1953 Cooper Bristol

This car competed in the Classic Racing Cars race at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2008.

It's the 1953 Cooper Bristol MkII of Ed Cottam which has a 1971cc 6-cylinder inline Bristol engine that was derived from the pre-war BMW 328 unit. Father and son Charles & John Cooper had started the Cooper Car Company in 1946, and at first specialised in building cars for the new 500cc class of racing that British enthusiasts had started as a simple and economical way to go motor racing after the war. This developed into the International Formula 3 class in 1950, and Cooper then ventured into the Formula 2 class by putting a 1,100cc JAP engine into one of these cars, way below the 2 litre limit allowed, but even with the lack of power the car was still reasonably competitive because of its light weight. When the World Championship was run under Formula 2 regulations in 1952 because of a dearth of the larger-engined Formula 1 cars Cooper decided to design a car to compete at that level. The 1,971 Bristol engine was chosen, but the Cooper Bristol MkI (later designated the T20) could not really compete with the Ferraris and Maseratis in World Championship races and was much more successful in minor British events. In 1953 the MkII (later T23) car was introduced, having a tubular frame chassis instead of the box section frame of the earlier car and the drive train was altered to lower the driver's seat. Although a better car it wasn't much more successful than the MkI, and the following season when the new 2½ litre Formula 1 regulations came into force the car was rendered obsolete. They still soldiered on for a few years, mainly in minor British events, and then became regulars in the historic racing scene, where they're still to be seen to this day.

1924 Bentley 3 litre Blue Label Tourer

This is one of the cars that took part in the Lancashire Automobile Club's Manchester to Blackpool Veteran and Vintage Car Run in June 1975 and is pictured just after the start at the junction of Peter Street and Lower Mosley Street.

It's the 1924 Bentley 3 litre of Mr D.C.Y. Dickson and the programme of the event had this note about the car:

58.    Mr D.C.Y. Dickson, Garstang, Lancs.

         1924 Bentley 3 litre Blue label tourer 15.9 h.p. 4 cylinder.

Jointly owned by Mr. Dickson and his brother Mr. J.C. Dickson (No. 57) this car has been driven alternately by them in every run except last year when it obligingly stood down for a Rolls-Royce! Twice winner of the Daily Telegraph Challenge Trophy; three times winner of the Vauxhall Trophy it has also won the Turner Trophy.

(Note: the Daily Telegraph Challenge Trophy was awarded for the best performance by any competitor, the Vauxhall Trophy went to the best performance by 'Cars of 1919-1924 up to 3,000 cc', and the Turner Trophy was awarded for the best performance in a special test.)

1938 AC 16/80 Competition Sports

This is a photograph I took at the Vintage Sports Car Club's meeting at Oulton Park in June 2008.

It's a 1938 AC 16/80 Competition Sports, chassis L635, and has a six-cylinder inline 1,991cc engine. It is one of only 44 Competition Sports models produced and the DVLA record says that it has been untaxed since May 2020.

1954 HWM Jaguar

This is a photograph that I took at the Silverstone Classic meeting in July 2010.

It's Roger Buxton’s 1954 HWM Jaguar with which he and Michael Steele competed in the two hour long RAC Woodcote Trophy for Pre 1956 Sports Cars race. It has the 3,442cc straight-6 Jaguar XK6 engine that powered the Jaguar XK models, and also the C-Type and D-Type. John Abecassis and John Heath had built and raced their Formula 2 HWM cars since 1950 and in 1953 built their first sports car on a Formula 2 chassis. The team remained involved in sports car racing till 1956 when John Heath died in an accident at that year's Mille Miglia race.

2015 Maserati Quattroporte

Here are two photographs of a car that I took on a walk alongside Salford Quays in January 2022.

It’s a Maserati Quattroporte, a sixth-generation car, and has a 2,987cc V6 turbodiesel engine.

1969 Lotus 61

This was one of the competitors in the HSCC Legends Racing Historic Formula Ford race at the Gold Cup meeting at Oulton Park in August 2005.

It’s the 1969 Lotus 61 of Dick Dixon and has a 1,599cc 4-cylinder inline Ford Kent engine that was originally developed for the 1959 Ford Anglia, and styling reminiscent of the Lotus 56 which contested the 1968 Indianapolis 500 race. The car number 6 alongside is another Lotus 61, that of Neil Davies.

Friday's Ferrari

This was one of the Ferraris that I photographed at the Ferrari Racing Days meeting at Silverstone in September 2017.

It's a Ferrari California with a 4,297cc 32 valve V8 Ferrari F136 engine, and body designed by Pininfarina.