Jump to content

Recommended Posts

Nobody?  Well, let's try this one - An unusual version of a more ordinary car:

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Very impressive, Wilson.  Your turn. 

Here's what it looks like.  1939 508C Balillia

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 2
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

A ball of fire the 508 wasn't. The power ranged from 20HP in the early 1932 saloons up to a heady 36HP on the final sporty models from a side valve 1 litre engine, according to Georgano. Maximum speed was around 60-65MPH for the sports versions. 

I will see if I can find something I have not posted in the past but not too optimistic. 

Wilson

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

This is a very rare and unusual car, so I am showing the whole image. Taken in Monaco at the Historic GP event. Usual info required and for extra Brownie points, the driver in period. The car is now owned and driven by a friend. 

Wilson

 

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, Michael Geschlecht said:

Hello Wilson,

Could the driver be a certain "W. Laidlaw"?

Best Regards,

Michael

No I have never driven this car. It is owned and driven as I said, by a friend. 

Wilson

PS I have driven a different car with the same make and type of engine. 

Edited by wlaidlaw
  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

My first reaction was that this had to be an early Cooper, either J.A.P. or Norton Manx-powered, but studying the image closer, inasmuch as possible given the blurring, I think we may be looking at an early Lotus, probably late 50's or around 1960 or so, something close to a Model 18. To my eyes the car bears a resemblance to the car Stirling Moss used to win at Monaco, could even be a Formula 2 car with a 'lesser' ( smaller ) engine........so I will foolishly, but 'officially' submit a guess that it's one of Colin Chapman's creations. 

JZG

Link to post
Share on other sites

John, Good guess as the design was based on Chapman designs. The person who commissioned this car and the designer/builder had previously run Lotus Formula Junior and Formula 2 cars. This car was designed round the 2½ litre racing engine that the owner had previously used in another car. The factory that built the engine never used this engine in their own Formula One cars but if they had carried on somewhat later and made a mid engined car, they might well have done. We raced in a car with this 2½ litre engine for a number of years. It came in various capacities from 1½ to 3 litres. We later raced in a different car using at various times, a 2 litre and a 3 litre version of this engine. This was as far as I am aware, the only F1 car built using this engine, probably due to cost as much as anything else, as the Coventry Climax FPF engine was around 30% cheaper and lighter. 

Lots of clues there. 

Wilson

  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

On 3/13/2023 at 10:36 AM, wlaidlaw said:

...Lots of clues there...

Hmmm....

Thanks for the clues, Wilson, but it seems to me that this car is so unique that just a little bit more help might be required. The wheels seem to be a mixture of Borrani wires and Dunlop alloys. Is this correct? If so then is this significant? The unusually high engine cowling suggests something lurking underneath which didn't exactly catch-on so should we focus our attention to the powerplant fitted to this craft?

I, for one, am absolutely certain that I've never seen this car previously and am fascinated to see how this one pans-out!

Philip.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I don't think the wheels are significant. I suspect they were just what the builder/designer had in his attic. The engine is quite tall being a DOHC 4 cylinder and was sometimes installed slanted over, as in the car below (me driving it at Guadix near Grenada in Spain), which has the identical engine. The car has been campaigned almost continuously since it was built in 1958, for the last 20 years by the same owner. It did take part in a number of F1 races in period but usually with somewhat indifferent results. The transmission is and was fragile. I think it is the same 5 speed dog clutch conversion of a 1950's Citroen Big Six gearbox that Lotus and Cooper also used at various times, I think converted by Connaught. The gearbox in the dark red car below is also fragile. The engine is very torquey, and vibrates a lot, which stresses any attached gearbox. We had three gearboxes for the red car used in rotation, one in the car, one with us as a spare and one away having cracks in the casing welded up. I think there was more weld than original casings on these gearboxes.

Wilson

 

Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here…

Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members!

  • Like 5
Link to post
Share on other sites

I think that we  are at a bit of an impasse here. Most likely, like quite a few others, I know we are talking Maserati engines, an element strongly hinted at with the clue ' It came in various capacities from 1½ to 3 litres'.........but, like others who may have concluded as much ( especially after the above image confirming it's a Maserati) I still have'nt the foggiest idea about the identity of the current puzzle car.

Perhaps it's time to 'reveal all'.

JZG

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   1 member

×
×
  • Create New...