The Ford GT 40, part V

More Ford GT 40 pictures.

Ford Gt 40 part IV

It is a strange time since I went back to work. Time, time, time it seems that I just don't have enough of it. I want to keep things simple for the next couple of weeks. I am going to try and post pictures hopefully every other day of Ford GT 40's. Here is the first set.

The Ford GT 40 Mark IV

The Ford GT 40 Mark IV just about has to be the iconic American race car. This car has power, style, a winning history. The list of drivers is just unbelievable and I am not even going to try an list any of them. This paricular car is owned and driven by Tom Malloy of California. Mr Malloy apparently has a very nice colection. At this race he brought the Gurney Eagle GTP and this GT 40 Mk IV. Last year he also brought a MacLaren M6. Oh ya in his trailer this year he had the Dan Gurney F-1 Eagle, a Mercedes Benz 300 SL and a Kurtis 500 sports car. I understand that at the Monteray Classics this year he had an Indy Offy roadster. This man is a collector of the first order, but most important of all he drives his cars and apparently enjoys driving them. Note the stone chips on the front of the GT 40 Mk IV.

Benetton Ford F-1

I have a few pictures of a Michael Schummacher Benetton Ford F-1. These pictures were taken in practice just before the engine blew. Oh well! Another 60 grand, Easy come easy go.

Lola B2K40

I do not have a lot of information on this car. It is a Lola B2K40 and I think it ran in the SR2 class. I do not have any information on the engine. The owner driver is Martin Snow, Utah.. Whatever it is a nice car.

Lotus 7

Lotus 7:

Colin Chapman built his first car in 1947; this car was based on the English Austin 7 saloon car. The body was made of alloy and plywood. Lotus cars progressed with the Austin based cars through the Mark 5 that never reached production. The Mark 5 was to have been a 100 mph Austin engined sports-racing car based upon the Mark 3. The Mark 6 was Colin first car that was sold mostly in kit form and with a tubular chassis. The Mark 7 replaced the Mark 6 in 1957 and is still in production as the Caterham.

The original 7 as designed by Colin Chapman used the anti-sway bar as part of the lower control arm of the suspension. Colin always believed in “adding lightness.” If one part could do two jobs then that made for a lighter car.

This is a no frills car. No doors, not much of a seat, heater (if one was available), and a top was optional, if it wasn’t necessary to make the car go fast Colin really didn’t want it. As I recall the 7 was not one of Colin’s favorite cars, but it was nearly his bread and butter for years.

The Lotus 7 weighed in the area of 1,000 pounds give or take depending on the engine chosen. Engines were mostly up to the buyer and they ranged from the 948 cc engine from the Sprite to the 1,500 cc Coventry Climax.

The Cobra is probably the most copied car in the kit car industry but the Lotus 7 has to be second as the most copied car. You can obtain a new car from Caterham or you can choose from one of the many copycat companies and pick any engine from a Mazda rotary to a Chevy V-6. You can but a book on how to build your own car. In my poor humble opinion nothing beats the original or the Caterham.
The Lotus 7 has been compared to a motorcycle with 4 wheels.

Ducati 1098

For a little change of pace I have some pictures of a Ducati 1098 motorcycle that was racing last March at Miller. It is a racing motorcycle and Italian and red. What more can you want from a motorcycle. I believe that Ducati is the Ferrari of motorcycles, BMW is...well, the BMW of motorcycles. I think that you have to agree that this is one pretty scooter.

Lola Super Vee's

Lola Formula Super Vee’s:

I have come across 2 Lola Formula Super Vee’s at Miller this past summer. The yellow one is a 1972 Lola T240 and driven by Edward Milstein, the Black and silver car is a 1976 Lola T326.

The Super Vee was as I remember was supposed to be an alternative to Formula Ford. The engine used was out of the VW Rabbit. The Super Vee class used a more sophisticated chassis complete with wings and more aero features not found on Formula Ford. As a rule I think Super Vee’s are faster than Formula Fords.
I am writing this mostly from memory and therefore I may make some mistakes. I believe that Michael Andretti and Bobby Rahal both drove Super Vee’s.

Formula BMW

This is the fourth year of Formula BMW. Formula BMW is designed to give new and upcoming drivers a place to learn and show what they can do. The goal of the design behind Formula BMW was “to build a car that would set new standards in the entry level Formulas.” A high standard for safety was of the utmost importance and then low cost, ease of maintenance and flexibility. The gear ratios, shock absorbers, and wings are all adjustable. Young drivers can quickly get up to speed with the process of setting up a car. The front and rear wings are also adjustable, and the car has a stepped underbody for safety reasons.

This is the first time BMW has put its name brand on a Formula car. The car was designed by BMW’s American subsidiary, Designworks/USA, in cooperation with BMW Motorsport in Munich.
The Formula BMW FB2receives its power from the four-cylinder engine taken from the BMW K1200RS motorcycle. The engine produces 140 bhp and will propel the 1,001-pound car up to 140 mph depending on the gear ratio chosen. The engine is also sealed so that the teams cannot tune it. This gives the engine a longer lifetime, lower maintenance costs and a very high level of equality among all of the teams.

Hayman Can-Am racecar

1966 Hayman SR-3 Can-Am Racecar:

When I first saw this car through the viewfinder I thought it was a McLaren Elva Mk I or II. Like I said I was looking at the car through the viewfinder on top of that I’m old and my eyes aren’t that good anymore. I could tell that it appeared different in that the bodywork was fuller, fatter and just a little bit different than the McLaren as I remembered the McLaren.

I came across the car in the pit garages and found out that it is a Hayman and that it was built in Canada. There may have been up to five made. I have found only one mention of a Hayman Can-Am car in the Internet. http://www.markwilliams.com/custom.aspx

1966 Hayman SR-3 Can-Am Car
"This unique car is one of three built by Hayman Engineering, a Canadian helicopter manufacturer. Owner Gorge Frey restored the all-aluminum monocoque car to show quality condition. There was a need to upgrade the axles, front hubs and brakes with new components to improve functionally. The owner relied upon Mark Williams Enterprises to adapt our vented brake assembly including custom hubs and axle assemblies to the existing hub carriers. Custom parts produced for this project included flanged axles, aluminum front hubs, brake adaptors and special wheel studs."



There is a photo of the front suspension along with this brief article. Other than this I cannot tell you very much about this car. If anybody out there in cyberspace has some additional information on this car I would appreciate it if you would share with me. The car was very nicely turned out and the driver seemed to get faster as the weekend went on. On Saturday it appeared that the car had a minor problem with an oil leak but the car was back on the track on Sunday.
An interesting if not fairly rare car.

Wheels part II

Here is my last set of wheel photos for today.

In case you are interested I am posting my msn web site address.

http://hotwheels-paul.spaces.live.com/

On this site I tend to post more photos and sometimes write a little bit more. I must admit that sometimes when I am short of time I do copy a previous msn post and copy it to google but with only 5 photos.

Ok, back to wheels at the ALMS race at Miller.

Pontiac GTO-R, Corvette C6, Cadillac, Formula BMW.