1925 Sunbeam 3-litre Super Sports

This car took part in the Lancashire Automobile Club's Manchester to Blackpool Veteran and Vintage Car run in June 1986 starting from the Exchange Station car park in Manchester.

It's shown in the programme of the event as a 1926 Sunbeam 3-litre Super Sports and has a 2,920cc 6-cylinder inline twin overhead camshaft engine. A note about the car in the programme says:

1926 Sunbeam 3-litre Super Sports

Reg: ER 5678  6 cylinder 20.9 hp  2920 cc

(Kent S Robinson, Basingstoke, Hants)

This car was designed specifically for the Le Mans 24-Hour Race, where on the only occasion it competed it finished second driven by Chassagne and S C H Davis, despite a fractured chassis. It still makes an annual pilgrimage to Le Mans in June, its considerable performance making it an ideal touring car even today. In 1984 it successfully completed a tour of Spain, and only a fortnight ago returned from a nine-day European trip taking in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and Switzerland.

If this is that car then it should rightly be described as a 1925 car as the second placed car in the 1925 Le Mans 24-Hour Race was indeed the Sunbeam of Jean Chassagne and S C H Davis. The car was only offered for sale between 1926 and 1930 which is perhaps the reason for calling it a 1926 car.

1958 Lister Jaguar

This was one of the competitors in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1998.

It's the 1958 Lister Jaguar of the late Steve O'Rourke, former manager of the Pink Floyd rock band. The car has the 3,781cc version of the 6-cylinder inline Jaguar XK6 engine. Originally a works car, chassis BHL2, it was sold at the end of 1959 and eventually ended up with Mike Wright who competed with the car but wrote it off in a road accident. The remains in time came to John Pearson who used the parts to construct a replica which was sold to Steve O'Rourke in 1989.

On 24 November 2016 I showed several photographs of the car that I had taken at Oulton Park in 1992.

2012 McLaren MP4-12C

I photographed this car in the paddock at the Aston Martin Owners Club's meeting at Oulton Park in May 2018.

It's a 2012 McLaren MP4-12C which should have a longitudinally-mounted 3,799cc twin-turbocharged McLaren M838T V8 engine, though the DVLA record says that the car's engine capacity is 2,670cc. Coincidentally, the car's wheelbase is 2,670mm.

1955 Maserati 300S

This car took part in the 1950s Drum-Braked Sports Racing Cars race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in September 2005.

It's the 1955 Maserati 300S of Tony Smith, chassis #3053, and has a 6-cylinder inline 2,991cc engine based on the 2½ litre engine of the 250F Grand Prix car. The car was originally campaigned in the USA by the Briggs Cunningham team and finished in third place in the 1955 Sebring 12 hour race driven by Bill Spear and Sherwood Johnston.

Friday's Ferrari

I photographed this car at the Ferrari Racing Days meeting at Silverstone in September 2017.

It's a 2017 Ferrari GTC4Lusso T and has the 3,855cc twin-turbo V8 Ferrari 154 engine with rear wheel drive only, unlike the GTC4Lusso which has four-wheel drive and a 6,262cc V12 Ferrari F140 engine. Both cars have a four-wheel steering system.

1935 Crossley Regis Six

I took this photograph at the Manchester Museum of Science and Industry in April 1986.

It's a 1935 Crossley Regis Six with what the DVLA record says is a 1,651cc engine. Both 4-cylinder and 6-cylinder versions of the Crossley Regis were built, approximately 1,050 in total, between 1935 and 1937. The 4-cylinder model had a 1,122cc MC type engine and the 6-cylinder either a 1,476cc JM type or a 1,640cc JMC type unit. This particular car is a 6-cylinder model, chassis 100762, engine number JM374 and body number RE422. The Crossley car was manufactured in Manchester, the main site being in Napier Street, later named Crossley Street, Gorton.

1973 Lola T330

This was one of the competitors in the Derek Bell Trophy race at the Historic Sports Car Club's Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2017.

It's the 1973 Lola T330 of Brad Hoyt and competed in the 1972 to 1977 Formula 5000 class of the race. Formula 5000 was introduced in 1968 for cars with a maximum capacity of 5,000cc, and the Chevrolet small-block V8 engine quickly became the favoured power unit. The photograph was taken at Britten's chicane.

1934 Talbot AV 105

This car took part in the Williams Trophy Race for Pre-1934 Grand Prix Cars at the Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in May 2011.

It's the 1934 Talbot AV 105 of John Polson which was driven in the race by Willie Green. The AV 105 was developed by Georges Roesch from the Talbot 90, the 6-cylinder inline 2,276cc engine of which was increased to 2,969cc. This particular car was rebuilt as a replica of the Talbot AV 105 Alpine Team cars by Ian Polson for his son John to race.

Here Willie Green at McLeans Corner during the race.

1935 Alfa Romeo 8C-35

This car competed in the HGPCA Pre '52 GP Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in August 1996.

It's the 1935 Alfa Romeo 8C-35 of Paul Grist and has an 8-cylinder 3,822cc engine with twin overhead camshafts. It was built to challenge the Mercedes Benz and Auto Union cars but rarely managed to get the better of them. The programme of the event said this about the car:

'The Alfa Romeo 8C-35 was introduced when the Tipo B Monoposto – or P3 as it is more popularly known – became overdue for replacement.  The P3 had itself been derived from the Monza and had flown the Alfa flag with great success between 1932 and 1935. The 8C-35 never beat the German cars in a top level Grand Prix, but did succeed in doing so in a number of smaller races, in the hands of the legendary Tazio Nuvolari.'

Here's Paul Grist at Luffield Corner during the race followed by two ERAs - R9B driven by Jost Wildbolz and Tony Merrick at the wheel of R1A.

1959 Turner Sports

This car took part in the AMOC '50s Sports Cars race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's meeting at Oukton Park in May 2017.

It's Steve Watton's Turner Sports, described in the programme of the event as a 1959 car with a 1,650cc engine. As a 1959 car it should be a Mk I which was originally only available with BMC A series 948cc, Coventy Climax FWA 1,098cc or Coventry Climax FWE 1,216cc engines. A 1,650cc Ford Cosworth was one of the engines offered with the Turner Mk III, but that wasn't introduced till 1963.

Here's Steve Watton at Druids Corner during the race.

1954 Maserati 250F

This car took part in a paddock display and track demonstration runs by various cars at the Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in September 2005 which paid tribute to Maserati racing cars, and in particular the 250F.

This is the 1954 Maserati 250F, chassis #2515, that was for a long time one of the exhibits in Tom Wheatcroft's museum at the Donington Park circuit. Originally a Maserati team car, it was driven mainly by Roberto Mieres in the 1955 season then by Chico Landi and Gerino Gerini in two races in Argentina at the start of the 1956 season. It was then sold to Scuderia Guastalla for the remainder of the 1956 season before being bought by Ottorino Volonterio who contested Grand Prix races with it till the end of the 1959 season, driving it himself on two occasions, but mainly using other drivers. At the end of the 1959 season he retired the car from racing, but kept it until selling it in 1965 to Tom Wheatcroft.

Here's the car at McLean’s corner during one of the demonstration runs.

On 16 May 2016 I showed a photograph I took in the paddock at Aintree during practice for the 1959 British Grand Prix where the car was entered by Scuderia Centro Sud and driven by Fritz d'Orey.

Friday's Ferrari

This car was in a display of Ferraris at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1997 which featured a tribute to the marque.

It's a replica of the Ferrari 156 with which Phil Hill won the Drivers' World Championship in 1961, the original cars being dismantled by Ferrari, as was then their custom, at the end of their useful working life. The singer-songwriter Chris Rea had this replica built to be used in his 1996 film 'La Passione', which he intended to be about his childhood dream of this car and driver Wolfgang von Trips, but Warner Brothers took control of the film and effectively ruined Chris Rea's concept. The 1961 car had a 1,476cc V6 engine designed by Carlo Chiti, and Phil Hill won two, was second in two, and third in two of the seven races in which the cars competed that season. They didn't take part in the final race, the USA Grand Prix, after the death of Wolfgang von Trips in the penultimate Grand Prix of the season in Italy.

On 17 March 2017 I showed a photograph of Phil Hill driving the car in a track display at this meeting.

NG Road Racing, Oulton Park

I took these photographs at Hizzy's Chicane during the A & R Racing Formula 400, Steve Lynham F125 & Desmo Due race at this meeting at Oulton Park on 8 April 2017.

Aaron Ridewood - Kawasaki ZXR 400

15 Nick Brown, Kawasaki ZXR 400

1 Andy Blomfield, Ducati Monster 620

82 Joe Holdsworth, Kawasaki Ninja 300

26 Philip Murden, Ducati 620

51 Peter Pritchard, Ducati 620 SS

12 Dan James, Ducati 620

84 Tom Roberts, Ducati 620 SS

40 Andrew Mackintosh, Ducati 400 SS

21 Andy Taylor, Ducati 600 SS

3 Not shown in programme or results lists

25 Giles Hepworth, Ducati 620 SS

58 Kenny Nehls, Ducati Monster 620

18 Lee Moxham, Ducati 620 SS

57 Marcus Deeley, Monster 600

63 Oliver Benson, Ducati 583

9 Bradley Richman, KTM RC 390

7 Graeme Smith, Ducati 600  SS

John Cooper and Bruce McLaren

I took this photograph in the paddock at Aintree during practice for the British Grand Prix in July 1962.

On the left is the Cooper Team Manager, John Cooper, who together with his father Charles Cooper had founded the Cooper Car Company in 1948. Second from the right in his Cooper overalls is Bruce McLaren, the team's number one driver after Jack Brabham had left Cooper at the end of the previous season to form his own team. Bruce McLaren qualified his Cooper T60 in fourth place on the grid and finished the race in third place behind Jim Clark's Lotus 25 and the Lola Mk4 of John Surtees.

1965 Bizzarrini Corsa

This car took part in the Coys of Kensington GT Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's the 1965 Bizzarrini Corsa of Paul Koppenwallner which the programme of the event says has a 5,400cc engine - most of these cars use the Chevrolet Corvette 327 cu in V8 unit which equates to 3,259cc. The car was designed by Giotto Bizzarrini for Renzo Rivolta as a successor to the Iso Rivolta IR 300, but when Bizzarrini split from Iso Rivolta he started his own company and the A3C formed the basis of the Bizzarrini 5300 Corsa.

1938 Maserati 6CM

This was one of the participants in the VSCC Historic Seaman Trophy race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in September 2007.

It's Sean Danaher's 1938 Maserati 6CM, 27 of which were produced between 1936 and 1940 to take part in Voiturette racing and has a 6-cylinder inline 1,492cc engine with a Roots-type supercharger. It is chassis #1556 and was originally raced by George Raphaël Béthenod de Montbressieux under the name 'Raph' for the Scuderia Torino.

1966 Porsche 906

This car took part in the AT&T Istel Steigenberger Supersports Cup Race at the Christie's International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1992. I took the photograph from inside the paddock of the car on the straight between Priory and Brooklands corners during a practice session.

It's Ivan Scotti's 1966 Porsche 906, a car that was introduced in 1966 to replace the Porsche 904. It took part in Group 4 Sports Car racing and the homologation requirements were that at least 50 examples should be produced. The car was powered by a 1,991cc flat-6 engine, but four cars were produced with a 2,195cc flat-8 engine to run in the Group 6 Sports Prototype Class which didn't have a homologation requirement. The programme of this Silverstone event gives the capacity of Ivan Scotti's car as 2.2 litres, so this appears to be one of the cars with the flat-8 engine.

On 2 May 2017 I showed a photograph of this car that I'd taken at Silverstone in 1996.

Wolseleys

At the Vintage Sports Car Club's Hawthorn Memorial Trophies race meeting at Oulton Park in July 2015 car parks were set aside for the members of various car clubs and here are photographs I took of some of the Wolseleys that were present.

This is a 1948 Wolseley 14/60 which has a 6-cylinder inline 1,818cc engine. Production of this car started in 1938 and ended in 1948, 5,731 being built post-war.

This is a Wolseley Hornet, a badge-engineered version of the BMC Mini, which was built between 1961 and 1969 as a more luxurious version of the Austin/Morris cars. It started off with the basic 848cc Mini engine, changing to the 998cc Cooper version in 1963.

This is a 1937 Wolseley Super Six 25 Series III Drophead Coupé with a 6-cylinder inline 3,485cc engine. This model was produced between 1937 and 1939 and this particular car was the personal car of Lord Nuffield.

A 1959 Wolseley 6/90 Series III with 6-cylinder inline 2,639cc engine. 11,852 of these cars were produced between 1954 and 1959 and it was said to be the last true Wolseley, subsequent BMC models being badge-engineered as Austin, Morris, Riley and Wolseley.

The Wolseley 4/44 was designed by Gerald Palmer when Wolseley was still part of the Nuffield Group and shared many of its components with the MG Magnette ZA. 29,845 of the cars were produced between 1952 and 1956.

BFJ 907 is a  Wolseley Fourteen NF (New Fourteen), 5,790 of which were produced between 1935 and 1936, this being a 1936 model. It has a 6-cylinder inline 1,604cc engine.

I can't find out too much about this car. It appears to be a Wolseley Wasp and the DVLA record says it's a 1936 car with a 1,479cc engine, but the Wasp, produced between 1935 and 1936, had a 4-cylinder inline 1,069cc engine. Wolseley doesn't seem to have produced any cars in the 1930s with a 1,479cc engine.

Friday's Ferrari

Ferrari Corse Clienti is a Department of Ferrari, based at the Fiorano test track near Maranello, which restores and maintains Ferrari single-seaters and transports the cars to various tracks throughout the season where they can be driven by the clients. They regularly appeared at the SeeRed meetings at Donington Park and I took this photograph at the September 2004 meeting as four of the cars  came through the Craner Curves towards the Old Hairpin on one of their demonstration runs.

Leading the way is Ferrari test driver Andrea Bertolini in a Ferrari F2002 from the 2002 season, followed by Paul Osborn in a 1993 Ferrari F93A, Graham North's 1991 Ferrari 642 and, also from 1991, the Ferrari 643 of Larry Kinch.

1955 Lotus Mk IX

This was one of the competitors in the up to 2 litre class in the Classic Car Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

It's the 1955 Lotus Mk IX of Stephen Archer and has a 4-cylinder inline1,098cc Coventry Climax FWA engine. As with the earlier Lotus Mk VIII the Mk IX was offered with a variety of engines of up to 1½ litres, but the Mk IX most usually had this 1,098cc Coventry Climax unit. The car was originally owned by Tony Page who competed with it in various British events including the 1955 Goodwood 9 Hour race where he and Paul Emery finished in eleventh place overall and fourth in class.

1937 Aston Martin 15/98 SWB

This car took part in the Pre-War/Immediate Postwar (Pre1956) race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's meeting at Oulton Park in May 2015.

It's Peter Dubsky's 1937 Aston Martin 15/98 with a 4-cylinder inline 1,950cc engine, the name deriving from the RAC power rating of 15 and the actual output of 98bhp. The 15/98 was built in both long wheelbase and short wheelbase form, and this is the SWB model.

1951 Guy Arab III

I took this photograph at the Greater Manchester Transport Society's Trans Lancs Historic Vehicle Rally that took place in Heaton Park, Manchester in September 1995.

It's not listed in the programme of the event, but it's a 1951 Guy Arab III, formerly a Lancashire United vehicle. On 3 August 2017 I showed a photograph of this vehicle when it appeared at this event in 1996 when it was entered by an S.M Torres of Ebor Trucks, Acaster Malbis, York and reference was made to the fact that the vehicle had been repainted over the winter. The last information I can find about it is that it was owned by Cumbria Classic Coaches, but their website doesn't list it as being in their fleet. The DVLA, though, state that its vehicle tax was recently renewed.

1955 Jaguar D-Type

This car competed in the Champagne Charles Heidsieck Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1993.

It's the 1955 Jaguar D-Type of Willie Tuckett and has the 6-cylinder inline 3,442cc XK6 engine designed by chief engineer William Heynes. It is chassis #XKD517, a car at one time owned by Henry Taylor and later went to the Border Reivers Racing Team in Scotland where it was driven, amongst others, by a young Jim Clark.

2011 Williams FW33

This is one of the photographs I took on my last visit to the Donington Park motor museum, in September 2014.

It's a Williams FW33, the car that the team ran in the 2011 season which resulted the worst display by the team since its first season in 1977. The car was powered by a 2,400cc V8 Cosworth CA2011k engine and driven by Rubens Barrichello and Pastor Maldonado, but the only points scoring finishes were two ninth places for Barrichello and a tenth place for Maldonado.

1936 Alvis Speed 20 SD

I photographed this car in one of the car parks at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Hawthorn Memorial Trophies race meeting at Oulton Park in June 2008.

It’s an  Alvis Speed 20 SD Drop head coupe car with bodywork by Vanden Plas. The chassis left Alvis on 31st October 1935, was completed by Vanden Plas on 1st March 1936, and was sold in April 1936.  It is one of 5 produced as a Model SD with drop head coupe body design by Vanden Plas. Its chassis number is 13013, one of probably only three that remain, and is the only car of its type registered in the membership list of the Alvis Owner Club. Mechanically the Speed 20 SD was one of the most advanced cars manufactured in the pre war years, having independent front suspension and a gearbox with synchromesh on all gears. The 2,762cc straight-6 engine was extremely powerful giving the car a top speed of over 90 miles per hour and it is fitted with a high ratio differential which enables it to cruise comfortably in modern traffic.

Friday's Ferrari

This is one of the cars that took part in the Corse Cliente Trofeo Pirelli race at the Ferrari Racing Days meeting at Silverstone in September 2017.

It's the Ferrari 488 Challenge of Philipp Baron of Austria and has a 670hp turbocharged 3,902cc V8 engine developed from that of the Ferrari 488 GTB. Alongside it is the similar car of Italian Daniele di Amato.

1956 Ford Zephyr Zodiac

This car was displayed on the stand of the Five Stars - Ford MkI Consul Zephyr Zodiac Owners Club at the Northern Classic Car Show at the G-Mex Exhibition Centre in Manchester in August 1990.

It's a 1956 Ford Zephyr Zodiac with a 2,262cc Straight-6 engine, and was also referred to as a Ford Zodiac MkI after the Zodiac MkII was introduced later in 1956. The brochure of the event said this about the car:

'The stand this year celebrates the 1953 win of the Marque in that year's Monte Carlo Rally. Our car is owned by Andy Davies of Chorley, and won Best Car on our annual Manchester to Southport run.'

This is obviously not the actual car that won the 1953 Monte Carlo Rally - that was registration number VHK 194, and was driven by Maurice Gatsonides with Peter Worledge as his navigator (the rally number was 365 though). The DVLA say that KRJ 735 still exists and has only recently been re-taxed for another year.

Maurice Gatsonides, by the way, is much better known as the inventor of the 'Gatso' speed camera.

1925 Bugatti Type 35

This was one of the competitors in the Williams Trophy Race for Pre-1934 Grand Prix Cars at the VSCC's SeeRed meeting at Donington Park in May 2011.

It's the 1925 Bugatti Type 35 of Duncan Pittaway. The Type 35 had a 1,991cc straight-8 engine and was the most successful racing car of its era.

1975 Penske PC3

This was one of the competitors in the Grand Prix Masters F1 Cars 1966-85 race at the Silverstone Classic meeting in July 2010.

It's the Doug Mockett's 1975 Penske PC3, chassis #PC3/01, powered by the 2,993cc V8 Ford Cosworth DFV engine. The American former racing driver Roger Penske entered Formula One racing in 1974 with the Penske PC1 designed by Geoff Ferris, who also designed the 1975 PC3. The Penske PC3 was a singularly unsuccessful car which was used by the Penske team for the first half of the 1976 season, its highest placing being a fifth place in the South African Grand Prix, and was superseded by another Geoff Ferris car, the PC4 which won the Austrian Grand Prix and had two other podium finishes.

1957 Porsche 356A

This car competed in the Guards Trophy GTSR race at the HSCC's Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2008.

It's the 1957 Porsche 356A driven by Anthony Childs and Chris Overton in the 40 minute long race, and has an air-cooled 4-cylinder 1582cc boxer engine.