Heritage en masse. To book tickets you’ll need to become a paid-up member of Bicester Heritage’s ‘Scramblers’ club.

BOOK NOW! Some of these events may seem a long way off, but you’ll need to secure your place now if you want to take part

bicesterheritage.co.uk

28-29 September Rallyday XL Rally cars and stars take over Castle Combe circuit in Wiltshire.

castlecombecircuit.co.uk

29 September – 13 October Austria to Athens Challenge Entrants will experience seven countries on the journey from Ennstal in Austria to the seaside town of Vouliagmeni in Greece.

rallytheglobe.com

1-6 October ICONS Mallorca

Pre-war cars and ’bikes motor through Portugal from Figueira da Foz to Lisbon.

A week of car events on sunny Mallorca, including a concours d’elegance, three rallies, and a gathering of classic beach cars.

fundadores.pt

iconsmallorca.com

Rallye de Grèce 26 October – 1 November A week of sublime driving in Crete, with stunning scenery and incredible sea views. The rally is open to post-1950 cars with a special GT Rally class for modern sports cars. rallystory.com

The Cape 1000 16-20 March 2025 Dubbed South Africa’s most beautiful drive, this 65-car event could have closed its books some time back, but the organisers have held some places back specifically for international entries. The rally covers 1000 miles over four days and five nights of luxury. It starts in Cape Town and takes in Killarney circuit, Bain’s Kloof Pass, Boland Winelands and a host of other attractions all visited via carefully selected, stunning driving roads. cape1000.com

Flying Scotsman 4-6 April 2025 The next running of the popular Scottish event will actually start south of the border. Strictly for vintage cars, it kicks off with the Yorkshire Moors, chasing the Pennines into Northumberland and having the first overnight stop in Newcastle. Day 2 heads into Edinburgh and the grand finale is at the world-famous Gleneagles Hotel. hero-era.com

Carrera Andalucía 22 June – 3 July 2025 Rally the Globe returns to the roads of Spain for the sixth of its Carrera-style adventures. Although two previous runs have been in Spain, this one will explore entirely new territory. It starts and finishes in Málaga with overnight stays in Granada, Carmona and Córdoba. rallytheglobe.com Sahara Challenge, 23 September – 5 October | Image: Will Broadhead

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Fuelling the passion

Fuelling the passion

sion Fuelling the pas

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Ignition News

Nominations open for 2024 historic awards We want your suggestions for a raft of prestigious classic car accolades

NOMINATIONS FOR THE 2024 International Historic Motoring Awards are open! You can head across to the revamped website right now at historicmotoringawards. co.uk and make sure your favourites (or you!) are considered for a huge range of categories covering the entire classic car world.

The much-coveted International Historic Motoring Awards are the most prestigious accolades in the classic car hobby and industry globally and, since they were started in 2011, have become a benchmark for quality. For 2024 the awards’ presenting partner is Lockton, the world’s largest independent insurance brokerage.

The process is simple: anyone can nominate for the categories (see right), from which a jury will create a shortlist that will then be considered and adjudicated upon by a panel of well-known judges handpicked for their expertise in those areas.

Two awards, however, are not decided by the IHMA judges. Car of the Year, of which details will be announced very soon, is decided by a public vote and honours the car that has had the single biggest impact in the past year, whether it has only recently emerged, been restored or otherwise come to prominence. Last year, you voted in your thousands and the winner was American architect Jonathan Segal’s 1954 Maserati A6G/54 Zagato. The Maserati, which had won its class, taken the Strother McMinn Trophy and made the final three at Pebble Beach in 2021, then pipped nine other astonishing cars, ranging from the London Concours-winning 1991 Schuppan 962R to the charmingly original, unrestored and much-used 1964 AC Cobra ‘Dirtbag’.

Also shortlisted, and of particular interest in this issue of Octane, was the Aston Martin Bulldog, on that occasion specifically for bettering the 200mph it was designed to achieve, with works racer Darren Turner at the wheel. The Bulldog has the rare

distinction (only one other car can claim such an honour) of making the top ten contenders twice, having also featured in 2021 after it burst onto the scene following its incredible restoration by CMC. The other big award not ruled on by the expert jury is for Lifetime Achievement, which celebrates someone (or something) that has made an invaluable contribution to the classic car world over a significant period of time. Illustrating the breadth and importance of the honour, past winners have been Sir Stirling Moss, Lord Montagu, Murray Walker, Willy Cave, Dan Gurney, Bonneville Salt Flats, Leonardo Fioravanti, Tony Dron, Robert Brooks, Lady Susie Moss, Bill Warner, Evert Louwman and Peter and Merle Mullin.

Last year was especially poignant because the avid collector and champion of pre-war French styling Peter Mullin had sadly passed away two months before the event, though his wife and co-collector Merle was there to collect their joint honour under the watchful eye of HRH Prince Michael of Kent.

All the 2024 winners will be revealed at a glittering star-studded event in London, hosted by broadcaster Amanda Stretton. This year the awards have a new venue reflecting their status, the gleaming new Peninsula London by Hyde Park Corner, and will take place on 22 November. Around 400 guests will be at the event and tickets including a fabulous dinner and drinks can also be booked at the website. A table for ten costs £2600; single tickets are £280 apiece.

Geoff Love, who founded the awards in 2011 and reacquired them late last year along with the purchase of Octane, said: ‘Don’t miss your opportunity to make sure that either you or your favourites in the 13 judged categories are considered for this unique level of recognition in the classic and performance car world. Just imagine hearing your – or their – name read out as a winner on the biggest night in the classic calendar. Nominate away!’

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Nominations are invited for the following categories Young Achiever Bespoke Car of the Year Club of the Year Industry Supporter of the Year Motorsport Event of the Year Motoring Event of the Year Breakthrough Event of the Year Specialist of the Year Achievement of the Year Innovation of the Year Museum/Collection of the Year Media of the Year Restoration of the Year Visit historicmotoringawards.co.uk

Clockwise, from top left Merle Mullin; a previous event at the St Pancras Renaissance; charity auction hosted by Charles Hanson; when Bonneville Salt Flats won Lifetime Achievement Award; Amanda Stretton at work; Sir Stirling and Lady Susie Moss with then-host Steve Rider.

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Ignition News

Charity track day tops £1m THE ANNUAL Veloce charity track day at Goodwood was festooned with star drivers and cars – including Derek Bell, Damon Hill, Richard Attwood and Rowan Atkinson – and took the total raised since 2017 to over £1m. The concept is that superstar drivers treat paying customers to three laps of the circuit in priceless cars, each passenger getting at least three rides in different cars with different drivers, as well as being well-fed and watered. Their fees go straight to charity, the principal beneficiaries being Hope for Tomorrow and Halow Project.

The event is masterminded by Peter Neumark and V Management’s Chris Bucknall and this year there were 80 guests and 24 cars, ranging from pre-war Alfa Monza and Bentley to Jaguar C-type and XKSS or Ford GT40 MkIII and BMW 3.0 CSL. Afterwards, Neumark commented: ‘l am immensely proud of what we have accomplished and very grateful to all our drivers and car owners without whom we couldn’t have achieved the £1million for charity. What a wonderful way to enjoy ourselves at the same time as helping those less fortunate than ourselves. I would particularly like to thank our principal sponsors Broad Arrow, HFMC Wealth, Lockton, Aviva, Boodles and Krome Technologies.’

Montlhéry centenary meet A huge festival is planned to celebrate the centenary of the UTAC Linas-Montlhéry Autodrome south of Paris, France.

Taking place on 12-13 October, the special event will host 200 cars on track, classic car clubs from all over France, pre-war motorcycle parades, plus two grids of bikes on track. See tinyurl.com/5t4hyh7r for more.

Chantilly returns With France on a post-Olympics high, Chantilly Arts & Elegance Richard Mille returns to the spectacular venue north of the capital on 14-15 September. Since 2014 attendance has boomed; it reached 20,000 in 2022. The 2024 event will have 16 classes and two Best of Show trophies, one each for pre-war and post-war cars. See chantillyartsetelegance.com.

CKL’s silver jubilee A special event was held at CKL’s headquarters in Battle, East Sussex, to celebrate 25 years since CKL was founded by Chris Keith-Lucas in 1999. As well as the new management team of Mark Hews and Tim Mason, the event was attended by a host of customers and CKL-cared-for cars including Coombs E-type 4 WPD, E-type prototype E2A, Ecurie Ecosse D-type MWS 303, and the bonkers Egal E-type fitted with a 7.0-litre Holman & Moody V8.

Motorsport apprentices At last year’s International Historic Motoring Awards, Sarah Jane Addams-Diffey accepted the Personal Achievement trophy for the innovative Heritage Motorsport Apprentice Award she set up to honour her late husband, historic racer Simon Diffey. This year the Simon Diffey Heritage Motorsport Apprentice Award Presentation will take place at The Royal Automobile Club on Pall Mall, London, on 19 September, hosted by Simon Taylor and Silverstone Circuit MD Stuart Pringle. Book at tinyurl.com/a83s9b6a.

Capacity clarification In Octane’s recent article on the Maserati Khamsin Prototype (issue 255) there was an ambiguous statement that could be taken to suggest that the Khamsin was the only Maserati fitted with a 4.9-litre V8, when it was in fact the sole model only ever fitted with that engine.

Plaque relocated The memorial to the last Briton to hold the world motorcycle speed record – 169.79mph by Eric Fernihough, who died on another record attempt in Hungary in 1938 – has been tracked down to Jersey and there’s hope it could be returned to Brooklands. The tablet was unveiled on the historic Brooklands Clubhouse in 1939 but then given to Fernihough’s widow Dorothy when Brooklands closed to the public. It passed into private hands after her death in 1982.

Hawthorn heroics The Mike Hawthorn Memorial Track Day incorporating the Tommy Sopwith Equipe Endeavour Team Reunion resulted in a fabulous gathering of historic machinery at Goodwood last month. Organised by Michael Ballard and taking place for only the second time – with the objective of prompting Goodwood into running a Mike Hawthorn Memorial race – the track day attracted more than 30 Jaguar Mk1s. With the invitation also extended to Tommy Sopwith and Equipe Endeavour Team cars, the Mk1s were joined by two E-types, an Aston Martin DB4 GT and a host of Jaguar saloons.

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The ultimate 911?

Specialist Thornley Kelham, known for its Outlaw Aurelias and soon-to-be-launched reimagined Jaguar XK120, has also worked its magic on the Porsche 911. Just 25 of its European RS models will be built, inspired by the 2.7RS and GT3 RS 4.0 and using a pre-964 donor car. Each will take 6000 hours to build, weigh just over a tonne and come with a choice of flat-six: a 3.8-litre with around 385bhp, a 3.6-litre that revs to 10,000rpm, or a torquier 4.0-litre with more than 400bhp.

Lancia in lights The first British screening of a new feature documentary, Vincenzo Lancia & the Birth of Modern Motoring, took place at the Royal Spa Centre Cinema in Leamington Spa, hosted by the Lancia Motor Club, Motul and the FBHVC. The film was made with the support of the Lancia family and premiered at Lingotto.

Details of future screenings can be found at berlinettafilms.com.

Young navigators sought HERO-ERA has launched its quest to find the next winner of the Bob Rutherford Historic Rally Scholarship for young navigators.

The winner – last year’s was 15year-old Danielle Pool – receives free entry to four rallies plus selected Motorsport UK Academy courses. Entries (apply at form. typeform.com/to/NY7C0y8I) close at the end of September, with a shortlist attending a test day and the top six going through to a final shoot-out in November.

Japanese contribution The Great British Car Journey in Ambergate, Derbyshire, has added a new exhibit focusing on Toyota to its timeline of motor manufacturing in the UK. Dubbed Chapter 9.5 – because it is an add-on to the original nine ‘chapters’ in the museum and chapter 10 will focus on future tech – it celebrates British-built Toyotas, including the first car to roll off the Burnaston production line on 16 December 1992, a Toyota Carina.

Veteran Summer Run On 18 July more than 30 veteran cars set off from the Royal Automobile Club’s Woodcote Park clubhouse in Surrey on a 54-mile jaunt to lunch at Gildings Barns near Newdigate before heading back to Epsom Downs.

The Summer Veteran Car Run was established in 2022 to give owners another chance to exercise their pre-1905 cars besides the RM Sotheby’s London to Brighton Veteran Car Run, but has already become a firm fixture on members’ calendars.

Ian Cameron b. 1950 The man who masterminded the shape of modern Rolls-Royces (as well as BMW’s Z8 and E46 3-Series) was found murdered at his home in Germany last month.

Having graduated from the Royal College of Art in 1975, he started his career at Pininfarina before moving on to Iveco and then BMW. He officially retired over a decade ago but maintained a design consultancy.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

MAJESTIC INDIA AT ITS BEST The Oberoi Concours d’Elegance burst onto the classic car scene with a world-class debut

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Clockwise, from opposite 1950 Jaguar XK120 owned by Rajiv Kehr; 1935 Delahaye 135 owned by MS Maharaj Duleep Singhji of Jodhpur; 1935 Bentley 3½ Litre; 1935 Rolls-Royce of Dhanraj Gidwaney – runner-up, Pre-War European Classic; 1925 HispanoSuiza H6B Transformable Limousine.

INDIA IS A country steeped in ancient culture, spirituality, and craft. Its undeniable allure includes magnificent palaces, striking temples, charming people and delicious cuisine. A lesser known fact is that India has enjoyed a historic love affair with motor cars for over 100 years. This enthusiasm dates back to the 1920s and ’30s, when Indian royalty and their Maharajas crucially kept Rolls-Royce and specialist coachtrimmers in business by purchasing limousines and landaulettes, as well as shooting brakes and open-topped Tiger hunters.

Grand vintage cars and classic motorbikes are as much a part of Indian culture as the ubiquitous three-wheeled auto rickshaws and definitive Hindustan Ambassadors that scuttle through the busy cities and towns.

Some of the most ornate and exquisite motor cars built around the globe – including RollsRoyce, Cadillac, Packard, Mercedes-Benz and Delahaye – have found their way to India over the decades. The love and interest shown by Indian collectors, restorers and enthusiasts for these wonderful machines uniquely places India as a perfect destination for a Concours d’Elegance.

The inaugural Oberoi Concours d’Elegance, held earlier this year and celebrating the 90th anniversary of the founding of Oberoi Hotels & Resorts, proved to be an outstanding world-class celebration.

The Oberoi Concours d’Elegance showcased many of the finest and historically most significant motor cars from India’s rich and vibrant past – a concours for the world, yet uniquely representative of India.

The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, provided a dramatic backdrop to an extraordinary display of automotive heritage and luxury lifestyle. And what a stunning location for the Concours. The Oberoi Udaivilas sits on magical Lake Pichola, with unobstructed views of the City Palace and two 17th Century island palaces of the Mewar Dynasty.

The Oberoi Concours put on show a staggering 81 motor cars and 30 motorcycles presented by Indian royalty and private collectors – an automotive treasure trove rarely seen on the international stage. BMW showcased the iconic BMW 328, the most

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

successful sports car of the 1930s on the racing scene. This classic car symbolises the brand’s rich automotive heritage and enhanced the diverse collection of vehicles at The Oberoi Concours d’Elegance.

The event was born from the shared passion of Arjun Oberoi, the Oberoi Group Chairman, and Manvendra Singh Barwani, Concours Curator and automobile historian.

The judging panel was comprised of internationally renowned experts Chris Bock, Richard Charlesworth, Nigel Mathews and Peter Stevens, plus automotive connoisseur Chip Connor alongside multiple world motorcycle champion Giacomo Agostini, Le Mans legend Jackie Ickx, and classic car patron, HRH Prince Michael of Kent. The distinguished panel was headed by

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Chief Judge Sandra Button, Chairperson of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, with Simon Kidston acting as Convenor. The judges had their work cut out as The Oberoi Concours consisted of a substantial selection of superlative motor cars and motorcycles, across 16 classes.

The magnificent setting of The Oberoi Udaivilas, with its vast expanses of water bodies, sympathetic architecture, palatial courtyard, and lush flowering gardens, showcased an impressive selection of cars.

The Oberoi Concours represents rich and vibrant India at its best, and entrants, judges and guests were all impressed with the finesse and grandeur of the occasion. The judges proceeded with evaluating these top-drawer motor cars and motorcycles that ranged from

bespoke cars of five Indian royal garages to early antiques, post-war sports cars and current prototypes. Classes ranged from ‘Dawn of the Jet Age – Cadillacs’ via ‘Cars of the Maharajahs’ to ‘Rolls-Royce Limousines – Mysore’, as well as motor cars built for India’s royal ladies.

An original and important inclusion was the class for ‘Motoring for the Masses – India’.

Affordable people movers such as the modest Maruti 800 and Tata Nano were given a unique platform to show the democratisation of motor cars; think of Italy’s Fiat 500 that set so many people free. From 1955 to 1984 there were only three car manufacturers in India: Hindustan Motors, Premier Automobile and Standard Motor Company.

The cars of this generation are generally

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Clockwise, from far left HRH Prince Michael of Kent with Arjun Oberoi and Simon Kidston; Sabyasachi fashion show; Best of Show – 1939 Lagonda V12 Drophead Coupé, owned by Nishant Dossa; Jacky Ickx holds court; Chief Judge Sandra Button; Ickx with wife Khadja Nin; HRH Prince Michael of Kent.

regarded with affection but, with the liberalisation of importation restrictions, Indians are starting to bring classic and performance cars in from all over the world, helping to grow the appreciation of fine automobiles in one of the most important and fastest-growing economies.

No lifestyle event is complete without a dash of heritage, luxury craft, and exclusive design. With this in mind, exquisite art, gastronomy and fashion were brought together at The Oberoi Concours. Leading fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee showcased clothing and jewellery, luxury brands, including IWC and Stefano Ricci, displayed stunning collections, and leading Michelin Star chef Vineet Bhatia and Master Chefs from various Oberoi Hotels

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& Resorts served up a memorable feast.

The Oberoi Concours d’Elegance is a meaningful representation of the new India, where the elegant tradition of The Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, hosts India’s automotive past alongside the fast-paced dynamic growth of this exciting subcontinent. As Sandra Button observed: ‘To see this new event at the very beginning is so exciting because you are making history with your own decisions about the Oberoi Concours d’Elegance.’ And Jackie Ickx added: ‘To do the first Concours d’Elegance at the Oberoi… putting all these cars and motorcycles together, having views of the palace of the king… it is just a privilege.’

With more than 40 Trophies awarded to the wonderful array of winners, the Best of Show went to Nishant Dossa’s superb 1939

Lagonda V12 Drophead Coupé, while Madan Mohan took the Best of Show for his exceptional 1925 New Hudson 499cc in the Motorcycle Class.

The inaugural Oberoi Concours d’Elegance proved to be a first-class event held at the beautiful Oberoi Udaivilas, Udaipur, and is now added as a pre-eminent inclusion on the best concours celebrations around the world.

So, it comes as no surprise that The Oberoi Concours d’Elegance has been nominated for the International Historic Motoring Awards to be held later this year. A fabulous and exciting new event to add to the international world of historic car celebration, with the next Oberoi Concours scheduled for 20-22 February 2026. theoberoiconcours.com

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If it matters to you, it matters to us.

E: admin@rps.storage T: +44 (0) 1993 222 777 WWW.RPS.STORAGE

Ignition Opinion

The Collector

Jay Leno The world’s most famous petrolhead on the joys of DIY servicing

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hen I was in high school, I had MGs and Triumphs you could buy for a few hundred dollars, usually because of some easily fixable electrical or leaky gasket problem. My mantra has always been mechanical stuff breaks, but electrical stuff degrades, and degradation has always been a lot harder to spot than a leaky diaphragm on a fuel pump. I’ve always prided myself on doing my own servicing whenever possible, like oil changes, brakes, et cetera. On my late-model BMW motorcycle, the dealer wanted $400 to do an oil change. To those of us raised on Robert M Pirsig’s Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance this seemed outrageous.

Open the drain plug, drain the oil, change the filter, tighten the drain plug, put in fresh oil and away you go. A half-hour job, at most. True, but I did not have the tools to turn off the Check Engine light, which affects the computer, which voids the warranty if the dealer hasn’t done the work. OK, I get that, but like a lot of businesses these days the lowest-paid and least-motivated employees are the ones who interact with the customer.

In 1993, I bought a Dodge Viper with the V10 engine. I brought it to the dealership for its first oil change. Always leery of the quality of the oil the dealerships used, I brought a case of Mobil 1, plus the two quarts I kept in the trunk just in case. When I met the service tech he was wearing a black turtleneck sweater and a gold chain around his neck with a huge medallion on it. Never a good sign.

When I came back a few days later to retrieve my car the first thing I did was check the trunk to make sure they had used my oil. They had. In fact, they used all of it. The Viper’s sump would hold a total of 10½ quarts. ‘Where are the other four?’ I asked the service tech. ‘Oh, we put in all the oil you gave us,’ he responded. When I opened the bonnet there was oil on everything, plus a huge pool on the ground.

I rest my case.

Here’s another example. Because I like classic British motorcycles, I bought one of the new Royal Enfield 650cc GTs. As simple and straightforward as a motorcycle could be. It had been sitting for a month, because you need a special computer to bleed the rear brake. Really? I’m just trying to get air

out of the line. How hard can that be? Apparently, the computer has to work the ABS system and pump the fluid, or something like that. Anyway, it was still waiting for one of the computers to arrive so I could carry out that simple task.

When the clutch went out on my 1970 Monteverdi 375 High Speed, at first I didn’t want to tackle it because it seemed like too much work. It’s an engine-out job. Because the original transmissions are four-speed, with somewhat compromised synchros, I decided to swap it out for a five-speed Tremec TKX. These are highly versatile units. I even put one in my 1962 Maserati 3500 GTi, and it works like a dream.

We pushed the Monteverdi into the ’shop after about a year of sitting and put it up on the lift. After less than half a day, we had the Chrysler 440 engine and transmission out of the car. What a pleasure it was to work with just tools, nuts and bolts, undo everything, label it, put it off to the side. This car is a body-on-chassis design, so everything is pretty much straightforward. Imagine if this were a McLaren, Ferrari or Lamborghini. Forget parts, just the special tools you’d need would be enough to break the bank.

Assuming they were available to you at all.

To me, the word that best describes a pre-1976 vehicle is ‘logical’ – everything became more complicated after that golden era. And don’t get me started on drive cycles. That annoying practice where the computer performs a self-diagnostic test to re-set its computers. I detailed this a few columns back, when I successfully put over 200 miles on my 2005 Ford GT trying to get the codes to clear, as I had replaced the battery. The dealer had told me: ‘Just drive around, the codes will eventually clear themselves.’ That might be true if you have that kind of time. But I needed to get the codes cleared quickly because my car was due for an inspection.

I eventually tracked down a Ford tech guy and it was illogical, as you can imagine. Something like: ‘Idle the vehicle and drive for exactly one minute, drive at 25mph for 15 minutes, at speeds between 15 and 35mph. [Whatever that means.] Stop at least five times and have at least three periods of steady speed for 90 seconds.’ Try that in LA traffic while people are shooting at you.

‘When I opened the bonnet there was a pool of oil on the ground’

Jay was talking with Jeremy Hart.

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OCTOBER 1ST  6 TH 2024

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Ignition Opinion

The Legend

Derek Bell Britain’s favourite Le Mans champion has been having fun at Goodwood

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oodwood has featured strongly in my recent escapades. There was the Festival of Speed, enjoyable despite the best efforts of the weather. It’s an event that always surprises, not least because it spans just about everything automotive rather than only motor racing, and it seems to get bigger each year. The problem for us old warhorses is that we don’t often get to walk around and see the sights. As I briefly touched upon last month, I was on hand to pilot the ex-John Surtees Lola T70 Spider. I hadn’t driven the T70 before my first run so it was quite an eye-opener.

That’s the thing about hopping between cars. The Lola was very old-tech in that it had a four-speed ’box, no aero to speak of, nor electronic doohickeys.

You just got in and drove while trying to control oodles of unruly horsepower courtesy of the pushrod V8 behind you. Changing gear, for example, was almost a case of counting one-two-three-four because shifting from first to second took an age, and you were constantly trying to deal with wheelspin.

And that was in the dry. The clever thing would have been to start in third and drive up the hill like that.

I didn’t do that. I did it the fun way.

I also had a blast catching up with various friends and rivals. Goodwood is always brilliant for that, even if you are often dashing from one thing to another. I was particularly thrilled to see Nascar royalty Richard Petty enjoying himself. He is a wonderful ambassador for American racing, and someone who somehow manages to be both magnetic and ordinary at the same time. He will talk to anybody. He is devoid of pretence and wears his status lightly. He is a nice guy and isn’t known as ‘The King’ for nothing.

West Sussex is quite different from North Carolina, but Richard would find an admiring audience anywhere. He and my wife Misti get on famously because her dad and he raced together on short ovals when they were both starting out.

Richard always makes a point of chatting about that.

Moving swiftly on, but staying local, I must mention the Veloce Track Day that was staged at the Goodwood Motor Circuit shortly after the Festival.

I love this event, and Peter Neumark does a fantastic job of arranging everything along with Chris Bucknall, raising money for various charities

including Hope for Tomorrow, which is close to my heart. It was a fun day with a bunch of us old reprobates giving laps of the track to customers who had paid handsomely to be there.

Peter gave me the keys me to his Ferrari 275 GTB, while someone else very kindly loaned me their Singer-reimagined Porsche, which looked lovely.

Anyway, there was me, Damon Hill, Willie Green and other old stagers. Also there was the incomparable Rowan Atkinson with his Jaguar MkVII touring-car racer. I have a lot of time for Rowan because he is such an enthusiast. I like him enormously. I was dredging my memory afterwards trying to think of when we first met. I reckon it was during the 1980s when I was involved in a TV special called Driving Force, which involved driving tests.

Nigel Mansell was another ‘pro’ among our number, the point being that we were paired with someone who gave us instructions.

Rowan was with someone else. I had Murray Walker. I remember being tasked with driving a tank and he had to tell me where I was heading, and what I needed to do. Murray was a lovely bloke – one of the best – but a terrible navigator! Anyway, having wandered off down memory lane, the point is that Rowan hasn’t changed.

Which brings me without a segue to Formula 1.

I am thoroughly enjoying this season because it isn’t a one-horse race. Fair play to Sir Lewis Hamilton for winning the British Grand Prix in front of a capacity audience at Silverstone after quite a drought by his standards. Also, it was great to see Oscar Piastri claim his maiden victory in Hungary, even if it wasn’t necessarily in the way he would have liked.

My heart went out to poor George Russell who ‘won’ next time out at Spa, only to be disqualified after his car was found to be 1.5kg underweight. He was told the news while he was on his way home, which handed honours to Hamilton. It’s a bugger when things like that go against you and you are not at fault. I have been there. I know what it feels like.

He was fantastic at Spa, although I must point out that I remember the old circuit, which was a real bastard. Not like today’s venue. Unburdening myself of modesty, I must point out that I averaged 161mph to claim pole for the 1971 Spa 1000 Kilometres in a Porsche 917. I didn’t even get a pat on the back.

I was quizzed as to why I hadn’t gone faster.

‘Murray Walker was a lovely bloke, but a terrible navigator!’

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Ignition Opinion

The Aesthete

Stephen Bayley The design guru returns to the subject of celebrity car crashes

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pproaching you with a closing speed of, say, 120mph along the rural two-lane blacktop is a mighty Scania S-Series Highline.

Who has never thought that with a flick of the wrist… all sorrows might pass and troubles end? The ancients spoke about life being a competition between Thanatos and Eros, the Death Drive and the Pleasure Principle.

And isn’t that exactly what we moderns see in the car? No other everyday experience offers the immediacy of a possible fatality, nor the occult thrills of privacy, speed, power and control.

I am neither a morbid nor a bloodthirsty person.

Indeed, rather the opposite. Some years ago, while distracted by a conversation with the Italian cook Antonio Carluccio, I broke the wine glass I was polishing. There was a quick trip to A&E for two tiny stitches and, for this operation, I had to be – squealing – held down by a Korean orderly like a super-sized sumo wrestler. This I mention because I am revising my book Death Drive, which I wrote about here in 2016, for an imminent second edition.

And writing some new material, too.

While no sane person takes pleasure in death and destruction, once you’re over the inevitable horror of automobile-assisted fatality, the culture of the car crash (and I confess that I mean the celebrity car crash) is a compelling subject for anyone who cares about the changing meaning of cars and driving.

The first ever car crashes were not at all celebrity: they were suburban events. One in Purley and one in Harrow. These were not about the strange alignments of destiny and circumstance that fascinate me, but about curious innocents being taken quite unaware of the deadly potential of, say, a 6½hp Daimler Wagonette travelling at an unprecedented 17mph.

Doing my revisions, I was struck by how few celebrity car crashes there have been in the nearly ten years since the book was published. I mean to say, a catalogue of noteworthy crashes between about 1920 and 1990 would be a proxy of a history of the entire 20th Century.

For example: Isadora Duncan, Nathaniel West, General Patton, Albert Camus, Eddie Cochran, James Dean, Jackson Pollock, Marc Bolan and Helmut Newton. And that reads: Amilcar, Ford

Woody, Cadillac 75, Facel Vega FV3B, Ford Consul, Porsche 550, Oldsmobile 88, Mini 1275GT and another Cadillac, this time a clunky SUV known as the SRX. Does this mean celebrities no longer drive any more? Yes, I think it does. (Although I have seen Brad Pitt in a Prius.)

Then there are the curious cases of Formula 1 drivers who died, not in races, but on the road. In fact, the list of Formula 1 fatalities during actual Grands Prix is a short one: Luigi Musso, Peter Collins, Stuart Lewis-Evans, Wolfgang von Trips, Lorenzo Bandini, Jo Schlesser, Piers Courage, Jochen Rindt and Ronnie Peterson. Formula 1 greats Jim Clark and Gilles Villeneuve were also killed at work, but Clark’s end was at an insignificant minor event in Germany, while Villeneuve’s accident occurred in practice, not in the actual race.

So I included none of these, but Mike Hawthorn and Nino Farina qualified. Hawthorn, perhaps dwelling on a terminal diagnosis, lost his Jaguar on the A3’s Hog’s Back, while Nino Farina crashed a Ford Cortina, of all places, in a posh ski resort. And in the new edition I have included Ayrton Senna.

Yes, it was a race, but the circumstances were peculiar. At the meeting the morning of the Grand Prix, all the drivers touched Senna as they left. As if they shared a collective premonition.

And Senna’s accident? It may have been aero, it may have been a puncture, it may have been a broken steering column. It was certainly the man, un-asked, pushing himself to supernatural limits. And that’s the stuff of authentic tragedy.

But there’s sex as well as violence. There always is. In his 1970 novel Crash, the dystopian author JG Ballard explored these compulsions. He organised a promotional exhibition that – sensationally – included wrecks and a naked hostess called Euphoria Bliss. Martin Amis described Crash as ‘vicious whimsy’. Maybe, but isn’t it the threat of fatality and the simultaneous prospect of pleasure that makes cars so fascinating? And isn’t the tension between death and sex something to do with beauty itself?

Diana was not in the first edition because, with 60 books written about her accident in Paris, I felt there was nothing to say. And then I discovered MercedesBenz once offered ‘crash-free motoring’ by 2050. By that time, Princess Diana would be 89. But she was not wearing a seatbelt.

‘Isn’t the tension between death and sex to do with beauty itself?’

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Ignition Opinion

The Driver

Robert Coucher Octane’s founding editor has always loved a 4x4. Here’s why

I

have always loved a Jeep. Tough, functional and so red-blooded American. Years ago, I went to visit a friend in Los Angeles. He was living on Dick Street – so LA – a very cool part of West Hollywood, not far from contributor Leno’s manor. But the coolest part of this visit was driving around LA in his 1980s Jeep Grand Wagoneer.

The Wagoneer was painted cream with that chintzy fake wood running down each side, and it had fat, saddle-tan leather seats. Coming from Britain where most cars of the time had puny engines, the gas-guzzling Wagoneer’s 5.9-litre V8 seemed ridiculously OTT. But it woofled along in an amazingly civilised manner – you stuck it in Drive on the ‘three on the tree’ selector and left it alone. It had an electric switch on the dashboard to change it from two- to four-wheel drive, something the then-current Range Rover did not, which may explain why the old Rangies drank so much petrol.

Britons have long suffered overpriced energy costs and so we have been stuck with small-capacity engines ever since the taxes imposed an engine bore size in the 1920s. In the 1990s most private motorists drove Escorts, Golfs and Vauxhall Novas to try to minimise the costly fuel bills. Meanwhile, in the USA, gas remained cheap and engines were lusty V8s. But as our economy improved in the mid-1990s I began to notice a rather neat little 4x4 appearing in neighbourhoods. The first Chelsea tractor? Probably.

The attractively boxy Jeep Cherokee XJ Series had arrived in the UK and Brits immediately understood the attraction of this new SUV idea. Young families took to it like a Labrador to water as the Jeep was so practical and comparatively spacious, with room for children, dogs and bicycles that could not easily fit into our ubiquitous hatchbacks.

The Jeep’s 4.0-litre six-cylinder engine was a bit of a boat anchor and mustered only 173bhp but one study found that the simply constructed Cherokee was one of the cleanest cars ‘dust to dust’. Today’s EVs are extremely environmentally damaging to manufacture and it takes some 50,000 miles before they pay back and become clean.

I suppose I should have gone for an urban-friendly Cherokee when looking for a ski wagon some years ago, but I was overruled by my wife. Up until then, she’d been driving a VW Golf that, being manual,

was becoming a bit of a pain driving across London in the morning and evening rush hours.

In those days there were two types of drivers: the early fast ones, usually young men in Porsches speeding to the City, and the later slow plodders dragging themselves to their office jobs. She was among the fast set and complained of being bullied in her slow Golf. So she instructed me to go and find her a secondhand 4.4-litre BMW X5 weapon!

That did the trick. Having grown up on farms in Africa, my wife learned to drive in an ancient VW Beetle and then an old Toyota truck. Hence she still drives like she stole it and absolutely loved the power of the mighty V8 BM. With good Vredestein winter tyres fitted, the X5 did well as a ski wagon in the snow but eventually electronic gremlins, which cost a fortune to fix, meant I had to get rid of it.

In need of another wagon, I thought I’d be sensible this time, and went for a classic 1991 Range Rover Vogue SE. Finished in the best Ardennes Green hue, the 3.9-litre was an absolute joy. Featuring fuelinjection, it would just about manage 21mpg at 70mph, but around town that dropped to a shocking 12mpg. So what, annual insurance was cheap.

Coming from classic cars – all built before 1964 – I found the Rangie to be the epitome of luxury.

And in the snow the Rangie was unimpeachable.

Approaching icy and snow-covered inclines, you simply shoved the low-ratio lever forward and chugged up impossible slopes while fast ’n’ slick modern 4x4s spun their huge 21-inch tyres into nearby ditches. Childish, but amusing. It looked smart and was great to drive thanks to its sonorous 3.9-litre V8. But sadly, under its gleaming aluminium body panels, the steel chassis and subframes were rotten beyond repair. So on its penultimate journey before I took it to the knacker’s yard to be chopped up for spares, we motored through the Alps and down to Italy for a weekend at a smart hotel.

When checking out, the Rangie’s fuel pump started to fail. So, there I was, outside the grand marble entrance of the elegant hotel, sitting on my butt on the tarmac kicking the hell out of the Rangie’s arse to get the pump ticking again. You know those Instagram clips of over-dressed old dudes getting in and out of their immaculate Veyrons and LaFerraris outside the Hotel de Paris in Monaco? This was not one of those moments!

‘I should have gone for a Cherokee when looking for a ski wagon’

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EVAN KLEIN

Ignition Letters

Beauty and the beast AS AN INDUSTRIAL designer I can only say ‘Wow!’ What an incredibly elegant grand tourer the Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS Riva ‘Serenissima’ Berlinetta featured in Octane 254 is. My first scan of the pictures jogged a memory: I’ve seen that engine before!

I did some digging and found some photos that proved the text is correct, that this engine was indeed used in motor torpedo boats.

A couple of years ago we visited the Cinque Terre in Italy and went to the maritime museum at La Spezia, ‘Arsenale Militare Marittimo della Spezia’. La Spezia has a natural protected harbour and is the location of one of Italy’s naval bases; there is an adjacent marina for any Octane readers who may be sailors. The museum is small, but very interesting and includes several notations of Marconi’s early efforts. It’s well worth a visit and the surrounding roads are gorgeous, while the old town is fascinating.

Attached are a few photos I took of the motor boat in the museum, and you can see the same engine quite clearly, despite the drab warpaint.

The front of the boat would be packed with explosives and the driver kneeled on the platform off the transom. The contraption at the front of the platform is a raft; the driver would steer towards his target, run the boat up to top speed

Letter of the month

and jump off with the raft, hoping that someone friendly would pick him up!

I was astonished see an Alfa engine in such an application, and to imagine it being disposable.

The form of the cam covers, the shape of the carburettors – even though there are only two rather than three, as in the car – the position and form of the fuel pump: all seem identical to that in the Riva. I’m sure the museum would have more information if anyone is interested.

Thanks for another wonderful issue. By the way, it was an Aston Martin DB4 like the one in the previous edition that got me interested in finding out what industrial design was, and about the visionaries who crafted our automotive past.

John Arnott, The Arnott Design Group Inc, Toronto, Canada

Like a Mini, but smaller In 2009 I was setting up a TV car show in California when I was approached by a wealthy investor who asked me to help him locate a Mini-Sprint [pictured below next to a standard Mini].

I found out that the MiniSprint was manufactured in Wallisdown, near Bournemouth, and 85 cars were reputedly produced. Amazingly, I did locate one in Los Angeles in 2009 that was owned by an old friend, Robin Sladen, who had been an apprentice in the 1960s at BMC’s Competitions Department.

Robin’s car was totally stripped and he sold the shell and all the parts. Robin passed away some years ago, but I often wondered where these cars are now?

Roy Watts, Surrey

The DIY Aston?

I really enjoyed the article in Octane 254 about the Aston Martin Vantage. I saw the car in 2005 at the IAA in Frankfurt and thought it was overwhelming.

Then I saw Daniel Craig in his 007 Aston in Casino Royale and I was totally hooked. In 2010 I sold my E-type to buy an 11,000-mile 2007 Vantage and, after 14 years and now at 47,000 miles, the magic is still there. I try to service the car myself as much as possible to keep costs down. The clutch is the original, although the car has been driven hard on mountain passes and I have done great trips with it to the South of France, Italy, Switzerland and the UK. Thomas von Kreisler, Cologne, Germany

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Roof realities Recently I had my BMW serviced and in conversation mentioned the ‘Observer Coupé’, the 635CSi that I radically modified in 1982 [pictured above]. It turns out that it’s currently for sale at Duke of London, and their description mentions an Octane feature about it in issue 237, March 2023.

Your art editor Robert Hefferon kindly sent me a back issue, and the article proved to be pretty accurate. The project was mostly funded by me; The Observer Magazine paid for the stand at the NEC, while Ray Playfoot, BMW UK’s sales director, sold the car to me for a pound. I still have a copy of the cheque.

I think I made a mistake in converting back to a fixed-head [from the original concept, in which the glass roof and rear window slid back in tracks into a shallow compartment in the bootlid]. The system worked perfectly, though a ‘proof-ofconcept’ is far from a retail offering; the devil is always in the detail. It would have cost ten times more to resolve perfect sealing because the glass lights could not be made to slide over seals, as the friction and wear ’n’ tear would be too high; either the glass would have had to move into a seal, or the seal itself move

away – such as a vacuum seal.

Dr Radermacher at BMW was very impressed but decided not to fund my company, MGA, to pursue the development into production and I certainly couldn’t. Even so, only slightly increased wind noise was evident so I should have left it as it was.

My only other regret is that my ‘Latch Track’ mechanism, to hold one or both deployed glasses within a slim chamber in the top of the deck lid – and so leave an empty boot when opened – was never manufactured. I just ran out of time for the NEC show. But the roof and back-light did deploy hundreds of times at the NEC and afterwards.

I drove the car as personal transport and it was always a sensation when arriving at say, Ascot, I would press a button and silently the roof and back-light would appear, the roof-light continuing on to convert a cabrio into a fixed-head.

As my publicity and marketing exercise it certainly worked, for in less than two years I moved MGA Developments into the former Triumph factory on the A45 at Allesley and zoomed from about 30 to 300 personnel in six years.

Our technology was world-class and we led the way in integrated CAE design and development.

Michael Gibbs, Wiltshire

Californian dreamin’ I was surprised and pleased to read Steven Bayley’s comments about the Hillman Californian [below] in Octane 254. Surprised because, now I am in my 80s, my peers claim that they have never heard of it! Pleased because I learned to drive in one, my father’s car, during the Suez crisis when learners were allowed to drive unaccompanied.

To a 17-year-old this car, in its two-tone blue and off-white, with sun visor, disappearing side windows and front bench seat, was a dream come true.

On the day of my test I had a morning off school and my father let me drive back there in the afternoon. Putting the car in the teachers’ car park caused quite a stir amidst the collection of Morris Minors and Ford Populars, but the icing on the cake was being able to drive my then-girlfriend home – my standing among my school friends had never been higher!

Jeremy Flatt, Worcester

Wrong priorities I view with sadness how the driver’s car market priorities have changed. There is a headlong dash (over the cliff, like lemmings) to part with multimillion-pound cheques for cars the only value of which is being rare for rarity’s sake – such as the Aston Martin Valour, a car with a price tag out of all proportion to its actual abilities.

I am not sure which is worse: the greed of manufacturers in tweaking existing models that will be available only to special (gullible) clients, or the buyers who are only looking at investment, not driving pleasure.

Give me an open road and a great-handling car, not an open chequebook and glad-handing from speculators.

Mark Grenside, Malta

Which Hawthorn?

In the ‘Gearbox’ favourite things feature with Michael Quinn, Octane 253, one of Mr Quinn’s chosen objects is a posthumously published copy of Mike Hawthorn’s Champion Year, containing a letter dated 14 April 1959, almost three months after Mike’s death. It is said to be signed by his father Leslie, but I thought Leslie Hawthorn died in a car crash before Mike?

Robert Hampsheir, Surrey

You are right: Leslie Hawthorn died in a car accident on 7 June 1954. The signature does appear to be ‘Hawthorn’, but the first name, beginning with an ‘S’, is indistinct.

Leslie’s widow was Winifred, Mike didn’t have a sister and his fiancée was Jean Howarth, so who was the mysterious ‘S’?

MD That bloody thump The pithy description of the 3 Litre Bentley’s engine noise – ‘that bloody thump’ – mentioned

by Robert Coucher in Octane 255 [below] was coined by lorry manufacturer ER Foden, not WO Bentley. Foden had just bought a 6½ Litre and WO sought his verdict: ‘“It’s a very nice car, WO, very nice…” and he hummed and hawed for a while. “But you know,” he suddenly burst out, “I do miss that bloody thump.”’ (WO Bentley, My Life and My Cars).

That early example of customer feedback sent WO back to the drawing board. Result? The 4½ Litre.

Nick Swallow, Buckinghamshire

JAYSON FONG

GF WILLIAMS

Ignition Letters

Send your letters to letters@octane-magazine.com Please include your name, address and a daytime telephone number.

Letters may be edited for clarity.

Views expressed are not necessarily those of Octane.

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SYDNEY HARBOUR CONCOURS D’ELEGANCE 28 February - 2 March 2025

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

THE CAPE 1000

SOUTH AFRICA’S MOST BEAUTIFUL DRIVE SOUTH AFRICA is a vast country that’s criss-crossed with excellent roads through vast tracts of impressive landscape. From sinuous seaside drives to switchback mountain passes, these epic routes take you through some of the most impressive scenery you will ever experience.

Organised by experienced, locally based tour organiser Vanessa Crichton, the 2025 Cape 1000 will consist of four days and five nights. Superlative driving roads have been carefully reconnoitred and mapped for the 65 entrants to ensure 1000 magnificent miles through the southern tip of Africa. With the sponsorship of Private Clients by Old Mutual Wealth, this event is always exclusive, attracting some great vintage, classic and performance cars from South Africa and around the world. The very best locations and accommodation are guaranteed by the team, who know this region like the back of their Tulip maps!

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Registration will commence on 16 March on the harbour edge of Cape Town’s most famous V&A Waterfront, the seaside destination so enjoyed by international visitors, where entrants will be billetted at the upmarket Radisson Blu hotel. The Cape 1000 will depart the V&A on 17 March and head straight for the well-known Killarney International Raceway just outside of town.

This exciting circuit, long enjoyed by David Piper, the multiple 9-Hour winner, is ideally suited to classic cars. Drivers will enjoy quality track time and be faced with some exciting lap time challenges.

After that, the cars will motor through the winelands of Stellenbosch and the everpopular Clarence Drive. The route then goes off the beaten track and takes in picturesque towns and villages such as Caledon and Stanford before the final destination of Gearings Point in the seaside resort of Hermanus, famous for its whale-watching.

Next morning, the driving will include one of the best roads around, the stunning Akkedis Pass, and the drivers will continue touring as far as Montagu. Then up the littleused Burgers Pass and on to the newly resurfaced Bain’s Kloof Pass and down to the Franschhoek Valley, one of the most picturesque winelands in the word, where the teams will stay at the quaint Le Franschhoek hotel.

Day 3 is a spider route, which includes the breathtaking Franschhoek Pass, Theewaterskloof Dam and on to beautiful Tulbagh. The route then returns to the lovely La Franschhoek Hotel for a relaxed evening.

The next day the drivers leave Franschhoek to explore the dramatic West Coast via quiet back-roads through Paarl and Malmesbury to the charming village of Paternoster, with a lunch stop at Mykonos Resort. They then return to Cape Town, enjoying the iconic view of Table Mountain, and after 1000

14/08/2024 19:43

miles arrive at the V&A Waterfront to finish at the Silo Precinct Hotel for the Awards Ceremony and final Gala Dinner.

As James Cottingham of UK-based DK Engineering observed: ‘We had a fantastic time on the Cape 1000. We weren’t quite sure what to expect of a rally in South Africa but were amazed by the variety of the scenery, quality of the roads and the friendly people. The balance of the rally was spot-on!’

Octane’s Robert Coucher knows this beautiful area well and adds: ‘The team has come up with some of the best driving roads in South Africa. You will be impressed by the beauty and the scenery along these hidden routes, from quiet valleys flanked by lush vineyards, to sea-sprayed ocean drives and tight and challenging mountain passes. 1000 miles of sheer bliss – wish I was there.’

A few places remain for next year’s Cape 1000. Visit the website for more information. www.cape1000.com

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FERRARI’S JUNIOR SUPERCARS

Ferrari’s first V8 went on sale five decades ago. John Barker drives the 308 GTB, F355 GTS and 360 Modena, each defined by an evolution of that engine – and each with it mounted amidships. Which would you choose?

Photography Alex Tapley

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MIDDLE

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FERRARI’S JUNIOR SUPERCARS

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ut of sight, the sound comes to us on the breeze, a tight, urgent bark rising and rising, passing the reach of a normal engine and seeming to escalate, to keen ever harder until the sound is a dizzying wail. A pause… and then the cry resumes, lower in pitch but climbing just as urgently again, building to the same, thrilling crescendo. To we enthusiasts standing in a car park on a Berkshire hilltop, it’s music, a symphony created by eight cylinders in vee and a flat-plane crank.

Perhaps Enzo Ferrari didn’t envisage the heights that the V8 would reach. As with the V6 that preceded it, he deemed the V8 unworthy of the Ferrari badge initially. The first car to use it, the square-edged 308 GT4, was a Dino. Designed

by Bertone’s Marcello Gandini, it was – and still is – an underrated car, a neat, cleverly packaged and stylish 2+2, the brilliance of which became properly clear only when its replacement, the gawky Mondial, came along.

Ferrari’s mid-engined V8 line came two years after the GT4 went on sale when, in 1975, the 308 GTB was launched. Penned by Pininfarina’s masterful Leonardo Fioravanti, the GTB was a sublime piece of design, more than worthy of the Ferrari badges it wore from the get-go, and it started a line of V8-engined ‘junior’ Ferrari supercars that would span five decades.

The first iteration of the Franco Rocchi-designed V8 powering it was a 3.0-litre 16-valve four-cam producing 252bhp; the last, fitted to the 360 Challenge Stradale, was a 3.6-litre 40-valve giving 420bhp. During its 30-year life there would be many variants, from a 2.0-litre Italian taxbreak special making 155bhp, to the F40’s 3.0-litre twinturbo putting out 478bhp. There was also its curious deployment in the nose of the Lancia Thema 8.32, with a conventional rather than flat-plane crank.

Here we’re focusing on the best-selling mid-engined Ferraris that used the Rocchi V8: the 308 GTB, F355 and 360 Modena. Excellent examples of all three can be had for around £80,000 and they offer different but equally engaging driving experiences. As well as their engine heritage they share a number of common design details, including quadruple circular tail-lights, matching quad tailpipes, five-spoke alloys and, just ahead of the rear wheels, Designo di Pininfarina badges. Also, more by luck than design, all three have manual gearboxes.

As a former teenager of the ’70s, I can assert with total confidence that the 308 GTB is the perfect mid-engined design. As hard evidence, I give you the fact that it has defied the ageing process and looks as good today as it ever did. I said as much a few years ago in Enzo, the quarterly Ferrari magazine I used to edit, and got into an email conversation with Leonardo Fioravanti himself. The great 58

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‘TO WE ENTHUSIASTS, IT’S MUSIC, A SYMPHONY CREATED BY EIGHT CYLINDERS’ 59

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FERRARI’S JUNIOR SUPERCARS

1979 Ferrari 308 GTB Engine 2927cc V8, DOHC per bank, flat-plane crankshaft, dry sump, four Weber 40DCNF carburettors Power 252bhp @ 7700rpm Torque 209lb ft @ 5000rpm Transmission Five-speed manual transaxle, rear-wheel drive Steering Rack and pinion Suspension Front and rear: double wishbones, coil springs, telescopic dampers, anti-roll bar Brakes Discs, ABS Weight 1300kg Top speed 157mph 0-62mph 6.7sec

man stated that the only change he would make was a tiny tweak to the bonnet so that it looked a little less flat.

This 308, owned by Simon Tate, is finished in rare Rosso Dino and is fresh from a bare-metal respray at 355 Automobile Restorations. It looks superb. It’s one of the most sought-after specs, being an early, 252bhp carburetted car with the steel body. The earliest, glassfibre-bodied (vetroresina) cars are 150kg lighter but only 808 were built and their panel gaps and surface quality aren’t as good, while the later fuel-injected cars lost a chunk of horsepower chasing lower emissions, only some of which was restored by the four-valve-per-cylinder QVs. Pop open and lift the 308’s heavy engine cover and you could be forgiven for thinking that all 150kg over the vetroresina version is concentrated in this one part. The V8 is mounted transversely with the gearbox tucked under the rearmost cylinder bank, a little like an original Mini. This means there’s a useful luggage space behind the engine but also that the 308 is less mid-engined than the F355 and 360; they have their V8s installed longitudinally with gearboxes end-on, meaning that their engine mass is located more centrally within the wheelbase.

There’s not much difference in their kerbweights, all three coming in between 1300 and 1400kg, even though their construction becomes more sophisticated. The 308 conforms to ’60s methodology with a tubular steel spaceframe, while the F355 is more modern with a steel monocoque and a mix of steel and aluminium body panels.

The 360 reflects Ferrari’s increasing technical sophistication, with a chassis frame of welded and bonded aluminium, castings in key areas, all clothed by an all-aluminium body.

To experience the evolution of the mid-engined V8 Ferrari, I start with the 308. It’s a left-hand-drive car, which means pedals well offset to the right and evocative details such as minor Veglia instruments labelled in Italian – benzina, acqua, olio. It’s a compact car with good vision out and a mostly neat, simple interior… apart from the cluster of sliders and switches between the seats, a couple of which are for the air conditioning, which on this sweltering hot day is, inevitably, out of order.

Turn the key, hear the starter churn, give the throttle a little squeeze and over your shoulder the V8 comes alive gradually, seemingly catching a cylinder at a time until all eight are present. At idle it sounds like a pair of synchronised Fiat twin-cams on twin-choke carbs and, thanks to the

‘THE 308 HAS DEFIED THE AGEING PROCESS’ firing order dictated by the flat-plane crank, that’s in essence what it is. It breathes through a quartet of downdraught, twin-choke Webers nestled beneath that flat, square air intake and the first squeeze of the throttle reveals it has an easy-going nature with decent pick-up, plenty of low-down torque and a strong, staccato intake bark. The manual shift, a five-speeder, is classic Ferrari and equally sweet with a simple, three-plane, open steel gate that puts reverse top left and dog-leg first below. With just a little effort on your part to rev-match, it’s a slick and satisfying shift.

The 308 isn’t super-fast but that’s not the expectation; it has the power-to-weight ratio of a fast hatch, and not even a current one. Ferrari claimed 0-60mph in 6.7sec and 157mph flat out, and while the engine will happily spin to over 7000rpm you quickly discover that it has a sweet spot, a really addictive swell of performance between about 3000 and 6000rpm, when it sounds and feels joyous.

Unassisted steering requires a fair bit of heft at parking speeds but lightens up to a very manageable weight once you’re rolling, with plenty of feedback. It’s a fairly slow rack but it’s easy to get into a satisfying flow, the ride is supple, the car rolling into turns and stringing curves together with a pleasing nonchalance. The earliest 308s wore remarkably plump 205/70 Michelin XWXs on button-sized 14in alloys but this car is on the later 16in rims shod with Pirelli Cinturato P7s, 205/50 at the front and 225/50 at the rear.

Tackle a tight corner with enthusiasm and you discover that the GTB behaves a bit like a contemporary 911, the front slurring wide. You have to work around it, lifting off sharply to let the nose hook into the turn before squeezing

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Above and top 308 carried on the 246 Dino’s mantle of curvaceous perfection and modernised it for the 1970s and beyond; transverse V8 leaves space for luggage; definitive open-gate gearshift maintains Ferrari character.

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on the power and using the weight-transfer and engine mass to stick the rear tyres to the road. Most of the time, though, the 308 is a car you stroke along in the V8’s pleasure zone, enjoying the sound, the shift and the easy gait of the chassis.

The 348tb, replacement for the 308/328 line, would be here if it had been the step forward that was expected, but, while it introduced the monocoque body and a 3.4-litre, 300bhp version of the V8, installed longitudinally with a transverse gearbox (Ferrari F1 practice at the time), it didn’t hit the ground running. Well, unless you count spinning and hitting the grass bank on the inside of the corner, which the editor of Performance Car magazine did when we tested the new 348 against the (superior) outgoing 328 (the 3.2-litre evolution of the 308). Its poor dynamic balance was sorted by the time the Spider version arrived, four years later, but by then Honda had raised the mid-engined stakes with the clean-sheet NSX, which set new standards for handling, usability and refinement.

A more complete response was required and it was delivered in the very attractive shape of the F355, launched in 1994. Although under the skin it shared much of its

Above right, and right Spy this tail and try not to hum the Magnum, P.I. theme tune; interior is minimalist yet stylish nonetheless.

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MARANELLO’ S JUNIOR SUPERCARS As the V8 gives way to a V6, Octane looks back over ten generations of Ferrari greats DINO 308 GT4 1973-1980, PRICES FROM £35,000 Based on an extended version of the 246 Dino’s spaceframe chassis, making space for 2+2 seating and a 2.9-litre, transverse-mounted V8 with 252bhp. Not only the marque’s original mid-engined V8 but also the only mainstream Ferrari designed by Bertone. Launched as a Dino; Ferrari-badged from 1976.

308/328 GTB & GTS 1975-1989, PRICES FROM £45,000 Shorter, two-seat GT4 sibling with a dry-sump version of the same engine. Initially bodied in glassfibre; GTS targa followed in 1977. Fuel-injected from 1980, better on emissions but less power: 211bhp. 32-valve Quattrovalvole brought 237bhp in 1982. From 1985, 3.2-litre 328 offered 266bhp and a subtle facelift.

MONDIAL 1980-1993, PRICES FROM £25,000 Mondial 8 took over from the GT4 with 308 GTBi transverse V8. Quattrovalvole from 1982, Cabriolet from 1983, 328 V8 from 1985. The Mondial T from 1989 presaged the 348’s 3.4-litre 296bhp engine, mounted longitudinally with transverse gearbox as per every subsequent mid-engined V8 model. Last of the 2+2s.

348 TB, TS AND SPIDER 1989-1995, PRICES FROM £40,000 A new generation for Ferrari, bridging the gap between old-school Ferrari and the modern sports cars. Heavily revised 296bhp 3.4-litre version of 328’s quad-cammer, configured with the transmission in the same way as the Mondial T. Ferrari’s first full steel monocoque: hardtop, targa then full convertible from 1993.

F355 BERLINETTA AND SPIDER 1994-1999, PRICES FROM £60,000 Game-changer with new 3.5-litre version of the V8 including a raft of changes to transform it into a real screamer. Five-valve cylinder heads helped to push the power output to 375bhp at 8250rpm. Launched as a Berlinetta; convertible and GTS targa models from ’95; F1 ‘automated manual’ optional from ’97.

360 MODENA AND SPIDER 1999-2004, PRICES FROM £45,000 Another step-change, with steel monocoque ditched for an aluminium spaceframe and no more pop-up headlights. Upgraded 3.6-litre V8 saw power jump to 395bhp, six-speed manual remained popular, but interest in the F1 gearbox was growing.

Lightweight Challenge Stradale launched in 2003: 425bhp, 100kg less weight.

F430 AND F430 SPIDER 2004-2009, PRICES FROM £65,000 The Dino-derived engine was finally dispatched, with Ferrari developing an all-new 4.3-litre V8, producing 483bhp – significantly increasing the baby Ferrari’s performance. Computer-controlled E-diff, manettino control switch, majority with F1 trans. Track-focused Scuderia from 2007 version with 503bhp.

458 ITALIA 2009-2015, PRICES FROM £110,000 First of the breed to top 200mph. All-new platform, 4.5-litre version of 430 engine for 562bhp at 9000rpm – and gone was the option of a manual gearbox. New Getrag seven-speed dual-clutch leagues ahead of old F1, thankfully. Track-focused Speciale made 597bhp – arguably the peak of Ferrari’s naturally aspirated V8s.

488 GTB 2015-2019, PRICES FROM £125,000 Radical evolution of the 458, with a focus on increasing downforce while reducing drag. New 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8, which produces an incredible 661bhp. 2018 saw the introduction of the Pista, this generation’s track-focused version, with 710bhp, reduced weight and further improved aero.

F8 TRIBUTO 2019-2023, PRICES FROM £210,000 Last of the production series mid-engined V8 Ferraris saw the return of quad tail-lamps for the first time since the F430. Advanced aero and 710bhp engine with turbo-lag reduction helped make it the fastest V8 thus far. Ferrari launched the V6-powered 296 GTB in 2021 – a spiritual return to the days of the 246 Dino.

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metalwork with the 348 and the styling changes were quite subtle, the 348’s awkwardness was gone: the softer-edged F355 looked sensational. Better still, it drove like it looked.

The V8 had been upscaled again, to 3.5 litres, but bigger news was that it was newly equipped with five valves per cylinder for better breathing, helping raise peak power to 375bhp and the redline to a stratospheric 8500rpm.

I recall going to Maranello for a first drive and being blown away not just by the engine and looks but by the whole package, how well it did everything. Thirty years later, dropping into the driver’s seat of Scott Tyler’s very tidy GTS, some odd details leap out, like the weird air vents and grilles at the ends of the dashboard, carried over from the 348. The driving position, too, which is low-slung and has the steering wheel a little bit laid-back, like a kart’s, which is apt, as it turns out.

The airbag-equipped steering wheel is quite slabby but the rim is thin and at modest speeds it’s quite light yet it’s also alive with decent feedback. The dry-sumped V8 is mounted very low (and got ever lower in subsequent models until it looked like it must be in the basement) and you get that reassuring feeling from the driver’s seat that all the mass of the car is beneath you.

There’s quite a resonance from the engine just shy of 2000rpm but thereafter it’s super-smooth, with a light, effortless note. It’s a little shy on torque, so when you want to get a shift on you need to stir the gears and get the revs up, though with a slick, positive and wonderfully tactile gearshift and an engine that spins so freely, you can’t help

1996 Ferrari F355 GTS Engine 3496cc 40-valve V8, DOHC per bank, flat-plane crankshaft, dry sump, Bosch Motronic fuel injection and management Power 375bhp @ 8250rpm Torque 268lb ft @ 6000rpm Transmission Six-speed manual transaxle, rear-wheel drive Steering Rack and pinion, powerassisted Suspension Front and rear: double wishbones, coil springs, telescopic dampers, anti-roll bar Brakes Vented discs, ABS Weight 1350kg Top speed 183mph 0-62mph 4.7sec

taking every opportunity, the V8 spinning towards 9000rpm with ease. It’s a proper buzz.

The F355 is easy to drive briskly, too, its ride comfortable, the car feeling planted, though with the GTS’s roof panel stowed behind the seats, there’s a little bit of body shake and a little bit of shimmy through the wheel. That vanishes almost completely when you lock the panel in position and the GTS feels as solid as the GTB coupé at speed. Peel enthusiastically into tighter corners and it feels agile and settled, and if you chase the throttle the rear slips in a natural, predictable, composed way, like a kart. All these years on, the magic is still there.

The 360 was a radical re-imagining of the mid-engined V8. All-aluminium in construction and with a form much more strongly influenced by the wind tunnel, its shape was

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Top, far left and above Outside and in, the F355 is an evolution of the imperfect 348 – they got it right this time; engine is a scintillating 40-valve 3.5-litre with 375bhp.

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2001 Ferrari 360 Modena Engine 3586cc 40-valve V8, DOHC per bank, flat-plane crankshaft, dry sump, Bosch Motronic fuel injection and management Power 394bhp @ 8500rpm Torque 275lb ft @ 4750rpm Transmission Six-speed manual transaxle, rear-wheel drive Steering Rack and pinion, power-assisted Suspension Front and rear: double wishbones, coil springs, telescopic dampers, anti-roll bar (pushrod actuation at rear) Brakes Vented discs, ABS Weight 1350kg Top speed 183mph 0-60mph 4.5sec

‘ YOU DON’ T HAVE TO VENTURE This page and opposite, top 360 Modena was a step-change from the F355, on a new platform and with a bigger version of the V8 – visible through the engine cover; interior more practical if less charming.

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clean and unfussy but not especially handsome. The rear buttresses were gone but by way of compensation the 360 was the first Ferrari with a glass window framing the engine: peer in and you’ll see the aluminium rear subframe surrounds and the even lower-mounted V8 topped by a pair of cast intake plenums. Gorgeous.

Its engine was a 394bhp (400 in metric), 3.6-litre evolution of the F355’s, again with five valves per cylinder, and so it could have been the 365 Modena, except Ferrari and 365 will forever mean Daytona.

Now, 25 years since it was revealed, the shape of the 360 seems finally to have come of age, though it’s certainly helped by the rare, dark metallic green – Verde Zeltweg – of Phil Maidment’s fine example. The interior is a bit less appealing. I remember it looked pretty stylish on the launch but, while this car’s blend of black and cream leather is fine, the chunky matt aluminium looks a little clumsy. It’s not as cosy as the 308 or F355 either, feeling wider and roomier and also taller-built, with a higher seating position.

A manual 360 is a rare thing, only about three in ten being equipped with three pedals, but it’s a beautiful manual, every bit as good as the F355’s: very tactile, very Ferrari. It has just the right amount of friction across the gate and when the gear goes home the lever clacks against the gate, while good engine mapping and an easy clutch help make it a joy. Even so, as with the others, it’s at its sweetest when you put in the effort.

It’s a bigger car than the F355, wider and longer in the wheelbase, and a little heavier yet has very similar size tyres: 215/45 ZR18 on the front (a section narrower) and 275/40 ZR18 at the rear (a section wider). There’s a little more urge for the rears to deploy, the 3.6-litre V8 being equipped with two-position exhaust cam timing and variable intake lengths, both of which increase low-end torque.

It’s a more tractable engine than the F355’s, keener and more aggressive in tone. You don’t have to venture all the way to the 8500rpm redline but you will because it’s so eager and such a thrill, especially with (in this case) an aftermarket Capristo exhaust. Inside you don’t really hear it – it sounds pretty standard – but from outside it’s spectacular, strongly metallic with a thrilling top-end wail.

In the last 12 months this car’s had new dampers, new ball joints, new discs and pads, and it drives just as I remember it from the launch; better, maybe. It’s got real poise: follow the 308 or F355 and you can see them heave over big bumps so you know what’s coming, but the 360 absorbs and controls in one movement. No fuss, no secondary motion, and the steering is very settled on-centre, too, giving a positive, quality feel.

Make bigger steering inputs and it gets quite quick, the response quite bright, and it’s the same in cornering.

Where the F355 feels low-slung, settled and takes a few degrees of slip naturally, the 360 feels up on its

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WHAT THE MARKET MAKES OF THIS TRIO

Ferrari’s junior supercars tread a fine line between availability and exlusivity, says Brian Rabold

toes. Traction control steps in seemingly the moment the rear even thinks about getting moving, so it’s not as relaxed or relaxing as the F355.

The pick of the bunch? It’s very close, a photo finish. The 308 is a lovely thing: so engaging and satisfying to drive, with a chassis and gearshift that reward skilled hands and will entertain you for years. Its V8 brims with character and packs a decent enough punch to make every drive interesting, and, of course, it’s the best looking mid-engined car ever made, so when you’re not driving it you can just polish it or simply admire it.

The 360 is much more appealing than expected. It has an astounding engine and remarkable poise and is so fast.

It’s also much more engaging with the manual than the F1 automated ’box and looks fabulous in this rare colour.

However, you get most of the excitement of the 360 motor in the F355, certainly enough for the road, and handling that is more natural and exploitable. It also looks terrific, second only to the 308 GTB in mid-engined V8 Ferraris, so for me it’s the 8500rpm sweet spot of this trio.

THANKS TO the owners, and to Ben Maidment for transporting the 360, which is for sale. If you are interested in buying it, call Phil Maidment on +44 (0)7977 440923.

FERR ARI 360 APPRECIATION LEADS ITS PEERS P E R C E N TA G E G R O W T H O F AV E R A G E H A G E R T Y P R I C E G U I D E VA L U E S .

S E P T E M B E R 2 0 2 1 I S 10 0 %

The mid-engined V8 supercar has become a large part of Ferrari’s brand identity, but it hasn’t always been that way.

Following the Dino, and moving away from a long line of front-engined V12 sports cars and GTs, the 308 series deftly used this layout to usher the prancing pony into the ’80s, and the subsequent F355 and 360 carried the theme across the millennium. Production numbers were high enough to put these models onto streets around the world, but still low enough to impart exclusivity – an equation Ferrari has continued to evolve ever since. As a result, the mid-mounted V8 has turned out to be one of the marque’s most important form factors.

Today, enthusiasts recognise the collectability and the driving dynamics of the 308, F355, and 360, and all three models are in demand. That demand hasn’t translated to big appreciation for each car, however. Over the last three years, prices for both the 308 and F355 have increased by a modest 7%, lagging behind inflation, while the 360 has jumped a more significant 37%.

The past year has been quieter, much like the broader market, with the 308 retreating by 5%, the F355 holding steady, and the 360 increasing by 3%.

On average, a 308 runs about £65,000, with injected cars selling at a discount, and Quattrovalvole and closed cars earning higher amounts. Good vetroresina cars usually exceed £100,000, mainly due to their rarity. The F355 is priced slightly above a 308 due to its more modern performance and sells for around £70,000 depending on spec and condition, though a series of six-figure sales in France this year for the GTS models indicates more upward movement coming. The 360 is the newest of the group with performance to match, and therefore priced the highest. Modena coupés typically range around £75,000, Spiders at about 25% more. Challenge cars occupy the hierarchy’s pole position, and sell above £185,000.

Multiple factors drive the market for these cars. First, models from the 1980s, ’90s, and 2000s are having a moment. Enough enthusiasts who came of age during that era have entered the stage of their life where they can afford to buy some of the hero cars of their youth. The ownership stats for these models skew towards 50-somethings, with the F355 enjoying the most youth appeal of the three. Secondly, these cars are still relatively affordable, as Ferraris go. Cheaper models either have more seats or are less sporting, making this trio attractive first Ferraris for emerging collectors. An F430 or a 458 is a step-change in performance, but will also cost significantly more.

Looking ahead, demographics work in favour of the F355 and 360 in particular, which should provide a steady supply of buyers. The 308, having bowed in the 1970s, is emblematic of its era, but speaks less directly to the younger set.

When looking for any of these models, the usual factors come into play. Continuous ownership history and extensive maintenance records inspire confidence. Low miles fetch a premium, though buyers looking to take advantage of these cars’ great driving dynamics should thoroughly question what they get for the extra scratch. Low mileage might lend peace of mind that the car hasn’t been abused, but marring that odometer reading may also be unwanted baggage you carry with you during every drive. For cars where an F1 transmission was available, a gated shifter is rarer, more fun, and in higher demand than paddles. It will also be easier to market when it’s time to sell.

Regardless of where the values for these cars head in the future, each represents a key moment in Ferrari’s modern history, and each will provide an exhilarating drive.

Brian Rabold is the Vice President of Automotive Intelligence at Hagerty 68

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AUTO UNION SCHNELLSPORTWAGEN

WITHOUT FURTHER ADO

Audi Tradition has unveiled the Auto Union Type 52 Schnellsportwagen – only 90 years since it was designed.

Glen Waddington takes an exclusive ride with Hans-Joachim Stuck Photography Stefan Warter / AUDI AG

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‘There might be flames, you should stand back!’ smiles Timo Witt, head of the historical car collection at Audi.

We’re at a secret location, a few miles from the company HQ at Ingolstadt, to witness some of the earliest movements of the Auto Union Type 52. The reason for our covert operations? This car was conceptualised in the 1930s though not built. Until now. Octane is here as part of a shakedown; as you read this, you may have seen racing legend HansJoachim Stuck drive the car up the hill at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, where it made its public debut.

As I stand, now a few metres from those paired, broad, ovoid, bright-finished and potentially lethal tubes, Herr Stuck has just arrived and will shortly drive the car for the first time. And I will be its first passenger.

So, what are we looking at here? Audi Tradition refers to the Auto Union Type 52 as the ‘Schnellsportwagen’. The name translates as ‘fast sports car’, which it undoubtedly would have been, given that it is a three-seat mid-engined fastback bred from the Auto Union racing cars of the era, drawn-up originally by none other than Ferdinand Porsche to be powered by a 200bhp version of the Auto Union Type A’s 4.4-litre V16 engine.

Auto Union AG was formed in 1932 from the merger of Audi, DKW, Horch and Wanderer. The company sought to make its name internationally through motorsport, and an initial order for a Grand Prix car had actually been made in 1931 by Wanderer director Hermann Klee to Stuttgart-based Ferdinand Porsche. Porsche had founded his own consulting firm following a period at Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft and, after its merger with Benz & Cie, at Mercedes-Benz, where his work had culminated in the supercharged Mercedes-Benz SSK that dominated racing in the 1920s.

For Auto Union Rennabteilung (‘racing department’), which was established at the Horch works in Zwickau, he developed a series of Grand Prix cars. Based on his own existing P-Wagen project, they would compete in the new 750kg formula that set no limits on engine capacity or power but stipulated that the weight of the car without driver, fuel, oil, water and tyres was not allowed to exceed that figure.

Financial support was forthcoming from the German Government and from 1934 to 1937 Auto Union cars won 25 races, driven by the likes of Hans Stuck (father of HansJoachim), Tazio Nuvolari, Bernd Rosemeyer and Achille Varzi. It set world records, dominated hill climbs around Europe, took three German championships and won the 1936 European Championship. Job done, you might think, but there was an idea to develop a street-legal car, too.

Enter the Schnellsportwagen, a GT racer that has foundations in the 1930s ‘Silver Arrows’ era but which didn’t get beyond the drawing board. There had been plans for it to be sold to customers for road-racing in events such as the Mille Miglia or at Le Mans, but, although a test car was planned, the project foundered in 1935. In its day, it would easily have been one of the most powerful cars that could be used on public roads. Now, nearly 90 years on, it has finally been completed following a painstaking and analytical construction process (not to mention a degree of informed interpretation) in conjunction with British historic racing car specialist Crosthwaite & Gardiner – which, of course, is already renowned for its re-creations of Auto Union Silver Arrows racers for Audi’s own collection. The Type 52 will soon join them.

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‘The project began with surviving documents, plans and design sketches’ There’s a flurry of activity around the car as the Audi Tradition engineers begin the half-hour starting procedure.

That includes spinning-up the V16 without spark plugs to build oil pressure in the crankcase, then re-fitting the plugs and priming the carbs with a special methanol mixture until – finally – the lengthy whirr of the starter motor results in an explosive response, very assertive, popping then barking crisply as all those cylinders fire before settling to a surprisingly smooth, whining idle. No flames, and nothing like as ear-splitting as the single-seater Type C (it’s here, too, for pre-Goodwood testing) will turn out to be.

This is only the second time the car has run, and its first on home territory. Hans-Joachim’s first time, too. Nervous?

‘Not really, but in this case just seeing the car for the first time is giving me goosebumps,’ he says. ‘It’s incredible to see, like looking back in time, only this is not a re-creation.

This is the real thing.’

The project began with surviving documents, plans and design sketches, which included the outlines of the sleek and stunning streamliner coachwork and suggested a ladderframe chassis and torsion-bar suspension with hydraulic dampers. While a wheelbase of 3m was apparent in the sketches, it became evident that a stretch to 3.3m was necessary in order to accommodate the front suspension, steering, mid-mounted engine and transmission, as well as a central driving position with two passengers set slightly aft, one on each side.

There are wire wheels and drum brakes, as per the Type A, the 29-gallon fuel tank is located behind the seats in order to optimise weight distribution whether it’s full or empty, while the interior features the same instruments as used in the Grand Prix cars, only with a less utilitarian finish, and suitably luxurious appointments such as a wooden dash, similar in character to those of the opulent Horch road cars of that era. Perhaps not surprisingly, the body is finished in the same silver hue as the Grand Prix cars.

A further development is the fitment of an engine to Type C specification, a supercharged 6.0-litre V16 that runs on a methanol, toluene and super unleaded mix to produce a maximum output of 520PS – that’s rather more than the 200PS suggested back in 1934. ‘More power is always good!’

Hans-Joachim Stuck winks. There is a starter motor and there are exhaust silencers, so it’s a little more cultured than the open-wheeled racer. The five-speed gearbox comes from

Opposite Handcrafted in the old-fashioned tradition

by British artisans to a German design – existing sketches described the streamliner bodywork and mechanical layout.

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‘It’s soon clear that this enormous proto-GT can accelerate very quickly’

the Grand Prix car, though with a lower axle ratio as per the twin-wheeled hill climb version, so it’s geared for a maximum speed around 200km/h.

Stuck and I are instructed to get suited and don helmets ahead of a solo run for the racer to acquaint himself before I clamber in alongside. The Type 52 is fully 5390mm in length; that’s about 120mm longer than a Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit, so decanting it from the hangar and over to the test track takes care and not a few moments. The racer gets in, negotiating past the left-hand passenger seat to avoid getting caught up in the right-hand gearshift. He fires the V16, it barks, he selects first and gently moves away towards the long straight.

It’s soon clear that this enormous proto-GT can accelerate very quickly. With a burr and a whine, it gathers pace into second, the voice deepens, there’s a bit less gear-whine and it thunders up into third. Its sonorous, resonant, quavering exhaust note fills the air and bounces off the buildings. We don’t see fourth, the straight isn’t long enough, but just to watch the car in motion is genuinely a moving occasion, particularly for those with a closer involvement in its creation. Timo Witt smiles broadly; there’s relief in his eyes.

The car pulls up, I tug the suicide-style passenger door open and sneak inside. The Type 52 measures 1780mm across but I keep myself as compact as possible, not wishing

to cramp Herr Stuck; thankfully there’s a narrow footplate offset to the left, by the door, so I’m braced in place. There are no belts.

Stuck selects first gear and we are underway, speed burgeoning, into second, a brief shock through the driveline then he’s on the power and the cabin fills with noise, the glorious voice of that V16, gravelly yet also seamless, far from uncouth and overlaid by first the whine and then the shriek of the supercharger. It’s warm in here, as much from the sun on the silver body as what’s generated by the huge mill behind. The view through the visor-like three-piece windscreen amplifies the sensation of speed, which builds beyond 150km/h, the tacho needle heading towards 4500rpm, but then he’s on the brakes, hauling this 1450kg ultra-limo back, just making the turn at the end of the straight, ready for the return run.

Stuck is obviously enjoying himself. He’s talking me through the process, I can just about make out his mentioning the heft of the steering, the strength of the engine, and he’s smiling, nodding, joyful in his approval.

As am I. The test-drive is over all too soon, but what a privilege to have shared it.

‘I feel honoured to drive it,’ he tells me later, after he’s conducted a similar run in the single-seater Type C racer.

We sit and chat in the hangar over bottles of water. ‘It’s an

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Clockwise, from right Hans-Joachim Stuck (on left) and Glen Waddington prepare for the test run; at speed on the straight; streamlined tail is louvred for maximum engine cooling.

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AUTO UNION SCHNELLSPORTWAGEN

Clockwise, from left Mid-mounted supercharged 6.0-litre V16 is vast; Glen Waddington speaks to Audi Tradition’s Timo Witt; emblem proudly worn on the nose; seats for three and a central driving position.

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outstanding experience. The detail work is excellent; engine, gearbox, brakes, all terrific. The steering maybe needs a little work, there’s not enough left-hand lock, but that’s a minor thing. It has plenty of power, gets to 150km/h so quickly.’

Of course, Stuck is used to driving the mid-engined Type C, but the Type 52 was a first for him. They share so much, so how does the Schnellsportwagen compare? ‘It’s totally different to the race car. I’m always shocked by the noise in the Type C, you have to have ear plugs. This is a roadgoing car, and if you had the chance, why not? My way of driving is 100% concentration and this is that kind of car. No safety systems, no distraction. This is real driving.’

THE STORY OF the Type 52 dates back to 1934, and even its modern-era construction is the product of a decade of work. ‘We always had in mind that the Silver Arrows family was not complete,’ Timo Witt tells me as the Type 52 is loaded back into the transporter and Hans-Joachim Stuck

heads away in his present-day Porsche 911T. ‘We were fascinated by the visionary thinking of building a road car from a Grand Prix racer. The fact that we had an Auto Union 16-cylinder engine available helped us at Audi to start this project.’ That was in 2013.

Auto Union’s HQ was in Chemnitz, a city in eastern Germany that fell under Soviet control in 1945, and as a result many of the drawings disappeared when Auto Union AG was dissolved. However, the plans that survived provided a clear vision of the direction of development, not least a sketch of the outline and its four-door configuration.

‘One sketch shows comparison with the wheelbase of the Type A,’ says Witt. ‘We had a shroud for the radiator and needed to work out the headlamps. We knew the design of the steering, suspension components, brakes et cetera from the Type C, though not all aspects were designed in detail.

We had to feel our way along and close the gaps between ideas and reality.’

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AUTO UNION SCHNELLSPORTWAGEN

Hence the wheelbase stretch. And there were two design prospects to consider, either three or five seats. ‘A five-seater would have been so long, and the three-seater would keep the original shape. We believed this was a form-followsfunction situation – it doesn’t only look beautiful, we are hoping for good results in the wind tunnel, too.’

The rear doors provide necessary access to the midmounted engine, as well as to a pair of spare wheels. And as Witt concedes, the chassis was a major challenge. ‘It is not simply a pair of tubes, this is more of a substantial structure. Today’s shakedown gave us our first real experience of heat transfer: the Grand Prix car is open, so here the floor is open, there are fans and we made lots of louvres to let the heat out.’

Construction was carried out in the UK, with the project led by Crosthwaite & Gardiner, which built the chassis and mechanical components, while coachwork was carried out by Mouland & Yates and trimming by O’Rourke Coachtrimmers. ‘We had about ten, maybe 15 drawings, a schematic without the body, some options on wheelarches and so on,’ Ollie Crosthwaite tells me. ‘Overall, a surprising amount of information really, and of course, much was the same as the Grand Prix cars – and we had that knowledge already. As for what was missing, we had to think like the guy who designed it.’

The engine is a 6005cc supercharged V16, its paired cylinder banks set at 45º to each other for even firing intervals and a narrow footprint. A single, centrally mounted camshaft operates all 32 valves, via rocker arms for the

intake and pushrods for the exhaust – an arrangement not seen before, or since. In 1936, Laurence Pomeroy wrote in Motor Sport that ‘Dr Porsche’s original concept centred around the use of the largest engine possible within the very rigorous weight limit of 750kg.’

Here it produces peak power at 4500rpm, and is slightly different from those in the single-seaters thanks to a ring gear on the flywheel and a starter motor. ‘Over 600lb ft of torque!’ exclaims Crosthwaite. ‘We’re really pleased with the noise, not too over the top.’ And the chassis is mentioned again. ‘It’s nothing like the Grand Prix cars’; there were some drawings but not designed to the last detail. There was a lot of thinking time and working out, but it’s what we do, so nothing too tricky.’

Even the rear suspension is different, with torsion bars and hydraulic dampers instead of transverse leaf springs and friction dampers, very much in keeping with other cars designed later by Porsche. Every single component has been custom-made and handcrafted, not only those unique body panels but also the interior. There were drawings of the seat frames and, as Timo Witt says, ‘We went for an historically appropriate colour scheme.

‘We finished off the project they started 90 years ago,’ he concludes. ‘They would have faced exactly the same challenges we did.’

Stefan Trauf, head of Audi Tradition, has the last word: ‘This car gets people excited about design and technology.

Now, 90 years later, it finally gets to demonstrate the ingenuity of its creators.’ End

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ECURIE ECOSSE C-TYPE

Flying the Scottish flag Young Ecurie Ecosse driver Chloe Grant gets to grips with the Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar C-type at Goodwood. Matthew Hayward is Octane’s witness Photography Paul Harmer

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ECURIE ECOSSE C-TYPE

This page and opposite Racer and specialist car broker Gregor Fisken introduces Chloe Grant to the C-type before she gets a solo taste of Goodwood.

S

cotland has an extremely rich history of generating successful racing and rally drivers – Stewart, McRae, Coulthard, Franchitti, McNish, Clark, to name just a few. But when it comes to Scottish racing teams there’s one name that stands out: Ecurie Ecosse.

Translated from French, it means ‘Scotland stable’, and while this team put Scotland on the racing map when it won Le Mans in 1956 and 1957 with a Jaguar D-type, the team now focuses on supporting young Scottish drivers.

We’re at Goodwood today, joined by not just one, but two Scottish racing drivers. We suspect you are familiar with Gregor Fisken – as well as being the founder of Fiskens Fine Historic Automobiles in London, he happens to be rather a handy driver himself, having raced at Le Mans four times – but we’re also here to meet Chloe Grant, the first female Ecurie Ecosse team member. Not only that, having been born in Perth in 2006, she embodies the young, Scottish heartbeat of the team’s heyday.

The selection of machinery here at Goodwood – its Fisken’s own track-day – is phenomenal, including an Aston Martin DBR9, Blower Bentley recreation and none other than the 1962 Ecurie Ecosse Tojeiro-Buick. And sitting innocently in the paddock is one of the most significant racing C-types in existence. We’ll get into its history later, but for now all you need to know is that this is XKC006 – the original Ecurie Ecosse C-type, owned and raced by Ian Stewart, one of the team’s three founders.

Today is a celebration of Ecurie Ecosse, then, and what better way to celebrate than with its youngest modernday team member getting behind the wheel of one of the most important cars in the team’s history? Chloe has been racing since 2013, getting into karting at just seven years old. In 2020 she was the youngest driver to gain a Motorsport UK Racing Driver’s Licence. She was 13.

In 2021, she progressed into the Junior Saloon Car Championship after winning a scholarship to compete in the hard-fought Citroën Saxo-propelled series. She tells me: ‘It was good fun; being a junior category you just lean against one another, it’s kind of like bumper-car racing.

It was a good way for me to learn all the UK circuits for the future, like when I was racing in GB4 singleseaters. It was a great privilege to have that step into cars.’

Today she has four championship titles to her name, having followed the Saxos with single-seaters, entering the GB4 championship in 2022 and ranking ninth of 21 after eight rounds at circuits across the UK. For 2023, she earned a spot in the all-new F1 Academy, which is supported by Formula 1.

So today will be a slightly daunting step into the unknown, because not only is this her first time behind the wheel of a historic racing car of any kind, but also her first taste of Goodwood – a notoriously high-speed circuit, and the C-type’s spiritual home. She jokes: ‘I’ve only been out as a passenger and it’s very fast. Very cool, but no run-off at all so I’ve got to be careful. I’m just going to enjoy it, and not push the limits too much…’

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‘What better way to celebrate Ecurie Ecosse than with its youngest member getting behind the wheel of one of the most important cars in the team’s history?’

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ECURIE ECOSSE C-TYPE

‘The C-type is gleaming in its coat of Flag Metallic Blue and ready for action’

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As we’re chatting, attention turns back to the C-type.

It’s gleaming in its coat of Flag Metallic Blue – the team’s iconic colour scheme – and looks ready for action.

XKC006 was one of the first three customer C-types to be built, and had been earmarked for Edinburgh-born Ian Stewart by Jaguar engineer Lofty England. Stewart had been rather successfully racing an XK120 under the Ecurie Ecosse banner, with his relaxed driving style catching the eye of England. When presented with the offer, however, it left 22-year-old Stewart struggling to figure out how to pay for the upgrade. Team patron David Murray twisted his arm and, after selling the XK120 and taking out a loan for the rest, the deal was done – much to the displeasure of Stewart’s father!

Registered JWS 353 on 4 July 1952, the C-type was collected by Stewart and driven straight to the Jersey Road Race. Stewart recalled in period: ‘I set off from the works with some trepidation. Lofty England said: “See you win!” I was filled with foreboding and determination, his words ringing in my ears, but this was soon forgotten in the joy of the drive. A brand-new C-type smelling of fresh paint and without a single rattle was quite something.

I will never forget the noise – a combination of the deep exhaust note, and a peculiar “zinging” resonance in the bodywork you don’t hear in other cars. I reached the ferry in a mood of complete euphoria.’

The C-type, leaving the factory in British Racing Green, was so fresh that the drive down to Jersey, and around the local roads, was necessary for the running-in.

Stewart won that debut race, trouncing competition that included the Aston Martin DB3s of George Abecassis and Reg Parnell. A promising start, then.

The first-place finishes kept coming too, with Stewart claiming victories at Charterhall, Crimond, Turnberry, Curragh, Goodwood, and Castle Combe. Stewart actually bested Stirling Moss, who was driving another C-type, as well as Roy Salvadori in an Aston at Castle Combe. Just before the Goodwood race, the car was painted in the team’s now-legendary shade of Flag Metallic Blue.

Successes continued into 1953, with wins at Charterhall, Ibsley and in three races at Snetterton. Then, following Ecurie Ecosse’s purchase of the works C-types, XKC006 was listed for sale in November ’53.

Bought by Hans Davids of the Netherlands, it was raced in Europe – taking a win at Spa in ’54 – and was once again sold to a UK owner who used it for sprints and hillclimbs in 1955.

After a brief spell in the US from 1960, where it lived a slightly less exciting life, the C-type returned to the UK in 1973. It was at this point taken in by well-known collector Bill Lake, who commissioned an in-depth restoration by Lynx, under the watchful eye of expert Chris Keith-Lucas. It was returned to the correct shade of Flag Metallic Blue, a hue that’s widely debated. To be certain, the same cellulose paint was commissioned from original manufacturer Ault & Wiborg of Glasgow.

The car remained with Bill Lake for more than 30 years, eventually passing to his son and being offered via auction in the mid-2000s, still presenting very well. Ending up in the hands of American industrialist and financier Bill Binnie, XKC006 was once again prepared for racing, gaining a second engine. The original Ecurie Ecosse C-type then made its return to Goodwood for the first time in more than 50 years.

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ECURIE ECOSSE C-TYPE

Left and right A steep learning curve: at 18 years of age, racing driver Chloe Grant is already well-used to modern machinery, but Goodwood in the Ecurie Ecosse C-type is a new experience.

And what of Ecurie Ecosse? Of the team’s four F1 entries from 1952 to ’54, it registered just one finish on its last outing, crossing the line in 14th place. This result spurred the team to focus on sports car racing, which would eventually lead to the Le Mans 24 Hours victories in 1956 and ’57. Towards the end of the 1960s, Ecurie Ecosse also raced in a number of Formula 2 races, giving young upstarts Richard Attwood and Tom Walkinshaw a seat. Although the original team stopped operating in 1971, the name was revived in the 1980s, competing in the World Sportscar Championship and BTCC. In more recent years Ecurie Ecosse was supported by John Clark OBE, who has been keen to push some of Scotland’s up and coming racers – and is, in fact, one of Chloe’s sponsors. In 2023, she officially became a member of the team.

She has already been out in the course car for sighting purposes, then fellow Scot Gregor takes the wheel of the C-type for some warm-up laps to show her around the track in the car itself. Simply seeing and hearing it blast past at Goodwood is a real pleasure, the straight-six XK engine singing along the start-finish straight. I can only imagine how Chloe is feeling at this point – being entrusted with a car of this value and significance is quite a responsibility. After pulling into the pits, the two quickly jump out and switch places. With each pass, it’s possible to hear how her downshifts into the final chicane become better with each lap, and there’s increasing determination when getting on the power, too.

As the C-type pulls back into the paddock, both drivers emerge, beaming. ‘I can tell this girl knows how to drive!’ exclaims Fisken, then turns to Chloe. ‘You’ve got a really natural feel for it, it’s all just about learning what the car can do, and feeling what it wants to do. To be fair, it’s got

its full race engine and it’s got very low gearing for this track. What I love is that you feel the car, and you were driving it to the gearing that was there. Very good. We’ll have to get you into historic racing!’

Listening to Grant and Fisken in the debriefing offers further insight into the session. ‘The gearbox on it is very original, and it’s hard not to miss your change. We’ve got a newer gearbox that we’d put in for racing, but I think you’d take to it. And we didn’t have belts on, so you’ve got to be mindful of that! But that’s how they raced in the olden days, no seatbelts.’

Chloe chimes in: ‘It’s so different, and there’s basically zero grip. It really focuses the mind. I did notice how hot it was getting in the cabin, too.’

Gregor continues: ‘I’ve taken some guys from modern racing, and they get out wringing with sweat. Quite a lot of work is going on because all the time you’re just controlling it, and managing it. I had great confidence in you, really good in the braking area, when you’re trying to learn how to downshift as well. I think you can also see that it doesn’t turn-in like a modern car. I could see you were trying to go for the apex, and because the steering is so low-geared, you weren’t turning the wheel enough at the beginning. I think by the end of the day you’d be on the pace.’

Will Chloe get a chance to drive this Jaguar C-type in anger again? ‘That depends on who buys it!’ laughs Gregor. Clearly this is an important car that deserves to be seen and driven, and it certainly seems as though Chloe would be more than capable (and willing, naturally) to get behind the wheel again. Here’s hoping she gets the opportunity. End THANKS TO Fiskens Fine Historic Automobiles, fiskens.com.

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1928 H.M. B ENTLEY’S FINES T

THE LA ST HA RRISON TO URER

1927 S PEED MOD EL 200B HP LE MANS REP

B L U E RN

L E M AN S R EP N U M B ER 7

THRE E GE NE RATIO NS O F O NE FAMILY OWNERSHIP

AUDRAIN MUSEUM AND COLLECTION

Below the tip of the Audrain iceberg As the Audrain organisation grows, we take a look behind the scenes at the huge car collection that feeds it Words David Lillywhite Photography Matt Howell

YOU’VE PROBABLY HEARD about Audrain. You might have been to its prestigious Motor Week and Concours on the US East Coast, seen its sponsorship of the Goodwood Members’ Meeting or maybe even visited its museum in Newport, Rhode Island. But behind the scenes, there’s so much more. And so many cars! It’s the kind of set-up that needs a tour guide, and who better for that than Audrain CEO Donald Osborne: classic car valuer, writer, presenter and, of course, expert sidekick on Jay Leno’s Garage. We arrive at the museum outside of opening hours, Donald is on his way, and director and curator David de Muzio is on hand to give us a whistlestop history lesson of the museum.

It’s housed in a stunning building on one of the main shopping streets of desirable Newport, Rhode Island. If you’ve not been, you might be surprised by the town’s history, its dramatic coastline, and rows of historic shops, housing and uber-mansions, which date mostly from the turn-ofthe-century Gilded Era, with connections to the Vanderbilt family.

The museum building was originally built as a row of six shopfronts at street level and 11 offices above, by art and antiques dealer Adolphe L Audrain – so there’s the question of the name answered. Born in California in 1859 to Parisian parents, Adolphe got to know Newport when he summered there, and later speculated that New Yorkers also spending ten weeks every year in Newport could be in need of retail therapy. New York architect Bruce Price was commissioned in 1902 to design the building, drawing inspiration from the Florentine Renaissance with huge arched windows and a roof balustrade crowned with stone lions – it sounds preposterous but it worked, attracting dressmakers, jewellers, Brooks Brothers clothing and Pierce-Arrow and Indian Motorcycle dealerships.

Now it’s one of the most important buildings in the downtown area, but it’s been through its bad times, damaged in a 1938 hurricane and much later left neglected and tired. It was then that businessman and Audrain founder Nicholas Schorsch came to the building. He bought it and had it restored with the idea of using the upstairs as summer offices for his company and the downstairs for retail units – until it was suggested that would make the perfect site for a car museum.

That was in May 2014, and completely changed the scope of the planned renovation work, not least through the need for folding doors and ramps to allow cars to be moved around. By October 2014 the museum was open – and so that’s how we’ve come to be here almost a decade later. And as David finishes explaining the history, Donald arrives, trademark bow tie in place (of course). He immediately glides into action, showing us around the cars and the offices above, which are kitted out in period style (except for the computers…).

The car displays rotate four times a year – in the last decade there have been more than 350 of the Audrain Collection vehicles shown in this modest-sized museum, plus more than 60 cars loaned from Audrain members, other museums and collectors. The display you see in the pictures was the very literally named Stars of 30 Audrain Exhibitions, showcasing the favourites from the previous 30 line-ups, from Willie K Vanderbilt’s 1907 Renault to a 2013 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport Vitesse, and encompassing the famous Buick Y-Job concept and even the George Barris custom Corvette ‘Asteroid’.

And then we’re off in Donald’s Alfa Romeo for a quick drive to the nearby Audrain Motorsport Clubhouse, via some of the sights of

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Clockwise, from top right The gloriously gaudy Corvette ‘Asteroid’

by George Barris; Audrain CEO Donald Osborne shows Octane around; super-original 2500-mile Porsche 904; traditionally furnished club room is a petrolhead’s perfect escape; Pontiac GTO in a sea of muscle cars; what museum would be complete without a Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing?

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AUDRAIN MUSEUM AND COLLECTION

Clockwise, from top right, and opposite Supercars are bang up-to-date; Lillywhite confers with Donald Osborne in the Clubhouse; ATS 2500 GTS is a real rarity; Miura contrasts with Fiat 500 Jolly ‘beach car’; plenty of classic reading material on hand in the library; Toyota FJ shares space with classic ’bikes; more than 400 vehicles are kept in storage, yet make a superb display on their own.

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Newport. With the success of the museum and the concours, Audrain has started running tours and Cars & Coffee events, and gaining an enthusiastic membership to its Audrain Motorsport club. The Clubhouse provides a place for the members to congregate, while a nearby concierge car storage facility enables them to keep cars in the area.

The Clubhouse is anonymous from the outside, but usually houses around 18 vehicles in the main room, along with about 60 toys and pedal cars, all from the Audrain Collection. There’s also a traditionally furnished club room and an extensive library with bound volumes of such publications as The Automobile, The Motor, Sports Car Illustrated, Motor Sport and more, going back years.

Donald is in his element here, happy flicking through rare books and old magazines. He started working with Audrain as a consultant in 2016, helping with the inaugural Motor Week, before being asked to become CEO in 2019. Along with star appearances from Jay Leno, Donald has become the public face of the Audrain events and videos but laughs that really he has ‘at least 2½ jobs’.

We head back to Donald’s Alfa Romeo for the final part of the tour, which for us, in many ways, is the most exciting: this is the bit that no-one else gets to see. An old main dealer HQ building acts as storage for the bulk of the Audrain Collection – well over 400 vehicles. Modern and classic cars form the majority but there are trucks and motorcycles, too, crammed into one of those facilities that clearly once offered all the space the collection would ever need… and is now close to overflowing.

Incredibly, more recent purchases arrive while we’re there, and Donald talks of other cars kept ‘down south’, particularly pre-war models. The oldest there is an 1899 Crouch Steam Car.

Here, though, there’s plenty to take the eye, too. Nick Schorsch has a thing for yellow modern Porsches it seems, but they’re overshadowed by the older machinery. It’s impossible to get close to mentioning even the highlights but we’re drawn to the little red ATS 2500 GTS and two 1950s Pegaso coupés, from the renowned Begovich Collection. The ATS is Donald’s favourite of all the cars. There are nine ’69 Camaros, encompassing stock, restomod and mild custom. There’s a 1916 Packard Twin Six that narrowly missed out on a Pebble Beach class win, apparently due to a non-functioning clock. There are a Singerreimagined Porsche 911 and an Emory Outlaw 356, a Frogeye (OK, Bugeye here), a TR6 and a Subaru 360 nestled close to some of the big beasts: Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux and a Packard Twelve Rollston Landaulet ordered new by Doris Duke, heir to the American Tobacco Company fortune, when she was still in her mid-20s.

Donald spots another favourite, a 1949 Buick Roadmaster. ‘Life at 40mph is so wonderful,’ he smiles. We make a beeline for a 1985 Jeep Grand Wagoneer that oozes character, and spot a truly rare beast around the corner, in the strange shape of a Dan Gurney Alligator motorcycle – the one with the very low saddle for optimised centre of gravity.

It’s really quite overwhelming, with everything parked so tightly together, and we know that Donald needs time to catch up on his multitasking, so we take one last wander through the cars and say goodbye to the mechanics, knowing that we’ve finally seen at least some of the inner workings of the Audrain set-up. End VISIT audrainmotorsport.com, audrainautomuseum.org. The Audrain Newport Concours & Motor Week runs 3-6 October, audrainconcours.com.

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WILLIAM TOWNS COLLECTION

BULLDOG & THE PUPPIES

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We gather five motoring masterpieces by avant-garde designer William Towns – and drive all of them Words Mark Dixon Photography Jordan Butters

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WILLIAM TOWNS COLLECTION

O

ver the last couple of years, it seemed you could hardly pick up a car magazine without seeing some reference to the Aston Martin Bulldog. It looked like what it was – an outlandish, impossibly wild concept hypercar from another age – and yet on 6 June 2023 it finally realised the 200mph top speed that had been envisioned for it more than 40 years ago.

Bulldog’s owner is US collector and philanthropist Phillip Sarofim.

Working closely with Richard Gauntlett, who is the son of former Aston Martin company owner Victor Gauntlett and who had spent thousands of hours researching the car and talking with former employees at the Newport Pagnell works, he negotiated its purchase after years of comparative neglect. Highly respected Shropshire restoration company CMC was commissioned to bring it back to authentic 1980 condition, and on that historic June day in 2023 it blasted all the way to 205.4mph in Aston Martin factory racer Darren Turner’s hands.

It was truly a dream come true for Sarofim, a man with a passion for good design and a particular fondness for the British industrial designer William Towns, who died of cancer in 1993 at the tragically early age of 56. Today, Towns is best remembered for the 1967 Aston Martin DBS and the legendarily wedgy 1976 Aston Martin Lagonda, but he did so much more, as we profiled at length in Octane 234. During all the hoohah about the Bulldog’s restoration, not many people knew that Sarofim had also quietly acquired four other significant Towns vehicles – the Minissima, Microdot, Hustler and Tracer – and had tasked CMC with restoring them, too.

Now all five cars have been gathered together in the spectacular grounds of Woburn Abbey: the Bulldog reunited with her puppies.

Woburn was the location for a 1979 television interview with Towns and his cars – including the first appearance of the Bulldog – for the Thames TV show Wheels, and simply bringing all the cars back here for a photoshoot would be significant enough, but Octane has also been given exclusive permission to drive them. Including the Bulldog.

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1973 M I N I S SI MA The oldest car here is also one of the least assuming. There was a time when this fantastically futuristic yet tiny city car could have been produced by the huge monolith that was British Leyland, then at the height of its pomp, which presented it on the BL stand at the 1973 London Motor Show, rechristened ‘Minissima’ from Towns’ original and cleverly punning ‘Townscar’. What’s more, BL bought the commercial rights to the project for £20,000, equivalent to more than a quarter-of-amillion today. The deal was, however, that if they didn’t productionise it within two years, the rights would revert to Towns – which is exactly what happened.

Car congestion in cities was a hot topic even in 1973 and the Minissima was basically a new interpretation of the ‘bubble’ cars of the 1950s. It was, literally, a sharp-looking thing, thoroughly up-to-date in its wedge-nosed profile, but it used the well-proven Mini underpinnings of an 848cc A-series engine and 10in wheels. The only way in and out was by the sidehinged rear door, which was good in that the Minissima could be parked at right-angles to the kerb – it was fully 75cm shorter than a Mini – but less satisfactory in the event of a shunt from behind, in which case the occupants would be completely trapped.

The lack of side doors helps the Minissima’s astonishing interior packaging, however. It is a full four-seater, the rear passengers facing each other in close proximity. Richard Gauntlett sees this as a plus rather than a disadvantage: ‘Imagine a group of friends bouncing around the centre of a city, or toddling around between cafés in a French town! It’s the most sociable kind of motoring.’

Left and below Minissima’s cloth-trimmed interior conceals storage compartments under almost every flat surface; in profile you realise just how tiny it is, yet it seats four.

‘The Minissima could be parked at right-angles to the kerb – it was 75cm shorter than a Mini’

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WILLIAM TOWNS COLLECTION

Below and bottom BL’s parts bin was raided for an automatic Mini’s gear selector and gate, and a cleverly repurposed Marina door handle; wedgy front end a recurrent Towns hallmark.

The interior is completely trimmed in a hard-wearing tweed-like cloth, with loads and loads of storage bins under the multiplicity of flat surfaces.

Clever plundering of the BL parts bin resulted in a strip speedo and instrument cluster from the Austin 1100, and a Marina doorhandle laid horizontally to become a pull-up rear door release in a side console that also houses brightly coloured push-button switches, a radio, and the shift knob for the automatic transmission. Only the latter’s ancient curved metal quadrant looks out of place in this paean to the future, although it would have been easy enough to conceal behind a gaiter.

The seats are flat, short-backed and frankly not very comfortable; this is definitely not a car for long journeys. The four-speed auto ’box suits it well, however, and performance is perfectly adequate for city traffic. The step-through design means you could probably carry some pretty awkward loads in it, too. Unlike many concepts, the Minissima genuinely feels like a ‘real’ car that you could happily use every day – just so long as you avoid getting punted up the rear in a traffic jam.

This safety consideration may have been one of the reasons why BL never took Minissima any further forward. But the car lived on in another form: after BL dropped it, engineering firm GKN Sankey adapted the design as a prototype invalid carriage. This was taken up by bicycle maker Elswick, which in 1981 launched a very lightly tweaked version as the Elswick Envoy. Fewer than 200 were made up to 1987 but its Minissima origins are very obvious and, as such, it remains a rare example of a concept car that you can actually buy today.

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1976 M IC R ODOT William Towns’ widow Lizzie rates the Microdot as her favourite of her late husband’s city car concepts. Certainly, finished in vivid metallic green with full-width wheel covers and black trim accents, it looks wonderfully jewel-like and remarkably contemporary. The Microdot is a lot shorter than a Mini but four inches wider, which, as Towns pointed out, allowed him to fit three seats abreast and so give 75% of a Mini’s passenger capacity.

But the most revolutionary aspect of the Microdot is that it’s a hybrid electric vehicle. An electric motor drives the front wheels, and there’s a petrol-powered generator that was linked to a sensor and would be kickstarted into action when the battery level dropped below a certain point.

Search on YouTube for ‘William Towns Microdot’ and you’ll find a 1970s video showing Towns having half a gallon put into the tank by a petrol pump attendant and ostentatiously dropping a 50p piece into his hand.

Just as with BMW’s i3 Range Extender of 2013, the Microdot would rely on its onboard generator only to charge the battery, not for direct drive. Microdot’s generator, an authentic 1970s Honda unit, currently rests in another of its more intriguing (and practical) features: a fourwheeled metal shopping cart that slots into the rear of the car. Pull it away, fold out the handle and you’re ready to hit the supermarket.

Clockwise, from near left Microdot seats three across, though it’s snug for the lengthy; removable shopping cart slots into tail; vibrant interior features touchscreen controls for its electric motor.

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Left, above and opposite Tiny Microdot is a real character; Hustler’s unusual construction is evident at every corner, and it answers the question ‘what is it like to drive a greenhouse?’

While the basic structure of the Microdot, including its paired Mini subframes, remains original, modern battery technology has temporarily replaced the original wet-cell units so that the Microdot can be demonstrated. ‘Phillip likes to use his cars, and he didn’t want this to be a “barn find” that was restored only to sit around in a collection,’ explains Gauntlett. ‘The question we’ve faced with every one of these cars is: how far do you go – should you go – in “improving” them? The policy has been firmly to keep them as original as possible, the way that Towns designed them, however tempting it might be to change some things.’

Like the Minissima before it and the Hustler that would come after, the Microdot does not have side-doors cut into the bodywork. With each design, Towns provided a different form of access, and in the Microdot’s case it’s by lifting the large, flat side windows, which are hinged at the top and (thankfully, because they’re heavy) supported on gas struts. Even so, this generously proportioned six-footer can’t physically slide down between the low-slung wheel and the seat, so he has to enter on the passenger’s side and shuffle across. You end up not so much driving the Microdot as wearing it.

Intriguingly, you ‘fire up’ the Microdot by pressing a touchscreen, which can clearly be seen way back in the 1970s TV footage. Press the ‘forward’ button and all you then have to do is accelerate or brake. It’s a sprightly little thing, although it struggles a little on ascents; and nor does it like speed-bumps, when the tiny rubber rear wheels of the on-board shopping cart act like a dragster’s wheelie bar. But, then, speed-bumps weren’t nearly so ubiquitous in the less-circumscribed 1970s.

Curiously, while you’d expect the Microdot to be as near-silent as EVs are today, it’s actually quite noisy on the move, thanks to the drive chains that connect the motor to the front wheels. It’s amusing to drive, more golf cart than car, but its tiny dimensions make it considerably more eco-friendly than virtually any EV on the market today.

19 80 H U S TLE R Apart from his work for Aston Martin, this is the car for which Towns is best remembered; not least because more than 500 of them were sold. It’s probable that no two Hustlers are exactly alike, however, and not just because they were built up from kits by people (to quote author Richard Dredge) ‘who had enough money for either a conservatory or a car, but not both’. An incredible 72 different versions were offered by Towns over roughly a decade from its 1978 launch, including four- and six-wheel configurations, using the ubiquitous Mini subframes.

You could build a monocoque Hustler entirely from marine ply, like our feature car – Towns was very proud that this version was genuinely all-wooden, whereas the timber-chassis Marcos still used some steel – but most had a simple tubular steel chassis clad with GRP outer panels.

Originally, the plan was for the cars to be built in a corner of the thenrecently disused Jensen factory by post-bankrupty Jensen Special Products, but that came to naught and Towns ended up selling the kits direct. Over the years he came up with variants ranging from a basic pickup to a camper van (complete with towable trailer incorporating a shower and a toilet) and even an ice cream van. There was also a proposed amphibious Hustler, based on a Crayford Argocat with a detachable Hustler roof that could be upended and used as a boat.

The vast majority of Hustlers were simple glass-box runarounds, however. Front seats in the prototype were literally made from cut-down stackable plastic office chairs, but fortunately Towns’ own demonstrator, pictured here, is better-equipped with proper tombstone recliners. It’s the car that appears in an old promotional video showing Towns – nattily and very designerly dressed in a pale grey suit with white polo-neck jumper – driving into his nearby town of Moreton-in-Marsh before taking wife Lizzie to collect the kids from school. Four of them (‘Not ours, but one

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Below and bottom Hustler is built entirely of plywood and glass, using Mini subframes and front-wheel drive; a mechanical speedometer is hidden under the bonnet purely to record mileage.

was a neighbour’s,’ says Lizzie when I send her the link) are herded into the back of the Hustler to demonstrate its remarkable space utilisation.

Other than the massive lift-up rear hatch, there are no doors, just huge sliding side-panes of bronze-tinted glass, so you have to step over the body side and across a wide sill into what’s quite a tight footwell; once you’re in, however, behind the comically small and upright wheel, there’s masses of vertical space. Kit car interiors are where their builders can show their imagination and Towns’ own Hustler is an impressively steampunk combination of what appears to be recycled wardrobe, complete with brass corner pieces and inset Victorian brass handles, and early-1980s technology: the period video suggests a digital speedometer (no longer present) and a funky electronic trip computer (which is, although not the same as the one in the video).

To drive, it’s just like a Mini. The gearchange is horribly vague and springy but the steering is as sharp and direct as you’d expect, and the Hustler’s light weight means it actually feels more chuckable than a Mini.

Performance from the stock A-series is merely brisk but it’s certainly peppy enough to put a smile on your face. The full-width wooden roof hatch above the front seats folds open and, of course, you can drive with the massive side windows pushed back, giving what’s practically an opencar experience in a fixed-head.

Never one to rest on his laurels, Towns continued to evolve the Hustler through the 1980s, adding GRP box wheelarches and side-doors to create the more luxurious Force 4 and Force 6. But without a doubt, the most spectacular Hustler was the six-wheeled Highlander, of which only eight reputedly were sold. When you learn that it featured a 5.3-litre Jaguar V12, using XJ12 subframes, suspension and brakes, that low take-up suddenly makes sense.

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19 86 T XC TR AC E R It’s a shame that the Tracer (what the ‘TXC’ stands for is unclear – ‘Towns Experimental Concept’?) isn’t better remembered because, like so much of Towns’ work, it’s brilliant in its simplicity. In that 1979 Wheels TV interview, presenter Tony Bastable mentioned the rumour that Aston Martin had been in talks with British Leyland about producing an MGB replacement. He produced a sketch pad, laid it on the bonnet of Bulldog and invited Towns to outline his suggestion for a new MG – and what Towns drew on the pad is in essence a hardtop version of the Tracer.

The prototype Tracer’s first public showing was at the National Sports Car Show in July 1986, held at the Compton Verney country estate in Warwickshire; hardly a high-profile event, which probably tells you something about its viability as a serious MG replacement. But not only is it a great-looking car – heavily influenced by the Bulldog, right down to the inset panel in the bonnet that drops down to reveal a Bulldog-clone quad-headlight display – it’s an extremely practical one, too.

Like the Microdot before it, the Tracer’s interior is a one-piece drop-in glassfibre moulding: seats, side trim and all. Unlike the Microdot, however, in the Tracer the whole pedal box and dash assembly can be slid backwards or forwards to accommodate drivers of different heights. Such a radical approach is Chapman-esque in its thinking (the Lotus founder once considered making complete house roofs from glassfibre) and it means the Tracer would have been extremely simple to construct, using just seven exterior glassfibre panels on a tubular steel frame; running gear is stock MG Metro Turbo. It’s no coincidence that Towns finished the Tracer in oh-so-’80s Dayglo red over white, mimicking Austin Rover’s

Above and top Wedgy Tracer could easily have been an MG roadster of the 1980s, yet remains a one-off; no doors, so single-piece interior is accessed by climbing in over the body sides.

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own 1984 MG Midget proposal, styled by Gerry McGovern – whatever happened to him?

The Tracer was never constructed to be a road-legal prototype; it was intended only to shuttle inside and out of exhibition halls. Except CMC has worked its usual miracle and the Tracer not only now drives, but feels remarkably sorted – apart from the suspension, which is in effect solid. There are no doors, so entering requires you literally to step over the body side and onto the seats, which are overlaid with lift-out washable cushions. Towns told Motor magazine that being doorless was part of the ethos of the back-to-basics nature of a 1930s MG and would improve side-impact protection, although doors could always be incorporated: ‘I envisage production runs of 3000 to 5000 per year,’ he said. ‘If the level is kept to 3000, the original doorless concept will be adequate – but whether there are 5000 extroverts is another matter…’

From inside, the car feels very low, very light and very long; the base of the windscreen looks about three feet in front of the steering wheel.

That impression of lightness is enhanced by the deliciously tactile steering, although you have to wonder about front-end lift at speed – and the 1300 turbo engine certainly gives the car plenty of poke. There’s an encouraging whistle from behind your left ear, as you row it along with a neat little manual gearstick on the centre console.

Imagine this car with Hydragas suspension and all the detailing resolved, selling for a price a young blade could afford. With its ultra-low profile and dramatic speedster-style pods behind the headrests, it looks a million dollars while potentially being one of the cheapest sports cars to make and sell. ‘Your mother wouldn’t like it’, but you would have loved it. The Tracer was certainly my favourite of all the cars here.

‘The 1300 turbo engine certainly gives the car plenty of poke’

Right and opposite Extraordinary roof-mounted stereo console is integral to Bulldog’s incredible interior – and would you expect any less when it looks like this on the outside?

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19 80 A S TON MA RTI N BU LLDOG If the Tracer is sublime in its simplicity, then the Bulldog is ridiculous in its sheer excess: a twin-turbo V8, that 205mph top speed, and razoredge styling that suddenly makes Tesla’s Cybertruck look old-hat. Very few people have ever driven it, so getting the chance to stretch its legs on public roads is an incredible privilege.

Inevitably, the first challenge is climbing aboard. Feed right leg under steering column (the Bulldog is left-hand drive), duck your head under the roof and over to the right, pull your left leg in and then press the switch to close the electric door, which wraps right around and under.

But check first that the unfastened lap belt isn’t dangling over the sill, because there’s a worry that if the door powers down onto it, the door glass could crack…

CMC has made a beautiful job of the interior, which has been retrimmed in its original brown leather after an unfortunate post-Aston spell in cream. The whole thing looks perfect, from the ridiculously complicated Panasonic sound system in the roof, right down to the

lower-case ‘computer font’ labelling for the switchgear and the LED digital read-outs on the dash. The latter are extremely hard to read on the road and desperately need back-lighting, but Richard Gauntlett reminds me that, as with all the cars, originality has been the watchword throughout, so that’s how they remain. Not surprisingly, you don’t so much sit in the Bulldog as recline as if you were taking a bath, and the front end is completely invisible from the driver’s seat, but its sheer sides from the door-glasses down mean that its width is easy to judge by taking the bases of the triangular quarterlights as your sighting points.

To drive, well… monstrous is the only word. The turbocharged V8 is amazingly free-revving – the lightest dab on the accelerator spends the revs spinning – and it has a properly guttural, rumbling voice: not raw like a NASCAR racer’s but undeniably muscular. Getting underway smoothly is an acquired art, since the clutch is pretty much in or out with nothing in between, and the trick is to let it in with minimal revs and then feed in the power. The steering is also incredibly heavy – something Car 105

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magazine’s Mel Nichols also remarked upon, after a brief drive at Mallory Park in 1980 – but once you’re moving along and the road opens out, it all comes together and the Bulldog stops snarling at you and becomes, if not a docile pet, then at least a biddable one. The ride isn’t bad, although the suspension travel is so limited and the car’s so low that you really need to anticipate any sudden dips in the road when travelling at speed.

Which you almost certainly will be, because this car is just bonkersly fast; proper jet-fighter fast. That thundering V8 behind your head just keeps pulling and pulling, and the car is so low and well-planted (there’s a de Dion axle out back) that it feels invincible, on a dry road at least.

The five-speed gearbox, with dog-leg first, shifts easily and the compact steering wheel delivers just the right amount of feel and feedback, its low-speed contrariness forgotten. Beware the brakes, though: an initial softness suddenly transforms into instant bite, and then you’ll be made brutally aware of just how powerful they are.

Richard Gauntlett recalls how driving the Bulldog back from Goodwood’s Festival of Speed in 2022 turned into what could have been a nightmare journey, thanks to motorway gridlock and a diversion onto a narrow road festooned with speed-bumps – all things you don’t want to experience in this car. But the Bulldog coped admirably and, particularly on a fast, flowing open road like we have today, it feels remarkably of-a-piece. The confidence of William Towns and Aston’s engineers in the late 1970s now seems entirely vindicated, 45 years on.

A postscript: we’re parked in the Bulldog at one of the entrances to the Woburn estate, when a delivery van pulls in behind and the driver gets out to take a phone snap. He’s not a car magazine reader and he’s not been following the story of the Bulldog’s resurrection, but he knows exactly what it is. ‘I saw it coming towards me and I instantly recognised the four headlamps in the bonnet from my old Top Trumps playing cards,’ he says. William Towns would probably have been rather chuffed about that.

Clockwise, from below Gullwing doors are all part of the Bulldog’s crazy period appeal; louvred rear hides a twin-turbo V8 that pushed it beyond 205mph; richly trimmed cabin features LED read-outs.

THANKS TO the Duke of Bedford for his kind permission to use Woburn Abbey and Estate as the location, woburn.co.uk; restorer CMC, classic-motor-cars.co.uk; and to Phillip Sarofim, Richard Gauntlett, Lizzie Cariss and David Barzilay for their help with this feature.

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Ben Cussons As the outgoing chairman of the Royal Automobile Club hands on to his successor, Robert Coucher quizzes him about the evolution of this great British institution Photography Paul Harmer

THE AUTOMOBILE CLUB of Great Britain was formed in 1897 as a private social club. The Prince of Wales at the time was a petrolhead and, shortly after, decreed that it should become the ‘Royal Automobile Club’. The organisation grew rapidly and moved to its grand location at 89 Pall Mall in 1911, which was followed by the purchase of Woodcote Park in Epsom in 1913, a palatial estate that boasted 350 acres and two 18hole golf courses. The idea was to encourage motorists to drive to the country club and enjoy some light recreation.

In 1999, the decision of the members of the Royal Automobile Club to sell the roadside assistance arm could have sent it spiralling into ‘golf club’ oblivion.

Fortunately, a stalwart team led by Ray Wiltshire created a motoring committee to put the automobile back at its epicentre. Ben Cussons was a member and became head of the motoring committee in 2008, then chairman of the club six years ago. Now, exactly 25 years since Ray Wiltshire’s historic move, is a good time to reflect on the journey the club has taken, as chairman Cussons hands over the reins to Ray’s son, Duncan Wiltshire.

HRH Prince Michael of Kent has been the President of the Royal Automobile Club since 1979, so the ‘Royal’ connection is very much alive and well and the role of chairman is a serious appointment. Not that Cussons appears to take himself too seriously. Bright, fit and usually smiling, he has the appearance of a man of action, being a keen racing driver, shot, skier, fisherman, marathon runner and… a bad golfer. He communicates in quick, clipped barks and moves along swiftly, so you need to keep up as he bustles about his mews garage or

zooms around the halls of the impressive St James club, stopping to talk with staff all the way. You’d think he’s ex-Army whereas he’s actually a former yachtsman.

‘I have always had a passion for cars and motorbikes and was lucky as I had a stepfather who was really keen on cars. He bought, sold and raced a variety of machines, including a B36 Chevron and an Elva Courier, which I helped rebuild. So there were constantly cars and ’bikes about our place in Cheshire, where I grew up, and we were always going to events such as sprints, races and concours. I fondly remember the Wiscombe Park Hill Climb. We’d go for the Aston Martin Owners Club meeting; the whole family would traipse down in convoy to Devon.’

Clearly an adventurous sort, Cussons spent five years sailing around the world before settling closer to home: ‘Trans-Atlantic to the Caribbean, then up to the East Coast of the States – Long Island, Connecticut.

Then back down to the Galapagos, where we were demasted. Across to Australia, New Guinea then back to Europe via Panama.’ He then studied Maritime Business Law and became a ship broker in the City.

‘I found myself a young fellow in London in the mid1990s, mad keen on cars, so I thought I should join a club. My late stepfather was good friends with Ray Wiltshire. Ray was running the infamous Classic Cavalcade down to Le Mans, which my stepfather loved going on every year, and was on the committee of the Royal Automobile Club at the time so I asked if he could propose me and then George Daniels, the watchmaker, kindly seconded me.’

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‘CUSSONS IS ONE OF THE BEST-CONNECTED INDIVIDUALS IN THE CAR WORLD’ Whereupon Cussons began to realise that the RAC wasn’t actually doing much, car-wise. ‘It had a golf club, a chess club and a swimming club but nothing to do with cars. This was around the end of 1998, but then the club had an unholy row about how things were to proceed, with the result that the RAC Motoring Services were sold off and the Motor Sports Association was demerged. By mid-’99 all members received £34,171.20, which was a shedload of money then – you could buy a good Porsche.

You could even have invested wisely in a Daniels watch, which are worth about two million quid now! Once this had all settled down, Wiltshire persuaded the club directors that they should form a motoring committee.

He was the first chairman and asked me to join as well.

‘Ray was a real do-er. Nothing was impossible and among the first things we looked at were all the amazing trophies locked away in cupboards – the Tourist Trophy was first awarded in 1905 and then it wasn’t being awarded at all, so why not get it out there. We took a deep dive into what we could award as well as re-purpose. In 2005 we re-awarded the Tourist Trophy for the FIA GT Championship, which ran for a decade or so, and we reinvigorated the Dewar Trophy for technical innovation.

These awards show the membership and wider world that the club is still relevant. Most are UK-centric as we are trying to push homegrown talent.’

Sadly, Ray Wiltshire died aged only 65, in 2002, and as chairman of the club from 2018, Cussons found himself with something of a dilemma. ‘The club had been looking after six million members’ roadside assistance and we had 35,000 racing licence holders who competed in racing and rallying, auto tests and sprints, so we were doing our bit for the sport. But once these two organisations had been sold off, it forced us to ask, “What are we?”’

Having met at Cussons’ mews house for an initial chat, we cycle to another mews, owned by Carol Spagg, his

Top and above Cussons with his C-type and the RAC’s Austin Seven Chummy at a London mews motorhouse; in the Goodwood paddock in 1998, with CEGGA Ferrari 250.

partner in the Pre-63 GT Series. It serves as his motorhouse and workshop, and ensconced within is the Jaguar C-type he’s owned for decades. ‘It’s chassis number 23 and was raced by Protheroe in period. I’ve raced it at Macau, Goodwood, on the Mille Miglia, and I still enjoy blasting it back to Cheshire. I recently took the engine out and changed the clutch, so it’s running well. I love driving it, it’s like a comfortable old brogue, so it’s probably my favourite.’ It shares the family stable with a very original Ferrari 250 SWB and Aston Martin DB4 GT. We head to the Royal Automobile Club on Pall Mall for lunch, and what better way than in the club’s own red Austin Seven Chummy. Through Knightsbridge it attracts more attention than a Veyron. ‘Sorry if I’m a bit slow today but I went for a run with my friend Jim on the

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BEN CUSSONS INTERVIEW

weekend and then we went to the footy afterwards.’

Translation: Cussons ran the London Marathon in 3hr 55min with Sir Jim Ratcliffe, boss of Ineos, then they went to Wembley to watch Manchester United win the FA Cup semi-final. With royalty, racing drivers, rock stars and captains of industry on his speed dial, Cussons is one of the best-connected individuals in the car world.

Then there is his involvement in the influential Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile. ‘The RAC is one of 13 founding members of the FIA, and as the RAC Chairman you are known as an FIA President, as well as being one of 16 members of the FIA senate. I was on the Historic Commission for many years and we also have a seat at the Founding Members’ Club. But obviously the Royal Automobile Club is my priority. There is huge change happening in the automotive world and we need to ensure the motorist does not suffer from virtuesignalling politicians. It’s been nearly three years since I was the first person to race with synthetic fuel at the Goodwood Revival and interest is really taking off now.

At about £6 per litre, it’s still expensive but prices will come down. I have been saying for ages that 100% EV adoption is impractical. We need to address climate change but forcing EVs onto drivers is not the solution.’

There are a number of St James’ Clubs that were concerned with travel, harking back to colonial times when individuals would return from far-flung corners of the Empire and needed somewhere to stay and enjoy in London. While accommodation is still heavily in demand, the clubs need to offer other attractions. ‘Our renewal rate is over 95%, so we are at full capacity. We have 108 bedrooms in Pall Mall and during the week we are full.

We aim to make a modest profit, which is reinvested, and we are spending on capital investment projects to keep the clubhouse in great shape,’ says Cussons. If the club is profitable and has a full waiting list, its chairman must be doing something right.

Above and below Cussons and Coucher head off to Pall Mall in the RAC’s Chummy; Cussons left his desk in July, handing over the club to a new driver.

‘We have 650 full-time employees across the two sites – chefs, waiters, gardeners, housekeepers, a vast army. We transformed Woodcote by converting the walled garden to play areas and swimming pools aimed at families – previously under-sevens were banned; madness, as the best source of new members is the children.’

There are 2500 golfing members but, as Cussons says, ‘Woodcote Park is not a golf club, it’s the Country Club of the Royal Automobile Club that happens to have two golf courses, a swimming pool, six tennis courts, four squash courts, and various family facilities.’

In the grounds of Woodcote is an 18th Century barn that has been refurbished. ‘We keep around 16 cars there, including the 1901 Mors, the 1900 Simms, two Daimlers, about six or seven vans, the Chummy, Stirling Moss’s OSCA, the Alvis, as well as motorcycles and bicycles. In summer we host Grand Prix lunches there.’

Events play a key role in the club, which wasn’t always the case. ‘In the past the club didn’t have any event organising capacity, so the London to Brighton Veteran Car Run was run by the MSA. In 2002, the date for the eligibility for the Veteran Car Run was extended from 1904 to 1 January 1905. That’s massive, because by 1903 Henry Ford was producing his Model A and, in 1905, there were more cars made in just that year than ever before. This had a huge impact on the event because the point of the Veteran Run was to get the early, low-powered Victorian contraptions to Brighton. There’s a real sense of achievement getting a three-horsepower belt-drive car all the way, whereas a fabulous 1904 Panhard will drive down there rather faster. So there was a bit of a schism and we took control of the Run, which catalysed the club’s interest in managing its assets more actively. The Veteran Run is so much part of the club with its history – the world’s oldest motoring event.’

Ben Cussons’ term as chairman came to an end in July.

With energy, enthusiasm and vision he has succeeded in his mission of putting the car at the centre of the club as well as being active on the international stage, standing up for the rights and freedoms of the motorist. As someone who professes not to have a proper job, he’s done great work at the Royal Automobile Club and FIA. End

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RANGE ROVER VELAR

Before the

This rare Amazon Green pre-production Range Rover is Velar chassis number 4.

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beginning

James Elliott charts its historically revealing factory restoration

Photography Nick Dimbleby, Simon Kay

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RANGE ROVER VELAR

Clockwise, from opposite, top All-important badge – this is Chassis 4; in its purest form; correct interior trim though slightly modified seats; experimental V8 is believed to be the oldest still running; refurbished interior is archly utilitarian.

E

‘Early Range Rover history is handwritten but has the advantage of Roger Crathorne being around to unravel it’

very cloud has a silver lining. Imagine signing up to JLR Classic’s Reborn programme and then suffering the disappointment of being told that your vehicle wasn’t going to happen thanks to the programme winding down during Covid. Then, before you have finished crying over your spilt tilt, they instead offer you a historically important Range Rover Velar, chassis number four no less. JLR already had the car and would restore it to asnew condition, no easy task with these pre-production prototypes on which everything is slightly different. Oh, and the car you were getting also had an experimental V8 in it.

This is Octane, so you don’t need to be told which Velar we are not talking about, but you might need to know which Velar we are talking about. In the company records, early Range Rover history is hand-written but detailed and has the advantage of Mr Land Rover, Roger Crathorne, still being around to unravel it. There is even an excellent book on the first 50 vehicles, by him, Geof Miller (who also worked on the original project), Gary Pusey and James Taylor, published by Brooklands Books.

The Range Rover, aimed at an American market it would then not enter for decades, was devised by Spen King and Gordon Bashford as a softer, leisure Land Rover and was developed from 1966 to 1970. Those in the know will tell you that the Velars comprise the seven full prototypes – of which two still exist – plus the pre-production cars and that they were allegedly christened as much as a near-portmanteau of Alvis and Rover as the word’s coincidentally plausible meanings in both Spanish (‘vigil’) and Italian (‘cover’).

The first batch of five Velars was commissioned on 26 September 1969 and chassis number four, despite being registered in February 1970 (or March, depending on the document you are reading; this is not unusual in unravelling these histories) was built in April by the engineering department. Then, unlike the other Velars that frolicked off to serve in the private or public sector (at least one was a fire tender), it was retained by the engineers who, in the words of JLR Classic guru Mike Bishop, ‘immediately set about trying to drive it to death’.

First up was 1500 miles of hard testing on the Belgian pavé at MIRA’s off-road course, after which it was stripped, assessed and rebuilt. Much worse was to come, namely 5000 miles at various vehicle-killing courses at the Bagshot military proving ground. How tough was it? Well, the type of Michelins that would later last up to 80,000 miles on police patrol vehicles gave up the ghost after just 1000 miles in the wilds of Surrey.

Afterwards it was stripped, assessed and rebuilt again, ready for sale, which prompted some pragmatism. At some point the engineering team had changed its interior from black to the production Palomino, and the brittle aluminium bonnet that has a tendency to crack even without the loads this example was put under was replaced with a production item.

Specifically for sale, it was resprayed Lincoln Green and the V8 (35500006a) was removed for assessment and replaced with EXP95, an experimental V8 from the P5 era, thought to be possibly the oldest Rover V8 still running. This engine was mated to gearbox 355002210A. All of this was done prior to Velar Chassis 4 being sold to local company director H Evan Price on 16 June 1971 for £1650. Evan Price kept meticulous records, which are especially uneventful except for an issue with his Mallory electronic ignition, and was known still to have it in 1981 and kept it until he died, at which point it passed to a relative in Malvern, Mrs S van der Pol. With nowhere to keep it properly, in February 1984 she sold it on to the well-known and avid collector Bill Newport in the Cotswolds.

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This page In effect a factory restoration, Chassis 4 was stripped and every detail attended to – with reference to Land Rover guru Roger Crathorne.

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In 2016 JLR Classic was approached by David Cooper, who asked if it wanted to buy it, which of course it did. Quite apart from the low chassis number, part of its appeal was the originality. It was far from immaculate but the manner of 1995 restorations meant patching and repairing where necessary more than replacing everything with new, so it was highly original. Australian Mike Bishop had actually been aware of Chassis 4 since his first visit to the UK in the late 1990s, when it was with Bill Newport, and he became instrumental in the project from the outset, especially the extensive research: ‘When it came to us, it drove really nicely. It was a little bit scruffy but quite presentable, it was certainly in good enough nick for us to take it to the NEC at the end of 2016.’

It was there that a bit of peeling Lincoln Green paint in the gutter by the tailgate revealed another green underneath. Frenzied further investigation (doorcards off, behind the heater, transmission tunnel exposed and so on) during the actual show revealed that it had originally been Amazon Green, one of only two Velars to wear the shade, which was not carried through to production, and isn’t noticeably anywhere else on the period BL colour chart. Close, but not quite.

With two Velars on its fleet (Geof Miller’s Chassis 17, which he’s had since new, and now Chassis 4) that might have been the end of it, had Chassis 1 not become available in 2019 from Gary Pusey, who had bought it at Silverstone Auctions in 2014. For those that like all their gaps grouted, Chassis 3 is the Tuscan Blue example at the British Motor Museum, while Chassis 2 is the fire engine that sold for just under £30,000 at Classic Car Auctions earlier this year.

In a parallel but extremely nearby universe, thanks to Covid, JLR Classic was winding down its Reborn programme – in which it rebuilt early Land Rovers to as-new – after ten cars had been finished but before some others could be completed. One of the latter was chassis 134, a Davos White example originally sold through Steels of Cheltenham and

ordered by Octane’s old chum and Mr Immun’Age, Yuki Hayashi. Better known for his Astons – in his 1923 Cloverleaf he has one of the oldest; see Octane 202 – Yuki also has long family ties with Land Rovers and Range Rovers. ‘Our first Land Rover runs well and we have driven 230,000km in it for skiing, camping and business,’ he says. ‘We got a Range Rover next and I also keep a USA-spec 1997 Defender 90 soft-top; my wife and son have Range Rover Sports.’

Given Yuki’s particular interest in early examples of important cars, and with Velar Chassis 1 about to join the fleet, Mike thought he might wish to take on that project instead. ‘We didn’t need three Velars, but letting something like that go happens at board level so it was not an easy process. Getting number 1 was the gamechanger, I don’t think the sale of 4 would have been approved otherwise. Knowing Yuki’s passion for the brand and history, I thought it could be a perfect match.’

After a brief discussion, Yuki’s order was changed from a Reborn to a Bespoke. He says: ‘I was very excited because Velar is the most important and epoch-defining SUV and now, over 50 years later, every manufacturer makes something like it.’

By the time both deals had gone through, the restoration of Chassis 4 started just over a year ago, with a strict deadline of the end of August 2024. It was a fraught process in many ways, but didn’t stray too far from the 1200 hours for a ‘normal’ restoration. Of course, it is easier to spot the details such as the Series IIA fuel cap, used by the engineers because the Velar ones kept falling off, and the Range Rover-correct Strombergs rather than the SUs the engine would have had, or the painstakingly recreated Rover Company Limited aluminium instruction plate rather than the subtle changes in the shell or some unique chassis cross-bracing, but Mike enthusiastically takes me through it all.

He says: ‘The interesting thing with restoring any engineering car is: what point in time do you choose to restore it to? One massive 119

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RANGE ROVER VELAR

compromise we had to make was with the mat in the rear. In a Suffix A the crinkle finish runs through it in three parts, a centre and two wings.

Nobody has ever made it before. So we made a Suffix B replacement version and put that in. If it was a production car, it would be more of a problem, but this was an engineering car.’ I think Mike’s definition of ‘massive’ may differ a little from mine. He continues: ‘Similarly, the main seal retainer for the top of the tailgate was held on with a mass of pop rivets, so we thought “We are the factory, we have to be able to do better than that.” So we have.’ Yes, it definitely differs. The biggest problem was the ill-fitting centre floor-mat and that turned out to be because the original dimensions were ambitious!

There were a couple of hugely satisfying small ‘wins’. When nobody knew whether the numberplate plinth should be body-coloured or black, Mike just asked Roger Crathorne and he ruled. So now it is body-coloured. Mike says: ‘The team loved having Roger’s involvement when they were building the car. It came together really well, there was a lot of pride in building this car and making it as close to perfect as possible. It has been a superb exercise in preservation by the team.’

Another morale-booster was Mike tracking down the long-lost original rear numberplate to Bill Newport’s potting shed.

Yuki may not have seen the Velar yet, but I have. It was signed off only a week before Octane’s visit and it’s gorgeous. I love the Amazon Green, maybe because it is so unfamiliar. Range Rover clearly struggled with finalising its palette, the first four Velars being three different greens – Lincoln, Olive and Amazon – plus one in the now-familiar Tuscan Blue.

I also adore the purity and simplicity of that boxy shape, the unadorned plainness of it and especially the fact that the glasshouse is half the height of the physical car and barely encroached upon by pillars. It must have looked pretty fancy in period, but such has been the evolution – Range Rovers started off nearly as utilitarian as Land Rovers, now Land Rovers are nearly as luxurious as Range Rovers – that it seems pretty basic today. And all the better for it. Just look at the

slender steel bumpers, compact-sized circular mirrors on the wing-tips and, most of all, the Sahara Dust painted steels (you could have Sahara or silver) wearing 205 R16 99T Blockleys. Remember the way the world still went crazy for the painted steels on the new Defender?

There was good reason; they look great.

Inside, it is gloriously pared back, too, with three-spoke wheel (refurbished not replaced), long gearlever conducting the four-speed box, spartan instrument pod, two-part headlining, seatbelts sprouting out of the prototype seats. These have been on a diet because of Suffix As’ issue with the door furniture creasing the seat sides. It still does, just not as badly.

Unique Velar details abound, such as the smaller gearknob and the big dots on the high-low knob, the optional map pocket in place of a radio, the P6 choke knob rather than the BL-logoed one.

Despite the importance of the engine, despite the effort that went into sourcing correct P5 bits for the rebuild, it sounds like any other early Rover V8. And it powers this vague mobile jelly (and I mean that in a good way) exactly the same, too. This one now has power steering and production 150lb rear springs in place of the controversial original soft ones and both these help you hustle the Range Rover along adroitly. You wouldn’t take it round Silverstone, but it’s fun factor 10.

The owner is pretty excited about getting his hands on it, and has also enjoyed the process of getting it to here: ‘I like the searching and finding and building and restoring just as much as the having; I like the fact that restoration takes time and you can enjoy the process, it is far more satisfying than the dream coming all at once. The best meals are made up of several courses.’

In the long run, it is likely to be part of Yuki’s retirement project, a winery and light off-road course with clubhouse that will be a haven for pensioners in Gifu, Japan. The working vineyard will mainly be served by Defenders, but I bet the Velar chips in, too. Not so much put out to pasture, then, as put out to vineyard, where it will enjoy a new, rather more genteel life as befits such an important car. End

‘Range Rovers started off nearly as utilitarian as Land Rovers, now Land Rovers are nearly as luxurious as Range Rovers’

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WORKS BESPOKE

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Image Alamy

Is burgeoning classic car interest in the Middle East good for the global classic market?

Nathan Chadwick investigates

FULL OF EASTERN PROMISE

CLASSIC CAR MARKET MOVEMENTS

‘WHAT REALLY INTERESTS me is the positivity and energy, and the encouragement for new things,’ says Peter Wallman of RM Sotheby’s of the Middle East. It is an area of the world where everything is new – from empty deserts to atmosphere-scraping skylines – and where almost anything is perceived as possible, achievable and attainable. All the more remarkable is its rise to prominence in only a few decades.

The region has long had a love of supercars and SUVs, but the classic car movement is on the rise there, too. This passion is being fed by events, auctions and clubs catering not only to those who hail from the Middle East, but the growing number of ex-pats drawn by favourable tax rates, low crime and sunny weather. ‘Very high-profile businessmen and women are moving there, and not just for short stints – they’re moving their families,’ Peter says. ‘I liken it to Hong Kong in the 1980s.’

Peter sees a grassroots classic car movement burgeoning, with events such as the Gulf Historic Grand Prix at the Dubai Autodrome, Icons of Porsche and the Mille Miglia UAE providing an excellent foundation. He’s also seen a trend towards more social events. ‘Flat 12 is a club run based at a warehouse space by the docks, where they organise cars-and-coffee gatherings,’ Peter explains. ‘They also organise the Flat 12 Picnic in central Dubai, with 1500 to 2000 cars turning up, ranging from Land Rovers and Mustangs to Dinos and Daytonas.’

Peter firmly believes that the classic marketplace has to be underpinned by events.

‘You’re giving reasons for people to buy cars, keep them and become part of a community, sharing your joy and passion,’ he says. ‘If it’s based purely on speculation and investment, when market conditions change people get

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‘A vast collection of ’60s and ’70s Aston Martins, numbering in the hundreds, was bulkbought by a single client’

out.’ He believes chrome-era classics can only increase in popularity. RM Sotheby’s has gone so far as to set up an office in Dubai.

Not all news out of the Middle East has been received positively. A vast collection of ’60s and ’70s Astons, numbering in the hundreds, was bulk-bought by a single client. He switched his collecting interest and sold the cars to a local dealer, who has trickled the collection through various European and American auctions over the past two years, deflating prices dramatically.

Aston Martin specialist Keith Riddington of Classicmobilia sees this as a natural market correction, bulk purchases having artificially inflated prices. ‘The cars that have come back are good money,’ he says. ‘But once they’ve been recommissioned and registered they’re very close to retail values, though often without any service history or documentation. They’re not cheap cars at the end of the day.’

Several cars have been restored to nonoriginal spec, which, reckons Keith, is not what the market wants at the moment: ‘The people upgrading Astons with different engines and gearboxes have disappeared – we have 18 restorations in process now and every one has to be perfectly original,’ he says.

Astons are not the only marque to be bulkbought, prompting widespread consternation among enthusiasts, but some specialists have described it as a lifeline. One told Octane: ‘Not much would happen to these cars otherwise, but this ownership pattern – bulk buying, restoring and in some cases uprating – provides crucial income for UK restorers, parts suppliers and associated trades where the work is done.’

Which begs the question: could the Middle East become a hub for restorations too? Peter thinks not: ‘I can’t imagine that collectors in Europe or North America will be sending cars

out there to be restored any time soon, and for Middle East collectors, restoration “brands” still matter. People know the value of having the right invoices in the history file.’

However, there is a sprawling support network for classic cars, he adds. ‘There are lots of good cars on the road in the Middle East, and owners know how to maintain them.

Servicing and maintenance expertise will grow quite quickly. It’s already happening – go to the backwaters, even in Dubai, and there are oldschool garages still keeping cars on the road.’

In terms of the wider market, Keith shares Peter’s view that a ballooning Middle East market is good for the classic car scene as a whole. ‘Selling a car into Europe is impossible these days – import tax to The Netherlands has gone from 9% to 21%, and the French are in the process of doing the same now. It’s 5% into the Middle East,’ he says.

However, the market isn’t quite yet on the boil. According to Keith, it’s very quiet at the moment, with supercar sales tailing off.

‘Previously, money was no object, now people are a lot more careful with what they’re buying and how much they’re spending,’ he says. ‘There’s a hell of a lot of classics out there that could come back pretty soon, purely because the market’s so quiet.’

The ex-pat community is having an affect on the market already. ‘A lot of people who bought cars in the UK are shipping them out because they’ve got something no-one else has out there,’ Keith says. ‘A left-hand-drive V8 Vantage X-Pack will fly out of the door, for example.’

However, supercars continue to exhibit the greatest pull in the Middle East, according to Peter. ‘There’s a certain prestige value to buying cars out of North America or Europe that haven’t been seen in the Middle East before. If

you find an F40 or Enzo in Europe that’s lowmileage and ticks all the right quality boxes, those cars are interesting to Middle Eastern buyers,’ he says. However, the critical consideration is that such tastes are now no longer reserved for the Middle East, which may mean supercars and hypercars continue to rise.

‘If you look at trends in North America and Europe, it’s Ferrari Enzos and F40s that tend to be making good sales, and then early Bugatti Veyrons and Porsche Carrera GTs. I think tastes across the world have probably shifted more towards the traditional Middle Eastern buyer,’ Peter adds. ‘We hope that will trickle down and, as events in the Middle East grow and the facilities become more mature, I hope we can see more DB5s and 300SLs going over there and being used.’

For RM Sotheby’s, the opportunity for growth is hard to ignore, given its successful Dubai auction in March 2024, where 88.9% of lots sold. ‘We saw a good crossover with luxury items: watches, jewellery, collectable handbags.

It was a good test-bed; we can experiment a bit more in Dubai,’ says Peter. ‘We’re holding our second Dubai sale in December at the Emirates Golf Course, and our plan is to hold at least one auction out there every year.’

Some have concerns about human rights and the potential for political instability in the region, but Peter says it’s a place that celebrates success and people feel safe there. ‘When Dubai comes up in conversation it’s not just in relation to cars – it’s a place that’s making a quality lifestyle very possible. If you look at the rate of progress across the region, whether it’s the museums or theme parks they’re building, or the skyscrapers and infrastructure, it’s all systems go. The collector-car world should do its best to ride that wave and get involved.’ End 123

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ALFA ROMEO 1900 SS ZAGATO

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Making light Alfa Romeo’s post-war renaissance began with the 1900 saloon – and matured with Zagato’s featherweight coupé version, as Jay Harvey discovers Photography Evan Klein

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ALFA ROMEO 1900 SS ZAGATO

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T

here’s just something special about the raspy blat of an old Alfa twin-cam on cold start. Nothing else has quite that same aural quality, those first hesitant staccato coughs followed by a rising resonant flatulence as the engine catches and tastes air and fuel sucked in from straight carburettors and pushed out through four curving fingers of pipes. Los Angeles-area car collector Bruce Milner beckons me into a leather seat the colour of Lindt chocolate and we snarl away, pretty much as any vintage four-banging Alfa would snarl away but for the rakish red body and the chrome Z on the side.

Why does Alfa Romeo live so large in the beating hearts of enthusiasts? Surely one reason is because none of the other Italian houses have such a deep portfolio. There’s an Alfa for everyone, from pre-war 8Cs that run into the millions to 1980s hatchbacks and sedans that trade for a few shekels and a case of beer. At the company’s centenary in 2010 it produced a complete catalogue of all its road and racing vehicles that strains a bookshelf at almost 900 pages.

Everywhere there is racing, Alfa has raced. Everywhere there is a twisting road, an Alfa has gnawed at its apexes.

Besides being extremely prolific, the Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili was also an equal-opportunity employer for Italy’s best designers and coachbuilders. If you love the classic panache of Pininfarina, there are Alfas wearing that famed badge that trade for a fraction of a similar-vintage Ferrari. If your preference runs towards the elegantly modern lines of Bertone, Alfa has you more than covered with cars that came off the same drawing boards as the Miura and the Stratos.

No less can be said of the firm started by Ugo Zagato in 1919 and which, along with Touring, became one of Alfa’s earliest go-to design houses. By the 1930s, the big Z had dressed a number of spectacular Alfa Romeos for both competition and the road, and the relationship successfully bridged the devastation of war and the subsequent political chaos that saw Alfa’s own Ugo, managing director Ugo Gobbato, assassinated in Milan in April 1945.

Amid that turmoil, visionary chief engineer Orazio Satta saw Alfa’s future, and it was in smaller, lighter, less expensive vehicles than the prestigious custom-coachwork bolides that had epitomised the company before the war. Hence the 1900 saloon of 1950, Alfa’s first true post-war car. Within the company’s first unitary body lay an iron-block fourcylinder with an aluminium head bearing chain-driven overhead cams. Coil-sprung upper and lower wishbones carried the front, while coils and telescopic dampers looked after the live rear axle. It was a formula that Alfa advertised as ‘the family car that wins races’, and one that influenced the haughty Germans to the north; a little over a decade later the compact Neue Klasse would be for BMW the same turning point that came to define a brand.

As initial production units trickled out of Alfa’s smashed factories, soon came higher-performance Supers, Turismo Internazionales, Sprint coupés with 100bhp 1884cc engines, and Super Sprints with bored-out 1975cc engines in the works for Alfa’s sporting customers. The latter SS appeared in 1954 with a 1975cc engine running a higher compression ratio, resulting in a rated 115bhp that was routed rearwards through a five-speed manual transmission. Some examples apparently sported early dual-throat Weber carbs instead of the stock Solexes for even more horsepower.

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‘If it was the family car that won races, Alfa wanted its “families” to look like a million bucks’ Mindful that modern unitary construction could spell doom for Italy’s independent coachwork industry (it ultimately did), Alfa designed the 1900 to be easy to rebody.

If it was the family car that won races, Alfa wanted its ‘families’ to look like a million bucks – or a couple of hundred million lire at least. Touring, Pininfarina and Boano all made sexy coupés and cabriolets based on the 1900, in numbers so minuscule as to make them blue-chip collector stars today.

Meanwhile, Elio Zagato, the second son of Ugo and who had become instrumental in the family coachwork business, saw the potential for producing a lighter, wind-cheating customer car for sporting amateurs interested in competing on the Mille Miglia, Tour de France, Coupe des Alpes and other events of the golden ‘run what ya brung’ era.

The result was 39 very special Sprint coupés and two convertibles built from 1954 to ’57. They break down into 36 so-called ‘series ones’, which have higher, pointier noses and slightly different side-window treatments, two cabriolets with a revised, downward-sloping nose, and three ‘series two’ coupés with the cabriolet’s nose, including this one. They are dubbed ‘low noses’ and also feature more accommodating interiors and altered rooflines and exterior trim. The last six cars built were Super Sprints with the horsepower bump from 100 to 115, and today are known as 1900 SSZs. For Zagato, a firm that developed a reputation for playing with angles and proportions in highly eccentric ways, the 1900’s styling is fairly straightforward with its high, nearly straight shoulders accentuated by the low roof. Even so,

Clockwise, from near right Zagato’s signature ‘double-bubble’ roof is clearly evident within richly detailed interior; beautiful lightweight bucket seats; classic Alfa twin-cam four, in this case an uprated 2300cc unit.

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ALFA ROMEO 1900 SS ZAGATO

Left and below Gorgeous dashboard puts prominence on gauges that monitor engine’s health; this Alfa was made for winding roads like these.

1956 Alfa Romeo 1900 SS Zagato Engine 1975cc DOHC four-cylinder, twin Weber carburettors Power 115bhp @ 5000rpm Torque 116lb ft @ 3700rpm Transmission Five-speed manual, rear-wheel drive Steering Worm and roller Suspension Front: double wishbones, coil springs, telescopic dampers, anti-roll bar. Rear: live axle, radius arms, coil springs, telescopic dampers Brakes Drums Weight 920kg Top speed 118mph 0-60mph 10.8sec

there’s still plenty of glass for outward visibility. The threegrille face retains the nose-and-mustachio theme of the original 1900 but with additional inset fog lamps. Four of the latter SSZs featured double-bubble roofs, and Bruce Milner has this one, which also wears the barrel-tipped (sometimes called ‘Coke can’) bumpers that Milner believes were factoryfitted only to a handful of cars, perhaps as few as three.

Everyone has their reasons for owning a classic car. Born a Kiwi and transplanted to California decades ago to work in advertising, Milner loves saving old cars via flawless, 100-point restorations carried out by professionals. ‘I like watching the work being done,’ he says, and he enjoys the research, tracing a car’s owner history down through the ages via mouldy filefolders and faded photos. The sandblasting, the degreasing, the chipping, the grinding, the welding, the painting, the wrenching is all performed by those who do it best.

By his count, he’s owned 78 classics over the past four decades or so, including a number of distinguished, pedigreed names such as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Iso, Maserati, Monteverdi, AC and Bizzarrini. He keeps a to-the-penny spreadsheet that currently has him at a break-even, he says, ‘which shows you how incompetent I am’.

Milner’s collection is always churning, and he especially loves not just the rare but the rarest, his garage having once housed one of the two Monteverdi Hai 450s built and two of the 12 mid-engined ATS 2500 GTs. He doesn’t particularly like showing his cars and he doesn’t often drive them great distances. An adjacent room full of 30-or-so classic motorcycles, from a mid-1950s Vincent HRD to a 1980s Yamaha RZV 500R, is for static display only. Milner has never ridden anything bigger than a moped.

However, he is married to a woman who likes to do rallies, and ‘I don’t think she’ll ever let me sell the Alfa.’ To be fair, 130

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‘The Alfa is all ease and nonchalance as it briskly burbles along, its steering smart and swift’

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ALFA ROMEO 1900 SS ZAGATO

the car is a very decent companion for US events such as the California Mille and the Colorado Grand. Apart from a roof to keep the sun and rain off, roll-up windows and windshield wipers, the 1900 SSZ is also welcoming with comfortable seats and light controls that make it easy to drive.

After a quick warm-up, Milner offers me the pilot’s seat.

The post-war period saw an explosion of creativity in Italian design and the 1900 is a perfect example, its four-bar bucket seats immediately recalling the techno-utopian aesthetic of Italy’s flowering Modernists.

Large, chrome-ringed gauges with Art Deco fonts – apparently some old styles were still valued then for their classy appearance – are arrayed in an inverted U-shape and comprise the weighty main panel. The tacho and speedo are relegated to the lowest and most obscured quadrants of the cluster. Their details are a fascination: the first two digits on the clockwise-rotating metric speedo, 20 and 40, are written bottom-side-out for easier reading, while 60 through 180 are written bottom-side-in for presumably the same reason, whereupon the figures invert again for the final marks at 200 and 220. Not that you can really see them or the numbers on the tacho, as both are concealed behind the steering wheel.

Obviously, Zagato believed that water temperature and oil pressure were the most urgent data points in a racer, especially for drivers who might have quaffed a few licks of Lambrusco before taking the starters’ flag at Brescia. Within a machine-turned panel inset into the right side of the dash are knobs and switches for the lights, wiper, fog-lamps and so on, blaringly labelled by the restorer for the benefit of modern users. Ditto a plastic placard near the shifter that shows the conventional H-pattern along with the legend ‘DO NOT ATTEMPT A 4TH TO REVERSE’.

I did not, but I did find shifting from third to fourth a challenge as the lever seemed to get lost in transit. The original 1900 had a column shift, most of the Super Sprints

having been converted either back in the day or more recently to floor-mounted gearchanges. Except for its Brigadoon-like fourth gear, the Alfa is all ease and nonchalance as it briskly burbles along, its steering smart and swift and the clutch take-up smooth and gradual. The controls are as light as those of a circa-2500-pound car should be. When you need to stop, the big drum brakes are ready and respond with a reassuring grip. If you’ve driven any of a number of Giulias or Giuliettas from the subsequent years of Alfa’s history, the 1900 SSZ would feel like a homecoming.

No doubt some of you will have discerned from the photos that the engine under the bonnet is not the original 1975cc unit: its ribbed cam covers in black crinkle paint clearly betray it as an engine from a later era. Indeed, this larger, 149bhp, 2300cc Rio (Alfa Brazil) unit is a sort of stunt double dropped in for hard rally flogging, one of three engines Milner has for the car stashed in his garage, including the correct 1975cc mill that originally came with it on purchase back in 2002.

As is his passion, Milner has worked hard to trace the car’s history and he knows that it was restored at the Zagato factory in 1974 and raced by Elio Zagato himself in the first Mille Miglia Storica in 1977. Whether and where it competed in the 1950s is unknown; some of the 1900 SSZs raced in the day and some of their competition records are now lost, while others lived relatively quiet lives in the gilded enclaves of Europe’s wealthy.

Today the Alfa 1900 in its various glamorous guises is a good way for Mille aspirants to get on the grid – though far from the cheapest. A few early Zagatos have traded at recent auctions for more than $1million, though the non-Zagato SS can be had for $200,000-300,000. One and all, they are considered the pinnacle of 1950s Alfa connoisseurship, the cream of the little cars that (re)started it all. End

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

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THE RESTOMOD DIARIES

INTRODUCING AUTORARA IN THE WORLD of classic car restoration and restomods, effective communication can make or break the client experience.

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AutoRARA is turning heads with its unique Build Diaries feature, a digital progress report that provides customers with step-by-step updates, complete with videos, images and summaries, all accessible through a dedicated online portal. This transparent and engaging approach has won the hearts of over 100 clients, setting AutoRARA apart in an increasingly competitive market.

David Stubbs, an AutoRARA Director, shares: ‘Build Diaries offer our clients a window into the restoration process. It’s about bringing clarity, facilitating timely decisions, and making the journey enjoyable. This approach not only helps manage budgets but also builds trust through consistent, realtime communication.’

The impact of this innovative feature is clear. AutoRARA has recently expanded, acquiring two new premises in central England, creating a total of over 20,000sq ft of space for fabrication, engineering, and paint and bodyshop services. This growth has led to the creation of 20 new jobs,

welcoming experienced professionals and ambitious trainees to its team of traditional craftsmen, modern technicians, paint specialists, and retrimmers. This expansion underscores AutoRARA’s commitment to nurturing local talent and boosting Derbyshire’s economy.

Since its inception in February 2023, AutoRARA has solidified its position as a leader in the restoration and restomod industry, now boasting a team of 15 and a diverse order book featuring everything from Italian exotics and backdated 911s to JDM legends.

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This capability was recently highlighted when AutoRARA secured a commission for the full restoration of a rare 1967 Lamborghini 400GT. This beautiful, maroon-on-cream grand tourer, one of just four UK-supplied right-handdrive models, is set to be a star of the 2025 UK classic car scene.

AutoRARA’s innovative approach and rapid growth are redefining client expectations in the classic car restoration market, proving that with the right vision and dedication, you can indeed build trust and create growth, one beautifully restored car at a time.

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Octane Cars The trials and tribulations of the cars we live with

The case for DIY 2003 BMW Z4 3.0i Robert Hefferon

I HAVE BEEN cursing the BMW’s hard ride lately. Sure, I could put it down to poor road surfaces, but I was mulling it over (while avoiding some potholes) and figured that the cracked strut mount as well as a split top mount on the other side were likely symptoms of a deeper problem, so fixing the top mount alone wasn’t really the answer.

Cue phone calls to a couple of garages for quotes but, without them taking the car apart, it was impossible to know how deep the issue went – and I was reluctant to open a ‘just fix it’ account, in case it turned out to be a bigger issue.

My suspicion was that the dampers had given up after 20 years – and even if they hadn’t, a refresh on the front end couldn’t be a bad thing. So I started pricing up parts, including the whileyou’re-at-it bits, and it was suddenly looking like a much

more attractive option if I could do it myself. Holding me back was the lack of a jack, stands and spring compressors, but mate and colleague Matthew Hayward came to my rescue and let me raid his lock-up.

With the parts and tools ready, it was a case of doing what I could between the rain and the darkness. I had changed the springs on my old Mk1 Fiesta many years ago, but I could probably have compressed those with my bare hands. I’ve done nothing similar since and the Z4 is a different beast, made more confusing by the hybrid use of both standard and M-sport parts on the 3.0i.

I opted for standard replacement dampers with the existing springs, and changing the top mounts, bump stops, plus anti-roll-bar and control-arm mounts and bushes. I also went

for a recommended reinforcement plate that sandwiches between the strut tower and the top mount, adding extra metal and rigidity – to alleviate ‘mushrooming’ of the tower. This is a recommended fix for the E46 3-series and, because the Z4 shares so much with it, they slot right in here, too. With the wheels off, I gave them a good clean with Bilt Hamber, and wax-sealed them with Collinite no.845 insulator wax.

The MoT test was booked, along with a wheel alignment session for good measure, and I’d asked Stuart Templeton (templetonsgarage.co.uk) to double-check the torque settings on some of the new bolts, as they were slightly beyond my torque wrench’s limit.

And so I was relieved to get the car back on the road with a clean ticket after a month on jacks. It’s now the best it’s felt during my

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ownership, and all it needed was a good run out. The Welsh borders should do the job!

My friends had booked a safari tent in Powys for a 40th birthday celebration. I left early for the three-hour drive and was due to arrive first, so once off the motorways I opted for the longer routes – and I wasn’t disappointed. The car was brilliant, the views breathtaking, the roads surprisingly flat and quiet – just what was needed! The Z4 is everything I wanted it to be, at its best on these roads.

On arrival I came to a farm

gate, and through it there was a steep gravel road. I parked and walked along to see whether it was driveable, barely managing on foot – I certainly didn’t want to stagger up with my luggage! Once underway, around the first bend I was wheel-spinning and rolling back; it took three attempts before I thought to turn off the traction control.

It was only after my friend arrived that I was told that, parked at the bottom of the hill with the keys in it, there was a 4x4 for us to use! No need, though. I have a BMW Z4.

‘I was wheelspinning and rolling back; it took three attempts before I thought to turn off the traction control’

OCTANE’S FLEET These are the cars – and ’bikes – run by Octane’s staff and contributors

ROBERT COUCHER International editor • 1955 Jaguar XK140 ANDREW ENGLISH Contributor • 1962 Norton Dominator • 1967 Triumph GT6 • 1972 Moto Guzzi V7 Sport GLEN WADDINGTON Associate editor • 1989 BMW 320i Convertible • 1999 Porsche Boxster SANJAY SEETANAH Advertising director • 1981 BMW 323i Top Cabrio • 1998 Aston Martin DB7 Volante • 2007 Mercedes-Benz SLK200 MARK DIXON Contributing editor • 1927 Alvis 12/50 • 1927 Ford Model T pick-up • 1942 Fordson Model N tractor • 1955 Land Rover Series I 107in JAMES ELLIOTT Editor-in-chief • 1965 Triumph 2.5 PI • 1968 Jensen Interceptor • 1969 Lotus Elan S4 ROBERT HEFFERON Art editor • 2004 BMW Z4 3.0i DAVID LILLYWHITE Editorial director • 1971 Saab 96 • 1996 Prodrive Subaru Impreza MATTHEW HOWELL Photographer • 1962 VW Beetle 1600 • 1969 VW/Subaru Beetle • 1982 Morgan 4/4

This page Rural Welsh roads were a real treat after replacing front dampers and inserting strut-mount reinforcements on the driveway.

MASSIMO DELBÒ Contributor • 1967 Mercedes-Benz 230 • 1972 Fiat 500L • 1975 Alfa Romeo GT Junior • 1979/80 Range Rovers • 1982 Mercedes-Benz 500SL • 1985 Mercedes-Benz 240TD ROWAN ATKINSON Contributor • 2004 Rolls-Royce Phantom 137

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Octane Cars Running Reports

The motor’s in!

ANDREW RALSTON Contributor • 1955 Ford Prefect • 1968 Jaguar 240 SAM CHICK Photographer • 1969 Alfa Romeo Spider RICHARD HESELTINE Contributor • 1966 Moretti 850 Sportiva • 1971 Honda Z600 PETER BAKER Contributor • 1954 Daimler Conquest • 1955 Daimler Conquest Century DAVID BURGESS-WISE Contributor • 1924 Sunbeam 14/40 • 1926 Delage DISS MATTHEW HAYWARD Markets editor • 1990 Citroën BX 16v • 1994 Toyota Celica GT-Four • 1996 Saab 9000 Aero • 1997 Citroën Xantia Activa • 1997 Peugeot 306 GTI-6 • 2000 Honda Integra Type R • 2002 Audi A2 JESSE CROSSE Contributor • 1968 Ford Mustang GT 390 • 1986 Ford Sierra RS Cosworth MARTYN GODDARD Photographer • 1963 Triumph TR6SS Trophy • 1965 Austin-Healey 3000 MkIII

1974 Alfa Romeo Spider Evan Klein THE ALFA HAS returned from the paint shop, so the next job was getting the motor in. My mechanic Benny can do this in his sleep: all new hoses, lines, radiator, fan, shroud, engine mounts, grommets and wires, brake master, electronic ignition, probably a bunch of other stuff I can’t remember… and a Spica fuel injection pump that works.

This is all done before lunch.

The part I like best is when it’s all in, everything’s connected and it’s time to turn the key for the first time. Benny’s on the throttle linkage, I turn the key: rrrr-vroom, chug-chug poof. Hmm, so Benny adjusts the timing, and… it’s like angels are in the room! A little more adjustment and she’s purring with a glorious, glorious, wonderful noise. And smooth, too: as in the old Lexus commercial, I could put Champagne glasses on top. We let her warm up to temperature; the hard part is done. On this day, my orange chicken from the local Chinese never tasted sweeter.

The next two days are spent refurbishing: doorcards, doorhandles; I clean the Carello

headlight buckets and install them, the Altissimo tail-lights go in, wiring is connected, all the electricals work, even the hood and boot lights shine.

Now come the bumpers.

I restored the front one; lifting together, we bolt it on. The rear bumper takes a little longer. It’s a new part but the holes don’t quite line up. Benny devises a bracket system that includes welding and making sparks; you must always have at least one point in the restoration when you make sparks like this.

Jesse at Astro Plating has the front grille for chroming. A new gear-shift gaiter, Bluetooth radio and centre console go in, and it all works. I spend a day scrubbing the underside, my hands get dirty, prepping for undercoating and the suspension rebuild.

The windshield installer shows up, we’ve got new rubber for it, it’s a husband-and-wife team. I’ve never met them before, and they talk soccer in Spanish with Benny the entire time. They don’t miss a beat – the cord is pulled, it seats right in, the tube of weather sealer, and they’re done. They

made it look so easy, I think we need to call them for the glass in the hardtop, too.

I’ve traded my photography skills for powder-coating. Shawn owns Quality Powder Coating in San Diego (he’s got a beautiful ’32 Ford hot rod he’s auctioning for charity) and says if I come down to shoot it he’ll do my wheels and springs for free. Done deal.

The wheels are the original Turbinas and the coils are rare Ward and Dean sport springs.

Back at the shop we’ve got a set of Falken Azenas and a quartet of Bilsteins waiting, plus new bushes. She’s going to handle like a slot car. Perhaps you’ve heard of Classic Alfa in the UK? They’ve been very helpful, supplying the parts needed to complete the cosmetics. A big box has arrived, it’s like Christmas in July!

Next week we’ll start the underside. I’m figuring about two days of work, then Mongolian beef with a side of rice.

Below, left and right With the bodywork all tip-top, Spider’s refreshed engine goes back in from below; husbandand-wife glazing duo.

DELWYN MALLETT Contributor • 1936 Cord 810 Beverly • 1937 Studebaker Dictator • 1946 Tatra T87 • 1950 Ford Club Coupe • 1952 Porsche 356 • 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL • 1957 Porsche Speedster • 1957 Fiat Abarth Sperimentale • 1963 Abarth-Simca • 1963 Tatra T603 • 1973 Porsche 911 2.7 RS • 1992 Alfa Romeo SZ EVAN KLEIN Photographer • 1974 Alfa Romeo Spider • 2001 Audi TT HARRY METCALFE Contributor • 20 cars and 15 motorbikes To follow Harry’s adventures, search: Harry’s Garage on YouTube.

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Over 1.4bn worth of assets are covered by our Private Client team

1955 Jaguar XK140 Robert Coucher I DIDN’T MAKE it to Goodwood Festival of Speed this year, though soon after I motored quietly down to Goodwood Circuit for the Veloce Track Day, organised by Peter Neumark and Chris Bucknall of V Group. No crowds and the track entirely to ourselves. School holidays, too, so no traffic, lovely sunshine and my Jaguar cantering down the near-deserted A286 in a suitably relaxed manner. It really feels totally at home in the beautiful South Downs.

Arriving at the circuit I was directed to park in the inner paddock and then wandered into the Jackie Stewart Suite, where the track-day participants were gathering for breakfast and a quick briefing. This superb track-day was first run in 2017 to raise money for three charities: Hope For Tomorrow, The Halow Project and Hope House. Generous contributors paid handsomely for rides in some pretty serious cars with some pretty serious drivers and this year’s aim was to take the grand total over a million pounds.

At the coffee counter I bumped into fellow columnist Derek Bell and contributor Rowan Atkinson, who’d brought along his special lightweight Jaguar MkVII to offer

rides to the charity contributors.

Le Mans winner Richard Attwood came up to grab a cup of tea and later, in the pit lane, I held Damon Hill’s cuppa while he moved the Jaguar C-type into its starting position. Everyone relaxed, friendly and chilled…

As usual, the assembled cars were quite exceptional and available for rides, including the ever-impressive ‘Beast of Turin’ Fiat S76, an Alfa 8C Monza, Jaguar C, D and XKSS models, a number of special Porsches for Derek, and the very special Shelby Cobra 427 Competition brought along by Octane friend Gary Bartlett, about which you will read in detail in a future issue. I took the 523bhp Cobra out alone for a few laps over the lunchbreak and, yes, it’s as bad-ass as you could imagine, though not quite in the way you might imagine!

Quite a contrast to the bucolic drive home afterwards – so much easier than on Festival weekend.

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Goodwood Circuit to yourself

Top and above Robert drove his XK140 to and from Goodwood; plenty of variety at the Veloce Track Day charity event.

All cover is subject to insurer’s terms and conditions, which are available upon request.

Footman James is a trading name of Advisory Insurance Brokers Limited.

Registered in England No. 4043759 Registered Address: 2 Minster Court, Mincing Lane, London, EC3R 7PD. Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. REG003339

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Octane Cars Running Reports

Left and below Massimo took the 500SL to Villa d’Este between rain storms; 230 Fintail broke down after a ‘special request’ school run.

The rain pauses play 1982 Mercedes 500SL and 1967 Mercedes 230 Massimo Delbò I KNOW, I’M spoilt and I feel silly writing this for a British magazine, but… This summer in Italy, it’s been raining so much that it feels like living in the UK! How do you keep your classics clean up there? All my cars look like they just emerged from a sandstorm because what is coming from the sky is a mix of water and sand that is turning my cars brown and spotty. So far I haven’t been able to enjoy them as often as I should – though there have been a few moments of fun and pure classic joy.

First was the 500SL, with a

fresh battery, off to Villa d’Este for the Concorso d’Eleganza, always an enjoyable event. We were between storms and the weather was right for a good drive top-down, such a wonderful experience, and the perfect moment for a one-off picture of the car parked close to the entrance of the celebrated hotel.

While I was taking the picture, the legendary car designer Lorenzo Ramaciotti, chief judge at Villa d’Este, stepped into the scene. While at Pininfarina, he oversaw the Ferrari 456GT, 550 Maranello, 360 Modena and others, and I discovered that he owns a Mercedes 107 roadster, too. I should have asked him for a picture with my car – I probably missed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Silly me, but this casual encounter confirmed even so that classic cars bring people together.

The second drive followed a special request from my eight-

year-old son Cesare to be driven in the ‘Fintail’ for his last day of school. With our family dog Duggee in tow, I ended up in a parking lot full of SUVs of every size – and the effect on the children was something special.

For them, all born after 2010, to discover a 1967 car was an immense source of curiosity. I was surprised but realised that, to these children, 1967 is lost in the past, almost half a century before they were born. It is like the 1920s and ’30s for me! And I’m sure my schoolmates and I would have reacted like that in the 1970s to a car from that early era.

The 230 then proved its character by breaking down in the driveway when I got home from this short stint. The car has long had a battery isolator switch, always off when the car is parked for long periods to avoid current drain and hopefully make the battery last longer. The car had started perfectly, and did so again when leaving the school. Once home, having switched off to unload the dog, it did not restart, so I had to resort to jump leads.

A few days later, I drove to the battery shop and bought a new one. The old one had lasted four years and 6000km: not very impressive. The guy at the shop was surprised when I asked for

a 50A unit, and that it was for a 2.3-litre six-cylinder. Indeed, the original was 44A, but back then electric devices were limited to the starter motor, lights and little more. Now the cigarette lighter socket is often used for charging cell-phones or the sat-nav.

Installing the new battery took less than ten minutes as the space for it is huge (there was a diesel version as well). I removed the modern stickers, which spoil the beauty of an old engine bay.

While the bonnet was up I checked the oil level; the dipstick is engraved with the words ‘230/250’, a refined way to tell the similar-looking components apart, with crucial different spacings between minimum and maximum levels for the various different engines. All was good, thankfully, but both the 230 and the 500SL need new tyres, so an expensive day looms on the to-do list.

A few days later I went for breakfast with a friend, a modern Ferrari owner who had never driven a classic before. I let him drive both the 230 and the Fiat 500L. He seemed quite amused by the experience, but I don’t think he’ll swap his F8 for an older model.

Now it’s time to wash the 230 but it’s just started raining again.

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Octane Cars Running Reports

OTHER NEWS

Just not cricket

‘The Integra’s brakes are getting noisy, so it’s time for a change. I’ve got new discs in stock, so I’ve ordered a set of genuine Honda pads – but sadly they’re on six-week back order!’

1982 Morgan 4/4 and 1969 Subaru Beetle Matt Howell MORGAN-SHAPED NEWS first. After replacing a sticking steering damper (I’d thoroughly recommend this upgrade) and improving the dreadful clutch mechanism, so it now shouldn’t chew through cables every few thousand miles, the 4/4 has at last been doing great service. A 150-mile trip on the back-roads of Norfolk to the coast was wonderful. Plus, I managed to stuff my enormous cricket bag in the passenger footwell for trips to last weekend’s two matches. The Morgan performed perfectly, unlike me with the bat. Definitely room for improvement there.

I’m glad there’s been such progress with the Morgan as I haven’t played with the Beetle for two whole years. After a groundup restoration by myself and the Beetle’s co-owner and my close friend, Damon, we’d finally got the very not-original Subaru engine we’d fitted to start for the first time. We were ecstatic – for about two minutes.

I went to turn it off and the engine kept running. I then disconnected the battery, and it kept running. I started to panic, what with it getting hotter by the minute and my garage being made

Matthew Hayward

‘I’ve finally capitulated and dispatched my fuel-fouled, ill-running Tatra T87 to my usual professionals. The carb has been stripped and rebuilt, tank out and cleaned. Hopefully joy is just a few weeks away’ of wood, so I did the only thing I could think of and pulled the fuel pump relay out of the wiring loom. To my utter relief, the engine stopped. I shut the garage door and didn’t look at it again.

Until now.

All along I’d figured there must be something wrong with the wiring (it has the engine loom from the Subaru, while the rest is VW) – maybe a live wire that should be switched wasn’t. Who knew! So, I decided to go at it logically and figured there are two things that can make an engine stop when you remove the key – the power is cut to the ignition,

and/or the power is cut to the fuel pump. You must have both for a petrol engine to run.

The strange thing was, when I turned the ignition key the fuel injection pump could be heard clearly, so I turned the key back and the pump stopped buzzing.

I checked and rechecked and after half an hour convinced myself that, if I started it up, the engine had to stop when I turned it off.

The flat-four cranked over, fired and immediately settled to a pleasing idle. But would it stop?

With huge apprehension I turned the key and… YES! It worked.

During those two years nothing had been changed so I still have no idea why it didn’t work before and yet does now. I’ve since driven it out of the garage and the clutch, brakes and steering all seem good. I’ve also run the engine dozens of times (just to be sure) and it always stops. Now I need to fettle the throttle linkage and then – finally – it will be time for a road test.

Top and left Morgan has been well-used of late; longstanding engine problem in the Subaru Beetle may now be solved…

Delwyn Mallett

‘The tyres on my Model T still have loads of tread but I’m guessing they could be 25 years old, which makes wet roads interesting, so new ones are top of the want list’ Mark Dixon

‘The Porsche is back!

The radio works again, so does the 12-volt accessory socket – and the roof, too. Mostly…’

Glen Waddington

‘The Triumph remains agonisingly close to completion, but is not quite ready for collection. Haven’t felt like this since my first-born was overdue’ James Elliott

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ASM R1 Stirling Moss tribute car enjoying track time at Goodwood.

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Overdrive Other interesting cars we’ve been driving

Fund and games 1967 Aston Martin DB6 James Elliott THE CARD READ ‘Aston Martin DB6 Mk1’ and I was delighted. There were similarly broad smiles all round as people opened their envelopes and discovered what they would be driving for the day, ranging from a Lynx Eventer to Gullwing Merc and Miura. A couple of minutes of instruction from an owner or an expert and off they went. ‘Have you driven a car like this before?’

I heard one owner ask a pair in an mint E-type. When they answered no, he didn’t flinch – more of a man than I’ll ever be. Welcome to the unique Hope Classic Rally.

The concept is simple: individuals and organisations (I spotted a good few cars and a crew from Jaguar Classic) loan

cars for the day to paying participants and guests, who spend a day on the road before a dinner and auction back at basecamp, in 2024 the Elvetham Hotel near Hartley Wintney. It’s a brilliant day out and all the better for knowing you are contributing to the amazing work done in Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda by Phil and Wendy Wall’s WeSeeHope (weseehope.org.uk).

Not all the cars are borrowed – 16 of this year’s 51 were brought along by their owners – but what was telling was that I knew a few of the collectors loaning their fleets and none wanted to be identified. This is not an ego gig, this is rather more than wealthy people paying to drive valuable

cars, it’s owners recognising the importance of using their own good fortune for doing good elsewhere. My Aston benefactor said: ‘Lending cars to the rally is an easy decision. Firstly they make it easy, they collect them, insure them and return them, but most importantly I feel lucky to own them and the idea that they can be used to raise real money, to make a real difference means why would I not?’

Insure them? Yes, it isn’t just the car owners who pitch in. For arranging insurance, Hagerty headed a long list of supporters that also included familiar classic names such as Tuthill Porsche, RS Williams, GTO Engineering, Ledmore, Icon Solutions, Mack Logistics and many more.

Considering the kittens I would be having over the whole concept of this rally – of strangers in unfamiliar, expensive cars – everyone is chill, though I didn’t catch up with rally manager Phil

Aiken, who is the one who has to worry about resolving any issues such as breakdowns. I didn’t see any, but surely they must happen.

‘My’ DB6 is a 1967 example initially sold in London with a host of extras including power steering, heated rear screen and seatbelts. After some time in Germany it returned to the UK and was owned for a while by the much-missed Bentley guru Stanley Mann, during whose ownership it was fitted with a stainless steel exhaust.

The current owner bought it in 2013 and it was extensively renovated, with an engine rebuild and upgrade (to 4.2 litres) by ex-Cosworth man Joe Stevens, bare-metal respray by Ross Packard in this fetching and rarely seen Oystershell, plus wiring and suspension upgrade to fast road handling kit by RS Williams. It has just 77,000 miles on its clock from new – I am not about to add a massive amount to that.

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Below and right Editor James took part in the Hope Classic Rally in this exquisite DB6; it joined a plethora of classics in the South Downs, raising money for charity.

of spiky freshly cut hedge meeting beautiful Oystershell paint become prevalent. After just shy of 50 miles – if you have correctly followed the idiot-proof route book – we stop at The White Horse at Graffham and tuck into a gourmet lunch to a backdrop of live music. Everyone is buzzing and eager to discuss their cars.

We clearly have a few converts to classics here!

Feeling a bit heavier, we all make our way back to the Elvetham, passing Petworth House and Farnham Castle Keep on a slightly shorter, rush-houravoiding afternoon run.

The Aston runs similarly smoothly on the return run but I learn by experience that it has additional electric fans, like hazard lights a modification I can approve of in any classic car.

As with everyone else, after parking back at the hotel, I linger by ‘my’ car; I’ve bonded with it and don’t want to give it back.

Everyone misidentified it as the James Bond car, of course, but the public reaction when passing through towns and villages is still a revelation. Eventually, we all drift into the hotel, check in and freshen up for dinner.

JONO RENTON / MATTHEW PITTS / RACHEL PERSAUD

Setting off from the Elvetham, I am immediately reminded how nicely these drive, especially with the non-intrusive powerassistance and that jewel of a five-speed ZF ’box. With the engine upgrade it is lustily powerful and that tiny wand of a gearlever seems almost incongruous with the brute force that it commands.

There aren’t so many occasions when you can exploit it to the full but there are spots on the route where it can lift its skirts and remind you what a confident, comfortable GT this was in its day, despite its then-ageing underpinnings. Of course, the extra power and the RS Williams tweaks have finessed it massively, but even without those the DB6 would be a joy to drive.

It is not a wide car, and neither are some of the roads en route to our lunch stop via a host of castles, attractions and picturesque villages, so thoughts

Is it expensive to take part in the Hope Classic Rally? Well, it costs rather more to enter than your average road run, for sure, but where else could you find yourself driving someone else’s million-pound car for the day?

It is pure dream fulfilment. And not only for rally participants but also for the million people – overwhelmingly children – in Africa that WeSeeHope has so far lifted out of poverty through offering training, skills and opportunity.

This year the rally raised a not-to-be-sniffed-at £200,000, including £33,000 from the auction alone, hosted by TV presenter Simon Thomas of Soccer Saturday and Blue Peter fame. That takes the rally’s total contribution to the charity over the £2million mark.

I promise you’ll rarely have such a nice day out while doing so much good.

Next year will be the tenth anniversary of the rally and the 25th of the charity. Register your interest in taking part with event manager Marina Hamilton on Marina@HopeClassicRally.org.

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ADVERTISING FEATURE

ALL UNDER ONE ROOF Taking care of classic cars and supercars on a whole new level UNIVERSAL CLASSIC CARS is approaching its 14th year, going from a sizeable single-service storage facility to an enormous multi-purpose classic car and supercar establishment. With a global reach and caring for some of the most stunning vehicles you have ever seen, it’s time to catch up with founder and CEO, Henry Allaway.

‘UCC’s journey was built through nothing other than passion for all things with engines,’ says Henry.

‘My father and I have always loved cars and motorcycles. When we looked into storing vehicles for ourselves we were shocked by the poor quality of what was on offer: damp, dusty old barns on farms. We thought we could change this and lead the industry, and from then on we did. Our facility is on the next level, we had to learn the meaning of true relative humidity, how to manage it and how to protect vehicles. We wanted to create a facility in which we would want our own cars looked after, a place where the cars didn’t need to go anywhere else for any additional needs.

‘When we first opened we had 40,000sq ft and we had our doubters. “You will never fill it,” they said. “There are not enough classics that need storage.”

‘I thought of the film Field of Dreams, and its catchphrase: “If you build it they will come.” Then word got out and they started to come in thick and fast, and before long we had to start expanding and built a huge wing and service centre. We grew and grew to a building now over 80,000sq ft, looking after 500 vehicles, with servicing, MoTs, an award-winning detailing studio and a stunning 3500sq ft sales showroom.

‘We’ve sold some of the rarest cars on the planet. We’ve won awards for our detailing work at some of the most prestigious concours events and we’ve loved every

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minute. Like I’ve said before, we do well because we love what we do, all our customers walk the same line of enthusiasm as we do. It’s a wonderful business because there’s no battle to sell here, no pressure.

This is what we do and we know you will love it as much as we do.

‘The future for UCC is bright. I attend lots of shows and events and the sheer passion of the people I meet for all things engines is immense. We have a huge number of customers who don’t even live in the UK, and they store their cars with us because they come here to be a part of this collective love of cars.

‘Many people actually ask if this really is the building where the cars are kept! The best part of that is when they step inside and it’s even better. There are dedicated floors for

Ferrari, Porsche, British brands, German brands and American brands. It’s a visual feast all under one roof and when I’m doing my daily walkabout it still fills me with joy, looking at what we have created and knowing it is unique and hasn’t been matched.

‘The best part of UCC is its customers, many of whom have become good friends.

They come to UCC and stay for hours. We have a drivers’ club and regularly do tours, all exclusive to the UCC community.

‘I’ve been quoted as having petrol running through my veins but, without my team, UCC would be nothing. Like me, they love what they do, and while it is an enormous responsibility to care for these prized possessions, I have the utmost confidence in my team to deliver above expectation. Long may it continue.’

14/08/2024 19:53

‘UCC’s journey was built through nothing other than passion for all things with engines’

+44 (0)1252 851457 | uccs.co.uk | info@uccs.co.uk |

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universalclassiccars

14/08/2024 19:53

Gone but not forgotten Words by Richard Heseltine

Left Bristol-born racing driver Marsh adapted Dizzy Addicott and Paul Emery’s Dart to create the glassfibre monocoque Mini Marcos in 1965.

Jem Marsh The hard-bitten Marcos boss was driven like few others and never knew when he was beaten. Thankfully IT WASN’T SO much a question as a statement of fact. It was the summer of 2002, a period when the sun was setting on Jem Marsh’s tenure at the helm of the marque he co-founded, and a brief test of the new Marcos TS250 Marcasite had proved enjoyable. On our return to the factory (a Nissen hut) in Westbury, Bradford-on-Avon, the lanky pensioner greeted our arrival with: ‘I trust nothing fell off.’ He then scuttled off to deal with something more important. Marsh often had an adversarial relationship with the media and didn’t exactly mask his distrust.

They don’t make motor moguls like Marsh anymore. To be honest, they didn’t make many like him way back when, either. He was defiantly self-directed and this was reflected in the cars he produced. By his own admission, Marsh was not an academic. He left school in 1946 and enlisted in the Royal Navy. Seven years later, he acquired a partially built Austin Seven ‘special’ and ventured trackside for the first time shortly thereafter. On returning to Civvy Street, he found gainful employment as a car salesmen, only soon to move into a different arena altogether. Marsh joined the European Motor Rodeo display team, adopting the pseudonym ‘Rodeo Rod’ for no other reason than it ‘sounded more American’.

Nevertheless, motor racing was his first love. Marsh accepted a position with leading Austin tuning outfit Dante Engineering in 1955 and formed Speedex Castings & Accessories two years later. Always restless, the Westcountryman wanted more, and a chance meeting with Frank Costin in a pub in Hitchin led to what became the first Marcos (the tag being a contraction of their surnames). In early 1959, the pair conceived a Clubmans car that employed a plywood monocoque. This cycle-winged machine wasn’t attractive – not even close – but it could hit 110mph with only a lightly tweaked 1172cc Ford sidevalve unit.

There were, however, a few bumps in the road. Inevitably, Marsh and Costin disagreed on the future direction of the marque, which led to a parting of the ways early the following year. Production was relocated from Wales to Luton, with Dennis Adams giving the car a makeover while his brother Peter set about simplifying chassis construction for what became the production ‘Gullwing’ Marcos.

Then the money ran out. One of Marsh’s most impressive gifts was his ability to persuade others to share his vision and prise open their bank accounts. He soon roped in the first of umpteen backers to get Marcos back on track.

From new premises in Wiltshire, Marcos Cars Ltd resumed production in late 1962 but a new model was needed. A roadster variant was displayed at the following January’s Racing Car Show but it didn’t find favour. A slab of polystyrene was then placed on top and whittled until it looked about right, forming a mould for what became unofficially known as the ‘Fastback’. However, realising that sales of racing cars were largely seasonal, Marsh initiated a stopgap. Combining the Costinian approach of a wooden hull with unlikely Volvo B18 inline-four power, the 1800 was designed as a pure road car.

It was first seen in 1964 and the same basic outline would remain a marque constant for the next 40 years. However, Marcos seemed to be perennially suspended between outcomes and the dawn of the 1970s was no different.

The move to a new, larger facility in Westbury and the arrival of the new Mantis four-seater proved a distraction, but worse was to come: 27 cars were impounded in the USA in the belief that they didn’t conform to the country’s emissions regulations (they did).

With the revenue tap turned off, Marsh was obliged to sell out in 1971, and the firm was strip-mined by its new keeper.

Marcos was dead – for the first time. Marsh set up shop next door offering spares while returning on track in historics aboard the ‘Ugly Duckling’ Marcos made famous by Jackie Stewart. He also established a Datsun dealership before reviving the Marcos marque in 1981. This time, the classic Marcos GT was a kit car for which you were obliged to source your own running gear. Not that you dared utter the words ‘kit’ and ‘car’ in his presence.

He loathed the term and didn’t mind saying so. Marcos would undergo serial ownership into the 1990s, and a return to the production car arena. Marsh remained the public figurehead, with all that entailed.

The thing is, while some found Marsh intimidating, he could also be friendly and wryly amusing. If you understood his wares he was good value, although experiencing them from the passenger seat was often hair-raising. The phrase ‘drive it like you stole it’ could have been coined exclusively for him.

Marsh died in March 2015, aged 84. More than anything, he was never boring – indeed he was an antidote to corporate-speak and interchangeable CEOs. One of the last of his breed, Marsh was an emblematic frontman for whom there was no such word as ‘quit’.

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MILESTONE MOTORCARS

1969 Ferrari 365 GTB4 “Daytona” SN#12995

561 509 7251

For our current inventory please visit our website

www.MilestoneMotorcarsLLC.com

A fine example of an early European delivery “Plexinose” Ferrari Daytona. Original colors of Argento & Nero leather to interior. Only four documented owners from new. Sympathetically restored by Marque experts.

1925 Vauxhall 30-98 OE Velox Tourer Please see website for more details.

Landline: +44 (0) 1440 841 447 Mobile: +44 (0) 7493 897 975

www.polsonmotorco.com

john@polsonmotorco.com

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Gearbox Interview and pictures by James Elliott

1. As a tractor mechanic I understood engines more than any school subject so I am proud to have, with help, authored two books. Sales on my autobiography are more than 20,000 now, which is very gratifying.

Steve Parrish Suzuki works rider, truck racer, commentator, pilot, author, raconteur and semi-pro prankster 1

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2. My wife Michelle is the mainstay of my life; I met her when she was the owner of my local, The Queen Adelaide, 20 years ago.

I am also extremely proud of my two children from my first marriage. Francesca is a charity worker who has just made me a grandfather for the first time (to Lockie), and Joseph is in recruitment in New York.

3. Piers Forester was a great mate who died young [crashing a TZ750 at Brands Hatch in ’77]. He was very aristocratic and convinced Prince Michael of Kent that he and I should be Great Britain’s two-man bobsleigh team for the 1980 Winter Olympics, despite him not being very good and me never having even seen one. We went to a training camp at Igls in Austria, did 16 corners upside down – twice! – and got kicked out. I tried several times to win this trophy in Piers’ name – it represents Icarus, which is appropriate for him, and it is my most cherished trophy.

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4. My first success in life: second in a ploughing match aged 14 on a Czech-built Zeta 4WD. I am from Hertfordshire farming stock and might have gone into that if bikes hadn’t taken over. A farm on a disused airfield [RAF Steeple Morden] is a great place to learn to ride when you are 12.

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5. I have 13 replica TT trophies, one for each time I have finished the Isle of Man TT. I never won, but I got on the podium on an FZ750 Yamaha, averaging 114mph. I know it is a controversial event nowadays but it is the most exhilarating thing I have ever done.

6. I recently reacquired the Suzuki RG500 that propelled me into professional racing.

My sponsor, a builder from Guildford, bought it and I beat a lot of factory riders, which brought me to their teams’ attention.

7. The Shell Sport 500cc Championship was a career turning point when I won it in 1979 on that very same Suzuki. I had my little business repairing other people’s vehicles, then Suzuki was ringing up and asking if I wanted to be Barry Sheene’s team-mate.

8. This TD2B 250cc Yamaha was my first competitive bike, the one that got me on the ladder. It fuelled my confidence and competitive spirit and snared me my first sponsor. I’ve owned it three times now!

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9. Nellie is a failed police sniffer dog. She’s actually Nellie 2, a Cocker Spaniel we got six months ago to ease the heartache of losing Nellie 1, who died suddenly. It’s working.

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10. I bought this Rolex Submariner in 1977 with my prize money from the Austrian GP. Swiss rider Philippe Coulon’s sister worked for Rolex and got me a big discount, but the price still made my eyes water. I replaced the gold strap with a rubber one so it’s less flash.

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Aston Martin Specialists

Sales | Restoration | Parts | Servicing | Engineering

Visit Aston Workshop at

Goodwood Revival

Aston Workshop are returning to Goodwood Revival for another year of bringing everything Aston Martin to the world’s biggest vintage car party!

We’ll have a few of our current restorations on display as well as some of our in-house produced parts, engine blocks and cylinder heads.

Situated in our normal spot Over the Road from the circuit, look for our giant tipi next to the fun fair and come say hello!

Full National and International transport service operating daily from North East England

/astonworkshop

astonworkshop

Red Row, Beamish, Durham DH9 0RW T. +44 (0) 1207 233525 E. sales@aston.co.uk

aston.co.uk

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MGM

Words by Delwyn Mallett

Vandamm House A Mid-Century Modernist masterpiece that was immortalised on celluloid – despite never actually existing AS MID-20TH CENTURY Modernist houses go, the so-called Vandamm House, built above the Mount Rushmore National Monument, ranks as one of the most recognised, spectacular and admired.

However, much to the disappointment of architecture fans, some of whom tried to find it, it doesn’t exist outside the celluloid of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1959 masterpiece North by Northwest. Even then, it’s on screen for a mere 14 minutes, with wide shots of the magnificent cliff-top cantilevered exterior lasting only a matter of seconds.

It was conceived as a paean to 1950s consumerism and luxury as Hitchcock wanted an ultra-modern contemporary home for one of the movie’s key scenes. In it, the debonair Madison Avenue ad-man hero Cary Grant attempts to rescue the equally sophisticated and elegant undercover FBI agent Eva Marie Saint before she is spirited out of the country by her lover (it was a risqué film for 1959), the Cold War spy-villain Phillip Vandamm, played

by James Mason.

The much-publicised Guggenheim Museum, by Frank Lloyd Wright, was nearing completion in New York at the time. Being America’s most famous architect, he was approached but rejected when his fee amounted to 10% of the movie’s total budget.

Instead, the production director Robert F Boyle was asked to submit Wright-like designs. Inspiration came from the landmark

Wright house Fallingwater, completed in 1938 as a weekend retreat for Edgar and Liliane Kaufmann and considered by cognoscenti to be Wright’s finest house. The house features a series of cantilevered terraces suspended over a cascading waterfall, hence the name, with unadorned supporting stone walls quarried from the local vicinity. In keeping with Wright’s ‘organic architecture’ style and his axiom that ‘no house should be on a hill… it should be of the hill’, the surrounding rock formations are allowed to intrude through the walls and floors. Boyle adopted the same stylistic motifs for Vandamm House, incorporating natural stone walls into the double-height main living room where the majority of the action takes place.

Filmed long before CGI was even imagined, the house (or parts of it) was built at the MGM Culver City studios in Los Angeles. It was a combination of life-size construction – in particular the huge cantilevers up which Cary Grant climbs to enter the house – and, for the long shots, a combination of matte paintings on glass positioned to match the 3D construction. All the action in and around the house takes place at night, which made it easier to blend the painted images with the constructed pieces.

Hitchcock specialised in spectacular climaxes to his movies and was fond of the extra drama and tension imparted by dizzying heights. His WW2 espionage thriller Saboteur

concluded with a gripping fight staged on the torch of the Statue of Liberty (again, all shot in a studio) but North by Northwest went one further by featuring a cliffhanger ending as, to avoid being shot by the baddies, Eva Marie Saint and Cary Grant scrabble perilously across the massive heads of the Presidents carved into the face of Mt Rushmore. Boyle, a stickler for authenticity, abseiled down the heads to make measurements and take photographs before handing over to MGM’s set-builders. The studio craftsmen reproduced a life-size section of George Washington’s head – from the chin down – with added ledges for the actors to stand on, and the scene was filmed in front of a meticulously painted full-size cyclorama of the adjacent heads.

Perhaps more than any other movie, North By Northwest allowed future film villains to emerge from the shadows and display the spoils of their ill-gotten wealth in modern and spectacular surroundings.

Vandamm House became an inspiration for movie directors and production designers when creating the lairs of their villains, perhaps most notably in the ever more spectacular sets that Ken Adam produced for seven James Bond movies, starting in 1962 with Dr No’s underground base.

Although Frank Lloyd Wright didn’t get the North by Northwest gig, a number of his houses have subsequently become movie stars. Among them, most notably, is the Ennis House in Los Angeles, built in Wright’s Mayan Revival style, which in 1959 became The House on Haunted Hill. Ridley Scott later used it as Rick Deckard’s gloomy apartment in his 1982 dystopian sci-fi epic Blade Runner. In 1989 Scott relocated the Ennis House to Osaka, Japan, for his cop thriller Black Rain, where it became the residence of a Yakuza mobster. The Michael Jackson music video Why? is also set in and around the house.

Ridley Scott also featured Wright’s masterpiece New York Guggenheim Museum in Someone to Watch Over Me. Today, Mid-Century Modernist houses are much sought-after but in short supply and, given the movie star fame of Vandamm House, it is perhaps surprising that a megawealthy enthusiast has not commissioned a recreation of it. We less-wealthy Vandamm enthusiasts continue to live in hope that one day a lost Modernist masterpiece will finally be made flesh – or stone, steel and glass.

The cars in North by Northwest also attest to the opulence of the protagonists. Eva Marie Saint arrives at Mt Rushmore in a 1958 Lincoln Continental MkIII convertible, several top-of-the-range Cadillac limousines swish by (including a cameo from Hitchcock’s very own Fleetwood 75), and Grant’s drunken dash is in a Mercedes 220S convertible – which he subsequently bought.

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14/08/2024 15:13

2017 Aston Martin Vanquish V12 Zagato

1 owner example comes optioned with Villa D’este package, Carbon fibre centre console, 1-77 Style steering wheel, Fully electric and memory front seats, Alarm upgrade. 69 miles. £389,990

2018 Lamborghini Aventador V12 LP 740-4 S Q-citura stitching, Transparent engine cover, Lifting system, Red brake callipers, 20/21” Dionne alloy wheels finished in Gloss black with Diamond face 12,500 miles. £237,990

2018 Ferrari 812 Superfast V12

Front bumper mouth piece in Carbon fibre, Carbon fibre front spoiler, Carbon fibre racing seats with seat lifter, Privacy rear windows, Matte black forged racing wheels. 11,600 miles. £205,990

2017 Porsche 911 991 GT3

Finished in Guards Red, 6 point racing harnesses, Carbon ceramic brakes, Bose surround sound, Light design package, Guards red Seat belts.

4,700 miles. £139,990

2020 Aston Martin DBS V12 BiTurbo Superleggera

Memory front seats, Bang and Olufsen surround sound system, Triaxal quilting, 360 degree camera, Blind spot monitoring. 16,000 miles. £129,990

2016 Lamborghini Aventador V12 LP 750-4 Superveloce

2020 Ferrari 812 Superfast V12

1 owner, Gloss carbon exterior, Carbon fibre interior package, Sports exhaust system, 20/21” Dianthus centre lock alloy wheels. 6,800 Miles. £339,990

Suspension lifter, Adaptive headlights with SBL function, Scuderia shields, Rear privacy glass, Titanium exhaust pipes, 20” forged diamond alloys, Ferrari main dealer history. 2,400 Miles. £261,990

2021 Lamborghini Huracan V10 LP 610-2 EVO

2018 Lamborghini Huracan V10 LP 640-4 Performante

Fully electric and heated comfort seats, Piano black interior trim, Satin black tailpipes, 8,500 miles. £218,990

2023 Porsche 911 992 GT3

1 owner from new, dark chrome interior package, Lazer engraved stitching, 20” Loge alloy wheels finished in Gloss black. 16,000 miles. £209,990

2022 Porsche 911 992 GT3

Carbon fibre bucket seats, Clubsport package, Sports chrono package, Front lifting system, Bose surround sound system, Seatbelts in racing yellow, Rev counter in racing yellow, 600 miles. £179,990

Black leather and Race-tex interior. Carbon backed bucket seats, Carbon fibre lightweight roof, Clubsport package, 7 speed PDK, Exclusive design taillights, Privacy glass. 8,000 miles. £169,990

2016 Ferrari 488 T V8 GTB

2019 Aston Martin DBS V12 BiTurbo Superleggera

Finished in Grigio Ferro over Rosso Ferrari and Nero leather interior. Daytona style seats, Suspension lifter, Yellow brake callipers, 20” Forged alloys in Grey. 18,000 miles. £132,990

2014 Lamborghini Gallardo LP560-2

50th anniversary finished in Nero Serapis metallic, 19” Superleggera alloys finished in Titanium, Full Lamborghini main dealer service history from new. 11,900 miles. £119,990

Heated and Ventillated front seats, Bang & Olufsen surround sound, 360 degree cameras, Carbon fibre shift paddles. 16,000 miles. £131,990

2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4

Finished in Shark Blue, Black leather and Race-tex interior, Sports chrono package, Clubsport package, Fire extinguisher, Bose sound system, Porsche warranty until April 2026. 950 miles. £89,990

BUYING OR SELLING LAMBORGHINI MOTORCARS T +44 01580 714 597 E sales@vvsuk.co.uk W www.vvsuk.co.uk (Viewing by appointment only) Address: VVS UK LTD PARK FARM, GOUDHURST ROAD, CRANBROOK, KENT, TN17 2LJ www.lamborghinibuyer.com Additional Websites: www.justlamborghini.com

OCTANE_256_VVS_222mm w x 285mm h.indd 1

13/08/2024 12:29

Chrono Words by Mark McArthur-Christie

An apple watch that ticks From back when Apple meant John, Paul, George and Ringo rather than Steve, Tim or Jony WHAT COMES to mind when someone says ‘Apple Watch’?

Something with silicon insides that goes bleep to tell you HR just emailed? That’s just soooo square, man – this is an Apple Watch. And not only does it pre-date the naggy, bleepy, disposable wrist computers by nearly 50 years, this one never needs a software update, is easily repaired (and will be as long as there are watchmakers) and tells one heck of a story that links Apple, The Beatles, the Clerkenwell watch industry, Swatch and a ’60s socialite. It doesn’t get much cooler.

If you spent any time in Clerkenwell before it turned into Posh Flats Central, you’ll have spotted the watch shops. Even as recently as 2002 you could wander down the Charterhouse Square end of Clerkenwell Road and find a host of small watch repairers and old watch sellers (‘vintage’ wasn’t a thing back then). This was no accident. Since the 18th Century Clerkenwell had been the centre of the English watch industry. And it was there – on St John Street – that Accurist set-up shop in 1946. The firm’s combination of solid, value-for-money watches and an advertising and marketing budget only slightly less than the GDP of Ghana meant it thrived.

When the ’60s began to swing, the new member of the Accurist family firm, Richard Loftus, spotted a gap in the market: fashion watches. Rather than launch under the staid Accurist brand, Loftus created ‘Old England’, perhaps the most ironic name for a watch that was anything but. Old England took cheap mechanical movements, gave them wacky cases, loud dials and lairy, often interchangeable straps, all grouped into regularly changing (and affordable) ‘collections’.

This was the Swatch concept 20 years before Nicolas Hayek. The firm even made a series of car watches – shaped like the steering wheels of different marques – in the early ’70s.

The idea took off and soon everyone from Eric Clapton to Princess Anne had an Old England on their wrist. When The Beatles decided to diversify (disastrously, as it turned out) into retail with their Apple Boutique on the corner of Baker Street and Crawford Street, they asked Loftus to make them a watch. Because their business was ‘Apple Corps Limited’ (see what they did there?) they wanted something unique with an apple on the dial. Ever savvy (he had a degree in Economics from Cambridge, after all), rather than making a watch

from scratch, Loftus took the simplest, cheapest route. He had a stack of cardboard squares printed with a picture of an apple, varnished them, and fitted them over the dials of existing watches. The first and thoroughly low-tech Apple Watch was born.

These were not top-flight Swiss watches, despite having proper Swiss movements made by Claro Watch SA. They were basic: with Roskopf pin-pallet escapements and that cardboard dial overlay they weren’t exactly disposable, but they weren’t going to win any chronometer prizes either.

The watch you see here is owned by Kieron Maughan of Rockstars’ Cars fame (rockstarscars.co.uk), walking encylopaedia of all things musical and automotive. Its heritage is a direct link to The Beatles and swinging London itself, as Kieron explains: ‘The previous owner wouldn’t tell me much more than that it had been owned by a “Miss Gore”, but I’ve done some digging and I’m pretty sure this was Eric Clapton’s girlfriend Alice Ormsby Gore. She was certainly part of the Beatles set and even worked for Apple Corps for a while.’

Talking of which, if they hadn’t transferred ownership of the Apple name to Apple Inc in 2007 after years of legal wrangling, one wonders what Tim Cook would have called his new bleepy wrist computer only eight years later.

ONE TO WATCH

Claro Beach Star An affordable, vividly hued plastic watch?

It’ll never catch on

IN A 1968 interview about Old England, Richard Loftus mentions he’s working on a water-resistant beach watch. This was the Claro Beach Star, another concept that was well ahead of its time: a front-loading thermoplastic case with a range of shapes and colours (even a jump-hour model – the Sports Star) and a price ticket that wouldn’t give anyone kittens. Remind you of a certain plastic Swiss watch?

As they were never designed as heirlooms, there aren’t many left today but they still don’t cost a fortune if you can find one. Good ones are around £250-300. Cool doesn’t get much cheaper.

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14/08/2024 16:58

1992 ALLARD J2X-C “A UNIQUE 3.5 LITRE GROUP C THAT REVOLUTIONISED AERODYNAMICS IN ENDURANCE RACING“

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COLLECTION

Books Reviewed by Mark Dixon

The True Story of the Bugatti EB110

DARIO TRUCCO translated into English by Angela Spence, Minerva, £50, ISBN 978 8 833245 86 7

WHEN A NEW book arrives for review with a covering letter personally signed by Chiara Stanzani, daughter of the late, great engineer Paolo Stanzani – technical director of Lamborghini in its glory years of 1968-75 – you sit up and take notice. In fact, Chiara has been a driving force behind this radical book, which unashamedly sets out to, as she puts it, ‘reconstruct’ the story of her father’s involvement with the EB110 project and to correct what she sees as misinformation from official sources.

It opens with a bang, in the form of a letter written by Marcello Gandini – yes, that Gandini – to Bugatti’s press office on 19 December 2022.

Responding to a congratulatory press release about Romano Artioli’s 90th birthday (Artioli is, of course, the man who bought and revived the Bugatti marque with the EB110), he doesn’t hold back, accusing ‘Mr Artioli’s celebratory book, published after Stanzani’s death’ of not just failing to acknowledge Stanzani’s contribution, but

actually denigrating it. He adds that he thinks his own design for the EB110, as modified by Giampaolo Benedini, lost its initial spirit ‘after I too had abandoned the project due to the unprofessional and unconstructive climate’. Ouch!

Even though Chiara claims she was denied access to the official Bugatti archives, enough material has been pulled together by her and author Dario Trucco, who was in charge of the EB110’s bodywork development, to pack this substantial hardback with dozens of previously unseen images, sketches and paperwork relating to the car’s evolution – such as early experiments in the cockpit layout, pictured below left. As Trucco unravels the story, a fascinating account emerges of the complexities – political as well as technical – of trying to launch a new supercar from scratch.

Bugatti’s dramatic new high-tech factory, specifically built for the project, contrasts with the simple old-school plywood hull used to lay out the earliest iterations of the car.

Several other Bugatti insiders are interviewed at length, their testimonies throwing up intriguing anecdotes. Franco Baraldini, briefly the successor to Stanzani as Lamborghini’s technical director, recalls how Artioli told him that while on holiday on the Côte d’Azur he’d met Michel Bugatti, the last descendant of Ettore, who ‘worked there as a plumber’. It was Michel who alerted Artioli to the possibility that Hispano-Suiza might sell Bugatti.

The rest, as they say, is history – but history is generally written by the victors, in this case whoever happens to own Bugatti at a particular time. Doubtless some would claim that Trucco and Chiara Stanzani’s version is equally partisan and open to question, but the depth of research and the quality of the witnesses quoted here nevertheless makes it a valuable counterpoint to what has been said before.

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COLLECT OR BOOK ’S

Carchitecture USA

Subaru Impreza WRC

Ten Days in Sicily

This intriguing but ultimately confusing book consists of striking images of classic cars outside – and occasionally inside – iconic examples of US architecture, along with detailed captions and a few longer essays. Palm Springs ‘Desert Modern’ is heavily featured, and the 1950s and ’60s land yachts that front them look, literally, right at home – but elsewhere the marriage of cars and houses is a lot more random, resulting in an unfocused production that fails to live up to its intellectual pretensions.

Inclusion of a chapter dedicated to the news events of 1997, and no fewer than 72 pages about Colin McRae, his family and co-driver Nicky Grist, are all hints that the author has had his work cut out to fill out this paean to Colin’s 1997 Safari Rally winner, which had just three works outings before entering privateer hands. That said, he’s met the brief brilliantly, and Impreza fans will find much to love in this hefty book that’s packed with great photos.

The Targa Florio has always been a popular motor racing subject and, following recent discussion on an internet forum about this impactful book, interest in it has been rekindled – and rightly so. At its core are the superb images taken by Brian Joscelyne on a trip to Sicily in 1966 to take in the Syracuse Grand Prix and the Targa Florio, capturing not only the cars, but the ’60s ambience, too. A mint copy is now worth 15 times its 2010 price, but when you handle one you’ll understand why.

Ben Horton

IAN WAGSTAFF, Porter Press International, £69, ISBN 978 1 907085 52 9

TONY ADRIAENSENS & BRIAN JOSCELYNE, Corsa Research, published 2010, value £1500

THIJS DEMEULEMEESTER & BERT VOET, Lannoo, £45, ISBN 978 9 401489 49 2

The Autobiography of P8 WRC

Emeryson The Life of Paul Emery

The title of this large-format hardback is particularly apt. Professional photographer Walter Breveglieri, famous for his pictures of Bologna and of its sports stars and celebrities, happened to live close to the OSCA factory and so was perfectly placed to document its 20-year history from 1947 to 1967. More than that, he was also an extremely good racing driver and raced OSCAs himself, being friendly with the three Maserati brothers that had founded the company. The result was an outstanding archive of more than 2500 images, most of which have never been published, and from which 225 were chosen for this book.

There’s a great variety of subject matter here: candid shots taken at test sessions and hillclimbs, more formal publicity pics of new road cars, and lots of informal portraits of people, from humble mechanics to VIP drivers. Louis Chiron, cheerfully waiting to test a Formula 1 OSCA on the largely deserted Via Emilia, is just one highlight. It’s appropriate, then, that the book also contains in-depth interviews with the few surviving OSCA employees; Mauro Fantuzzi, who started at OSCA aged 14, has evocative memories of Bindo, Ernesto and Ettore Maserati – and of Alejandro de Tomaso dousing an obstructive policeman with petrol and threatening to set him alight! Altogether, a unique insight into this ill-fated marque, and one that’s beautifully produced.

Like so many brilliant engineers, Paul Emery was not such a good businessman, which is why he’s less well-known today than the likes of Colin Chapman. This excellent hardback reveals his astonishing talent, not only as an engineer but also as a racing driver: he came very close to beating Moss’s Maserati 250F in his own EmerysonAlta in a 1956 Formule Libre race.

Emery’s engineering skills were forged in the cash-strapped realities of early post-war Britain; an early success was the 1947 Emeryson Special, built with very basic facilities and using twin-stage supercharging to extract about 150bhp from a 1087cc Lagonda Rapier engine. He progressed to F3 500cc, F2 and F1 single-seaters, then sports-racers; even a run of chopped-roof Emeryson Hillman Imp GTIs, before a late foray into midget racing, which suited his fertile imagination. This prolific output is comprehensively covered, and rounded off with appendices of all his many cars and his remarkable tally of races driven.

CARLO CAVICCHI with photographs by WALTER BREVEGLIERI, Evro Publishing, £95, ISBN 978 1 910505 91 5

GRAHAM RABAGLIATI, Enigma, £50, ISBN 978 1 872955 42 1

Inside OSCA

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Gear Compiled by Chris Bietzk

Lego Technic McLaren P1 Lego’s latest 1:8-scale model car is its most complex yet, with features including a working seven-speed gearbox operated by tiny paddles, a V8 engine with moving pistons, an adjustable rear wing, and spring-loaded butterfly doors. The combined rear axle, gearbox and engine assembly in particular looks a proper challenge to put together; for the sake of your sanity you’ll want to follow the two (!) thick instruction books carefully to avoid ending up with a mystery, leftover gear wheel… £389.99. lego.com

Oakley Pitchman R Marc Márquez sunglasses

Malle x Breitling Expedition duffel bag

The great Marc Márquez hasn’t had much to smile about in recent seasons – his pursuit of a seventh MotoGP crown has been frustrating and frequently very painful – but he must be pleased with these new sunglasses, made by Oakley to his requirements and featuring contrast-enhancing ‘Prizm’ lenses. £202. oakley.com

Malle and Breitling have teamed up again to produce a range of luggage able to take a licking on an overland trip.

This waterproof canvas duffel bag, featuring bridle-leather handles and solid brass hardware, was torture-tested on motorcycle adventures across the Alps and the Arctic. £359. mallelondon.com

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Sky Wave Triple Distilled Vodka

Moonraker jacket by McNair

Based at Bicester Heritage, Sky Wave came to notice for its award-winning gins, but master distiller Andrew Parsons kept being asked to cook up a vodka, and he’s now obliged. Made using mineral water drawn from the aquifer on the Blenheim Palace estate, the tripledistilled vodka is described by The International Drinks Specialists as ‘soft and mellow on the palate’, with aromas of vanilla and almond. £39.50. skywavegin.com

This addition to McNair’s range of merino wool jackets boasts nine generous but well-concealed pockets. It’s named after the 19th Century smugglers of Slaithwaite, who, when caught raking bottles of rum from the canal one night, claimed they were in fact trying to save the Moon, which appeared to have fallen into the water! £475. mcnairshirts.com

Specialized Stumpjumper 15 The 15th iteration of the first mass-produced mountain bike, and touted by Specialized’s marketing bods as a bike ‘to rule all trails’.

A 50-strong R&D team worked for over three years to ensure the new Stumpjumper could live up to that billing, notably coming up with a novel air shock designed to behave more like a coil shock – to a point.

The ‘GENIE’ features a pair of positive air chambers that are connected for the first 70% of the shock’s stroke, during which the spring rate is pretty linear.

If the bike’s suspension is compressed further, though, a band closes off the larger, outer air chamber, and the spring rate becomes more progressive. The idea is to provide optimal traction and comfort while still minimising the likelihood of the bike bottoming out on punishing terrain – clever stuff.

From £5250. specialized.com

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Gear

Nivada Grenchen Chronosport Nivada Grenchen’s latest is a watch for which there was pent-up demand: the Nivada Chronosport was conceived in the 1970s but wasn’t put into production, and today there are many more admirers of the design than there are surviving 1970s Chronosport prototypes. The reissue isn’t an exact copy of the original 37mm handwound watch (it’s wider by 1mm, and it’s an automatic, with an ETA 7750 movement), but it’s going to make a lot of frustrated collectors very happy nonetheless. $2180. nivadagrenchenofficial.com

Montjuïc 1969 by Àlex Balaguer Àlex Balaguer captures, in acrylics on canvas, a scene from the 1969 Spanish GP. You can tell Graham Hill has completed no more than eight laps here, because on lap 9 the rear wing of his Lotus 49B collapsed, sending the car careening into a barrier.

Incredibly, Hill was not hurt, but his wrecked car was left long enough for fellow Lotus driver Jochen Rindt to hit it on lap 20 when his rear wing also collapsed. The Commission Sportive Internationale called time on F1’s high-wing era just days later. €2500. Guerrero Galeria de Arte via artsper.com

Bits and Pieces

by Prince Birabongse Prince Bira had one of the most interesting careers of any gentleman racer, and his recollections, published in 1942, make for a fun read. Copies of Bits and Pieces can be had for far less than £475, but the example in stock at rare book dealer Peter Harrington is unusual in having been signed by Bira. £475. peterharrington.co.uk

Tamiya R/C Opel Kadett GT/E The peppy Kadett GT/E had many fans in the 1970s, but Walter Röhrl was not one of them. The works GT/E rally cars he drove for Opel were maddeningly unreliable. He did enjoy one happy outing in a GT/E, though, finishing fourth in the 1976 Monte Carlo Rally, and this new R/C car is based specifically on Röhrl’s Monte Carlo mount.

£185. voltagemodels.com 160

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1962 Jaguar D-Type (Proteus) After the Le Mans victories in 1951 and 1953 with the C-Type - or XK 120 C - Jaguar entered the legendary 24-hour race at the Sarthe in 1954 with the D-Type, which was futuristic by the standards of the time. This resulted in three consecutive victories in the 24H of Le Mans race (1955, 1956 and 1957).

This beautiful D-Type replica „by Proteus „ with aluminum body and 3.8 Lt E-Type engine is very close to the original and has been expertly built. The car was bought by the previous owner in 1990 and sold to the current owner in 2008 (both well-known Swiss collectors). The car has been regularly serviced and was last inspected as a veteran in 2015. It has been driven very little since then. CHF 190‘000

1966 Aston Martin DB6 Volante

1957 Alfa Romeo Giulietta Spider Veloce

This number matching car is absolutely stunning and is „as new“ condition. The car was converted from right- to left-and drive and a 4-speed ZF Automatic gearbox was fitted. Swiss registration papers. CHF 695‘000

This Giulietta is a perfectly restored model with its light blue paintwork. Four-cylinder engine with two overhead camshafts and two Weber twin carburettors producing 90 hp - with weight of only 890 kilos, this guaranteed a lot of driving pleasure.

CHF 128‘000

1972 Jaguar E-Type V12 Roadster Serie III

1993 BMW 850 CSi

Beautiful V12 E-Type Roadster (RHD) in perfect condition.

The car is in perfect and almost as new condition, having been driven a mere 3400 miles since 1989.

CHF 69‘000

Exclusive BMW 850 CSi with manual transmission.The vehicle was originally delivered new in Germany. It has had two previous owners. It has a complete service history, with all services documented. Numerous receipts are available. The vehicle is in top condition. CHF 74‘900

Graber Sportgarage AG 20240814_Octane_FP_GB.indd 1 OCTANE_256_GRABER_222mm w x 285mm h.indd 1

3125 Toffen / Switzerland

ch.traber@grabersportgarage.ch 15.08.24 17:41 16/08/2024 12:47

Gear

Autostrada leather key wallet by Autodromo

Doxa Sub 200T

Best-known for its motoring-themed wristwatches, Autodromo has branched out to offer a range of clothing and accessories including this pocket-saving key wallet. Handmade in Italy and available in nine colours, it features three clips to make life a bit easier for owners of cars with different keys for ignition, doors and fuel cap. £44. autodromo.com

Doxa’s 300T, based on a dive watch from 1968, is a fabulous design, but even with its short lugs it’s quite a lot of watch on the wrist, so the arrival of this shrunken, 39mm version is most welcome. £1490. doxawatches.com

OUR EXPERTS RECOMMEND

Vico Storto Greco di Tufo DOCG, Nativ 2022

Spark 1:43 1959 Aston Martin DBR4-250

Recommended by Private Cellar

Recommended by Grand Prix Models

Recommended by Watches of Switzerland

This delicious white wine is made from one of the oldest grape varieties, supposedly introduced by the Greeks, and is perfectly adapted to grow in the highly mineral Italian clay-limestone soil. It’s pale with a nose of sweet white fruit, some green leafy notes and blackcurrant leaf. It tastes soft and supple with zesty acidity, being juicy with a light tingly finish. Forza! £17.86. privatecellar.co.uk

This delightful resincast depicts the debut for Aston Martin’s first foray into single-seaters, at the non-championship Silverstone International Trophy in May 1959. Carroll Shelby did not finish, but Roy Salvadori brought his Ted Cutting-designed car home in second behind Jack Brabham’s Cooper-Climax. The future looked bright but, two seasons of F1 failure later, Aston pulled the plug and didn’t reurn until 2021, since when it has fared a little better. £69.95. grandprixmodels.com

Launched at this year’s Watches and Wonder in Geneva and described as ‘a joyful everyday toolwatch driven by the principles of refined luxury’, this Swiss-made automatic is powered by a Calibre 733 movement and comes in three sizes: bespoke 36.5, 41.5 and 43.5mm. The stainless steel watches feature Oris’s patented quick strap-change tech as well as its clasp-adjust system. The range-topper is the 43.5mm Aquis Date with five-day Calibre 400. £2200. watches-of-switzerland.co.uk

Oris Aquis Date

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TA L A C R E S T

the world’s number one classic ferrari dealer

1958 Ferrari 250 GT Cabriolet Series I Considered by many as the most elegant open GT Ferrari of the 1950s, i t is often the connoisseur’s choice for open air touring. This stunning GT is the 23rd of only 40 produced and presents a wonderful opportunity to acquire one of the few numbers matching examples. Finished in White with Turchese interior, surely makes this car one of the most desirable open Ferraris available today.

EXTENSIVE HISTORY FILE | FRONT BUMPERETTE & COVERED HEADLIGHTS | 1 OF 2 WITH SIDE VENTS

tHREE other selected ferraris currently FOR SALE

1967 Ferrari 330 GTC

1971 Ferrari Daytona Spyder Conversion

1966 Ferrari 330 GTC

W W W. TA L A C R E S T. C O M +44 (0)1344 308178 | +44 (0)7860 589855 | john@talacrest.com

ADVERTISING FEATURE

IN THE SPOTLIGHT, HCVA MEMBER :

JAR CAR STORAGE The team at JAR Car Storage is made up of highly experienced motor engineers with hundreds of years of experience between them. Caring for clients’ cars is their top priority, their best reward being the fabulous feedback they receive from clients. One JAR client, Nigel Light, summed up their services as follows: ‘Just wanted to thank you for the fantastic job you do. Whenever I pick a car up – it looks better, feels better and drives better. Truly amazing.’

JAR offers clients a high standard of dehumidified storage with maintenance options in purpose-designed buildings at its two highly secure Kent sites: the original near Tunbridge Wells and the second in Ashford, close to the M20 and convenient for Eurotunnel.

Visits to the facilities are by appointment only, to ensure JAR clients experience the one-to-one service they deserve.

JAR’s high-quality enclosed car transporters (HGV and enclosed trailers) move clients’ cars to or from storage, or to a wide variety of destinations such as shows, motorsport events or specialist auctions.

Whether transporting a classic, ultra-low historic race car or modern Lamborghini, your car is in safe hands. Your JAR transporter driver is both an experienced HGV driver and experienced motor engineer.

The in-house JAR workshop offers clients a level of knowledge and experience that is unique for a car storage company. The team comprises the significant part of Team 3019, which won Restorer of the Year at the 2023 Historic Motoring Awards. Its restoration of 1965 Shelby 427 Competition Cobra ‘3019’ involved dismantling every component and meticulously returning it to its 1966 spec. The restoration was completed in just ten months in time for the Carroll Shelby celebration parade at the 2023 Goodwood Revival.

Uniquely, JAR is able to offer clients a complete in-house service, from pre-purchase inspections to high-quality storage and transport, as well as access to the renowned workshops and sales support.

Superior car storage, enclosed car transportation and specialist motor engineers. +44 (0)1580 753939 www.jarcarstorage.co.uk

Classic British car parts: over one million parts in stock, for immediate dispatch worldwide. +44 (0)121 356 3003 www.motaclan.com

Supplying and sourcing the world’s finest classic and sports cars since 1963. +44 (0)20 3714 8377 www.hexagonclassics.com

Jaguar E-type and XK specialist.

Quality engineering and restoration. +44 (0)1483 537706 www.winspeedmotorsport.com

Helping to keep your Jaguar on the road. +44 (0)1746 765432 www.sngbarratt.com

59 Winspeed Year Planner Advert OL.indd 1

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HCVA .CO.UK

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Hot topic VOLUNTARY SAFETY CHECKS To coincide with the arrival of the new UK Government, HCVA has published a series of ‘Political Asks’ to form the basis of its discussions with policymakers in coming months and years. The list (in full at www. hcva.co.uk) includes increased funding for apprenticeships, the taxation of sustainable fuels, and reduced cash deposits payable by restorers when importing cars for work.

The document also addresses the subject of MoT exemptions. Currently, vehicles over 40 years old are exempt from official roadworthiness inspections, with the onus falling solely on the owner/driver to ensure their vehicle is roadworthy on every journey.

When this was introduced in 2018, many people assumed that incidents involving Historic vehicles would rise dramatically, but it is testament to owners that incident rates have not noticeably increased.

However, as the 40-year exemption window approaches the mid-’80s, the HCVA is conscious that some powerful and complex vehicles are now entering the category.

‘Our belief is that something needs to be done to ensure the Historic sector continues to lead by example on safety standards,’ says HCVA Executive Director Guy Lachlan, ‘but that MoT stations are often too inexpert in Historic vehicles to be the sole arbiter of roadworthiness.’

Instead, the HCVA advocates a voluntary, industry-led inspection scheme that enables owners to take their vehicles to marque-expert member companies.

By making the programme optional, perhaps encouraged through insurance premium incentives, the expectation is that owners of Historic vehicles will make use of an HCVA scheme in order to provide peace of mind without the stigma of risking an MoT fail caused purely by an MoT station’s lack of Historic vehicle knowledge.

The HCVA hopes that, by leading on this programme, both industry and enthusiast will benefit while Government can rest easy in the knowledge that the reintroduction of expensive mandatory testing legislation is not required: a win-win-win solution!

To join or support the HCVA, go to www.hcva.co.uk

Suppliers of top-quality automotive and inspection lighting, including Retrofit Classic LEDs. richard.armstrong@lumileds.com www.philips.co.uk

Organiser of Yorkshire Elegance, sponsor of the 1000 Miglia, plus vehicle sourcing, storage and tours. +44 (0)1924 427836 www.thefastlaneclub.com

The world’s foremost global historic motoring events company, running rallies for classic and vintage cars. +44 (0)1869 254979 www.hero-era.com

World-renowned Aston Martin specialist and official Heritage Parts Partner established in 1983. +44 (0)1332 371566 www.astonengineering.co.uk

HCVA .CO.UK

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Edited by Matthew Hayward

The Market B U Y I N G + S E L L I N G + A N A LY S I S

TOP 10 PRICES J U LY 2 0 2 4 £1,135,000 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Gullwing Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 12 July £1,045,400 1962 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 12 July

RM SOTHEBY’S

£919,630 ($1,182,500) 2019 McLaren Senna Bring a Trailer, California, USA 31 July £798,739 ($1,013,500) 2021 Ford GT Carbon Series Bring a Trailer, California, USA 2 July

‘Moss’ McMerc heads Tegernsee debut RM Sotheby’s grosses €15m at German concours RM SOTHEBY’S partnered with the inaugural Concours of Elegance Germany for a new auction on the lakeshore of Tegernsee at the end of July, which saw total sales of €15,921,925. One of the headline lots – a 1955 Porsche 550 Spyder – was withdrawn ahead of the sale, leaving a 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Stirling Moss as top-seller at €3,436,250.

Taking the second spot in the rankings was a 1966 Ferrari 275 GTB/6C by Scaglietti, which sold for €2,536,250. Something a little different, perhaps playing to the strength of the German location, was the sale of the first build slot for the upcoming HWA EVO – a Mercedes 190E restomod that pays homage to the 2.5-16 Evo 2 – at €1,310,000.

The red, manual (originally a green automatic) 1965 Aston Martin DB Short Chassis Volante (previewed in Octane 254) sold for a fair €815,000.

In line with other recent European auctions, many of the results came in just below low estimates, quite a few falling just short of their reserves – notably the 2010 Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport ‘Soleil de

Nuit’ and ex-Le Mans 1934 Aston Martin Ulster. The Aston was being offered post-sale for €1,050,000.

Bonhams concluded its 2024 Goodwood Festival of Speed with total sales of £11,035,691. In all, 60% of the 73 cars on offer found new homes, but the three top-selling cars all came from the Tom Scott Collection, bolstering the overall result. They were led by the fantastic 1928 Mercedes-Benz 36/220 S-Type Four-Seater Sports Tourer – as driven by Mark Dixon in Octane 252. Selling considerably above the £1.6-2.5m estimate with a final price of £2,871,000, this 6.8-litre straight-six S-Type had a unique British history.

Next best was the 1955 Mercedes-Benz 300SL ‘Gullwing’, which sold for just above its top estimate at £1,135,000, and that was followed closely by a black 1962 Mercedes-Benz 300SL Roadster variant at £1,045,400.

Of the significant no-sales, a 1952 Frazer Nash Mille Miglia Sports Roadster and 1950 Aston Martin DB2 with significant competition history both failed to attract enough bids.

Matthew Hayward

£774,944($992,500) 2019 Ford GT ’68 Heritage Edition Bring a Trailer, Florida, USA 8 July £708,485 ($907,500) 1964 Shelby Cobra 289 MkII Bring a Trailer, New York, USA 6 July £608,600 1932 Alfa Romeo 2300 Spider Corto Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 12 July £586,133 ($762,500) 1955 Lancia Aurelia B24 Spider America Bring a Trailer, California, USA 17 July £563,500 2008 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren ‘Crown Edition’ Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 12 July £559,073 ($721,944) 1977 Lamborghini Countach LP400 Bring a Trailer, California, USA 11 July The top ten data is supplied courtesy of HAGERTY

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How hybrid hypercars have fared Just over a decade ago, McLaren, Ferrari and Porsche unleashed the holy trinity of halo cars on the world. It’s been a rocky ride since IT’S HARD TO believe over a decade has passed since the LaFerrari, McLaren P1 and Porsche 918 burst onto the scene. They set benchmarks that defined the 2010s and hinted at the turbocharged, electrified future to follow. By nature of their speed and exclusivity they became instant collectibles.

How, then, has the market treated them since?

Comparisons were inevitable from the start. Quite apart from similar performance and pricing, all were mid-engined, tech-heavy and, surprisingly, hybrids.

Petrol-electric hybrids were nothing new, but these exploited electric power to enhance the performance of the internal combustion engine. Greater fuel economy and cleaner emissions were a bonus.

Ferrari built 500 LaFerraris, then a little over 200 LaFerrari Apertas (‘open’). They were sold only to preferred clients so, even if you had £1m-plus to spend on an impractical two-seater, Ferrari had to invite you to do so. Meanwhile, the P1 was an ambitious move by McLaren and period tests decreed it the rawest drive of the three. The production run of 375 also makes it the rarest of them. Last, the Porsche 918 came with an electric motor at each axle – in effect part-time all-wheel drive – contrasting with the other two’s rear-drive.

It can also drive short distances in silence on electric power, and a front axle lift system was optional.

Fittingly, Porsche sold 918 examples of the 918, but that makes it the most common by far.

Demand was high when they first hit the secondhand market and anyone with deep enough pockets could buy one of the media-anointed Holy Trinity.

Prices climbed accordingly, well above what they cost from the factory. They then dropped significantly as demand wore off, and rebounded in the early 2020s, settling since into a steady price range. All three followed this pattern – but there are differences.

LaFerrari prices appreciated during 2015-17 at a much faster clip. From late 2015 to late 2018, Condition 2 (‘excellent’) values rose by over 57%, peaking at £2.9m. In the last couple years of the decade, however, they fell 22%. Then, they rebounded in a big way during the pandemic boom and settled at their current $2.96m. LaFerraris are no longer the fastest Ferraris money can buy, and they have well-known battery issues. If they sit (many do) for long enough (more than five days, according to Ferrari) while unconnected to a power source, the batteries can degrade or fail. If the HY-KERS battery fails, it’s a six-figure replacement. Even so, the LaFerrari is the most valuable, likely down to its invitation-only status, four extra cylinders, and badge.

The McLaren’s values grew significantly from 2015 to 2018, peaking at £1.68m for a Condition 2 car.

They then fell sharply (49%) to early 2021. P1s have

tracked close to the Porsche 918 despite being more than twice as rare. The McLaren, therefore, has arguably performed the worst in the market. It has been called a successor to the F1, but there’s no direct lineage there, and the P1 has much more in common with less expensive McLaren models.

There are also newer halo models (Senna and Speedtail) crowding the P1 out of McLaren’s family photo, and McLaren doesn’t have the same tradition of low-production top-tier exotics. There’s the issue of perishable battery packs with the P1, too. Owners have reported that the battery charger costs $30,000 (about £23,000), and a replacement or upgraded battery pack over $150k (about £116,700).

It makes sense for the 918 to be the ‘cheapest’ and it is. Condition 2 value peaked at £1.34m in 2018, saw the familiar slump, then rebounded during the pandemic. It now sits at £1.17m. It is the most usable and cheapest to maintain of the three, but far higher supply of cars keeps it from being the most expensive. If any is a ‘good buy,’ it’s the Porsche.

Will these cars’ decade-defining status maintain their status as top-tier collector cars in 20 years? Or will their complexity and pricy, perishable battery packs be an albatross around owners’ necks? Time will tell, but for now they have settled into a realistic range, and, although their halos aren’t shining as brightly, they haven’t faded away. Also of note is that all three manufacturers have announced their next halo cars. Details on Porsche’s Mission X, the new McLaren P1 and the Ferrari F250 are sketchy, but their collective hype is now prompting drivers to rediscover what made the original Holy Trinity stand out in the first place.

Andrew Newton Senior auction editor and Hagerty Price Guide contributor

Tracked values over the past decade for Condition 2 (‘excellent’) examples of LaFerrari, McLaren P1 and Porsche 918.

L a FER R A R I, McL A R EN P1 A ND P OR SCHE 918

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The Market Auction Previews

Jack Braam Ruben Collection Gooding & Company, London, UK 30 August

GOODING & CO

HAMPTON COURT PALACE has proven to be a great long-term location for the Concours of Elegance, and for the past four years also for Gooding & Company’s London Auction. 2024’s auction catalogue is headlined by this selection of Bugattis from the Jack Braam Ruben Collection, some of which featured in Octane 238.

This Maastricht-based collection is headlined by the 1935 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante – one of the earliest examples known to exist. Chassis 57252 was built in November 1934 as a first series Grand Raid chassis.

While intended initially to feature the roadster coachwork, it left the factory as the third ever Atalante coupé. It’s been restored recently in its original two-tone smoke and sage green colour scheme by Classic Skills of Lommin and is estimated to sell for £3-4million.

Up next is the 1933 Type 43A Roadster, chassis 43309, which is the penultimate of the 18 built. Having spent a number of years in the Montlhéry Motor Museum during the 1970s, in more recent years it has competed in rallies and has appeared at the Concours of Elegance in 2013 and Pebble Beach in 2022. Beautifully patinated, it’s also estimated at £3-4million.

Rounding out the Bugatti selection are a 1935 Bugatti Type 57 Stelvio (£900,0001.1m) and a 1938 Bugatti Type 57 Ventoux (£550-650,000). goodingco.com

Garage find Dore & Rees 21-22 September IT’S ALWAYS amazing what turns up in people’s garages, but this really is a very special car. Bought in 1964 by the late Alfa historian and archivist Peter Marshall, this 1952 Alfa Romeo 1900 C Sprint Coupé by Touring remained in his possession until his recent passing.

Peter is said to have covered a few thousand miles in the car during the late 1960s, before restoring it – and changing the colour from black to the current green – and then keeping it only for occasional use.

Clearly it’s now in need of some restoration, because it’s thought to have been stored since around 2007. It’s estimated to sell for £60,000-70,000. doreandrees.com 170

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1973 Alpine-Renault A110 Historics, Ascot, UK 14 September, historics.co.uk There’s an incredible story behind this liveried A110, which is believed to be the last works car of 1973.

Built in Dieppe for the ‘73 Tour de Corse, which it finished in third place, the car was then used for promotional duties, including a stint on the 1974 East African Safari. It returned the following year as a recce car, when it was badly crashed. Now rebuilt, it’s estimated at £160,000-180,000.

1971 Maserati Ghibli

2015 LaFerrari

1973 Opel Manta A 1600 S

Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 7 September, cars.bonhams.com

Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale, USA 12 October, barrett-jackson.com

Mathewsons, Yorkshire, UK 24 August, mathewsons.co.uk

The fabulous-looking Ghibli still offers great value when you consider the price of a Daytona.

This 4.7-litre version is a righthand-drive car, which has been family owned since 1974. Stored since the mid-1980s, it’s presented in unrestored condition and, although it passed an MoT in 2023, hasn’t been driven on the road since. Estimate: £60,000-80,000.

Rock ’n’ Roll star Sammy Hagar’s one-of-one 2015 LaFerrari headlines Barrett-Jackson’s Scottsdale Fall auction. It was originally destined for sale in January, but the decision was made to refresh the eight-year-old high-voltage battery pack. That means this unique cream LaFerrari will come with a clean bill of health from Ferrari San Francisco.

This Manta is painted in quite a striking shade of purple, although the vendor is candid in saying that the respray was ’not the best’ when it was carried out seven years ago.

We’d also want to inspect the quality of the welding that was done at the same time, but it’s a rare example of a very prett y 1970s coupé, expected to fetch a very reasonable £7000-9000.

Also Look Out For… Long-time readers of Octane might recall Richard Heseltine’s profile of stunt pilot and former racing driver Vic Norman from issue 150. Vic was photographed at the HQ of his aerobatics team, standing in front of his highly original 1913 Flying Merkel Model Seventy-One, the motorcycle he calls ‘my favourite machine out of everything mechanical I’ve ever owned’. High praise from a man whose garage once housed cars including a Jaguar D-type, a Ferrari 250 GTO and an ex-Fangio Maserati 250F. Vic acquired the bike in 1998 from stuntman Bud Ekins, who stood in for Steve McQueen on The Great Escape when it came time to film the scene in which McQueen’s character jumps a motorcycle over a barbed-wire fence while being pursued by Nazis.

Ekins, too, was very fond of the rare Merkel: he had preserved it in its factory ‘Merkel Orange’ paint, and it took Vic three years to persuade him to sell.

The first owner treated the bike – the fastest thing

on two wheels in its time – with rather less respect than Bud and Vic. He rode it daily until 1923, at which point he removed the back wheel and pressed the Merkel into service as a generator in his New Mexico emerald mine! There’s little danger of it ever being mistreated again: Vic is finally set to part with the bike at Bonhams’ Autumn Stafford Sale on 13 October, and today it is estimated to be worth £150,000-200,000.

AUC T ION DI A RY 29-31 August Worldwide Auctioneers, Auburn, USA 30 August Gooding & Co, London, UK 31 August Lucky Collector Car Auctions, Tacoma, USA 31 August-1 September Silver Auctions, Sun Valley, USA 4-6 September Mathewsons, online 4-7 September Mecum, Dallas, USA 7 September Bonhams, Goodwood, UK 11 September Brightwells, online 12 September Brightwells, online 13-14 September Bonhams, Beaulieu, UK 14 September Barons, Southampton, UK Historics, Ascot, UK Manor Park Classics, Runcorn, UK WB & Sons, Killingworth, UK 21 September Dore & Rees, Castle Combe, UK Morris Leslie, Errol, UK 22 September Hampson, Tattenhall, UK 28 September Classic Car Auctions, Leamington Spa, UK 2 October Ewbank’s, Send, UK 3 October Charterhouse, Sparkford, UK (motorcycles) 3-5 October Mecum, Indianapolis, USA 4 October Bonhams, Newport, USA 5 October Aguttes, Brussels, Belgium 6 October Bonhams, Knokke-Heist, Belgium 9 October H&H, Duxford, UK 9-10 October RM Sotheby’s, Hershey, USA 10-12 October Vicari, Biloxi, USA 10-13 October Barrett-Jackson, Scottsdale, USA 12 October Barons, Southampton, UK IN ASSOCIATION WITH

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The Market Data Mining

Old school, still cool

PORSCHE CARRERA GT

09.03-05.06

There are plenty of reasons why the Porsche Carrera GT still commands top money

PRODUTION DATES TO AND FROM

changed in a big way in the 2020s.

Even during the pandemic boom, the Carrera GT was a major stand-out. In the past five years, its Condition 2 (‘excellent’) value in the Hagerty Price Guide grew 87%. Over the last decade, it grew 201%. During 2021 and 2022, the record auction price for a Carrera GT was broken six times. Once, the record lasted just four weeks.

Since the end of 2022, though, values have taken a step back, by about 7%. The record sale price is still $2.2m (£1.67m), for a car sold in 2022. There was a safety recall in April last year, and delays in suspension parts to fix the issue casued a stop-use order. Some insurers, especially in the UK, removed road-use coverage,

which may have softened demand.

Values remain high, however.

Condition 2 in the Hagerty Price Guide currently sits at £1.1m, while Condition 1 (‘best-in-theworld’) sits at £1.4m. The Carrera GT has staying power, hitting that 2000s sweet spot of being modern, but not too modern: carbon construction and 205mph are contemporary, but the beechwood shift knob atop its six-speed manual, real buttons on the dash, that big, naturally aspirated V10 engine, and the lack of electronic nannies are old school. Buyers like that combination, but nothing built in 2024 has it. That’s what keeps the Carrera GT relevant.

Good cars with average mileages that had either been refurbished at some point, or were in largely original condition, were making in the region of £300,000 at auction in 2013.

RM Sotheby’s indicated where the collector-grade examples were a year later when it sold a one-owner Stratos with only 4476km for $660,000 (£514,500) at Monterey, setting an auction record that still stands. RM’s Villa Erba sale in 2015 saw an unrestored car (pictured) fetch €431,200 (£363,500), while chassis 01646 that had been sold

by Bonhams in 2007 for CHF277,016 (£246,750) showed

the model’s upward trajectory when it was resold by Bonhams in Belgium for €402,500 (£339,250) in 2019. By 2023 the market had reached new levels, with Gooding & Company achieving $582,500 (£454,250) at Amelia Island for a 45,000-miler that changed hands in 2017 for $475,000 (£370,500) and in 2016 for £308,000.

Davide De Giorgi, of Girardo & Co, comments: ‘Rosso Stratos is iconic but the most common colour. German cars have different details but all the others have basically the same spec.

Better to avoid cars with dubious history and cars that have been modified but not in period.

Andrew Newton

1270 3.47

TOTAL MADE

WHILE THE 2013 Porsche 918 Spyder was brazenly cutting edge, its predecessor – the Carrera GT – had plenty of 20th Century ingredients while offering 21st Century speed. Since the last was built in 2006, similarly analogue exotic cars (stick-shift, naturally aspirated, non-hybrid, no driving aids) have all but ceased to exist. And because the Carrera GT has been in the collector car market for a decade longer than the 918, its values have done different things.

When new, Carrera GTs cost over £300,000. When Porsche introduced the 918 as its next halo model, interest in Carrera GTs picked up, but otherwise prices were relatively stable. That

seconds 0-62MPH

1380kg KERBWEIGHT

205 mph TOP SPEED

>175% INCREASE IN VALUE FROM NEW

Original price: £330,000 / $450,000 Current price: £918,000 / $1,450,000

Auction Tracker

Lancia Stratos HF Stradale Lancia’s homologation special was designed to compete in international rallies, which it did with great success, notching up 18 World Rally victories and the manufacturers’ title in 1974, ’75 and ’76. Powered by a Ferrari 2.4-litre V6 engine from the Dino 246, it’s estimated around 492 Stradales were built by the time production ceased in 1975.

‘Servicing can be done at any workshop that knows the Dino engine. Restoration seems easy but it’s not – original spares are getting rarer and more expensive.

‘Traditionally the Stratos never did well at auction but demand has been quite stable. It’s an icon.

Sellers are confused by bad examples that seem a good deal until they take a dig into the car’s condition and history.

‘Values have been rising slowly and consistently, showing a real interest in the cars and not simply a bubble that pushed owners to flip their cars. A €300,000 car in 2013 is worth €650,000 today.’

Rod Laws

£600,000 £500,000 £400,000 £300,000 £200,000 Line charts the top prices for comparable cars at auction.

£100,000 2014

2016

2018

2020

2022

2024

Glenmarch is the largest free-to-access online resource for classic and collector car auction markets.

Visit glenmarch.com to keep up to date.

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APPROVED

DEFENDER 90 AUTOBIOGRAPHY RHD One of 80 UK vehicles. Santorini Black with Ebony and Ivory leather. 13k miles from new.

£74,950

DEFENDER 110 RHD

RANGE ROVER RHD

DEFENDER 90 WORKS V8 RHD

Upgraded by Land Rover Classic. 16” heavy duty wheels and ‘County’ stripes.

One owner from new. Bahama Gold.

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Roma Red with Ebony interior.

2k miles.

£69,950

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Jaguar Land Rover Classic Worksor scan Jaguar Land Rover Centre Visit jaguarlandroverclassic.com the QR code for Classic more details

Imperial Road, Europe Prologis Park, Ringstraße 38, Coventry CV8 3LF Works, Imperial Road, Prologis 45219 Jaguar Land Rover Classic Park, Essen, Coventry Germany CV8 3LF Tel: +44 (0) 24 7656 6600 Jaguar Classic Centre Europe, Ringstraße 38, 45219 Germany Tel: +49 2054 939870 Tel: Land +44 Rover (0) 24 7656 6600 Tel: +49Essen, 2054 939870 Sourcing globally, we are actively seeking exceptional RHD and LHD Jaguars.

The Market Dealer News

SHOWROOM BRIEFS

1999 Ford Falcon XR8 Tickford £26,950 Rare Tickford version of the Australian XR8 ‘Ute’. Thought to be the only example in the UK, it’s done 33,400 miles, and is powered by the glorious 5.0-litre Windsor V8 engine. ddclassics.com (UK)

1930 Bentley Speed Six POA from Charles Prince Classic Cars, UK DESIGNED AS a high-performance version of the already impressive 6½ Litre, the Speed Six became the peak of Bentley’s pre-war motorsport arsenal, going on to win at Le Mans in 1929 and 1930.

This success in the hands of ‘Bentley Boys’ Woolf Barnato, Sir Henry ‘Tim’ Birkin and Glen Kidston may have been the Speed Six’s greatest achievement, but the chassis had a dual purpose. The uprated 180bhp engine was developed because many Bentley customers were fitting large, heavy and luxurious bodies, requiring a more suitable platform than that offered by the previous 147bhp 6½ Litre.

Of the many Le Mans replicas that now exist, most were built on the underpinnings of these heavy

saloon and limousine-bodied cars. That makes this example offered by Charles Prince Classic Cars special for two reasons: not only has it survived while retaining its original All-Weather Tourer by Gill coachwork, it’s actually one of only 11 Speed Six Bentleys – three of which were team cars – built originally in open-cockpit form.

Although chassis NH 2750 been the subject of a full ground-up restoration, all the major components – including the coachwork – are present and correct, meaning it’s a genuine ‘matching numbers’ example. There’s a full history file, too, documenting the car’s fantastic back story. charlesprinceclassiccars.com

The Insider WITH YOUNGER generations wanting to fulfill their childhood dreams, tastes have changed. This has been a factor in price increases for the Ferrari 288 GTO, F40 and F50, of which good examples are hard to find. There will always be a demand for true automotive icons – which belong in every collection – such as the Ferrari California Spider, Lamborghini Miura or 300SL Gullwing. The so-called JDM ( Japanese Domestic Market) cars will see an increase in interest and values, with cars such as the Acura NSX being even a good short-term investment.

• The Alfa Romeo Montreal and the Lancia B24S Cabriolet seem to be undervalued.

• The Mercedes-Benz 600 Sedan is a wonderful sedan and seems to be cheap, but the maintenance costs for the hydraulic system are exorbitantly high.

• The modern super- and hypercars have reached a level in values that cannot be sustained indefinitely.

• Don’t buy a car with ridiculously low milage if you plan on driving it. They are overpriced and with every mile you reduce their value significantly.

Thomas Hamann Bringing Ferraris and other European sports cars into Connecticut, USA, for 40 years. hamannclassiccars.net

1964 Fiat 600D Vignale 750 Coupé, €9950 It’s amazing the transformation that a sleek Vignale body can make to a run-of-the-mill Fiat 600D. This example spent most of its life in Tuscany, boasting just three owners from new. marreyt.com (BE)

1974 Daimler DS420 Coupé $59,500 A curious creation, based on a standard DS420 limo in the style of Vanden Plas’s original prototype. Built to a high standard, it’s powered by a tuned 4.2-litre XK engine. hymanltd.com (US)

2023 Nissan Fairlady Z $77,995 AUD Nissan’s latest Z car isn’t offered in Europe. This Ikazuchi Yellow example, offered in ‘as new’ condition, is powered by a 400bhp twin-turbo V6 with six-speed manual gearbox. classicthrottleshop.com (AU)

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OCTANE_256_SAXON_222mm w x 285mm h.indd 1

16/08/2024 12:03

The Market Buying Guide

THE LOWDOWN

WHAT TO PAY

Jeep Cherokee XJ This Stateside 4x4 was unusually attractive on this side of The Pond – and still is LOOKING BACK AT the history of the SUV, deciding what actually came first can be a bit of a minefield. Cars such as the International Scout, Jeep Wagoneer and, of course, the original Range Rover all played their part in forging the market for the do-it-all vehicles we know and love (or hate) today, but many argue that the XJ-generation Jeep Cherokee was actually the first Sport Utility Vehicle as we know it.

Right-hand-drive sales started in 1993, so UK readers would be forgiven for assuming the Cherokee is a 1990s car. It was actually launched in 1984 in the USA and mainland Europe.

Co-developed by AMC – Jeep’s parent company at the time – and Renault, this was the off-road manufacturer’s first all-new car since the Wagoneer was launched in 1963. Perhaps even more significantly, it was the first off-roading 4x4 to be built with a monocoque rather than a separate chassis. Hardly big news by 1984, but it was a radical step for Jeep – also signifying that the XJ was intended to be genuinely civilised, even a little sporty, on the road.

Very compact by US standards, it was intended to be a serious proposition in Europe from the outset, and was offered from launch in three- and five-door variants, with a choice of either a 105bhp 2.5-litre four-cylinder or a 2.8-litre Chevrolet-sourced V6 with 115bhp, both with the choice of automatic or manual gearboxes.

There were plenty of different spec options, too, from a simply trimmed base model to the top-spec Wagoneer with faux wood appliqué. A few left-handdrive models were sold in the UK and Europe, but

the Cherokee didn’t really gain much traction here until the late ’80s.

As the decade progressed, the standard fourcylinder became more powerful, and the V6 was replaced by a new 4.0-litre straight-six. Initially producing 173bhp, it was updated to 190bhp ‘High Output’ spec in 1991. Official UK sales of righthand-drive cars kicked off in 1993, and the model quickly found its audience. As well as the petrol versions, a 2.5-litre VM turbodiesel was made available with efficiency in mind.

Not only was it a great thing to drive, it was also cheaper than most of its rivals. UK cars were highly specified, too, with the Limited getting alloy wheels, air conditioning, electric windows and an automatic gearbox as standard. Towards the Millennium, some of those standard features became optional extras, a basic ‘Sport’ model was introduced as an entry point, and the range-topping Orvis added a full leather interior. As safety and emissions regulations rendered the XJ Cherokee obsolete, production came to a close in 2001.

Over its 18-year lifespan, around 2.8million XJs were produced. Not only are the 4.0-litre models surprisingly good fun on the road, they’re actually pretty capable at chugging through the mud. It’s a boxy design that has aged well and, although the interior build quality isn’t the best, the XJ has proven to be a mechanically rugged car. If you’re in the market for a classic load-lugger, and are not too worried about the 4.0’s sub-20mpg fuel consumption, the XJ Cherokee certainly shouldn’t be overlooked. Especially while prices remain so tempting.

Matthew Hayward

We would argue that the 4.0-litre straight-six is by far the best choice, and the market agrees. Not only will these higher-spec versions generally be better looked after, they are also better to drive. Expect to pay from £2500 up to £5000 for a tidy car. Very clean top-spec 4.0 Limited models can fetch more than £10,000.

If you want one of the earlier models, then the US is really the best place to go searching. Although numbers are greater there, prices for good cars remain strong.

Expect to pay from $8000 to around $20k for a clean high-spec example.

LOOK OUT FOR The 4.0-litre engine is fundamentally strong and reliable. Earlier cars can be a pain to get running right if the fuel injection system has any problems, but the post-1991 ‘High Output’ version has a more reliable set-up. The VM diesel is more troublesome, especially if neglected. It’s vital to ensure the head gasket and cooling system are in good health.

Corrosion can be a big issue, especially on well-used UK cars. Door bottoms, sills and wheelarches go frilly, but more serious problems can lurk underneath. Inspect the chassis rails. Facelifted cars seem to fare slightly better.

The Cherokee was notorious for tedious electrical gremlins, but don’t be fazed by erroneous errors on the dashboard readout: they are part of the Jeep ownership experience!

Vibrations through the steering wheel – known by Jeep enthusiasts as a death wobble – are not uncommon, and are a sign the suspension needs overhauling. Parts are mostly cheap, but bills can quickly add up. Vague steering is most likely a failed stabiliser, which is an easy and relatively cheap fix.

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PETER PETER BRADFIELD BRADFIELD LTD LTD

1965 1965 Alfa Alfa Romeo Romeo TZ1 - -Period Period competition competition history, history, known knownevocative provenance, provenance, beautifully beautifully restored restored 1934 Frazer NashTZ1 TT Replica - Outstanding condition, unparalelled history, matching numbers.

1925 1925 Bentley Bentley 3-4½ 3-4½ Speed Speed20/25 Model Model --Original Original patinated patinated Vanden Vanden Plas Plas with withsorted sorted mechanicals mechanicals 1933 Rolls-Royce - Unique sports super roadster

by Park Ward.

Superb condition and history.

1925 1925 Bentley Bentley 3-4½ 3-4½ Litre Litre YKYK 1360 1360 is aisShort a Short Chassis ChassisSpeed SpeedModel Modelstill stillfitted fitted with with its its originalVanden VandenPlas Plascoachwork. coachwork.ItIthas hasbeen beenuprated uprated with with a perky a perky 4½4½ litre litre engine engine giving givingit ita agood goodturn turnofofspeed speedand and mechanically mechanically feels feels good goodon onthe theroad. road.The Thetalented talentedMr. Mr. Getley Getley at at KingsKingsbury bury Racing Racing hashas maintained maintainedit.it.However, However,aanumber number of of previous previous owners owners have havetaken takenaadogged doggeddelight delightininwillfully willfully ignoring ignoring thethe paintwork paintwork and and it has it hasaccordingly accordinglydeveloped developedaadepth depth of of patina patina you could could drown drownin. in.Its Itsbears bearsitsitsbattle-scars battle-scars and and witness witness marks marks as badges as badges of of honour honourand andhas hasappeared appearedwith withdistinction distinction on on at least three three Flying FlyingScotsman ScotsmanRallies Ralliesand andraced raced at at thethe Goodwood Goodwood 1954 Frazer Nash LeTarga Mans Replica - Ulimate specification, period international comp history, eligible formanners everything.

1952 1952 Frazer Frazer Nash Nash Targa Florio Florio --Unique, Unique, highly highly eligible competition car car good good road road manners Revival.

Revival.

Concours Concours types types and and‘try-hards’ ‘try-hards’ need need not not apply apply eligible but will will competition suit suitany anynumber number ofwith ofwith bounders, bounders, blaggards blaggards oror cads. cads.

Also Also available available 1934 1934 Invicta Invicta Type Invicta 1954 1954Bentley R Type Continantal Continantal 1967 1967Maserati Maserati Mistral Mistral 1931 Bentley 4½ Litre BlowerSSType 1934 SBentley Type 1952 Frazer Nash Targa Florio 1925 Bentley 3-4½ Speed Model

See See Website Website more moredetails details details See See website website for for more more details 8 REECE 8 REECEMEWS MEWS peter@bradfieldcars.com peter@bradfieldcars.com

00135515_CSC_010424_D_PeterBradfiled.indd 00135515_CSC_010424_D_PeterBradfiled.indd 2 2 OCTANE_256_PETER BRADFIELD_222mm w x 285mm h.indd 1

KENSINGTON KENSINGTON

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LONDON LONDONSW7 SW7 3HE 3HE Tel: Tel:020 0207589 7589 8787 8787

13/03/2024 13/03/2024 11:2711:27 15/08/2024 15:01

C HARLES P RINCE

Le Mans

Worldwide Collector Car Sales

We are always eager to buy important collectors cars.

Valuations and advice always available.

1930 Rolls Royce Phantom 11 Barrel Sided Tourer

In an important collection for many decades and restored to the highest standards.The Rolls Royce P11 represented the very pinnacle of automotive engineering in the 1930’s combining effortless silent power with reliability. A wonderful touring car.

1965 Aston Martin DB5 Convertible

Restored to the highest standard. Uprated to 4.2 Litre. 5 Speed ZF. Full history. Sold by us in 1982.

Full photographically documented restoration record.

All cars can be seen tried and tested at Quin Hay Farm Petersfield Hampshire GU321BZ or in central London.

Please see our website for full stock photos videos and details. Valuations always available.

Int T 0044 (0) 79 85 98 80 70 sales@charlesprinceclassiccars.com charlesprinceclassiccars.com

2024-08-06_Octane_Oct-24_converted.indd 1

06/08/2024 14:42

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AC HERITAGE

1955 AC Aceca Period Rally History - Monte Carlo, Liege-Rome Liege etc. 2.6 Zephyr engine, four speed manual with overdrive. POA

1985 AC MKIV Cobra 15,000 miles. Period Mk3 dashboard conversion, rare factory supplied hardtop. £125,000

1960 AC Ace Bristol Full AC Heritage works restoration, rare factory supplied hardtop, one previous keeper since 1963. £289,995

1990 AC Cobra MKIV Lightweight 16,300 miles from new. Retains full factory specification. £199,995

1970 AC / Allard J2X Thames Ditton 428 rolling chassis. Prototype J2X fitted by ‘Emery Cars’. POA

For more information about any of these vehicles, please contact our sales team.

AC Heritage · International Broker of Historic & Classic Motorcars · Brooklands Motor Circuit, Surrey, UK Telephone +44(0)1932 828545 · Mobile +44(0)7557 878123 · www.acheritage.com

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2016 FERRARI F12 BERLINET TA Rosso corsa with nero leather. A fantastic spec on this car includes extensive carbon fibre throughout the interior and exterior, front and rear parking cameras, suspension lifter, 20” forged alloys, Scuderia shields, FFSH, 1,897 miles

2021 PORSCHE 911 (992) C4S TARGA ‘HERITAGE EDITION’

2016 MERCEDES AMG GT-S

Guards red with Atacama beige leather and black convertible top. UK supplied 1 owner car, 1 of 992 cars produced worldwide, extensive options list, delivery miles.

Selenite grey with two tone black and pepper red exclusive nappa leather. 1 owner from new, AMG exterior carbon package, Burmester sound system, 7,698 miles

1970 MERCEDES-BENZ 280SL ‘PAGODA’

1983 FERRARI 512 BBI

White with black, known ownership from new, comprehensive history file, original tools and handbooks, 62,833 miles

Rosso corsa with crema leather, 1 of 42 UK RHD, Ferrari Classiche Certification, extensive history file, original tools and handbooks, 17,377 miles

+44 (0) 1772 613 114

|

sales@williamloughran.co.uk

|

www.williamloughran.co.uk

The leading specialist in sourcing the rare and unobtainable. We are always looking to buy interesting cars.

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Bramley Motor Cars

2024/24 BMWPorsche Alpina B5Speedster.

GT Touring.

2019/69 991 Special Order Verde British over a Lavalina Cognac Hide Package 2 interior.

Fantastic Specifi cation.

GT Silver Metallic with Heritage Design Package over a Cognac and Black Leather interior.

1 of justOptional 1,948 examples built.

3,8561,000 Miles.Miles. £289,850 £174,850

2024/73 992 Phantom GT3 Manual.

2014/14Porsche Rolls-Royce VII. Diamond Black Metallic over a CrèmeHoundstooth Hide interior. Starlight Headliner and Individual Theatre.

39,411 Miles.

Arctic Grey with an Exclusive Manufaktur interior.

Clubsport Package,Seating Frontwith Axle Lift System, Porsche Ceramic £134,850 Brakes, BOSE Sound System +++. 354 Miles. £204,850

2015/65 Porsche 991.1992 Targa 4 GTS. 2023/73 Porsche GT3.

Jet Black withaa Black Black Leather Leather and PTS BlackMetallic Olive with and Alcantara GTS interior.102 4,631 Miles. £89,850 Race-Tex interior.

Miles. £194,850

2018/18 Porsche991.2 991.2GT3 GT3RS. RS. 2018/18 Porsche Whitewith withaaBlack Black Leather White Leatherand andRace-Tex Race-Tex interior. 27,624 interior.

27,624Miles.

Miles.£159,850 £159,850

2024/73 Alpina B5 GT. 2013/13 Mercedes-Benz SLS Roadster.

Alpina Greenover Metallic overLeather a Merinointerior.

Leather Imola Grey a Black interior in16,030 Caramel.

1,626 Miles. £159,850 Miles. £129,850

2015/15 Ferrari992 458Carrera Speciale.

2021/71 Porsche GTS. PTS Brewster Green a Truffle Brown Club Grigio Silverstone over awith Charcoal and Nero Alcantara interior.

1 Owner From New. 4,560 Miles. £379,850 Leather interior.

19,208 Miles. £107,850

2019/69 812991.2 Superfast.

2017/67Ferrari Porsche GT3.

GT SilverAbetone Metallic over with aa Black and Verde CuoioLeather Leather Alcantara interior.

10,487 Miles. £124,850 interior.

5,303 Miles. £239,850

2006/06 Ferrari F430 B3 Spider Manual.

2024/24 Alpina Touring.

Black Sapphire withover a Black Merino Leather Giallo Modena a Nero Leather interior.27,750 2,805 Miles. interior.

Miles.£93,850 £134,850

SIMILAR LOW MILEAGE VEHICLES TAKEN ON CONSIGNMENT AT COMPETITIVE RATES VIEWING BY APPOINTMENT 26 High Street, Bramley, Guildford, GU5 0HB +44 (0) 01483 898 159 mail@bramley.com | www.bramley.com

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Bramley Motor Cars

LD SO 2000 Aston Martin ‘Works’ Coachbuilt V8 Vantage Volante Special Edition.

Short Wheel Base. Rolls-Royce Royal Blue over Parchment Hide. 1 of 8 Cars Built. SOLD We are delighted to present to market this exquisite Porsche 911 Club Coupe, 1 of just 13 cars built and 1 of 2 RHD examples, the only to be delivered to the UK. This phenomenally rare motorcar was built in celebration of the 13 original members of the Porsche Owners Club and of the 13 cars built, just 12 were up for grabs, as Porsche themselves decided to keep one to be displayed at the Porsche Museum.

Something that makes this car even more special is its colour. Although described as Brewster Green, this is not technically correct and should someone re-paint 1971 itAston Martin DB6 MKII Vantage. a panel, would be an unfortunate mismatch.

A few Winchester over of Parchment Hide. years post-delivery,Blue the owners the Club Coupe were 69,500 Miles. fortunate enough to spec a new£399,850 911 GTS and opted for

Brewster Green to ‘match’ their Club Coupe at home.

Upon delivery of the new car, it was clear that Brewster was actually a different shade and after some research and calls back and forth with Porsche GB, it was confirmed that the Club Coupe was actually painted in Porsche ‘Family Green’, with the colour coming from Wolfgang Porsche’s personal 993 Turbo S and a shade not offered, nor disclosed, anywhere else. How cool is that?!

As you would imagine, demand was exceptionally high for this extremely limited 911 and so allocations were quite literally down to ‘the luck of the draw’. You 1991the Daimler Double-Six III. could enter allocation lottery on theSeries basis you were Metallic over Leather. a Diamond Porsche ClubBlue member and from thatCream pool, the lucky 46,000 Miles. £24,850 winners were chosen at random.

In this car’s case, the

lucky ticket belonged to a Mr and Mrs Windsor (their names remain etched on the brushed aluminium trim of the interior), who took delivery of the Club Coupe on the 1st of January 2013.

Changing hands a couple of times between 2013 and now, the Club Coupe’s immaculate service record has been maintained within the Porsche main agent network and its mileage sits a little over 7,500.

It will be sold to its next custodian with a new set of tyres, a clean MOT certificate and comprehensive warranty.

1970 Aston Martin DB6 MK1 Saloon.

This is a truly fabulous car and an exceptional opportuoverrarest Bordeux Hide. nity to acquireGrey the world’s production Porsche.

55,137 Miles. £424,850 Miles: 7,899 Price: £299,850

SIMILAR LOW MILEAGE VEHICLES TAKEN ON CONSIGMENT AT COMPETITIVE RATES VIEWING BY APPOINTMENT 26 High Street, Bramley, Guildford, GU5 0HB +44 (0) 01483 898 159 mail@bramley.com | www.bramley.com

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2005 FORD GT **1,734 Miles Only**

6-Speed Manual * Centennial White * Ebony Leather * Disc Brakes * AirCon * Dual Exhaust * Keyless Entry Optional extras: * Painted Stripes * Radio/CD * BBS Alloys w Red Calipers * Full Service History £439,500

2022/72 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye WIDEBODY - Vat Qualifying

6.2l V8 Supercharged 8-Speed Auto * Hellraisin Metallic/Alcantara-Leather Seats * Competitive Suspension 20” Alloys * Nav * Harmon Kardon * Power Sunroof * Parksense * Serviced Apr ‘24 ** 4k mls Only ** £109,995

1965/66 (Hangover car) Shelby GT350 - CONCOURS CONDITION

Wimbledon White/Blue Le Mans Stripes * MATCHING NUMBERS * ‘Rare’ Factory Air Con * Two Owners * Orignal Invoice & Shelby America A/C Papers * New in Ohio Nov 1965 ** 36,300 mls Only ** £299,995 ALL THE ABOVE VEHICLES WILL BE AMONGST OUR SELECTION OF VEHICLES FOR SALE @ GOODWOOD REVIVAL 6 - 8TH SEPTEMBER STAND 376-77 [NEXT TO BONHAMS AUCTION]

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1974 Alfa Romeo Tipo 33-3/Flat 12: Rare, fantastic race record, Ickx, Stommelen, Reutemann, Monza, Nurburgring, Imola.

All orig., fresh rebuild, race ready.

WE WILL BUY AND CONSIGN ALL FERRARI AND ALL VINTAGE SPORTS RACING & GT CARS PARTIAL TRADES CONSIDERED - FINANCING AVAILABLE

1966 Porsche 910-001: First of 29 910 1951 Ferrari 212 Inter: Vignale / Drogo, racers built. Full frame-up restoration.

Mille Miglia 1952, 1954. Ground up restoHistorical, FIA and title papers. Driven by ration. Race and Rally ready.

Niki Lauda, Hans Hermann.

1968 Fiat Dino Spider: Rare. Frame-up resto; bare metal repaint. Driveline & suspension rebuild; new interior top & chrome. With photo docs. Stunning!

1974 Jaguar XKE V12 Roadster: One of a kind, uniquely built. Bare metal repaint, new interior, 5-sp, Webers, SS headers, Alloy radiator, Two tops.

1958 MGA Twin Cam: Rare, disc brakes, 2001 Aston Martin DB7 Coupe: 26k mi, 1964 Cooper Monaco T61: Well docuDunlop competition wheels, frame-up, 6 sp, 400 hp, 7,000 rpm, V-12, 18" alloy mented, all orig. with pd. correct motor, show quality restoration on an iconic wheels, flawless, black w/ Cuoio leather fuel injected 327 CID Chevy V-8 and sports car. interior. Classic good looks propelled by BMC Huffaker transaxle. Comes w/ spare V-12 symphonic sound and power. engine and body work. Race ready!

1970 Porsche 917:5 liter, flat 12.

Total comprehensive rebuild by www otor lassiC orp CoM ex-factory 917 specialist. Driven

by Derek Bell, Vic Elford, Jo Siffert; 350 ADAMS STREET, BEDFORD HILLS NEW YORK 10507 used in the making of Steve Mc914-997-9133 • SALES@MOTORCLASSICCORP.COM Queen’s movie “Le Mans”.

1962 Lotus Super 7: 22 year ownership.

Super well developed; quick and easy to drive. Known for its winning provenance.

Everything has been rebuilt or replaced.

.M

C

C

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SPEEDMASTER SPECIALIST IN HISTORIC AUTOMOBILES Tel: +44 (0)1937 220 360 or +44 (0)7768 800 773 info@speedmastercars.com | speedmastercars.com

1981 Williams FW07B Built for the early races of the 1981 season, chassis 10 was driven to victory in the South African GP

by Carlos Reuterman, and was used by Alan Jones in Long Beach and Brazil. Retained by Williams until 2004, this car has more recently been raced with great success in Historic Formula 1 races in the USA and Europe as well as the recent Monaco Historic Grand Prix where it finished an impressive 4th overall. Maintained to the highest standards by OC Racing in the UK, the Williams FW07 was the benchmark car F1 racing in the early 1980’s and is still the car to beat today.

Please call for more information.

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1975 Lancia Fulvia S3, 1.3 V4

ASM MOTORSPORT ASTON MARTIN DBR1 Superb recreation of the 1959 Le Mans winning car. Ordered with all aluminium body, Aston Racing Green with green leather, distressed dash. 3.8 litre engine.

Triple webber carbs. 2 tonneau covers. Only 5,000 miles. Costing new today over £200k and up to 2 years delivery. OIRO £140,000.

1974 Lancia Fulvia Monte Carlo

restored in Italy by a classic restorer for very nice Ex-Italian car, all correct his father........ ............................£24,995 ...................................................£27,750

1965 Fiat 1500 Cabriolet

1978 Porsche 928

one owner 1965 to 2003, recently driven automatic, very early car, history back to Spa ........................................£19,995 to new ........................................£27,495

1956 Morris Minor 1926 FIAT BIPOSTO 501 SPEEDSTER

1954 FIAT TOPOLINO CONVERTIBLE

Competed in the Italian Silver Flag Vernasca Hill Climb. In running order.

UK registered plus Italian papers. £29,995.

Model B. Superb restoration and Italian ASI awarded. UK registered with Italian papers. £12,750.

ALSO AVAILABLE: Mercedes 1952 170DA diesel saloon Morris Minor 1954 (split windscreen). Immaculate with upgrades (discs, shocks etc)

1961 Bristol 406 drophead Coupe

4 door, 803cc, 21,000 miles with history, four seater, stunning build, three owners............ ..................£10,995 unique........... .............................£75,000

07973 177354 | jcjazz@btinternet.com

SYDNEY AUSTRALIA Simply one of the most iconic cars of the 1960’s, if not all time, The Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder is the most successful and coveted designs in automotive history.

Penned from Pininfarina and bodied by Carrozzeria Scaglietti, as all competition Ferrari’s were at the time, the 250 California sported the 3.0L Columbo V12 mated to a 4-speed manual and was offered in both a short-wheel base and longwheel base models of which only a total 106 examples were ever built.

Over 7 years in the making, this vehicle was painstakingly developed from the ground up as a bespoke build inspired by the original 1961 Ferrari 250 GT California Spyder.

Designed with a semi-monocoque aluminium chassis, the body was developed specifically for the project in the US by a Ferrari restoration specialist and completed locally by Australia’s leading classic car restorer.

Under the bonnet is a Ferrari 456 5.5L fuel-injected V12, sourced from the United Kingdom, with very little mileage. Paired with a slick 6-Speed LSA manual transmission, featuring hydraulic clutch bearings and features CNC billet aluminium push-rod suspension and adjustable billet coilover shock absorbers.

Inside, the craftsmanship is stunning with Nappa Italian leather on every surface in a lavish Caramel Tan hue. Authentic Ferrari NOS interior gauges, switches, and finishes, sourced from specialists across the globe, complete the immersive driving experience.

From its flawless body to its exquisite interior, and, most importantly, its exhilarating performance, this car represents a modern interpretation of excellence.

Contact our sales team today for any additional information at sales@classicthrottleshop.com.

classicthrottleshop.com BAYS 3&4 • 50-64 PACIFIC HIGHWAY • NORTH SYDNEY • AUSTRALIA • T +61.2.9922 2036 • F+61.2.9922 4594

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1975 Porsche 911 2.7 Targa ’25 Jahre Jubiläumsmodell’’

1991 Porsche 911 ‘964’ Carrera 2 Targa 98.000 km

A selection of Porsche’s currently available

We can take care of you and assist with most, if not all, aspects to enjoy collecting interesting cars.

Mme. Curiestraat 8 Sassenheim The Netherlands +31 (0) 252 218 980 1973 Porsche 911 2.4 E Coupe matching nr.

www.vsoc.nl

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OWN AND EXPERIENCE JAGUAR HISTORY 1967 E-TYPE SERIES 1 CHASSIS No. 1E13011

• Numbers-MATCHING • 4.2 Liter • SHOW-LEVEL RESTORED • HERITAGE CERT. INCLUDED

1938 SS100 3.5L CHASSIS No. 39016

• Numbers-MATCHING • RECENT CONCOURS WINNER • MULTIPLE CONCOURS WINNER

1962 Abarth Simca 1300

1965 E-TYPE SERIES 1 CHASSIS No. 1E10734

Highly original and historically signi�icant Abarth Simca.

Known as “Giant killer” major victories were scored by Simca 1300 GTs in 1962.

Excellent maintained by marque specialist.

£109,990

• ORIGINAL 3.5 liter ENGINE • ORIGINAL COLOR COMBo • RECENT SERVICE

• Numbers-MATCHING • 4.2 Liter • ROTISSERIE RESTORATION • Show-WINNER

£109,990

2010 Ferrari 599 GTB with factory optioned Handling Gran Turismo Evoluzione

2001 Ferrari 550 Maranello One of 82

Finished in dark metallic blue (Blu Tour de France) with sand (Sabbia) hide stitched in black and black Alcantara carpets. Additionally, factory with the Handling GTE package, a £14,200 option when new. The Alcantara carpets, additional carbon fibre interior trim, and Handling GTE embroidered on the headrest were items NOT available if the package was retrospectively fitted. To quote from the 2010 Ferrari yearbook: “The optional kit was developed for owners who appreciate the model’s exceptional versatility and spec but are keen to embrace an even more dynamic driving experience. Technically, the package includes stiffer springs, a rear anti-roll bar, new calibration for the shock absorbers, and lowered ride height, improving body control. Tyres optimised for better grip and faster F1 gearbox shifts in highperformance settings enhance driving. New engine software improves accelerator response. Stylistically, the package offers a sporty exterior and interior with carbon fibre widely used, lending a track-inspired look”. Complete with factory original service book, handbooks, tools—unopened and tailored car cover.

Finished in dark metallic blue (Blu Tour de France) with sand (Sabbia) hide stitched in dark blue, with dark blue carpets. Factory optioned with red brake callipers and enamel Scuderia wing shields. One of the 457 550s officially imported by Ferrari UK, of which 359 remain taxed/SORN’d, with just 82 in a shade of blue (metallic and non-metallic). The 34,000 miles are documented with 23 services and 20 MOTs. Complete with the factory original service book and past invoices. Leather folder, tools, three keys, two black and one red immobiliser—even the Maglite torch. A tasteful carbon fibre centre console was added by a previous owner. An increasingly rare opportunity to acquire a late model 550 Maranello in one of the most desirable colour combinations.

www.rardleymotors.com

Please contact Mike Wheeler for further details and to arrange viewing

Experience the Experience.

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info@murrayscott-nelson.com

MURRAY SCOTT-NELSON

01723 361 227

Ferrari 360 Modena F1 Rosso Corsa 53,472 Miles

MGB Roadster. Last of the original design chrome bumper cars, which has been subject of an older but extensive body restoration & repaint but unused since. Just recommissioned by ourselves including full engine overhaul and associated work costing in excess of £12,000 finished in Iris blue with blue leather trim, blue mohair hood and tonneau. Fitted chrome wire wheels & overdrive. Excellent example. £Please enquire

Stock Number - 22664

Ferrari F430 Spider F1 Nero Daytona 30,583 Miles

Jaguar E-Type Series 1.5. 1968 Jaguar E-type 4.2 Series 1.5 Roadster, right hand drive. Originally supplied to North America. Structurally sound project in need of repaint and re-trim. This car has been subject of an engine rebuild and upgrade to UK series 1.5 specification, i.e. triple 2 inch HD8 SU carburettors on correct inlet manifold and series 1 exhaust manifolds, radiator, cooling fan and header tank etc. etc. Plus 5 speed gearbox conversion. For fullest details please call 07831 830270 £Please enquire

Austin Healey 3000 MK 3 BJ8 phase 1. UK Home Market RHD car built 1964 has been supplied by HA Saunders of Finchley and has been in long family ownership. Recommissioned for the road by ourselves in 2019 with less than 500 miles since. Finished in British Racing Green with original black leather trim fitted overdrive and original disc wheels. High torque starter motor spin on oil filter, new radiator, multi blade, electric cooling fans & five new tyres. £49,950

Murray Scott-Nelson, Beaconsfield Street, Scarborough YO12 4EL

66 Winspeed Octane and Classic & Sportscar Ad 09.08.2024 CS6 OL.indd 1

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£54,995

£79,995

Stock Number - 22687

Ferrari 488 Spider Grigio Silverstone 16,188 Miles

£159,995

Stock Number - 22631

Ferrari 360 Modena F1 Rosso Corsa 27,730 Miles

£64,995

Stock Number - 22662

Aston Martin DBS V12 2+2 Meteorite Silver 23,209 Miles

£79,995

Stock Number - 22593

Ferrari 512 BB Carburettor Giallo Fly 13,867 Miles

£184,995

Stock Number - 20945

www.tfcgb.com True Ferrari Connoisseurs Cavallino Building, ME15 9YG

11/08/2024 13:04

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R AW L E S M O T O R S P O R T LT D

Austin Healey Restoration - Upgrades - Sales - Service - Upholstery - Concours Prep - Engine Build & Rolling Road

Austin Healey 3000 MkIII | Original RHD, Original Healey Blue Barn Find/ Project. Available to your speciication. A rare opportunity to restore a holy grail ind original RHD & Healey Blue Metallic MkIII project in good restorable condition. Fully complete. £POA.

1966 Austin Healey 3000 MkIII Phase II, a very nice extremely well cared for example with yearly servicing from us since 2010. Healey Blue and Ivory Duotone, Navy interior. Overdrive, all the good options. Previously restored to a good standard and very up together. £65,000.

Austin Healey 100 | Original RHD Project / Barn Find available to your speciication. Very solid later 100/4 with good chassis, an ideal candidate to build an exceptional quality car. Complete, body has been painted in primer. £POA.

1967 Austin Healey 3000 MkIII, New Restoration Healey Blue Metallic with Ivory Duotone, Navy Interior and Navy wet weather gear. Full nut and bolt rebuild with zero miles since, ready to go. £92,500.

1967 Austin Healey 3000 MkIII with Power Steering & other great upgrades. Healey Blue with Ivory Duotone, nice restored car, telescopic dampers, engine rebore 2020, interior work 2016 making this a great very presentable and usable example . £85,000.

VISIT US AT

GRAND ANNUAL OPEN DAY

1954 Austin Healey 100, Original RHD Australian Just had £30k spend on mechanicals, extremely punchy engine in excess of 100M. 4 Speed overdrive gearbox. Early car with lighter 100S style rear axle Carmine Red with Black interior. £46,000.

Rawles Motorsport Ltd, Alton, Hampshire, GU34 4JR

01420 23212

STANDS 11-12 TRACKSIDE Enquiries@RawlesMotorsport.com

12TH OCTOBER 10AM-2PM www.RawlesMotorsport.com

1940 ASTON MARTIN SPEED MODEL

£660,000 £ 760,000 Aston-Martin Speed Model D40/725/U is one of just 23 Speed Models in existence.

The Speed Model is the most advanced and best performing pre-war Aston-Martin.

Designed for racing, this model incorporated significant improvements over the previous MKII and Ulster models. The chassis is broader and more robust than an Ulster with a slightly shorter wheelbase, the hydraulic brakes were both innovative and highly effective, as well as a bigger, more powerful 2-litre engine and a new and improved gearbox.

Chassis D40/725/U was originally built with one of the ‘Type C’ aerodynamic bodies.

This car was completely restored to the very highest standards in the late 1990s with an Ulster style body. It raced successfully for many years, is well proven and is in excellent condition needing only a little minor work to put it into first-class condition.

It is very rare indeed for a Speed Model to be offered for sale, and very few ever come onto the open market. This is an amazing opportunity not to be missed!

+44 (0)1234 240024 | info@ecuriebertelli.com | ecuriebertelli.com | 53 Stilebrook Road, Olney, MK46 5EA, UK

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speedsport gallery 1967 BRM P115

by Peter Hutton Beautiful and intricate painting of the BRM H16 PRICE: £1,950.00 Watercolour and ink on paper 7 X 7 inches

­ ­ ­ ­

­ ­ ­­

­ ­

­ ­

An extensive variety of original motor racing paintings, photographs and autographed items for sale.

T: 01327 858 167 E: info@speedsport.co.uk www.speedsport-gallery.com

Key Repairs & Personalisation for all Marques Worldwide Maserati Key ‘Blue Key’ Upgrades

Aston Martin Valet Key Button Upgrades

New Signature Range

Bentley Arnage Key Upgrades

www.phoenixbespokekeys.com | +44 (0) 7500 831761

Derby Plating PlatingServices ServicesLtd LtdEst. Est.1979 1979 Derby Derby Plating Services Ltd Est. 1979

Specialist electroplaters, polishers and Specialist electroplaters, polishers Specialist electroplaters, polishers and metal finishers. and metal finishers. metal finishers.

Re-chroming to Re-chroming to theconcours highest and Re-chroming to the the highest highest concours and show standards show concours andstandards show standards 148 148 Abbey Abbey Street, Street, Derby Derby DE22 DE22 3SS 3SS Tel: 1332 382408 148 Abbey Street, Derby DE22 3SS Tel: +44(0) +44(0) 1332 382408 Email: Email: info@derbyplating.co.uk Tel: info@derbyplating.co.uk +44(0) 1332 382408 www.derbyplating.co.uk www.derbyplating.co.uk Email: info@derbyplating.co.uk

LEADERS IN DRIVER SAFETY SINCE 1967

www.derbyplating.co.uk 194

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Protecting the vehicles people love

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Scan to start your quote at hagerty.co.uk All third party makes, models, and vehicle names are property of their respective owners. Their use is meant to reflect the authenticity of the vehicle and do not imply sponsorship nor endorsement of Hagerty nor any of these products or services. This is a general description of guidelines and coverage. All coverage is subject to policy provisions, exclusions and endorsements. Hagerty determines final risk acceptance. Policies underwritten by Markel International Insurance Company Limited or Aviva Insurance Limited. Hagerty International Limited are authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA Firm Reference Number 441417). Hagerty is a registered trademark of The Hagerty Group LLC, ©2024 The Hagerty Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved. The Hagerty Group, LLC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hagerty, Inc.

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Complete over the frame side exit exhaust on a lightweight low drag E-Type Jaguar

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S P E C I A L I S T S ESTABLISHED 1987

MBG specialises in both parts and engineering for all classic MBG specialises in both parts and engineering for all classic Fiats and Abarths.We can supply most parts and our workshop Fiats and Abarths. We can supply most parts and our workshop undertakes and restoration restorationofofallall models. undertakesservicing, servicing, repairs, repairs, and models.

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Automotive brands represented here remain the property of their respective owners.

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Autobiography Portrait by Max Earey

Steve Waddingham As historian for Aston Martin Lagonda he travels globally, as an Austin Allegro owner a bit less so APPARENTLY MY first ever word was ‘car’! No doubt most of my earliest memories involve cars, and I was brought up surrounded by them. My dad was a director of a restoration company, specialising in Rolls-Royce and Bentley. Mum drove us around in a split-screen Morris Minor Convertible, and the annual Rolls-Royce Enthusiasts’ Club rallies were a family affair. When I was 11 I started working at the same firm on Saturday mornings, making tea and, eventually, being let loose on coachwork restoration. My skills as a panel-beater were non-existent, but I did enjoy interior trimming. Very generously, I was allowed to work one day a week alongside some ex-Aston Martin trimmers, based in Newport Pagnell, and they were quick to point out that I wasn’t really cut out for that either! So, in November 1990, at the tender age of 19, I joined Aston Martin Lagonda as a storeman.

This coincided with the start of a tough period for Aston Martin, and I was lucky to survive the changes and upheavals. Three years later I got my first ‘big’ break, becoming a Junior Buyer in AML’s Purchasing department. Within a few months I was handed what turned out to be the Herculean task of ordering all of the service parts for the launch of the DB7. It was exciting to be part of this massively important launch, and I followed the car as it evolved into the V12-powered DB7 Vantage.

My next lucky break was being asked to take over the customer factory visits and, for many years, that was what I was best-known for,

conducting more than 5000 tours during two stints in the role, split by a short spell in the Heritage workshop at Newport Pagnell and a couple of years with the Heritage Parts business.

As a tour guide, I dealt one-to-one with a wide variety of Aston owners from all over the world. Some would change cars on a regular basis but, occasionally, someone would tell me that they were buying the car to keep ‘forever’. I’m still in touch with people in this category who have owned their cars for way over 20 years and are staying true to their word. It’s clear to me now that, at Aston Martin, we don’t just build cars, we also form long-term relationships with many of our customers.

As time went on, I found myself becoming increasingly the person that people came to in the office to ask about our history: ‘Ask Wadders, he’ll know.’ I mentioned this to my then-boss who nodded and asked: ‘Do you want to be the company historian then?’ This new part-time role soon grew into the full-time occupation that I have today – working largely from my home office or, more accurately, my ‘shrine to Aston Martin’. The room is packed to the rafters with books, magazines, and memorabilia that I’ve collected over the last 30-odd years. Framed photos and posters cover every square inch of wall space – and I love it!

I am incredibly lucky to have driven all sorts of Aston Martin and Lagonda cars over the years, from pre-war rarities to the latest prototypes. Favourites include the original Vanquish, a car that I worked on from launch. I love all of our eras equally, including the pre-war cars, and the Feltham and Newport Pagnell DB and later V8 models. I’m immensely proud of the modern models I have worked with, and we are seeing a surge in interest in these modern classics. It is impossible to pick a favourite, but I have developed a very soft spot for a certain 1930s team car that is the subject of what will be my first book.

My own cars have been humbler, though I have developed a love of British classic cars. First up was a sidevalve Ford Popular, followed by a Mk1 Consul and a long period of Triumph Spitfire ownership, plus a Triumph 2500S. Much to everyone’s amusement, my most recent automotive sidekick has been a 1975 Austin Allegro. It started off as a tongue-in-cheek purchase of what everyone considers to be the ‘worst car ever built’, calculated to contrast amusingly with the day job.

I was attracted to this particular example by what looked to be an interesting history. After buying the car I delved into its background and tracked down the first owner, who had kept it for 30 years! I also became friends with Harris Mann, designer of the Allegro, among other BL models. The car has now embedded itself firmly into my life and has turned out to be the perfect companion for days when I can indulge myself with a trip to a local car meet: when I’m not working at Aston events, or being a dad and grandad.

My day-to-day work at AML is incredibly varied. I interact with different areas of the business all the time. Anything heritage-related tends to come my way. This can even include advising on product development – from merchandise, to the cars themselves. I source rare heritage cars for events, too. A highlight was tracking down many of the 110 cars that took part in the 110-year parade at Silverstone, during the British Grand Prix weekend last year. I even had the honour of driving our DB5 Goldfinger Continuation car that was placed towards the front of the 110-car formation. I’m also a Trustee of the Aston Martin Heritage Trust, which is a fantastic organisation dedicated to preserving our history and sharing it with a worldwide audience.

Aston Martin remains a people-focused marque, so researching individual car histories is very satisfying, and we unearth some fantastic tales. Our cars have always been reassuringly expensive so my first question is usually ‘Where did the owner get their money from?’ Find the answer to that, and you often find a great story.

The people that design, build, sell, service and own our cars are incredible. A great Aston-owning friend in the US summed it up perfectly: ‘I came for the cars, but I stayed for the people.’ Amen to that!

Octane (ISSN 1740-0023, USPS 024-187) is published monthly by Hothouse Publishing Ltd, UK. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by agent named World Container INC 150-15, 183rd St, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Brooklyn, NY 11256.

US Postmaster: send address changes to Octane, WORLD CONTAINER INC 150-15, 183rd St, Jamaica, NY 11413, USA.

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1967 FERRARI 330 GTC One of 22 UK delivered RHD examples. Full and fascinating history from new. Fully fettled by Bob Houghton Ltd.

1959 MG MGA TWIN CAM ROADSTER One of the finest of its type. Fully documented history from original order. Six owners.

Concours restoration by celebrated Twin Cam Guru, Bob West.

1935 RILEY IMP Ex-1935 RSAC Rally. Body-off full restoration in 2003 by Bruce Young.

Extremely well maintained since. A correct and very well sorted Imp.

2000 FERRARI 550 MARANELLO Italian delivered LHD example that has spent many years in the hands of its current owner in the UK. A lovely Ferrari with great maintenance history.

1983 FERRARI 512 BBI

One of 42 UK RHD examples. Lovely original spec, matching numbers, 43,000 miles with fully documented history from new. All books, tools. Exceptional.

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