brooke 260 RR cosworth
Discussion
thank-you for all these replies
i still havent worked out how to post pictures, but will do so as soon as i can work it out
my car is the first that brooke built and is the red car that can be seen on their website
(google brooke cars then gallery )
it has been fun because of:
1) the power and torque ratio
2)the exposure to the elements
3)the right hand gear shift
4)the sound of the cosworth duratec as it climbs past 3000rpm
i have collected most of the published literature on the car (autocar;evo;autoexpress;topgear;car;1001dreamcars etc), but have still not managed to track down a copy of track and race car that featured it in 2005/2006
there does not appear to be much of a brooke community (the financial director of McLaren had one , but sold it recently)as i suspect most of the cars went abroad, so it is nice to be able to chat here
i still havent worked out how to post pictures, but will do so as soon as i can work it out
my car is the first that brooke built and is the red car that can be seen on their website
(google brooke cars then gallery )
it has been fun because of:
1) the power and torque ratio
2)the exposure to the elements
3)the right hand gear shift
4)the sound of the cosworth duratec as it climbs past 3000rpm
i have collected most of the published literature on the car (autocar;evo;autoexpress;topgear;car;1001dreamcars etc), but have still not managed to track down a copy of track and race car that featured it in 2005/2006
there does not appear to be much of a brooke community (the financial director of McLaren had one , but sold it recently)as i suspect most of the cars went abroad, so it is nice to be able to chat here
I came very close to buying the blue one owned by the Maclaren chap last year.It seemed a corker,and I would have bought it other than when I actually got through to Brooke they didn't feel me with any confidence of parts supply, future plans etc, and it appeared they hadn't built any cars for sometime.
So what's the ownership experience like, as I'm sure I'm gonna regret it!
So what's the ownership experience like, as I'm sure I'm gonna regret it!
SJC---you have identified the exact same issues that concerned me before i bought the car
i loved the looks of the car (i know some might hate the shape ), but was also hugely influenced by the autocar/evo /top-gear and octane articles published in 2005/2006, which featured brooke's red prototype car(the car i eventually bought direct from the factory, as the first private owner of this car)
after a bit of work, i managed to speak to the 4 journalists who had test-driven the car, and they were all very positive about it
at my request, they were all also kind enough to write a short , personal letter to me about their private impressions of the car on the test-day, which i have compiled into a scrapbook
i was looking for something unusual , with exhilarating acceleration(autocar tested my car at 0-60 in 3.33secs and 0-100 in 7.68 and 0-100-0 in 12.15)and the brooke appeared to fulfill these criteria with the added advantages of being a prototype car and being heavily featured(also on autoexpress, 1001 dream cars,fifth gear , times, telegraph, independent, haynes yearbook 2008)
as a condition of the sale (signed in sept but it took till jan/feb for delivery, as the folowing work was to be done prior to delivery, and i wanted to be a little bit involved with the refurbishment myself ), the whole car was stripped down to its bare chassis, the suspension rebuilt, the body resprayed, a new clutch fitted ,repowder-coating of the wishbones; new tyres and some bespoke parts fitted:
(steering column;lights;passenger floor divider to create a luggage compartment;battery cut-off switch;additional coolant reservoir (brooke told me by the same company that do this sort of work for Williams F1) ;wiring to connect up heated vest and gloves;tow attachment)
with regards to your concerns:
there were teething problems with the car , but these have been sorted out over the last 2 1/2 years, and i really enjoy the car espcially since i have reduced the bump and rebound settings ,which make it much less nervous on A and B ROADS
1)i have found an ex- F1 mechanic who lives and works closeby, who has been through the car throughly, and is confident that he can deal with the mechanics of it(but not in a hurry )
he has just done a major service on it
2) i attended the exeter kit car show (brooke were/are very insistent that their
cars are not kit cars) late last year, and was relieved to find that there are many companies/ designers who would make bespoke body and mechanical parts for the car if necessary at a very reasonable price (as long as you were prepared to let them do the work in their spare time---and the brooke is not really a 1st car)
so, do get one when brooke restart manufacturing
part of the fun was having parts specially made up for the car
do you know who finally bought the McLaren financial director's car?
please tell us all of your own impressions of the blue car
i loved the looks of the car (i know some might hate the shape ), but was also hugely influenced by the autocar/evo /top-gear and octane articles published in 2005/2006, which featured brooke's red prototype car(the car i eventually bought direct from the factory, as the first private owner of this car)
after a bit of work, i managed to speak to the 4 journalists who had test-driven the car, and they were all very positive about it
at my request, they were all also kind enough to write a short , personal letter to me about their private impressions of the car on the test-day, which i have compiled into a scrapbook
i was looking for something unusual , with exhilarating acceleration(autocar tested my car at 0-60 in 3.33secs and 0-100 in 7.68 and 0-100-0 in 12.15)and the brooke appeared to fulfill these criteria with the added advantages of being a prototype car and being heavily featured(also on autoexpress, 1001 dream cars,fifth gear , times, telegraph, independent, haynes yearbook 2008)
as a condition of the sale (signed in sept but it took till jan/feb for delivery, as the folowing work was to be done prior to delivery, and i wanted to be a little bit involved with the refurbishment myself ), the whole car was stripped down to its bare chassis, the suspension rebuilt, the body resprayed, a new clutch fitted ,repowder-coating of the wishbones; new tyres and some bespoke parts fitted:
(steering column;lights;passenger floor divider to create a luggage compartment;battery cut-off switch;additional coolant reservoir (brooke told me by the same company that do this sort of work for Williams F1) ;wiring to connect up heated vest and gloves;tow attachment)
with regards to your concerns:
there were teething problems with the car , but these have been sorted out over the last 2 1/2 years, and i really enjoy the car espcially since i have reduced the bump and rebound settings ,which make it much less nervous on A and B ROADS
1)i have found an ex- F1 mechanic who lives and works closeby, who has been through the car throughly, and is confident that he can deal with the mechanics of it(but not in a hurry )
he has just done a major service on it
2) i attended the exeter kit car show (brooke were/are very insistent that their
cars are not kit cars) late last year, and was relieved to find that there are many companies/ designers who would make bespoke body and mechanical parts for the car if necessary at a very reasonable price (as long as you were prepared to let them do the work in their spare time---and the brooke is not really a 1st car)
so, do get one when brooke restart manufacturing
part of the fun was having parts specially made up for the car
do you know who finally bought the McLaren financial director's car?
please tell us all of your own impressions of the blue car
there are some nice pictures of the car on the beaulieu national motor museum photographic library website---i took the car down to their studio for a day in april last year
(GOOGLE : beaulieu national motor museum photographic library, then once you are into that site , type in BROOKE )
(GOOGLE : beaulieu national motor museum photographic library, then once you are into that site , type in BROOKE )
I always thought the Brooke was a great alternative to a Caterham or Elise/VX. Personally, I love the retro look of it.
I remember fondly the first iteration of the Brooke, powered by a Vauxhall 2.0l 16V motor- from Performance car magazine in the mid 1990s- John Barker did a really interesting article with the Brooke, Grinnall Scorpion and Ultima CanAm.
I remember fondly the first iteration of the Brooke, powered by a Vauxhall 2.0l 16V motor- from Performance car magazine in the mid 1990s- John Barker did a really interesting article with the Brooke, Grinnall Scorpion and Ultima CanAm.
Whitean3 said:
I always thought the Brooke was a great alternative to a Caterham or Elise/VX. Personally, I love the retro look of it.
I remember fondly the first iteration of the Brooke, powered by a Vauxhall 2.0l 16V motor- from Performance car magazine in the mid 1990s- John Barker did a really interesting article with the Brooke, Grinnall Scorpion and Ultima CanAm.
Wasn't the very first model powered by a 5 Gordini engine and had 1+1 seating?I remember fondly the first iteration of the Brooke, powered by a Vauxhall 2.0l 16V motor- from Performance car magazine in the mid 1990s- John Barker did a really interesting article with the Brooke, Grinnall Scorpion and Ultima CanAm.
the original brooke 190ME WAS DESIGNED AND BUILT IN SUFFOLK BY a chap by the name of toby sutton , and had a vauxhall engine
(the current 260 RR has a cosworth duratec 2.3l engine producing 260bhp and 200 lb ft torque )
however, toby sutton had designed and produced a number of cars before the 190ME, and one of these was indeed a 1+1 tandem seated gordini powered car
about 2 years ago, mr sutton was kind enough to give me the remaining original prototype drawings and sketches and photographs for the 190ME as well as his earlier creations
what i found most intriguing, was that the hand written date on the design drawings for the 190ME predated the presentation of gordon murray's light car company Rocket
it has previously been said that the 190me was a copy of the rocket, but these drawings would suggest that toby sutton had had similar ideas at the same time or before gordon murray with regards to a light-weight sportscar
mr sutton told me that he wanted a 'non-selfish' car when designing the 190ME, and what he meant by this , was that he wanted another person other than the driver to also be able to enjoy the car
the only really difficult thing about the brooke 260 rr, is the lack of luggage space
we have got over this to a slight extent by creating a space in the passenger footwell (which is actually quite long)---and this was enough to afford us a 10 day holiday, although you need an understanding passenger
(the current 260 RR has a cosworth duratec 2.3l engine producing 260bhp and 200 lb ft torque )
however, toby sutton had designed and produced a number of cars before the 190ME, and one of these was indeed a 1+1 tandem seated gordini powered car
about 2 years ago, mr sutton was kind enough to give me the remaining original prototype drawings and sketches and photographs for the 190ME as well as his earlier creations
what i found most intriguing, was that the hand written date on the design drawings for the 190ME predated the presentation of gordon murray's light car company Rocket
it has previously been said that the 190me was a copy of the rocket, but these drawings would suggest that toby sutton had had similar ideas at the same time or before gordon murray with regards to a light-weight sportscar
mr sutton told me that he wanted a 'non-selfish' car when designing the 190ME, and what he meant by this , was that he wanted another person other than the driver to also be able to enjoy the car
the only really difficult thing about the brooke 260 rr, is the lack of luggage space
we have got over this to a slight extent by creating a space in the passenger footwell (which is actually quite long)---and this was enough to afford us a 10 day holiday, although you need an understanding passenger
sjc---dont be gutted---lots of good cars out there ,and i see that you have had , and HAVE something v tasty just now anyway .
i think that they made about 8 or 9, and i think that at least one went off to each of germany, holland and japan
so there must be about 5 or 6 in the uk--some of which will come up for sale from time to time
what would be good , would to be to identify interested people (owners or otherwise) so that the maintainance issues can be shared and sorted , and the cars enjoyed as a group
incidentally, i have seen at least 2 ME190's advertised in' classic and sportcars 'over the last 4 or so years
the ME190's go for about 1/2 the price of the 260rr's , but you still get very good acceleration , the almost windscreenless cockpit, and the right hand gear-change
did you get to see the blue car in the flesh?
i think that they made about 8 or 9, and i think that at least one went off to each of germany, holland and japan
so there must be about 5 or 6 in the uk--some of which will come up for sale from time to time
what would be good , would to be to identify interested people (owners or otherwise) so that the maintainance issues can be shared and sorted , and the cars enjoyed as a group
incidentally, i have seen at least 2 ME190's advertised in' classic and sportcars 'over the last 4 or so years
the ME190's go for about 1/2 the price of the 260rr's , but you still get very good acceleration , the almost windscreenless cockpit, and the right hand gear-change
did you get to see the blue car in the flesh?
No I didn't, but spoke to the chap several times and exchanged quite a few E-mails with hi-res photos etc. It was only logistics of Berkshire/Essex and sorting a date due to weather that held it up.Unfortunately then my conversation with the " factory" who actually answered as a personal call rather than " Hello Brooke Cars" put me off as I got the impression that they wasn't actually building/ trading etc. The Maclaren chap then tok it off the market for a couple of months and then it re-appeared on here and sold quickly. He said after that other than me there was no interest first time round, when he re-advertised it he had 3 people on it.If the Brooke chap had instilled more confidence in me I'd have probably gone for it, it was a high specc car with only a couple of thousand miles on it.
Oh, and it has to be a Cosworth car for me !
Oh, and it has to be a Cosworth car for me !
Edited by sjc on Monday 17th January 12:33
yes , i agree that a naturally aspirated cosworth fits in best with this design
the purity of the above engine complements the round tube (as in the countach)spaceframe chassis (although mine being the prototype, also has some square tubes ), and the longitudinally mounted engine (again like the countach, and UNlike the elise, vx,mgf etc), with the gearbox inline
the 260bhp in a 550kg car was plenty for me
interestingly, the 320bhpsupercharged car (?with a noble engine ), when tested by autocar in the 0-100-0 2008 test, was only very minimally faster if at all, compared with their 2005 and 2006 tests of my naturally aspirated car
maybe this was because of the gearing , or an issue with tyre traction
the purity of the above engine complements the round tube (as in the countach)spaceframe chassis (although mine being the prototype, also has some square tubes ), and the longitudinally mounted engine (again like the countach, and UNlike the elise, vx,mgf etc), with the gearbox inline
the 260bhp in a 550kg car was plenty for me
interestingly, the 320bhpsupercharged car (?with a noble engine ), when tested by autocar in the 0-100-0 2008 test, was only very minimally faster if at all, compared with their 2005 and 2006 tests of my naturally aspirated car
maybe this was because of the gearing , or an issue with tyre traction
carspath said:
... mr sutton was kind enough to give me the remaining original prototype drawings and sketches and photographs for the 190ME as well as his earlier creations
what i found most intriguing, was that the hand written date on the design drawings for the 190ME predated the presentation of gordon murray's light car company Rocket
...I had a q plated Formula ford with full lighting on the road in 1989!! Just reworked the suspension to lift it up an inch or so. Cost me less than £4k to get one and put it on the road. what i found most intriguing, was that the hand written date on the design drawings for the 190ME predated the presentation of gordon murray's light car company Rocket
And yes, it was awesome!
OP: We spoke on another thread? If you remember I've long been interested in the Brooke and had a passenger ride in it at an Autocar Track Day a few years ago. I've looked through the pictures on my home PC and sadly I've not got any of that day at all. The reason was that it was raining extremely hard all day, so the camera stayed nice and dry in my car! You'll be pleased to know that the Brooke had a space in a garage and was well looked after by the two guys who owned the company though 
s3fella: i bet you had a lot of fun with that formula ford , and at avery good price too
i've seen one previously advertised at ' total headturners'---i wonder if that was yours. road legal ones must be rare
robm77: thanks for trying, much appreciated
it's always great to haer little snippets , like the fact that the weather was really bad on the brooke's first public outing
any other info gratefully received
i've seen one previously advertised at ' total headturners'---i wonder if that was yours. road legal ones must be rare
robm77: thanks for trying, much appreciated
it's always great to haer little snippets , like the fact that the weather was really bad on the brooke's first public outing
any other info gratefully received
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