primotipo…

Graham Harvey, Elfin 400 Chev ahead of Jim Boyd Lola T70 Chev at Bay Park, New Zealand in 1969.

Elfin 400 chassis BB67-4, first owned and raced by Andy Buchanan, has lived all of its life in New Zealand and is now very close to completion, or has it already run? Where are those photos Alastair Grigg sent me!?

More on Garrie Cooper’s first big sports car here:https://primotipo.com/2015/05/28/elfin-400traco-olds-frank-matich-niel-allen-and-garrie-cooper/

BP’s Les Thacker congratulates Larry Perkins after an F3 win at Brands Hatch and Man of The Meeting award.

The F2 Index tells me Larrikins won two races at Brands during his victorious Ralt RT1 Toyota 1975 European F3 Championship campaign, the Polydor Records Trophy on September 7 and the BARC-BP British F3 Championship round a fortnight later on September 21. The shot will have been taken on the latter weekend, Larry won that F3 Championship from Conny Andersson and Renzo Zorzi.

Epic length article on Larry and Terry Perkins here: https://primotipo.com/2023/01/28/terry-and-larry-perkins/

John Walker, Matich A50-004 Repco-Holden, at Surfers Paradise in 1972 or 1973. I’m not sure if it’s the Gold Star or Tasman rounds.

JW briefly raced an Elfin MR5 then jumped to the Matich which was US L&M Championship compliant – I can’t recall in what respect – doing very well with it in 1973. The Rise and Rise of John Walker really got going on that Stateside trip I reckon. Thoughts folks?

1979 Gold Star and Australian Grand Prix winner aboard the Martin Sampson owned, Rob Newman prepared Lola T332 Chev. More here: https://primotipo.com/2015/03/12/the-mother-and-father-of-lucky-escapes-john-walker-sandown-tasman-1975/

Peter White, Fronty Ford DO Twin-cam racing Tom Benstead, Harley Davidson, at Penrith in the late 1920s

The Fronty was a factory built racer imported to Australia as against an assemblage of parts built on a local chassis.

A bit more Fronty Ford here and more research needed and wanted on my part: https://primotipo.com/2018/11/20/penrith-speedway/

Evan Green and Roy Denny, Leyland P76 4.4-litre V8 during the 1974 Southern Cross Rally, see here: https://australianrallyhistory.com.au/history-of-the-southern-cross-international-rally/1974-southern-cross-rally/

Only seven of 61 crews finished the gruelling 3560 km event out of Port Macquarie between October 9-14, the winners for the third year on the trot was the Mitsubishi Lancer GSR of Andrew Cowan and John Bryson.

Regarded as a sweet-handling big car in the day, she would have been a bit of a handful in the forests, the car didn’t survive, I’m not sure on which stage it stopped.

More about Evan Green here: https://primotipo.com/2025/05/27/alfa-romeo-autodelta-alfetta-gt/

A rather brave and slow looking, well-nourished photographer shoots Jim Clark on the exit of the Northern Crossing during the Australian Grand Prix at Warwick Farm on February 19, 1967. Lotus 33 Climax FWMV 2-litre V8.

Jim won the Tasman Cup again that summer, but his close mate Jackie Stewart, BRM P261 2.1-litre, won the AGP with Clark 17 seconds behind him, with Frank Gardner third, Brabham BT16 Climax 2.5 FPF.

Tasman Cup ‘67 here:https://primotipo.com/2014/11/24/1967-hulme-stewart-and-clark-levin-new-zealand-tasman-and-beyond/

Pete Geoghegan blasts his Ford Mustang around Pukekohe circa 1970-71, how’d he do folks?

Check out this article about our Touring Car Exports: https://primotipo.com/2025/02/05/tourers-on-tour/

Geoff Brabham aboard the Jack Brabham Ford Bowin P4X Formula Ford at Warwick Farm in 1972, gimme a date folks it’s gotta be one of Geoff’s first gallops in a racing car.

Bob Beasley was the usual driver of this car, finishing in the fifth in the 1971 Driver to Europe Series and third in 1972. John Davis then won it in a raffle, and finished fourth in the 1975 title race, and then third with support from Grace Bros the following year.

More on the Bowin P4 here: https://primotipo.com/2018/08/30/bowin-p4a-and-oz-formula-ford-formative/ There is a good summary of Geoff’s career here: https://primotipo.com/2015/03/31/geoff-and-jack-brabham-monza-1966/

The Lex Davison/Stan Jones/Tony Gaze Repco Research prepared Holden 48-215 during the 1953 Monte Carlo Rally.

See here for all of the detail on the car build and the rally itself: https://primotipo.com/2019/01/25/melbourne-to-monaco-holdens-1953-monte-carlo-rally/

Surely one of Australia’s most evocative sports-racing combos of any era?

John Harvey aboard Bob Jane’s immaculate, John Sheppard prepared McLaren M6B Repco 740 5-litre at Symmons Plains in 1972.

Harves won the 1971-72 Australian Sports Car Championships with it. In 72 he won five of the six rounds, including the final one at Symmons on November 12. Glorious shot of a glorious car, see here: https://primotipo.com/2018/09/09/sandown-sunrise/ At the end of the season, Bob set it aside; the family retain it 50 years later.

Speaking of iconic Sheppo built/prepared cars, here’s another! The Bob Jane owned Holden Torana GTR XU-1 Repco 620 4.4 V8 was built by John in his home garage away from any prying eyes snooping around Bob Jane Racing’s Brunswick HQ.

Here it’s in the Wanneroo paddock in 1971, the A regular race winner in Bob’s, John Harvey’s and Frank Gardner’s hands from 1971-75, then Ian Diffen after that? There’s more Harves here: https://primotipo.com/2021/01/25/harves/

Wizard Smith and Don Harkness with the SWB (sic) Fred H Stewart Enterprise LSR car out front of the Harkness & Hillier factory, Five Dock, Sydney in 1931.

The incredible machine was powered by a leased/loaned 1450 bhp Napier Lion W12 aero engine. Great article on this car here: https://oldmachinepress.com/2018/10/05/fred-h-stewart-enterprise-smith-harkness-lsr-car/

Michael Hickey writes that ‘The Harkness and Hillier background of the Wizard Smith Enterprise photo remains relatively unchanged 94 years later. It’s now Volvo Cars, Parramatta Road, Five Dock, the photo is in William Street.’

So disappointed to have missed out on racing or spectating at Catalina Park in New South Wales’ Blue Mountains, but it was well before my time.

Here Norm Beechey and Pete Geoghegan are wrestling their touring cars around the tight layout in January 1967: Chev Nova and Ford Mustang. I’ve got my money on Pete!? See here:https://primotipo.com/2019/09/26/norm-jim-and-pete/

A collection of these would be nice, I wasn’t aware of the publication until Bob Williamson put this up on his Facebook page; the LCCA’s ‘Competition Communicator’ magazine came later.

It’s Jack Brabham in a Cooper T51 Climax winning the Repco Trophy at Phillip Island on March 14, 1960. See here: https://primotipo.com/2018/08/12/jacks-donut/

A decade later Jack was mid-way through his last F1 season, here contesting the July British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch. That front couple of rows from pole is Rindt, Oliver, Brabham, partially obscured papaya Hulme, and Ickx on the right: Lotus, BRM, Brabham, McLaren and Ferrari. V8s and a V12 and Flat-12 or 180 degree V12 if you prefer…

With a bit more luck Brabham could have won tbe World Championship for a third time in 1970. At Brands he was robbed of certain victory on the last lap after on his Brabham BT33 Ford ran out of fuel after the Lucas mixture control of the 3-litre Ford Cosworth DFV was left on the rich setting by mechanic, Nick Goozee. Having passed and driven away from Jochen Rindt’s Lotus 72C, the 1970 posthumous World Champ was gifted the win.

See here: https://primotipo.com/2018/05/24/jochens-bt33-trumped-by-chunkys-72/

Warwick Brown at Riverside – I think – in October 1976, VDS Racing Lola T430 Chev. WB was sixth in the race won by Al Unser’s Lola T332 Chev.

I did a feature on the Lola T430 only a few weeks back, so best not to rabbit on, see here: https://primotipo.com/2025/07/23/lola-t430-chev/

Another member of the small-block Chev family, the fuel injected 283 nestled under the bonnet of Tornado 2, is related to the much modified 305 fitted to WB’s F5000 Lola above.

The new Corvette V8 was supplied to car owner Lou Abrahams via his Holden connections and built locally using the best over the counter US performance parts. Abrahams developed the fuel injection using Hilborn parts.

I rather like this Wiki summary of this great race engine family: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chevrolet_small-block_engine_(first-_and_second-generation)

Ted Gray and Tornado 2 Chev at rest before the start of the 1958 Australian Grand Prix at Bathurst at which point it was arguably the fastest, if not the most reliable, racing car in Australia. That’s Lex Davison’s Ferrari 500/625 and crew at left with Ted Gray looking this way behind the right-rear.

Ted Gray, Lou Abrahams and Bill Mayberry – key Tornado men, the other Mayberry brother is the only one missing – during the 1956 AGP weekend at Albert Park. Ted’s first race in the new Tornado 2 Ford.

More on the Tornados here: https://primotipo.com/2015/11/27/the-longford-trophy-1958-the-tornados-ted-gray/

Another one from Tony Johns below. Ted – still in Tornado 2 Ford – at Fishermans Bend over the 12-13 October 1957 weekend, where he won a five-lap preliminary and led the 20-lap feature until rear axle failure intervened. Stan Jones’ Maserati 250F won that from Bib Stillwell’s similar car and Doug Whiteford’s 300S.

Alec Mildren and Lex Davison during their epic race long dice for victory in the 1960 Australian Grand Prix at Lowood, Queensland on : Alec’s very clever Cooper T51 Maserati 250S and Davo’s wonderfully daft Aston Martin DBR4 3-litre.

Mildren won in the drive of his life and Lex – uber sportsman as he was – seemed as happy about the well earned win as Alec was! See here: https://primotipo.com/2018/06/08/mildrens-unfair-advantage/

Those with an interest in Australia’s Aston Martins should buy the latest copy of Auto Action Premium #1909 on sale since Thursday, August 7. Eight pages and a lot of photos you won’t have seen before. International readers see the website here: https://autoaction.com.au/issues

Peter Jones Cheetah Clubman Toyota 1.3 was, I think, regarded as the ‘Winningest’ car in Australian motor racing for much of the period Jones raced it, say, 1976-80, when Formula Pacific beckoned Peter.

The Cheetah Racing Triumvirate comprised Cheetah designer/builder/racer Brian Shead, racer Brian Sampson, and Sampson’s motor engineering business, Motor Improvements.

MI built most of the Toyota Corolla 1.3-litre race engines fitted to ANF3 and Clubman cars in this era. Peter Jones was the MI Foreman forever, so when Jonesey suggested to Sheady he build him a Clubman, it was game on!

Shead built two of these cars, a ‘turnkey’ one for Peter and another for Victorian Formula Vee ace, Derek Fry. Fry either had access to the drawings or perhaps Brian sold him the bits for Fry’s Tubeframes business to assemble. If one of you know give me a buzz.

Racer Brendan Jones, Peter’s son, has his old car and memory, again, suggests Fry’s was destroyed and scrapped?

Credits…

Les Thacker, Kevin Lancaster, Graham Ruckert, Jack Quinn Collection, Colin Wade, Rob Burnett, Ken Starkey, Terry Martin, Harkness & Hillier, MotorSport, JI Croft, Victor Oliver, Tim Perrin Archive, Bob Young, Brier Thomas-AMHF Archives, Racing Ron Edgerton Archive, Ian Smith, Roger Herrick, David Lowe

Tailpiece…

Tony Gaze, HWM Jaguar VPA 9 in the Albert Park paddock during the March 1956 Moomba meeting. See here: https://primotipo.com/2020/03/28/gaze-hwm-jaguar-vpa9-ryal-bush-new-zealand/

Gaze waved goodbye to both of his cars that weekend upon his retirement from racing having sold them to Lex Davison. Davo wasn’t a big fan of the HWM if my recollection of Graham Howard’s Lex biography is correct, but he loved the ex-Ascari Ferrari 500/625 3-litre and didn’t he make it sing, two AGP victories and the rest.

Finito…