Obscure race and rally cars

This car lives at the Donington Museum. Its got inboard brakes as well as AWD.

He can really peddle that thing!! I could never get enough of watching stuff like the BOSS series and Historic / Vintage F1.

Right this is really obscure but I remember seeing a car in a few clips of Goodwood that was a 50s style (I think) single seater that was quite small and had skinny tyres that looked to have about 30 degrees of camber. Vague I know but does anyone know what it could have been, the silly camber must make it stick out?

Not exactly cars as such but on the topic of variable wings acting as air brakes...



Wing are linked to throttle position - come off the throttle and the wings go almost vertical.

This is really the king of hillclimb quads though - QUADZILLA.




Very modified Hayabusa turbo power, 400+ bhp

Is that McNish driving it? I have a vague recollection of this at the time.

John - thanks for the photos of Goodwood. The car I posted of the 7 was on static display the year Toyota were the featured marque. The one you posted looks awesome as well - in 15 years of Goodwood Festivals, I've forgotten more of the stuff I've seen than I can remember! The 717 looks awesome with the shovel nose - better than the 707s. Has Charlie Agg still got the STP liveried car?

Yes, McNish; he was "on the cusp of an F1 drive" for a very, very long time, sadly.

Schliefer's a dealer of race cars isn't he? I've recently seen some footage of him with an M8F with a non-period (to my knowledge at least) airbox which looked strange. Latest I've seen of him is the March 84G Group C car which is a nice edition to the series. Any idea who has the STP car now? The final 707 is in the Rosso Bianco Collection isn't it?

Alfa Romeo 512 - built to race against Mercedes and Auto Union pre -war. Never raced but a spectacular looking car imo


Alfa Romoe Bimotore - two Tipo B Monoposto engines - one in front of and one behind the driver - very fast (c.200mph) but really nasty handling. Raced pre-war by Nuvolari and then by Tony Rolt (with the rear engine removed)



Another rear engined oddity - the 1500cc Cisitalia Grand Prix car intended for Nuvolari post war but never raced


Kieft F1 car - developed 240bhp from its 2.5 litre V8 straight off of the bench in 1954 but was never raced - its creators scared off by stories of 270bhp plus from Ferrari and Maserati. Has proved quick in historic racing and makes a great noise.


Gilby BRM - F1 car built for Sid Greene's Gilby engineering team and raced by his son Keith with limited success. I love this photo - did anyone sitting in a racing car every look cooler than this - White t shirt and crash helmet and tinted goggles!


Another pair of cool goggles - this time Bira driving the Maserati brother's Osca 4.5 litre F1 car at Goodwood.


Lola GT - forerunner of the GT40 and perhaps even more beautiful



One of the most important cars every to start a Grand Prix - Jack Brabham's Cooper Bobtail with 2.2litre Bristol six cylinder engine behind the driver. started the 1955 British Grand Prix at Aintree and later in the season beat Moss' 250F Maserati - a portent of things to come from Cooper and from Brabham and a car which ultimatley changed the landscape of Grand Prix racing forever.

Twin-engined 'Twini' as used on the Targa

Johnny, you are an encyclopedia of the great and good. A few of my favourites there - was lucky enough to see the Alfa 512, Bimotore, Breadvan and 330LMB last year. The Bimotore is just the most unbelievable noise. Tom Wheatcroft is its current custodian, although I believe he bought it in a state of disrepair. I recently read that it was offered to David Piper in the 1970s, but he turned it down.

Bugatti Type 32 "Tank"



Vauxhall Special Saloons "Mega Bertha". The proposed follow-up to Baby Bertha had an 8.1L Reynolds Can Am engine in a Cavalier Coupe body. Crikey.



Maserati 250F Tec Mec. The ultimate evolution of the 250F and still campaigned enthusiastically by Barrie Baxter today.

Well that is certainly the BOAC 500, but the McLaren/Spence car in 1968 was no.34 and had an external roof-mounted mirror. I think the photo is the Hulme/Gardner car from 1969 but running without its high rear wing (you can see the bottom of the struts).