(W Reid)
Warren Reid’s photographer father’s Sandown habits as a spectator were similar to my own. Prowl the paddock and watch the action from there – cars rounding Shell Corner and heading into Peters or Torana Corner.
I’ve already had a good go at this meeting so have provided links to the existing pieces, but these paddock shots are too good to miss. https://primotipo.com/2016/12/09/f1-driverengineers-jack-larry-the-68-agp-and-rb830-v8/
The first one is Pedro Rodriguez about to head out in the Len Terry designed BRM P126 V12- we were lucky enough to see Bourne’s new GP car in 2.5-litre form before commencement of the GP season. The high point of their summer was Bruce McLaren’s Teretonga win. BRM P126 here; https://primotipo.com/2018/01/25/richard-attwood-brm-p126-longford-1968/
That’s Kevin Bartlett’s Mildren Racing Brabham BT11A Climax in the background.
(W Reid)
An overdressed Stirling Moss offers big Tim Parnell and one of the BRM mechanics some suggestions about coping with Australian heat.
There was nothing terribly wrong with this car that a Cosworth DFV couldn’t have fixed. BRM were in the wilderness from 1966 to 1969, finally hitting their straps again with Tony Southgate’s P153/P160 chassis and potent enough variants of their four-valve V12 in 1970-71. It was a long time coming for BRM fans.
(W Reid)
Car 12 is Richard Attwood’s P126 ‘02’. #11 is Pedro’s ‘01’.
(W Reid)
In many ways the stars of the show were the fastest GP cars on the planet at the time- the two Lotus 49 Fords of Graham Hill above in ‘R1’, and Jim Clark below in ‘R2’.
Clark and Chris Amon provided a thriller of a GP dice with Jim taking the flag by an official margin of one-hundredth of a second after an hour and three minutes of racing. Yet again Chris proved his talent and the potency of the Ferrari V6 relative to the 2.5-litre variant of the Ford Cosworth DFV 3-litre V8 dubbed DFW.
The 49 used a ZF five-speed transaxle initially, they were progressively replaced by the Hewland DG300 but at least one of the cars raced in the 1969 Tasman Cup was still ZF equipped.
(W Reid)
Skinny rears are to allow the 49 to fit on its narrow, cheap, open trailer! Lotus 49 in the ’68 Tasman see here; https://primotipo.com/2019/11/05/clark-hill-amon-longford-1968/
(W Reid)
(W Reid)
Denny Hulme ran his own show in 1968. When the Kiwi won the 1967 World Championship and let Jack know he was off to McLaren, any chance of Brabham running another car for him went out the window. In the end Brabham only did two rounds anyway.
Hulme (in the dark shirt below) ran an F2 Brabham BT23 Ford FVA to keep faith with his Australasian fans. He used two cars actually. He boofed the first at Pukekohe in a bad accident with Lawrence Brownlie and had to bring out another from England. This is the second car, BT23-2. The first was BT23-5 which became the basis of Bob Britton’s Rennmax BN3 chassis jig, a story well ventilated here a number of times. Brabham BT23 and ’67 Euro F2; https://primotipo.com/2019/11/02/the-wills-barc-200-f2-silverstone-march-1967/
(W Reid)
(W Reid)
Above is Jack Brabham’s bespoke 1968 Tasman car, BT23E’1’ being pushed through the paddock on raceday.
That SOHC, crossflow RBE830 Repco 2.5 V8 is making its race debut. The team fitted the engine and a jury-rigged oil system- the strange structure sitting atop the Hewland FT200 gearbox overnight. Jack was quick in the two rounds he contested, but the yield was seventh at Warwick Farm and a DNF at Sandown.
While Repco-Brabham V8s were F1 Champions in 1966-7 they didn’t win a Tasman Cup despite the engine being originally designed for the Tasman. In five years of Tasman competition Repco won a single round – Jack at Longford in 1967 in a ‘640’ engined BT23A. Repco were pretty happy with the competition dividend of said engines mind you…
BT23E was purchased by Bob Jane post Tasman and raced successfully for him by John Harvey into early 1970. It is now beautifully restored to the specification shown here. See here; https://primotipo.com/2015/12/22/jack-brabham-brabham-bt23e-oran-park-1968/
(W Reid)
Chris Amon, what a mighty racing driver. Ferrari Dino 246 chassis ‘0004’, his 1969 Tasman winner was chassis ‘0008’, the same jigger Graeme Lawrence raced so well to victory in 1970.
Those in attendance that Sandown Sunday still speak in reverential terms about the fantastic dice up front. It was Jim’s last win in Australasia and the ‘68 Tasman Cup was his last championship before that awful day at Hockenheim in 1968. Dino 246T here; https://primotipo.com/2017/07/21/amons-tasman-dino/
Moss and friends.
(W Reid)
These gorgeous Ferraris were unsuccessful 1.6-litre F2 cars, the Cosworth FVA despatched on ongoing belting to them from 1967 to 1971. As Tasman Formula, 2.4-litre machines they were a brilliant bit of fast packaging- light, nimble and powerful. Perhaps with a full works effort in 1968 Ferrari would have carted away another Tasman Cup.
Credits…
Warren Reid Family Collection
Tailpiece…
(W Reid)
Jim Clark blasts his Lotus 49 ‘R2’ along Pit Straight, third gear in Jim’s ZF gearbox.
Tarax is a long-gone brand of soft-drinks, since then swallowed (sic) by a bigger rival.
Finito…
primotipo... 
[…] Clark’s 49 R2 alongside Laurence Brownlie’s Brabham BT18/23 Lotus-Ford 1.5. Brownlie’s car – the quickest of the Kiwi 1.5s that year – was destroyed in the terrible accident with Denny Hulme mentioned earlier. More on the ’68 Tasman cars here; https://primotipo.com/2021/03/06/1968-australian-gp-sandown-2/ […]