Jaime Gard flicking through one of his scrap books in December 2023 at Joe Ricciardo’s outer-Perth headquarters.
The 87 year old youngster is as fit as a fiddle, a lifelong focus on exercise and health allows him to put in plenty of time looking after Joe’s car collection.
Throughout a career that dates back to the early 1950s he has worked for some of the best racing outfits in the country including Bob Jane, Ian Diffen, Frank Matich and most importantly his longtime friend, confidant and Perth co-conspirator, the late Don O’Sullivan.
It was Don who was confident enough in Jaime’s ability to commission the design and construction of two world class Repco-Holden 5-litre V8 powered machines: the 1972 Gardos Sports/McLaren M8DG and 1973 Gardos OR2 F5000.
Gard cut his racing teeth preparing speedway cars before adding circuit machines to his repertoire, then started racing a self-prepared Appendix J Holden 48-215. Not long after he built his first single seater, the Gard BMC FJ, and then the Gard 27 Ford 1.5.
By the mid-1960s Jaime had joined O’Sullivan – a successful Perth property developer and entrepreneur – preparing and racing some of his cars, including various Coopers and a Lola T70 Ford.
The connection with Matich began with the purchase of the Matich SR3 Repco raced by O’Sullivan and was followed by an M10A McLaren Repco-Holden F5000.
After O’Sullivan withdrew from racing Jaime had a long stint across town with Ian Diffen, including building a wild Valiant Charger V8 sports-sedan.
He was a noted speaker on vehicle dynamics, handling and engineering at various WA tertiary institutions during this period, and developed tyre testing equipment and processes which were adopted by Bob Jane T-Marts and Diffen’s tyre outlets.
Jaime maintains his currency too, still working on the Ricciardello family’s Alfa Romeo Alfetta Chev V8 sports sedan.
To read my story on Jaime – nobody has given him the full-treatment before – 4500 words, 42 photographs, 10 pages – you’ll need to buy the latest issue of Australian Muscle Car. Issue 144 is in-store in Australia now, and for the next month or so, or purchase the mag online here: https://www.musclecarmag.com.au/current-issue
About half the mag comprises Steve Normoyle’s pieces about the fantastic Holden Torana SL/R 5000 L34, it’s 50 this year, while Bryan Thompson Part 1 is a beauty too, plus lots more.
Etcetera…
The brand new Gardos OR2 Repco-Holden sits in the Adelaide International sun during the Adelaide 100, February 25, 1973 Tasman round weekend. Howie Sangster did too few laps to be classified, but the car impressed onlookers on its debut.
Warwick Brown won the race in his Lola T332 Chev, the wing alongside belongs to one of the two Racing Team VDS Chevron B24s raced by Peter Gethin and Teddy Pilette.
Jaime, seated, during the mid-1970s build of the Ian Diffen Charger sports-sedan.
It started life as Diffen’s Series Prod E38, then morphed into a Group C machine before being completely re-purposed. It’s extant and living back in Perth after being a Queenslander for decades.
Gard got to know Frank Gardner over the years, he did the initial track testing of the Diffen Charger.
Here he is snooping around O’Sullivan’s workshops in the late 1980’s sussing Jaime’s build of a new Lola Mk3B Chev, a Lola model with which FG was very familiar.
Credits…
Jaime Gard Collection
Tailpiece…
Jaime, Gard BMC FJ on the wilds of the Albany Round the Houses street circuit in 1964. Doesn’t that look fantastic!
Finito…
primotipo... 