1925 D.F.P.

This is a photograph that I took during a Handicap race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1973.

The entry list for this race in the programme of this event says that number 178 is the 1925 D.F.P. of W.R.Halkyard and it has a 1,098cc engine. A further note in the programme says "Other unusual cars in the handicaps include No. 178, W.R.Halkyard's 1925 D.F.P., a make made famous before the first World War by W.O.Bentley".

1907 Renault Landaulette

This is a photograph that I took in Manchester in June 1978 before the start of the Lancashire Automobile Club’s Manchester to Blackpool Veteran and Vintage Car Run.

It’s a 1907 Renault Landaulette and the programme of the event had this note about the car:

 

25        Mr. G. A. Griffin, Telford, Salop.

             1907 Renault Landaulette, 24.8 h.p.

This car was originally owned by the Hepworth family, and is one of the tallest cars made, being 7ft 6in high. It has a crest on the door declaring  “Loyal à Mort”. Her French ancestry is self-evident. It is being taken to Dieppe on April 20^th on a weekend rally.

Friday's Ferrari

I took this photograph at Club Corner during the Corse Clienti Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli race at the Ferrari Racing Days meeting at Silverstone in September 2017.

It's the Ferrari 488 Challenge of Dutch driver Fons Scheltema, a car which has a 670hp 3,902cc V8 turbocharged engine developed from that of the Ferrari 488 GTB.

1936 ERA R12B

This is a photograph that I took in the paddock at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1972.

It's the 1936 ERA R12B of Bill Morris and David Kergon which has a supercharged 6-cylinder inline 1,488cc engine and was driven in the race by David Kergon.  Bill Morris owned two ERAs, R12B and R12C and the two cars have a strange history, R12B being a works car that was originally built in 1936 with a 2 litre engine as a B-type car, but in 1937 it was rebuilt to C-type specifications, thus becoming R12C, and given a 1½ litre engine. In 1938 it was sold to Prince Chula to become one of his White Mouse stable's trio of ERAs driven by Prince Bira, where it was given the name 'Hanuman'. In 1939 the car was badly damaged in a crash during practice at Reims and was rebuilt with a B-type frame, reverting to being R12B and the name changing to 'Hanuman II'. After passing through various hands after the Second World War it came to Bill Morris. Bill Morris had managed to acquire the rest of the wreckage left over from the 1939 crash and using the damaged chassis frame rebuilt the car to its 1939 C-type specifications by 1982. That car was now R12C, as if the 1939 accident had never happened, and was given the original car's name of 'Hanuman'.

1958 Bedford SB3 Duple C41F

This is one of the vehicles that turned up at a small motoring meet at the top of Werneth Low in Hyde in July 1991.

It’s a 1958 Bedford SB3 Duple C41F, chassis No 60893 which was new to Robinson of Great Harwood in April 1958. In 1991 it was owned by Ray Butcher of Bee-Style coaches, East Didsbury, Manchester.

1976 March 761

This is a photograph that I took in the paddock at the Silverstone Classic meeting in July 2010, and it's a car that competed in the Grand Prix Masters F1 Cars 1955-1985 race.

It's Mark Higson's 1976 March 761, a car that was designed by Robin Herd and powered by the 2,993cc V8 Ford Cosworth DFV engine. It competed in the 1976 and 1977 seasons, but the only notable result was Ronnie Peterson's victory in the 1976 Italian Grand Prix. Any drivers following this car must have been comforted by the message on the rear spoiler.

 

1947 Leyland Octopus

This was one of the vehicles entered in the Greater Manchester Transport Society’s Trans Lancs Historic Vehicle Rally at Heaton Park in September 1988.

It’s a 1947 Leyland Octopus, and the programme of the event had this note about it:

 

LTN 265 LEYLAND OCTOPUS FLAT. 1947. Entered by B. Brash, Stoke-on-Trent. New to C.W.S. Newcastle-upon-Tyne, passing to a showman and to scrap before restoration by the present owner.