The car is Brabham BT30 chassis # 17 owned by ex-racer/businessman/team owner John ‘Noddy’ Coombs, the machine was shared by Jack and Jackie Stewart that season
Brabham didn’t finish at Pau fuel metering unit problems intervened. Jochen Rindt won in a works/Jochen Rindt Racing Lotus 69 Ford FVA from four BT30s: the machines of Henri Pescarolo, Tim Schenken, Derek Bell and Francois Mazet.
(MotorSport)
“Yeah, its not a bad little jigger, we’ve won a few races with BT30s in the last twelve months I suppose. It’s a lot tighter than I remember when I tested it for Ron last year mind you…”
Jack gets out of BT30/17 over the June 28, XVIII Grand Prix de Rouen-les-Essarts weekend where he was eighth in the race won by Jo Siffert’s BMW 270.
BT30/17’s best results that season was Jackie’s second place at Thruxton and victory at Crystal Palace, while Jack was second at Tulln-Langenlebarn. Coombs shipped the car to Japan in May, where JYS won the Formula Libre Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji with Ford Cosworth FVC power.
Stewart bagged the Quadrella in the London Trophy at Crystal Palace in May. He won his heat, the final from pole, bagging fastest lap along the way (MotorSport)(MotorSport)
The Brothers Brambilla compound during the Hockenheim 11, 1970 weekend. The car in shot is Tino’s #7 Brabham BT30/21 (DNF) during the 1970 Preis von Baden – Wurttemberg und Hessen Euro F2 Championship round. Dieter Quester had a home-win for BMW, he prevailed in an M11 powered BMW 270. The exhaust of Vittorio’s car, BT30/22, is at right.
The essential elements of customer F2 Brabhams of the era are on display; a spaceframe chassis, Ford Cosworth 1.6-litre FVA 210bhp engine and Hewland FT200 five-speed transaxle. It was then up to the driver to make these immensely robust, chuckable, fast, Ron Tauranac designed cars do the rest.
Jack toyed with wings on and off at Rouen, racing without the appendages. Here he is showing the way to customers, Derek Bell (seventh) and Peter Westbury (tenth).
(MotorSport)
Another lovely Pau GP shot, where Tim Schenken was third in the Sports Motors International Brabham BT30.
That year the European F2 Championship was won by Clay Regazzoni’s Tecno 69 and 70 FVAs with 44 points, from Derek Bell’s BT30 (he also bagged one point in a BMW 270) 35 points, and Emerson Fittipaldi’s Lotus 69 FVA on 25.
‘Graded drivers’ – in essence and summary, drivers who had scored points twice in the Top Six of a Grand Prix in the previous two years, and the World, F2, Indy, and Can Am Champs of the previous year – were ineligible for Euro F2 championship points.
In 1970 Rindt won at Thruxton, Stewart at Crystal Palace and Ickx at Tulln-Langenlebarn. Of the non-graded drivers, Regga won at Hockenheim, Enna-Pergusa and Imola – and won his first Grand Prix for Ferrari that September at Monza -, for Derek Bell at Montjuich Park, Barcelona, and Dieter Quester in the final Hockenheim round.
Ryan Briscoe is one of those Australian internationals I tend to forget about as he raced so little in Australia. His formative Karting years were here and then – Oscar Piastri like – most of his secondary education was in Europe from the age of 15 as he and his family successfully chased The Dream.
Briscoe, born in Sydney on 24/9/1981, is shown above testing the Toyota TF106 Grand Prix car at Jerez in December 2005. He was in on the ground floor of Toyota’s F1 program – from 2002-2004 – but never quite cracked it for a race seat so he was switched to Indycars in 2005, initially racing a Toyota powered Panoz for Chip Ganassi.
With Dad, Geoff circa 1992 (R Briscoe Collection)Spa 2004 (MotorSport)
During the climb, he won Australian , American and Italian Karting titles in 1994, 1998 and 1999 respectively.He switched to cars, Formula Renault in 2000, winning the Italian F Renault Championship in 2001.
Ahead of the F Renault pack at Monza on April Fools Day 2001 from pole, but DNF as below! Tatuus Renault 2-litre (LAT)(LAT)
During this most meteoric of rises Ryan also did some F3 in 2001, the shot below is at Zandvoort during the Marlboro Masters event on August 5, 2001. Car is Team Prema Dallara F300 Opel, DNF in the race won by Taka Sato, but third overall.
(LAT)(MotorSport)
By the end of that year, aged 20, he was front and centre of Toyota’s F1 program as their test driver. Here he is at the launch of the Gustav Brunner designed Panasonic Toyota Racing TF102 V10 in Cologne, where the team was based, on December 17, 2001. The race drivers in 2002 – at the start of a rather grim eight year F1 sojourn for Toyota – were Mika Salo and Allan McNish.
Amongst his testing duties he raced initially in F3000, not going very well in the Nordic run car, and F3 later in 2002, and in 2003, winning the Euroseries that year. He progressed to being Toyota’s third driver, testing on the Friday of each grand prix, in 2004.
Lola TB02/50 Zytec-Judd KV circa 450bhp V8, Formula 3000 Barcelona April 2002 (MotorSport)During the Pau GP weekend in June 2003, Dallara F303 Opel. Briscoe won a race, and Fabio Carbone the other (Glenn Dunbar/LAT)
Briscoe won eight of the 20 races in the F3 Euroseries in his Prema Powerteam Dallara F303 Opel to take the title from Christian Klien. Other hotshots in the field that year included Niko Rosberg and Robert Kubica.
Briscoe, during practice, Toyota TF104 3-litre V10, Hungary 2004 (unattributed)
Ryan moved to Indycars (I’m using that word as a generic descriptor of the genre) with Chip Ganassi in 2005, showing extraordinary pace for a rookie; two poles and regular top-half qualifying on unfamiliar ovals. Tenth at Indy on debut was stunning, equally so was seven crashes in his 15 starts, the last of which was a massive accident after his Panoz GF09C Toyota climbed atop Alex Barron’s Dallara at Chicagoland Speedway in September that landed him in hospital and rehabilitation for four months.
Zandvoort A1 GP Cup October 2006 – the first meeting of the 2006-7 season – third in the main race won by Nico Hulkenberg. Lola A1GP Zytec 3.4 V6 circa 520bhp (MotorSport)
In 2006 he did a mixed programme of Indycar, V8 Supercars and A1 Grand Prix, but it was a full season in the American Le Mans Series for Penske Racing driving a Porsche RS Spyder in 2007 that pushed his career forward with Penske. He won three rounds sharing with Sascha Maassen.
Ryan at Watkins Glen in June 2006. I rather like the shot of the Dallara IR03 Chev aero elements doing their thing (Dan Streck/LAT)Briscoe in front of Vitor Meira at Sonoma Raceway, California in August 2006. Racing for Dreyer & Reinhold Racing in a Dallara IR03 Chev V8. 16th in the Indy GP of Sonoma won by Marco Andretti (Dan Streck/LAT)Briscoe, American Le Mans Series, Northeast Grand Prix, Lime Rock July 2007, Penske Porsche RS Spyder. Ryan won the LMP2 class, and was third outright, sharing the car with Sascha Maasen (Sutton Images)
This sportscar success, together with some strong performance in limited Indycar outings – Q5 and fifth in the Indy 500 for Luczo-Dragon Racing, led to a full-time Indycar drive with Penske from 2008-2012.
In a strong Indycar career he won eight races, had 28 podiums and finished third in the title in 2009 (three wins), and fifth in 2008 and 2010 as his bests. In 2009 he led the championship going into the penultimate round but hit the wall exiting the pitlane at Motegi, then, in a three-way battle for the title finished second behind Dario Franchitti in the final round, who became champion.
(MotorSport)
Aviating at Surfers Paradise on the way to winning the Indy 300 in October 2008, Team Penske Dallara IR-04/05 Honda 3.5 V8. Scott Dixon was second, 5/10ths behind and Ryan Hunter-Reay a further nine seconds adrift.
And below doing the same thing at the same place in a V8 Supercar in October 2011, sharing the Holden Racing Team Holden Commodore VE in the Gold Coast 600 with Garth Tander. The pair were 11th in the first race, 23rd and last in the second. The winner overall was the Triple Eight VE Commodore crewed by Jamie Whincup and Sebastien Bourdais. Ryan’s best V8 Supercar result was at this event in 2013 when he shared a VF Commodore with Russell Ingall to third place.
(Mark Horsborough/LAT)The Briscoe, Richard Westbrook, Scott Dixon, Chip Ganassi Ford GT at Le Mans in 2018. Q37 and 39th outright in the 3.5-litre turbo-V6 powered car – and shot below (MotorSport)(MotorSport)
“Ryan has driven more sportscars that I’ve had Sunday roasts,” would perhaps be the observation Australia’s greatest all-rounder, the late Frank Gardner would have made.
Briscoe’s best sportscar results are victory in the Daytona 24 Hours in 2020 (Cadillac Dpi-VR), and Petit Le Mans the same year.
He was runner-up in the 2016 (Ford GT), 2018 (Ford GT) and 2020 (Cadillac DPi-VR) IMSA Sportscar Championship GTLM class. He was third in the 2007 American Le Mans Series, winning the LMP2 class (Porsche RS Spyder),
His best results at Le Mans were fifth in 2021 sharing a Glickenhaus 007 LMH with Romain Dumas and Richard Westbrook, and third in 2022 in the same make/model, this time sharing with Westbrook and Franck Mailleux.
At Daytona he won outright in 2020 (as above) and was first in class in 2015 and 2018 racing a Cadillac DPi VR, Chev Corvette C7.R, and Ford GT respectively – with co-drivers of course. At Sebring he won his class in 2013 and 2015 aboard a HPD ARX-O3b and Chev Corvette C7.R.
Briscoe/Richard Westbrook/Franck Mailleux Glickenhaus SCG007 LMH, fifth. Le Mans 2021 (MotorSport)Richard Westbrook, Franck Mailed, Ryan Briscoe and James Glickenhaus, Le Mans 2021 (MotorSport)Power by Pipo Moteurs 3.5-litre twin-turbo 500Kw V8, Xtrac 7-speed sequential manual (MotorSport)
Ryan married Nicole Manske in 2009, they have two children, and in 2018 he became a naturalised American.
Etcetera…
(MotorSport)
Here to zero at the Chicagoland Speedway, Joliet, Illinois on the Indy 300 September 10-11 weekend in 2005.
Here with the Gregory-Peck for pole, a handy $10k. It was Ryan’s second Indycar pole, he started from pole at Sonoma, the previous round but crashed out on the first lap. The car is a Chip Ganassi run Panoz GF09C Toyota.
Shortly after this happy scene the car failed post-practice scrutineering, so Ryan lined up last on the grid, perhaps sowing the seeds of the crash which followed.
(MotorSport)
‘Roger that, we have lift-off Houston.’
On lap 20 Briscoe’s Panoz GF09C Toyota ran into 15th placed Alex Barron’s Dallara Toyota (Q18) as he sought to go under him on his way up the field towards turn 3 of the 1.5-mile oval – look at the proximity of his right-rear to Barron’s head/roll bar area – and the staggering physics of a collision at 215mph were unleashed.
(MotorSport)
Briscoe hit the fence with the bottom of his Panoz first, it split in two as it ripped through a fence post, leaving a big hole. With a half-tank or so of fuel there was a spectacular explosion as the car split, with the cockpit safety cell spinning down the track narrowly avoiding other cars. Car 2 is Thomas Enge, #55 is Kosuke Matsuura.
(MotorSport)
After several anxious minutes Ryan was removed from the wreck – the monocoque had done its job well – and gave a reassuring wave as he was placed into the ambulance with injuries later diagnosed as two broken collarbones, a bruised lung, fractured right foot and contusions to his arms, legs and back.
Briscoe was hospitalised for nine days then had extensive rehab in the US and Italy before returning to the cockpit in a Riley Mk9 Pontiac 5-litre V8 in the Daytona 24-Hours on the January 28-29, 2006 weekend – four months after his Big One.
Reg Nutt aboard the Leech Brothers owned Cisitalia D46 Fiat at Rob Roy hillclimb in Melbourne’s glorious Christmas Hills on May 4, 1958. He ran second in his class that day behind multiple Australian Hillclimb Championship winner, Bruce Walton, Walton J.A.P with a time of 28.30 seconds.
Nutt was a riding mechanic in the first decade of Australian Grands Prix at Phillip Island in the 1920s and 1930s and then a racer of note in his own right, including AGPs. “Reg told me that he had raced 27 cars and never owned any of them,” recalled Bob King. What a lucky man.
Nutt in the Rob Roy paddock on November 5, 1947 when the car was owned by Fred Gibbs’ Sabina Motors (Davey-Milne Family Collection)Harry Firth in the D46 at Rob Roy in 1958. Later Oz 1960s and 1970s touring car star driver/engineer/team manager (L Sims Collection)
The car – chassis D461.1 according to John Blanden, and #0020 “the 20th of approximately 30 D46s built” according to a dealer in more recent times – was built in 1947 and sold to Frenchman, Roger Loyer (5/8/1907-24/3/1988) of the Ecurie de Paris. See here for a full-profile of Roger; https://gprejects.com/centrale/profiles/drivers/profile-roger-loyer
Loyer was a two time French national motorbike champion who switched from two wheels to four postwar aboard an old Delage D6. He then bought the Cisitalia – two D46s in fact, the other Ecurie de Paris car was driven by ‘the mysteriously self-styled Robert’ – which was prepared in his Ecurie de Paris garage located in the swish 17th Arondissement.
His D46 debut was at the Circuit des Remparts, Angouleme on June 15, 1947 and netted a heat victory, and third in the final sharing the car with Raymond Sommer. In the Coupe des Petites Cylindrees at Reims he was ninth, much better was third in the Coupe de Paris at the Bois de Boulogne in central Paris. Another strong fourth in a field of depth in the 330km GP du Comminges followed at St Gaudens in August, the three cars in front were Talbot Lagos. Late in the month Roger was third in a field of 12 Cisitalia D46s on the Circuit del Montenegro in Italy. A DNF late in the season at Lyon wasn’t representative of qualifying pace, fourth again at the Prix de Leman at Lausanne in October was followed by a season ending DNF with rear axle failure at the GP du Salon, Montlhery.
Roger Loyer and Velocette at the Isle of Man in 1933 (unattributed)GP des Remparts, Angouleme in 1949. Maurice Trintignant, Simca Gordini T11 in front won sharing with Jean Thepenier. Bruno Sterzi, Ferrari 166 #26, with Roger Loyer at right D46 Fiat DNF, and Harry Schell, D46 Fiat behind Trintignant (unattributed)Roger Loyer with his Cisitalia D46 Fiat at Lyon in September 1947 (Jannaud)
In a limited 1948 season – when the D46 was still very competitive in F2 events – Loyer raced at Pau in March, then Geneva in May for a DNF, then shared a car to third in the Circuit des Remparts with Robert in July. 1949 was worse in an even more limited campaign. DNQ at the Circuit du Lac in June and a crash at the Circuit des Remparts in July despite finishing second and setting fastest lap in the second heat. Robert and Roger shared a drive to sixth in the Circuit de Lac in a Simca, then contested the Grand Prix of the Nurburgring, where Roger was again a DNF.
Alan Watson was the buyer, but he didn’t use it much, notably giving it a run at Longford in March 1955. The car passed through several owners hands, albeit who were owners and who were drivers is lost a bit in the mists of time; the roll call includes Tony Osborne, John Doherty, Harry Firth, Syd Fisher, Ian Wells, Ray Gibbs and Ian Wells.
Lou Burke sold it to the Leech Brothers in 1964 and they used it for decades in Eastern Seaboard Australian historic events. The car was painted red circa 1980 when the pretty-Italian formed the bloke-magnet for the Lombard Insurance stand at motor shows. The car left Australia for the ‘States in 1987 and has pinged around the auction scene, some of the sales-prose Arthur Daley would be proud of.
The lack of straight tube-runs would have offended Colin Chapman (but not Owen Maddock), however, the Cisitalia D46 spaceframe – here in definitive production form – was simple, light and stiff for its day. So elegant in its simplicity (unattributed)
Design and Production…
While the Piero Dusio founded (1943) and funded – Compagnia Industriale Sportiva Italia or Cisitalia – Dante Giacosa 1946 spaceframe design is rightly lauded as one of the world’s first, certainly of one built in volume, Australian historians point to the Chamberlain Brothers’ Chamberlain Indian/Eight of 1929 as a stunning much earlier expression of multi-tubular spaceframe brilliance. See here; https://primotipo.com/2015/07/24/chamberlain-8-by-john-medley-and-mark-bisset/
In 1944 Dusio, via an interlocutory contacted and contracted Giacosa (to the end of 1945), a Fiat engineer to design ‘the outline and technical hypothesis of a racing car using Foot 500 and 1100 components.’
Giacosa’s small team comprised draftsman Edoardo Grosso, and from August 1945, Giovanni Savonuzzi, Dante’s replacement. ‘The project number 201 in keeping with those used by Giacosa at Fiat. While the car was later called D46, this remained the basis of the subsequent numbering of Cisitalias: 202, 204, 303, 505, 808 etc.’
‘Giacosa’s project 201 (first version with low sides and straight tube-runs) had a tubular spaceframe, the first time (it wasn’t) this revolutionary construction system was used’ (Cisitalia)(D Giacosa)
Overcoat clad Giacosa susses one of his early D46s. He later remarked, “When I came to build the chassis it was in my mind to make it of tubing. That’ll appeal to Dusio, I thought, since he builds Beltrame bicycles in his workshop.” It’s also thought that the tubular cockpits of the Rosatelli designed aircraft Giacosa worked on during the war was also influential.
Whatever the case, the ‘framework chassis’ adopted was light and stiff and provided a platform to ‘which the mechanical parts could be easily mounted in a low position…using existing equipment and staff already specialised in this kind of procedure. The molybdenum chrome plated steel (remember how scarce high quality material was in this immediate post-war period) used came from leftover Aeritalia stock ‘used by Rosatelli in the construction of CR and BR aeroplanes during and after the war.’
‘An interesting system was chosen for the gear change using three semi-automatic gears. The rear axle with its upside-down differential was another novelty’ (Cisitalia)‘The design envisaged two ways of lowering the drive: using a crown wheel and pinion or turning the differential upside down and using driving gear. The second solution was adopted’ (Cisitalia)
To better exploit the chassis further lateral thinking was applied to other key components. The rear axle and diff was turned upside down, with a small aluminium crankcase developed for the Fiat engine allowing a bevel gear pair to take the drive from front to back passing under the differential towards the driveshaft turned from a steel billet -the gear pair offered a range of ratios to driver choice. This lowered the engine by 12cm.
Front suspension was lifted straight from the Fiat 500. ‘Hydraulic shock absorbers were fitted on the prolongation of the lower triangle’ (wishbone), but turned upside down compared to original Fiat fitment. An upper transverse leaf spring performed compliance and locational duties.
Equally brilliant was the Grosso drafted three-speed, semi-automatic mechanical gearbox ‘intended to save time for the drivers during races’, later in the D46’s life (1948) four-speed conventional Fiat ‘boxes were used.
Short tests of the prototype took place on a short circuit backing onto the railway at the rear of the factory in Corso Peschiera in February 1946: Adolfo Macchieraldo, Carlo Dusio, Giacosa and Savonuzzi all had a steer. More importantly the vastly experienced engineer/racer Piero Taruffi drove the disc-wheeled, sketchy bodied prototype a short while later, and was appointed the official test driver. Evolution of the then car progressed quickly.
Rear axle with short coil springs and lever action friction shocks. Frame member and diff also in shot (Cisitalia)A Giacosa sketch which shows the differences in the original solid rear suspension location medium and quarter elliptic setup adopted – as per text. Also shown is the clever diff/driveshaft arrangement (Cisitalia)
Initial problems included rear end judder rectified by replacing the two rigid lateral suspension arms with two quarter elliptic springs ‘five to the axle, rotating freely on two pinions integral with the chassis, offering only resistance to torsional stress like an anti-roll bar, leaving the real springing to two short coil springs. The axle was connected to the chassis via a hinged triangle mounted to the diff and a spring at the point of chassis attachment which allowed suspension adjustment.’
The chassis cracked in the central area so was strengthened, in part by enlarging the body side and inserting a welded shaped metal panel of greater size. Note the differences clear in side views of the frame of the prototype and production cars, it evolved from Colin Chapman straight tube-runs to Owen Maddock wonky-ones! and worked as well as Owen’s!
‘From the first model with a small tubular lattice-work frame, the D46 moved swiftly to the definitive version with a modified chassis and a sophisticated semi-automatic gearbox’ (Cisitalia)
By September 1946 seven D46 Fiat 508B/1100cc powered 62bhp @ 5500rpm, 370kg Voiturettes had been built. ‘The line of the car was fascinating and aggressive at first sight, offering pleasing solutions such as the double fairing on the front suspension which gave it something of the air of a biplane. The nose was perfect oval which incorporated a small upper air intake which fed the carburettor via a duct, brining a certain amount of overpressure when racing.’
The steering wheel could be tipped to allow easier access for the portly. The six-piece, beautiful, quick-fitting Itallumag body was made by Turin’s Rocco Motto, the riveted 45 litre duralumin fuel tank by De Gregori, another local.
The initial batch of seven cars were raced in the Coppa Brezzi at Valentino Park, Turin on September 3. Piero Dusio won from Franco Cortese and Louis Chiron, poor Tazio Nuvolari had the steering wheel come away in his hands when it broke away from its hinge, below.
(Wikipedia)‘The definitive version of the little 1100cc D46 with fairings on the front wheels and the curious system of the tip-up steering wheel’ (Cisitalia)(Cisitalia)
‘Selection of first gear or reverse was carried out by means of a lever set on the side of the steering column, while to change from first to second or from second to third or back down again the clutch pedal had to fully depressed. To change from second or third to first or neutral, the clutch pedal had to be fully depressed again, but after having moved the hand lever to the desired position. To use the clutch without changing gear, the pedal had to be depressed about halfway, when a hardening was encountered beyond which the gear shift was operated.’ Yeah right, buggered if that makes sense to me despite driving a couple of cars with pre-selector ‘boxes recently…
(Cisitalia)
Towards the end of 1947 Rudolf Hruska and Carlo Abarth joined Cisitalia as Technical General Manager and Racing Manager respectively. The D46 was modified and shown at the October 1947 Milan Motor Show (above).
The nose was still oval but more horizontal, the fairings deleted, sides extended to house two lateral fuel tanks. ‘The overall line of the car was influenced by the design of its big sister, the supercharged 1500cc Grand Prix car taking shape on the firm’s drawing boards.’
In addition, the semi-automatic gearbox was dropped in favour of a standard Fiat 1100 4-speeder, the rear suspension modified by fitment of twin torque arms on each side, and telescopic hydraulic shock absorbers adopted all-round.
Etcetera…
(Sud Ouest)
Cisitalia D46s at the Circuit des Remparts, Angouleme in 1949. #2 is Loyer, #28 is Guy Michelot and future, fast GP driver Harry Schell is on the move in the family Ecurie Bleue #20 machine.
(unattributed)
Roger Loyer having a gargle alongside ‘our’ D46, perhaps, Ecurie de Paris raced two, after a strong showing, place unknown. Fosters Lager stubby perhaps…
(M Wells Collection)
Who said tits don’t sell, it’s always worked with me? A couple of delightful lasses resplendent in much less than acceptable attire these days, during Melbourne’s March Moomba festival in the early 1960s.
(R Jackson)
Looking quite the beauty queen at Sandown in the 1970s above, and below in the old pits at the same venue in June 1963; so distinctive from every angle, form and function…
(A Tracey)(G Shepherd)
Not Tazio’s tiller but the altogether more flash one of ‘our’ D46 at Calder when owned by the Leech boys circa 1966.
(M Wells Collection)
Ian Wells with elbows out at Calder in the early 1960s. The car in strife behind is the “Platypus MG”, Greg Smith tells us. “By this time it was fitted with a big Healey-four, later to be reconfigured by Lou Molina as Vulgarilla (famous Oz MG Special raced by Molina, an equally legendary racer/hotelier/raconteur) and still sports the same alloy tail, maybe Murray Nankervis at the wheel.”
(A Tracey)
Jim Leech taking on the challenging Mount Tarrengower hill, in Victoria’s Goldfields region, 1964. The Brothers Leech had a small but very select collection of old cars they used extensively.
(Australian Motor Racing No 2 1952 – S Murray Collection)
WTF…
The Sehab Alma Bey Trophy was an invitation race for Cisitalia D46s held on the 1.48km Circuit El Guezireh – The Pyramid Circuit around the Guezireh Park – Cairo on March 9, 1947.
Franco Cortese won the first heat and Piero Taruffi the second, and Cortese the 50 lap final from Alberto Ascari, Taruffi, Piero Dusio and Mario Tadini (below entrant numbers unknown).
(New York Times)
Credits…
Reg Nutt Collection via Leon Sims, Troy Davey Milne, Mark Wells Collection, Graham Shepherd via David Zeunert, Jannaud, Russell Jackson, Ashley Tracey, New York Times, ‘Profile – Roger Loyer’ Jeremy Scott, ‘Historic Racing Cars in Australia’ John Blanden, ‘Cisitalia’ Nino Balestra and Cesare Agostini via Tony Johns, Stuart Murray Collection
Tailpiece…
Rendition by Martin Vins of a famous original photograph of Felice Bonetto – replete with fag – sliding his D46 Fiat at the Circuito di Mantova in 1948.
Racing a Grand Prix Maserati around the short, tight Darley circuit outside Melbourne would have been somewhat akin to racing in ‘yer backyard…
Reg Hunt pretty much became-the-pace when he imported this 2.5-litre Maserati A6GCM (chassis ) to Australia, he was stiff not to win the ‘AGP at Port Wakefield, South Australia with it in 1955.
These two Australian Motor Manual excerpts highlight the controversy surrounding the selection of Port Wakefield as the AGP venue that year given its short length – only the Goulburn course used for the first AGP in 1927 was shorter – and put in the electronic public domain Hunt taking the Darley lap record in his lead up preparation to the AGP.
Frank Matich leads a Triumph TR4 and Austin Healey 100 on the short stretch of road between Long Bridge as he aims his Lotus 19B Climax into the progressively more-uphill-on turn-in Newry Corner during the 1964 Australian Tourist Trophy, February 29, 1964.
Bill Brown in the Scuderia Veloce Ferrari 350 Can Am – aka P4 – at Bathurst during the 1968 Easter meeting. Such a marvellous evocative shot of the most seductive of cars.
In the space of a week photographs popped up on Bob Williamson’s FB site on Scuderia Veloce topics from three different photographers, Ray Sinclair, Greg Earle and Robert Spence.
In the shot below the scowling Kiwi is motoring through the Sandown paddock, perhaps miffed that his 4.2-litre 480bhp V12 was beaten by Frank Matich in the Sydneysider’s 4.4-litre Repco V8 powered Matich SR3. See here for a feature on this Ferrari; https://primotipo.com/2015/04/02/ferrari-p4canam-350-0858/
Chris Amon at very sunny Sandown earlier in the year aboard his Ferrari 246T, with a line of Formula Vees behind, with Bib Stillwell arriving at the circuit in the Ford Galaxie.
Chris just failed to pip Jim Clark in the closest of finishes in the Sandown Australian Grand Prix Tasman Cup round the following day, the official margin was one-tenth of a second. With that the Scot took both his last final GP and championship win – the Tasman Cup – aboard his works Lotus 49 Ford DFW. See here for a piece on that weekend; https://primotipo.com/2021/03/06/1968-australian-gp-sandown-2/
350 Can Am in the Sandown paddock. The #7 Brabham is Greg Cusack’s SV machine, the BT23A Repco raced by Jack Brabham the year before. Quickie on the BT23A here; https://primotipo.com/2017/01/04/scuds/
On the blast past the old pit-counter at Sandown, paradise for a young enthusiast, with the V12 howling its fabulous song in third gear.
Amon was given the short back-and-sides by Frank Matich’s Matich SR3 Repco V8 at the three meetings they met in the sportscar Tasman Cup round supports that summer; Warwick Farm, Surfers Paradise and Sandown. I wonder why FM didn’t take the SR3 to Longford to bag the Quadrella?
Not so much special, but three specials sponsored by Melbourne car dealer, Alan D Male and raced by Ted Gray in the immediate pre-WW2 years.
One was the JAP engined speedway midget above, the next a buggered-if-I-know powered midget and the third, Alta 21S, ex-Alan Sinclair/Bill Reynolds, and by then Ford V8 powered.
Male operated yards at 233 and 239 Latrobe Street, Melbourne named Males Car Sales and AD Male Car Sales respectively. This seemingly successful business man was important in the rise and rise of Tiger Ted pre-War, his final push into the top rank was provided post-War by Lou Abrahams.
Gray gave the visiting Peter Whitehead’s ERA B-Type a serious run for his money in the midget above during meetings at Aspendale Speedway and Rob Roy hillclimb in 1938. Leon Sims tells us that in the meeting above, Rob Roy 5 on November 20, 1938, that Gray set the FTD 0.5 seconds outside the hill record set by Whitehead only five months before. In the process “he set the committee of the Light Car Club of Australia scratching their heads in concern over the suitability of a car designed for midget racing, taking the award on their hill. It was not seen as a ‘proper car’ in their eyes.”
When Jack Brabham raced his midget at Rob Roy post-war he had the same problems but went to Sydney, fitted some brakes to his car, and returned to take the Australian Hillclimb Championship at Rob Roy in 1951. Up yours Blue Blazer Officialdom, or something like that!
This is the ‘other midget’, a rare shot with car owner Alan Male at the wheel at Rob Roy 5, he did a time of 31.5 seconds. I’d love to know the builder and specifications of this car. If Mickey Mouse seems an odd radiator-shroud fear not for the little-fella, he seems to have been adopted by the team as a mascot, he is present on the team’s Alta 21S Ford shown further below.
Ted Gray on the outside of A ‘Stud’ Beasley (as in head stud or babe-magnet?) at Aspendale in August 1938, with Mickey still hanging on for grim life. I’m rather hoping some of you may be able to tell me a little more about Alan Male in order that we can put it on the public record.
Nathan Tasca’s research shows he was still trading in cars post-War, as Weir & Male Motors at 243 Latrobe Street, familiar territory for him! He still maintained his interest in motor racing, note the AMS advertisement below. The wording of the ad, and coverage of the car in the Motor Manual 1950-51 Australian Motor Racing Year Book confirms the car was built by Ken Wylie for Weir & Male Motors, Austin dealers, and was driven by Wylie.
(Photographer-Byron Gunther)
The final Male Special/Ford V8 Special – it was entered in various names – is most correctly, using the modern – make-model-engine manufacturer – ‘racing car description protocol’ Alta 21S Ford V8. Here Ted is considering proceedings with his crew and officialdom at Penrith Speedway, NSW in 1940.
While built as a road racing racing sportscar, and modified by Sinclair’s team in the UK before coming to Australia as a road racing 1100cc supercharged single-seater, the car performed well both on the roads and on dirt speedways, as here. The car was raced well into the war years, Gray in the Male Special V8 beating S Bail’s Midget V8 in a 3 lap match race at Aspendale on Sunday January 19, 1941, his final entry March-April ’41. Picking up the Austin connection, Tony Johns tells me S Bail was a partner in the Bail Brothers Austin sub-agency (Stan and Wally) in Hampton Street, Brighton in the 1960s.
By the way, the little dude on the scuttle of the Alta is Pinocchio not Mickey Mouse…there is a story there, but what is it? I know, Walt Disney was so impressed with Ted’s performances he was slipping a few greenbacks Male’s way…
Motor Manual 1950-51 Yearbook via David Zeunert Collection
Credits…
Bob King Collection, photos perhaps taken by Ted Hider-Smith, The Argus January 20, 1941, David Zeunert Collection
Tailpiece…
Tiger Ted aboard the very new Tornado 1 Ford V8 at Fishermans Bend in early 1955, date please (car #5).
When the shortcomings of Alta 21S finally became apparent after Lou Abrahams’ big-brawny Ardun-Abrahams head Ford V8 was dropped between its chassis rails the Abrahams, Gray and Mayberry team built Tornado 1. This car’s short life ended when Gray had a huge accident at Bathurst in October 1955 after brake dramas, see the articles linked above for the details.
I got terribly excited when I found this letterhead among the Vintage Sports Car Club of Victoria’s photo archive. What a discovery, a speedway in inner Melbourne, on the current AGP site way back in 1903!
Yes and no. The speedway was built but for the use of our equine friends, just as the first automobiles were trickling into Australia.
(SLV)
The speedway was one mile long “on the seaward side of Albert Park. 145 feet wide, the course was divided into two tracks with a space in the middle for pedestrians. “It is well laid out, planted with ornamental trees with rockeries interspersed,” Table Talk recorded.
The track was open to the public when not in use “and beautified a portion of the park that has hitherto been an eyesore.” As one who walks/runs around Albert Park daily I’m intrigued to know about this aspect of the park and fascinated to know exactly where the horse-course was 120 years ago.
At the opening ceremony on August 29, 1903, the club president outlined that the purpose of the speedway “would stimulate the desire to possess first-class horses, and so improve the breed of our carriage and trotting horses.” The club “wanted to provide a track where a gentlemen with a horse that had a turn of speed could exercise it without the risk of prosecution for furious driving.”
(SLV)
The Governor, who had been given a golden-key to open the gates of the speedway, replied that he hoped it (the key) “would open the eyes of the local councillors to the fact that it was a good thing to have a Speedway in their midst, and in a portion of Albert Park that had been up to the present but an indifferent cow paddock.”
The Gov concluded by observing that American Speedways had improved the quality of their horses, and that “the Albert Park Speedway was in the hands of good sportsmen, and good men, and in declaring it open, wished the club all prosperity.” Tally-ho, jolly good show and happy hockey-sticks…
I do find interesting the history of a part of the world, dear to my heart, but by March 1907, with little interest in the venues activities, the Melbourne Speedway Club had to relinquish its use of that part of Albert Park.
While the horse-men were keen on building best-of-breed, devotees of new-fangled-horsepower were ‘racing’ already. Harley Tarrant, Argyll 10HP at left won a 3-mile race ‘for heavy automobiles’ at Sandown Park on March 12, 1904. That’s Tom Rand’s second placed Decauville 16HP alongside.
When I billed this as Australia’s First ‘Motor Car Race’ in the second of the two articles above, ‘Prof’ John Medley – Australia’s foremost motor racing historian – told me how brave I was, which was his polite way of saying “I wouldn’t be so sure about that Sonny-Jim!” Whatever the case, the ‘competition’ was one of the first between cars in Oz. And lookout horses, we are coming through…
Credits…
Vintage Sport Car Club of Victoria, State Library of Victoria, Table Talk September 3, 1903, Algernon Darge – State Library of Victoria
‘Christ! He’s bloody quick already!’ is perhaps the line of thought in the mind of the – at that stage – twice Gold Star Champion. Matich made his Formula Libre debut that weekend aboard a new 2.5-litre Brabham BT7A Climax, Bib’s mount a 2.7 FPF engined Brabham BT4.
primotipo... 