1956 Jaguar D-Type

I took this photograph in the paddock at Aintree during practice at the British Grand Prix meeting in July 1957.

It's the 1956 Jaguar D-Type of Duncan Hamilton, chassis XKD 601, with which he finished in third place in the sports car race at this meeting behind the Lister Jaguar of Archie Scott-Brown and the Aston Martin DBR1 of Roy Salvadori. It has the 6-cylinder 3,442cc XK6 engine and was originally a works car, although its first race was in the white and blue colours of Briggs Cunningham at the 1956 Sebring 12 Hour race where it was driven by Mike Hawthorn and Desmond Titterington, but retired with brake problems with about 1½ hours of the race left. At the Nürburgring 1000 Kilometre race that year with the same two drivers the car again failed to finish, this time with a broken drive shaft, but at the Reims 12 Hour race Paul Frère shared the driving with Mike Hawthorn and the car finished in second place to the Jaguar D-Type of Duncan Hamilton and Ivor Bueb. The third car of the Jaguar team was in third place and fourth place went to an Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar D-Type. By 1957 the car had been acquired by Duncan Hamilton who finished in sixth place with Masten Gregory at that year's Le Mans 24 Hour race - the first four cars in that race were D-Type Jaguars with a Ferrari 315 S in fifth place.

1952 Healey G-Type Roadster

I photographed this car at the Silverstone Historic Festival meeting in August 2001.

A very rare car, it's a 1952 Healey G-Type Roadster, based on the Nash-Healey and powered by a 6-cylinder inline 2,993cc engine from the Alvis TB21. About 25 vehicles were produced between 1951 and 1953, by which time Donald Healey had teamed up with Austin's Leonard Lord to produce the successful Austin A90 Atlantic powered Austin Healey 100.

1930/23 Napier Bentley

This car took part in the Richard Seaman Memorial Historic Trophy race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's meeting at Oulton Park in June 1973.

It's David Llewellyn's 1929 Napier-Bentley, a vehicle that he and Peter Morley created in 1968 using a 24 litre Napier Sea Lion engine which has a 'W' configuration - two banks of four cylinders in a 'V' with a third upright bank between them. The car was originally built on a Sunbeam chassis but after an accident was rebuilt using the chassis of a 1929 8 litre Bentley. The nose of the car was later altered to resemble that of the Napier Railton.

1962 Porsche 804

I photographed this car in the Donington Park Museum in March 1996.

It's a 1992 Porsche 904, chassis #2, that was driven in the first two races of 1962 by Dan Gurney, and by Jo Bonnier for the rest of that season. The car was designed by Ferdinand Alexander Porsche, grandson of the company's founder, Ferdinand Porsche, and has a flat 8-cylinder 1,494cc boxer engine. Dan Gurney won the French Grand Prix, finished third in the German Grand Prix and in fifth place in the USA Grand Prix to end the season in fifth place in the World Drivers' Championship. Jo Bonnier finished in fifth place in Monaco and sixth place at Monza for fifteenth place in that Championship, and Porsche finished in fifth place in the Manufacturers' Championship.

The car behind the Porsche is the 1948/49 Cisitalia 360 Grand Prix Car that was designed by Ferdinand Porsche.

Friday's Ferrari

I photographed this car in the paddock at the Silverstone Classic meeting in July 2010.

It didn't take part in any of the races but appears to be a Ferrari Dino Sports Prototype from the late 1950s. I've seen it described as a 1958 Ferrari Dino 196S replica, but only one Dino 196S was ever built and this car doesn't really resemble it. The Dino 196S is a 1959 car, chassis #0776S, and  has a 1,984cc V6 engine, but the DVLA record says that this replica is a 1958 Ferrari with a 2,417cc engine. The only Sports racing Ferraris with the 2,417cc engine were the Ferrari 246P of 1960 and the 246SP of 1961, and they were both mid-engined cars. The Ferrari Dino 246GT introduced in 1969 has a 2,419cc V6 engine.

1953 Talbot Lago T26C

This was one of the competitors in the Allcomers 12 Lap Scratch Race for Historic Racing Cars at the VSCC's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1971.

It's the 1953 Talbot Lago T26C of T.A.Roberts and was driven in the race by Bill Morris. The Grand Prix regulations for the 1947 season allowed for engine capacities of 4½ litres for unsupercharged cars and 1½ litres for those with superchargers. Antonio Lago increased the capacity of the Talbot straight-6 engine from just under 4 litres to 4,482cc and created the Talbot Lago T26C, a car that was reasonably successful, particularly in the 1949 season when the all-conquering 1½ litre supercharged Alfa Romeo 158 cars did not compete. The programme of this event shows the Talbot Lago to be a 1953 car, but I would have thought that since World Championship races in 1952 and 1953 were run to Formula 2 regulations it is more likely to date from 1949 or 1950.

1948 Leyland Tiger PS1/1

This was one of the entrants in the Greater Manchester Transport Society's Trans Lancs Historic Vehicle Rally at Heaton Park, Manchester in September 1996.

It's a 1948 Leyland Tiger PS1/1 one of 13 vehicles provided new to Southdown Motor Services in March 1948 with fleet number 1303. It has a 7.4 litre 6-cylinder diesel engine and a Park Royal C32R body with sliding roof. It's chassis 471195, was in service with Southdown until 1959, and is apparently the only survivor from that batch of 13 vehicles.