1963 Aston Martin DP214

This is a photograph that I took at Luffield corner during the Coys of Kensington GT Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1998.

It's Simon Draper's 1963 Aston Martin DP214 in which he shared the driving in the race with David Clark. This was one of two Project 214 cars built (the other being completely destroyed in an accident at the Nürburgring in 1964) and was based on DB4GT chassis 0194/R with the 3,670cc straight-6 engine bored out to 3,750cc.The car ran in the Le Mans 24 Hour race twice, retiring after 11 hours with a broken piston when in third place in 1963 driven by Bill Kimberley and Jo Schlesser, and in 1964 it was driven by Mike Salmon and Peter Sutcliffe but was disqualified after 18 hours for topping up with oil before the permitted time. It was in eleventh place at the time. Behind the Aston are the 1965 MGB of David Heynes/Mike Wilds and the 1960 Austin Healey 3000 of Ted and Mark Williams.

1959 Aston Martin DBR1

This car took part in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1998.

It's the 1959 Aston Martin DBR1 of Simon Draper and has the 6-cylinder inline 2,922cc engine. It is chassis DBR1/4, the car that finished in second place at the 1959 Le Mans 24 Hour race driven by Maurice Trintignant and Paul Frère - the winner being DBR1/2 driven by Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby. DBR1/4 then finished in fourth place in the 1959 Tourist Trophy race, driven by the same two drivers - and again the race was won by DBR1/2 this time driven by Stirling Moss, Carroll Shelby and Jack Fairman.

1957 Lotus Eleven

These three cars all took part in the 1950s Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

The number 34 is John Gray's 1957 Lotus Eleven, about 270 of which were built by the Lotus Company between 1956 and 1958. The Lotus Eleven was built with a variety of engines of different sizes from 750cc to 1500cc, and the programme of the event shows John Gray's car to have a 1,460cc engine. Number 60 is 1959 Aston Martin DBR1, chassis DBR1/4, of Simon Draper with the 6-cylinder inline 2,992cc engine and number 61 is the 1956 Aston Martin DB3S of John Romano which should also have the Lagonda 2,992cc engine, though the programme of the event says that the engine size is 2,800cc. It appears to be chassis DB3S/113.

1963 Aston Martin DP214

This was one of the competitors in the Coys of Kensington GT Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

It's Simon Draper's 1963 Aston Martin DP214 in which he shared the driving in the race with David Clark. This was one of two Project 214 cars built (the other being completely destroyed in an accident at the Nürburgring in 1964) and was based on DB4GT chassis 0194/R with the 3,670cc straight-6 engine bored out to 3,750cc.The car ran in the Le Mans 24 Hour race twice, retiring after 11 hours with a broken piston when in third place in 1963 driven by Bill Kimberley and Jo Schlesser, and in 1964 it was driven by Mike Salmon and Peter Sutcliffe but was disqualified after 18 hours for topping up with oil before the permitted time. It was in eleventh place at the time.

1960 Aston Martin DB4

This car took part in the MG Car Club Chapman Warren Classic Road Sports Championship Race and the Post-War Aston Martins Race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's Autumn Historic Car Races meeting at Oulton Park in September 1992.

It's the 1960 Aston Martin DB4 of Simon Draper, one of 1,185 that were produced between 1958 and 1963, together with 19 of the DB4GT Zagato models. The body of the DB4 was designed by Carrozzerie Touring of Milan and it had the 6-cylinder inline 3,670cc engine created by Tadek Marek, although according to the programme of the event Simon Draper's car has a 4.2 litre engine.

1950s Sports Car Racing

This is a photograph I took at Luffield corner during the Classic Car Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

Robin Lodge is leading in his 1957 Maserati 250S followed by the 1959 Aston Martin DBR1 of Simon Draper. The red car on the outside is Tony Merrick in Richard Utley's 1957 Lotus Eleven Le Mans. Behind the Aston Martin is Chris Drake's 1958 Lister Chevrolet in front of what looks like another Lotus Eleven.

1954 Aston Martin DB3S

This car took part in the HGPCA Sports Car Race at the Christie's International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1992.

It's Simon Draper's 1954 Aston Martin DB3S, chassis DB3S/7. This car has the straight-6 Lagonda 2,992cc engine and was originally built with a coupe body as part of the works Aston Martin sports car team. Peter Collins and Prince Bira shared the driving in this car in the 1954 Le Mans 24 hour race, but it was severely damaged in an accident after 13 hours when being driven by Prince Bira, who escaped with cuts and bruises. The car was rebuilt for the start of the 1955 season with an open body and for 1956 received the new nose, as seen above, then was sold off by the works at the end of that season. A note in the programme of the event says:

'There are two DB3S Aston Martins in the field. Simon Draper's is one of the very successful works cars, winner of the 1955 Goodwood Nine Hours race and a string of lesser events, and has been raced more or less regularly ever since.'

1960 Aston Martin DB4

This car took part in the AMOC Thoroughbred & Classic Sports Car Championship Race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's Autumn Historic Car Races meeting at Oulton Park in September 1993.

It's the 1960 Aston Martin DB4 of Simon Draper .one of 1,185 that were produced between 1958 and 1963, together with 19 of the DB4GT Zagato models. The body of the DB4 was designed by Carrozzerie Touring of Milan and it had the 6-cylinder inline 3,670cc engine created by Tadek Marek, although according to the programme of the event Simon Draper's car has a 4½ litre engine.

1991 Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato Sanction II

This was one of the competitors in the BRDC '60s GT Race at the Christie's International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1992.

Shown in the programme of the event as Simon Draper's 1960 Aston Martin Zagato, but it was actually built in 1991. The original intention in 1960 was to build 23 of the Aston Martin DB4GT Zagatos and chassis numbers were set aside for them, but only 19 were actually completed. In 1991 Aston Martin approached Zagato with the suggestion that they should build four additional cars to the same specifications, except that they would have the 4,212cc engine instead of the original 3,670 unit. The four cars were given the unused chassis numbers 0192, 0196, 0197, and 0198 (Simon Draper's car being 0196) and they would be known as Sanction II models.

1959 Aston Martin DBR1

This car took part in the Classic Car Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

It's the 1959 Aston Martin DBR1 of Simon Draper and has the 6-cylinder inline 2,922cc engine. It is chassis DBR1/4, the car that finished in second place at the 1959 Le Mans 24 Hour race driven by Maurice Trintignant and Paul Frère - the winner being DBR1/2 driven by Roy Salvadori and Carroll Shelby. DBR1/4 then finished in fourth place in the 1959 Tourist Trophy race, driven by the same two drivers - and again the race was won by DBR1/2 this time driven by Stirling Moss, Carroll Shelby and Jack Fairman.

1963 Aston Martin DP214

This was one of the competitors in the Coys of Kensington GT Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1995.

It's Simon Draper's 1963 Aston Martin DP214 in which he shared the driving in the race with Gary Pearson. This was one of two Project 214 cars built (the other being completely destroyed in an accident at the Nürburgring in 1964) and was based on DB4GT chassis 0194/R with the 3,670cc straight-6 engine bored out to 3,750cc.The car ran in the Le Mans 24 Hour race twice, retiring after 11 hours with a broken piston when in third place in 1963 driven by Bill Kimberley and Jo Schlesser, and in 1964 it was driven by Mike Salmon and Peter Sutcliffe but was disqualified after 18 hours for topping up with oil before the permitted time. It was in eleventh place at the time.

1955 Bristol 450S

This car competed in the Champagne Charles Heidsieck Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1993, and I photographed it early in the day in a very overcast and rain-soaked paddock.

It's the sole surviving example of the three Bristol 450S cars that were built primarily to contest the Le Mans 24 Hour race, in which they competed with three different body styles in 1953, 1954 and 1955. The cars ran in the under 2 litre class and were powered by the 1,971cc straight-6 Bristol engine derived from the pre-war BMW 328 unit. The 1953 car had a coupé body with an unusual looking nose which had two headlamps, two spotlights, and a series of air intakes including a strange series of slats in the bodywork where the grille of the car would normally be. The rear of the car was swept back with a fin on either side of the rear window. Two cars were entered for the 1953 Le Mans race but both retired before the race was half way through. For the 1954 race the body was altered, retaining the rear end of the 1953 car, but having the new nose as seen on the 1955 car in the above photograph. Three cars were entered at Le Mans and they finished seventh, eighth and ninth in the overall positions, and first, second and third in the 2 litre class. In 1955 the cars were given the open body as seen above, and again finished seventh, eighth and ninth overall, and in the first three places in the 2 litre class. After that race Bristol withdrew from racing, in part because of the terrible accident there, and the best parts of the three cars were used to build one car, the rest being scrapped. The owner of Bristol Cars, Tony Crook, kept the car until 1992 when he sold it to Simon Draper who entered it for this race at Silverstone, where it was driven by Stephen Archer. It has been taken along to several historic race meetings to sit alongside the cars of other members of the Bristol Owners' Club, but as far as I'm aware this meeting at Silverstone in 1993 is the only competitive outing it has had since that 1955 Le Mans 24 Hour race.

Aston Martin DB3S

This car took part in the 'Pre-War Sports Cars with Feltham Aston Martins' race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's meeting at Oulton Park in September 1992.

It's Simon Draper at Lodge Corner in his 1954 Aston Martin DB3S, chassis DB3S/7. This car has the straight-6 Lagonda 2,992cc engine and was originally built with a coupe body as part of the works Aston Martin sports car team. Peter Collins and Prince Bira shared the driving in this car in the 1954 Le Mans 24 hour race, but it was severely damaged in an accident after 13 hours when being driven by Prince Bira, who escaped with cuts and bruises. The car was rebuilt for the start of the 1955 season with an open body and for 1956 received the new nose, as seen above, then was sold off by the works at the end of that season.

Aston Martin C-Type Speed Model

I photographed this car in the paddock at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

It's an Aston Martin C-Type Speed Model, but although it has a racing number it isn't listed in the programme of the event. The number on the car appears to be '12', and car number 12 in the Pre-War Sports Car Race was the 1935 Aston Martin Ulster of Simon Draper, which he was due to share with David Clark. As Simon Draper also owned an Aston Martin C-Type it's possible this car was switched for the Ulster. The Speed Model was developed from the Ulster with the straight four 1,481cc engine enlarged to 1,949cc. The new car was intended to be entered in the 1936 Le Mans 24 Hour race where the homologation regulations required 25 models to be made, but in the end the Le Mans race was cancelled due to a general strike in France. The works Speed Model cars were quickly sold but the other cars proved difficult to sell because of a perceived lack of power. In the end the last 8 chassis were given the more streamlined body as seen above and these vehicles were dubbed the C-Type. The DVLA record say that FZ 8212 is a 1940 car and the engine has a capacity of 1,998cc.

Bristol 450S

This car was alongside several other Bristol and Bristol-engined cars at the Bristol Owners' Club's area at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in August 1996.

It's a 1955 Bristol 450S, the last remaining example of the Bristol cars that competed in the Le Mans 24 Hour race in 1953, 1954 and 1955. The original Bristol 450S was constructed around the chassis of the 1952 ERA G-Type and was powered by a straight-6 Bristol 1,971cc engine. Three body styles were used, two different coupe versions in the first two years and the open version as seen above in 1955. Two cars were entered in the 1953 race but neither finished, but in each of the following two years a three-car team finished in 7th, 8th and 9th places overall and in the first three places in the 2-litre class. After the dreadful accident in the 1955 race Bristol withdrew from racing and dismantled all but one of the cars, the one seen above, that was kept by Tony Crook for 30 years before passing to Simon Draper who owned the car when it appeared at this Silverstone meeting.

On 2 October 2013 I showed photographs I took of the car when it competed at the Coys meeting at Silverstone in 1993 where it was driven by Stephen Archer.

Aston Martin DB3S

This car took part in two races at the Aston Martin Owners Club's Autumn Historic Car Races meeting at Oulton Park in September 1993.

It's a 2,992cc straight-6 1954 Aston Martin DB3S, chassis DB3S/7, which originally had a coupe body. After an accident in the 1954 Le Mans 24 Hour race it was rebuilt with an open body and remained part of the Aston Martin works team for the 1955 and 1956 seasons, the nose being rebuilt as seen here before the start of the 1956 season. It was driven at this meeting by Simon Draper.

Here's Simon Draper at Foulstons chicane during the first of his races.

On 9 February 2015 I showed a photograph showing the four cars of the Aston Martin team, including DB3S/7, at the Daily Herald International Trophy meeting at Oulton Park in 1956.

Aston Martin Project 214

This car competed in the Coys of Kensington GT Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

It's Simon Draper's 1963 Aston Martin DP214, who shared the driving in the race with Gillian Goldsmith. 5 NBP was one of two Project 214 cars built (the other being completely destroyed in an accident at the Nürburgring in 1964) and was based on DB4GT chassis 0194/R with the 3,670cc straight-6 engine bored out to 3,750cc.

On 23 January 2017 I showed a photograph of this car at Silverstone in 1996.

Rainy Day at Oulton Park

I took this photograph of two Aston Martins in the paddock at Oulton Park on a very wet day at the Aston Martin Owners Club's Autumn Historic Car Races meeting in September 1992.

On the right is Simon Draper's straight six 2,992cc 1954 Aston Martin DB3S, chassis #DB3S/7. Originally built with a coupe body but was rebuilt with an open body after an accident in the 1954 Le Mans 24 Hour race. The car on the left is a straight six 3,670cc 1960 Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato, the first one built, and it's chassis #200R. On 23 January 2016 I showed a photograph of this car that I'd taken at Silverstone in 2010.

Aston Martin DBR1

This car took part in the 'Classic Car' Sports Car Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

It's the 1959 Aston Martin DBR1 of Simon Draper, and is chassis number DBR1/4 - the car driven by Paul Frère and Maurice Trintignant that finished second to team mates Roy Salvadori and Carrol Shelby in the 1959 Le Mans 24 Hour race.

Aston Martin Project 214

This car competed in the Coys of Kensington GT Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in August 1996.

It's the 1962 3.8 litre Aston Martin Project 214 #0194/R - based on the Aston Martin DB4GT - and was driven in the race by Simon Draper and Mark Hales. This is the only remaining example of the Aston Martin DP214 - two cars were built and the other one (#0195/R) was destroyed in an accident during practice for the 1964 Nürburgring 1000 km race.