Chris Amon on the ‘Warwick Farm 100’ grid, 9 February 1969. DNF lap 1 after a tangle with Piers Courage. Rindt won by 45 seconds from Bell’s 246T. Checkout the wing mount detail (B McInerney)
Amongst the most jewel like Ferraris of the late sixties are the F2 Dino 166 and Tasman Formula 246T’s…
Just yummy they are. The 246T had enough of everything to do the job, but not too much of it, including its wings.
Amon didn’t race so equipped in 1968, his first Tasman Dino year, but wings exploded in F1 that season so he did return with these small aerodynamic aids in 1969, together with four 300 bhp V6’s to power the cars raced by he and Derek Bell that summer.
They were works entries with logistics on the ground taken care of by David McKay’s Scuderia Veloce, Sydney based outfit. David and Chris went way back to 1962/3 when McKay’s support of him in a Cooper T53, and Chris’ speed in it that summer brought him to the attention of Reg Parnell- and off to Europe he went.
Amon’s 246T wing in the Pukekohe paddock, Jan 2-4 1969. He won the NZ GP that weekend in ‘0008’- his ’69 Tasman mount, Bell raced ‘0010’ to 4th (M Feisst)
But its the 246T wings which interest me…
Chapman’s Lotuses returned to Australasia with World Champ Hill and World Champ Aspirant Rindt at the wheel in 1969. Colin’s Lotus 49 DFW ‘aero-phalluses’ were notable for their size and the regularity with which they parted company with the chassis to which they were, usually temporarily, attached.
It was these component failures on both Lotuses at Montjuic Parc, Barcelona several months after the Tasman that caused the FIA to act, constraining the size of wings from the ’69 Monaco GP. Click here for an article in relation to those events.
https://primotipo.com/2015/07/12/wings-clipped-lotus-49-monaco-grand-prix-1969/
Graham Hill’s Lotus 49B Ford DFW with its big, hi-mounted wing in the Pukekohe paddock, 1969. Its high in the airstream to catch ‘clean air’, not a problem- the mounts themselves were under-engineered bigtime though. Hill, Oliver and Rindt all had failures, in the case of Oliver and Rindt huge accidents which could easily have been fatal (M Feisst)
I am a complete Lotus nutbag but joisus Chappers should have been shot for the death and destruction caused to his drivers/customers by component failure over the years? The Latin term ‘caveat emptor’ could have been designed with Lotus purchase in mind. On the other hand, butch though the engineering sometimes was, the 1961/2 156 springs to mind- shite didn’t and doesn’t tend to fall off Ferraris.
Look at (in the Pukekohe paddock photo above) the spidery, small, multi tube structure which supports the little wing. The mounts are triangulated and supported forward to the roll bar. The adjustment mechanism to alter the angle of incidence is simple and neat. The chord of the wing is shallow with endplates, not so common at the time, to ‘capture’ airflow.
Note the throttle linkage, water and oil fillers and breathers, also the Willans harness attached to the roll bar.
Amon at Teretonga, I think, in 1969. Courage won in Frank Williams Brabham BT24 Ford DFW- a portent of the success they would have in GP racing that season with an FW run Brabham BT26 Ford DFV. Again, check out the Dino wing and its mounts. Chris was 3rd behind Hill (unattributed)
Chris took a great win in the ’69 Tasman, he won the first two rounds at Pukekohe and Levin after Rindt spun away the lead, before Jochen won on the Wigram airfield circuit. Piers Courage won at Teretonga in his bi-winged Brabham BT24 Ford DFW before the circus crossed the Tasman Sea to Australia.
Chris won well at Lakeside, the Australian Grand Prix was run in very hot conditions- with both Lotuses suffering wing failure that weekend. Jochen drove away from the field at Warwick Farm in streaming rain after Amon and Courage tangled early on. Chris won again at Sandown by 7 seconds from Rindt and took the series with 44 points from Rindt and Courage on 30 and 22 points respectively.
Graham Hill suffers what would not be the last Lotus 49 wing failure during the 1969 Australian Grand Prix at Lakeside. He pitted, a mechanic hack-sawed the wing mounts and removed the offending items allowing GH to rejoin and finish 4th behind Amon and Bell both aboard Dino 246T’s and Leo Geoghegan’s Lotus 39 Repco (G Ruckert)
Amon’s 1968 Tasman Dino Season…
https://primotipo.com/2017/07/21/amons-tasman-dino/
The Ferrari 166 Dino…
https://primotipo.com/2014/07/09/temporada-f2-series-argentina-san-juan-1968/
Amon after his Lakeside AGP win (J Stanley)
Bibliography…
oldracingcars.com
Photo Credits…
Mike Feisst/The Roaring Season, Brian McInerney, John Stanley, Graham Ruckert
Tailpiece: Amon on his way to AGP victory at Lakeside on 2 February 1969, Ferrari 246T ‘0008’…
(J Stanley)
primotipo... 
The electronic mechanism that operated the wing was built by my father. Message me at rolf@logandist.co.nz if you would like images in the workshop of it being crafted by Bruce Wilson. Regards, Rolf Wilson
Thanks for getting in touch Rolf,
I’d love to add some detail shots to the article. My email is mark@bisset.com.au
Mark