The Karmann Influence - Triumph TR6 PI

The Triumph TR6 PI (Petrol Injection) was in production from 1969 - 1976 during which time a then record 94,619 (Injection & Carburettor ) models were produced of which less than 10 percent were sold in the UK.



Allegedly the squared off look was the outcome of a consultancy contract with Karmann.



The Lucas Fuel injection gave the 2489cc / 151 cui straight 6 150hp though it is said the 104 hp carburettor US version was far more reliable. The car came with a standard 4 speed gearbox with overdrive on 2nd, 3rd & 4th available as an optional extra.



The performance figure from rest to 60 mph was 8.2 seconds with a top speed of 120 mph.



To bring the car safely to rest disc brakes were fitted to the front wheels and drum brakes on the rear independent suspension.



Unusually for the time the TR6 was made using a chassis with body panels bolted on rather than a monocoque (unitary) construction that had become widespread during the course of the 1960's.



Later TR6 PI's had a engines tuned to a more tractable 120 hp.



The registration plate on this vehicle indicates this vehicle may have first been registered in Kent between 1974 and 1975.

If you'd like to experience a TR6 but with an older style body you could try signing up with the Huet Brothers in the Netherlands for a ride in an HB Special complete with tuned TR6 motor and chassis.

If you have any TR6 experiences or memories, please do not be shy share them below.

Hope you have enjoyed today's fuel injected edition of 'Gettin' a lil' psycho on tyres' and that you'll join me again tomorrow for a 50th Birthday Celebration. Don't forget to come back now !

Mission Possible - Bristol Cars Ltd

Last Monday 27 employees of Bristol Cars Ltd passed through these gates on their way to work.



This morning only 5 employees will return through these gates as the manufacturing arm of Bristol Cars Ltd has been placed into administration with RSM Tenon.



Tom Maclennan of RSM Tenon is quoted as saying " There have been a number of immediate redundancies due to the financial position of the company, (but) we are maintaining the sales and service operations so customers will continue to be supported."



Though not without some criticism over the way the company has been run in the past, there has been a significant amount of support for Bristol Cars Ltd on the internet, in the light of this unfortunate development, from owners and non owners alike as evidenced by threads on pistonheads.com, The Nostalgia Forum and particularly on the Bristol Owners Club forum where members recall many of the Bristol Cars Ltd team with fondness having known them for many years.



One member of the Bristol Owners Club, Teb Marius from the Netherlands with professional experience in handling these types of financial situations is calling for professional assistance from members and non members in the UK to investigate the possibility putting together a Bristol Owners Club led Consortium to negotiate a viable future for Bristol Cars Ltd with the administrators. Send Teb an e-mail if you can offer any such professional assistance.



Alternatively for anyone with the financial muscle who wants make a bid for the manufacturing division of Bristol Cars Ltd, Tom MacLennan and Trevor Binyon at RSM Tenon have been appointed joint administrators of the business and would be interested to hear from you.

In anticipation of good news about the future of Bristol Cars Ltd I hope you'll join me again at "Gettin' a lil' psycho on tyres". Don't forget to come back now !

It's a lot of car ! - Lola T310

1972 proved to be the year that the Penske turbo Panzer dominated Can Am in much the same way as the hitherto mercurial McLarens.



The original 1966 Can Am series champion constructors Lola had started with fresh from scratch designs in 1970, '71 & '72, the vehicle seen here is the Lola T310 from 1972.



To overcome the under steering (push) characteristics Jackie Stewart had complained of driving the stubby L&M Lola T260 during 1971, Eric Broadley & Specialised Mouldings developed this body work, measuring 4.527 meters / 180" long by 2.172 m / 85.5 " wide, in a wind tunnel to hug one of the largest Can Am monocoques ever built.



The monocoque was full width and unusually full length so that the engine could be mounted without the need of a separate steel sub frame.



David Hobbs was given the responsibility of driving the T310 for Carl Haas during the 1972 season but the car was completely outclassed, David managed just one season high 4th place and came in 7th in the final '72 Can Am standings.

The car was sold at the end of 1972 and Jerry Hansen managed to win a minor race at Atlanta, the car ended its competition days in the 1977 5 litre/ 305.5 cui Can Am series in the hands of Bruce Langson.



Power for the T310 came from the mighty 8.1 litre / 494 aluminium Chevrolet V8, according to World Champion and twice Can Am champion Denny Hulme the motor was good for a maximum of 760 hp, regrettably this top estimated performance was completely outclassed by the conservative estimated 1000 hp plus the turbocharged flat 12 cylinder Porsche's were kicking out at the time.

You can see and hear the T310 driven by Bobby Rahal in 2008 in this splendid little youtube clip.

Hope you have enjoyed today's Can Am edition of 'Gettin' a lil' psycho on tyres and that you'll join me again tomorrow. Don't forget to come back now !

Fibreglass Transformer - Austin Healey Sprite #ANJ/6378

Today I am looking at this Austin Healey Sprite fitted with an Ashley nose and a Lenham Fastback, a body style also apparently known as a Lenham GT which found a new owner at last weekends Race Retro exhibition for £10,450 / $ 17,000 thanks to auctioneers H&H.



Sporting a twin carb 1,100cc / 67 cui A series motor up from the original 948 cc / 57 cui fitted to a four speed gearbox which all points to a competition history.



This undated and uncaptioned photo taken from the H&H website of a vehicle bearing the same registration number (888 HPA) gives a tantalizing insight into an interesting race history that is said to have included preparation by the 'Naylor Brothers' and modification to Sebring Spec prior to the Lenham Fastback bodywork being fitted.



More recently this vehicle was driven to 5th in class in the 20th Classic Marathon by Peter & Betty Banham along a route from Belgium to the Dolomite mountains of Italy.

I'd like to thank David Birchall over at The Nostalgia Forum who came up with additional information on the identity of the nose type. If you have any interesting info on this vehicle in either of the photographs please add your comments below.

Hope you have enjoyed today's transformer edition of 'Gettin' a lil' psycho on tyres and that you'll join me again tomorrow for a look at another Great British sports car. Don't forget to come back now !

Millionaire Mystery - Scuderia Parravano Pt 2 of 2

Last Ferrari Friday we got a glimpse of a few of Scuderia Parravano's fabulous Ferrari's financed by building millionaire Tony Parravano.



Photo Carlyle Blackwell, Publised Courtesy Blackwell Archive, for sales enquiry's please e-mail infoATpsychoontyres.co.uk and your contact details will be forwarded to the Blackwell Archive.

This week we are looking at Parravano's 750 Monza chassis number #0538 being driven by an as yet



Photo Carlyle Blackwell, Publised Courtesy Blackwell Archive, for sales enquiry's please e-mail infoATpsychoontyres.co.uk and your contact details will be forwarded to the Blackwell Archive.

unidentified driver in a studio shot by Carlyle Blackwell.

The 750 Monza took it's name from the track on which Mike Hawthorn and Umberto Maglioli took a debut victory in 1954, powered by a 250 hp 3 litre / 183 cui version of the four cylinder engine that was also used in the 500 TRC in the 1954 season. The 750 Monza allowed Ferrari to retain the World Sports Car Championship in 1954 but was not strong enough against the onslaught of the Mercedes Benz 300 SLR's to give Ferrari a third consecutive championship.

Tony Parravano is rumoured to have paid Scaglieti over the odds for the unique body work on this particular vehicle which has a narrower radiator intake and a pronounced hump over the engine compared to a standard 750 Monza.

This unique car was crashed by one of the Caroll Shelby / Gino Munaron crew in the 1955 Targa Florio and does not appear to have been driven to any victories though Richie Ginther took 2nd place at New Smyrna Beach in 1957.

In December 1956 this photograph appeared on the cover of Road & Track magazine with the caption on the inside cover that reads "The closest photographer Carlyle Blackwell could come to a red sleigh for St Nick is this 3.5 litre Ferrari. The scene is a quiet village at Christmas Eve (on the 20th Century Fox's back lot), but if the kiddies are still awake, it's not the sound of sleigh bells they'll be hearing as midnight strikes."

Ed Arnaudin who purchased a copy of this photograph recently told his son Steve that there were rumours in the 1950's about Tony Parravano having connections to 'the mob' which never gained a foothold in Southern California where Tony lived and worked, these rumours are also present on the internet today. There is however no doubt that Tony might have legitimately made a lot of money from the post WW2 housing boom in California.

In mid 1957 Tony Parravano and an associate were charged with tax evasion by the Inland Revenue Service (IRS) and Tony went on the run attempting to take some of his 11 Ferrari's and 13 Maserati's with him. Some of these vehicles were seized in the US, others were sold in Mexico. All have since been accounted for.

#0538 M pictured here only made it as far as a Save On supermarket parking lot in Van Nuys, California where it was auctioned off by the IRS for $3500 to Sydney Coolidge along with a $275 trailer in 1958. The car is known to have been used in competition until at least 1963.



Tony Parravano disappeared for good in April 1960 three days before he was due to appear in court. In January 1964 Tony's associate paid 5 x $100 dollars in fines for 5 counts on a 27 count indictment and walked away a free man while Tony's wife settled with the IRS and ended up with most of Tony's assets.

There is no official record of what became of Tony, who, if he were alive today, would be a still credible 94 years old. He is reported to have been seen in a Rome launderette by a US racing journalist and there are reports on the net that the US Attorney General had a "Parravano Room" full of evidence against Tony though the fact remains his single indictment was on tax evasion charges and his associate had to pay $500 in fines on similar charges.

In 1986 #0538M resurfaced completely unrestored fitted with a Chevrolet V8 in the hands of a Mr Bill Shaker in Leesburg, VA who neither knew of the vehicles identity or it's value. In 1987 the vehicle acquired a new war wound the day before the Ferrari Club of America National meeting when it went on an unmanned trip down a drive way and hit Mr Shakers daily driver a Volvo.

David Smith #0538's next owner managed to reunite it with it's original motor and in 1993 #0538 won the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance, Richard J Fraser tells his part in the story very well on the Barchetta website here.

If anyone recognises the driver of the car in the photo please chime in below.

My thanks to Ed Arnaudin who purchased a copy of it and to his son Steve who forwarded a scan of the copy to me, my thanks also to all the contributors on various threads at Ferrari Chat and The Nostalgia Forum who have knowingly and unknowingly contributed to today's blog.

Hope you have enjoyed today's fugitive edition of 'Gettin' a lil' psyco on tyres' and that you'll join me again tomorrow for a look at a Sebring Sprite. Don't forget to come back now !

28 07 12 PS Many thanks to Pamela Blackwell who has kindly retrospectively given me permission to post the photo's her father took.

Double Cream - Bowden Super Two

Staying in the theme of forgotten marques the subject of today's blog is Bowden, the brainchild of one of the UK's largest retailers of Specials vehicles Les Montgomery of Super Accessories in Bromley, Kent.



Les brought together the Bowden Chassis manufactured in Ottery St Mary, Devon designed to take a 4 cylinder Ford 1172 cc / 71 cui side valve motor then an engine of choice amongst specials builders also used by the likes of Lotus enthusiasts, and fit it with an enlarged Hamblin Cadet body which up to that time had been manufactured by Syd Hamblin of Sherbourne, Dorset to fit to Austin Seven chassis.



The Bowden Super Two kit is alleged to have been sold less power train at £99 / $ 250.



The F and CA letters suggest this vehicle might have a race history in the Sports Car Club of America Class F, if anybody recognises this vehicle please chime in below.



Less than 200 Bowden Super Two's are thought to have been built in the same time frame, 1960 - 1962, as the subject of yesterdays blog the Warwick.

Of all the vehicles I saw at Race Retro at the weekend I found this one particularly appealing having not heard of the manufacturer before, having a patina that if I had the resources I'd do my best to preserve while getting the car back into tip top shape and for being a relatively rare original.

Thanking my acquaintances at The Nostalgia Forum for their assistance with today's blog.

Hope you have enjoyed today's double cream edition of 'Getting a lil' psycho on tyres' and that you will join me to again tomorrow on Ferrari Friday for the second and final episode of the Millionaire Mystery. Don't forget to come back now !

Forgotten Marque #1 - Warwick 350GT

It's not everyday I stumble upon a vehicle manufacturer I have never heard of but at last weekends Race Retro I came across two such manufacturers the first the subject of today's blog is Warwick.



The origins of the Warwick lie in Peerless Cars Ltd founded by John Gordon and James Byrnes, Peerless built approximately 325 fiberglass vehicles with tubular space frames designed by Bernie Rodger around Triumph TR3 running gear. A Peerless GT Coupe driven by Peter Jopp and Percy Crabb finished 16th in the 1958 Le Mans 24 hour race.



Peerless Cars Ltd failed in 1960 and Bernie Rodger upgraded his design with a stiffer chassis, one piece forward hingeing bonnet and marketed it under the Warwick name though the vehicles were actually built in Colnbrook, Berkshire. Around 40 Warwicks are thought to have been manufactured from 1960 to 1962.

Meantime Peerless founder John Gordon teamed up with Jim Keeble to carry on manufacturing vehicles based on the original Peerless chassis with Chevrolet motors and completely new bodywork designed by Guigiaro and built by Bertone marketed under the Gordon - Keeble brand.



In 1961 Warwick manufactured two prototypes with all aluminium 3.5 litre / 215 cui Buick (BOP) 215 engines, the four tail pipes on this vehicle are evidence that this is one of those two prototypes.

The Warwick appeared at Race Retro on the Central Scanning stand, a company that specialises in scanning old parts so that they can be reverse engineered, thus making it theoretically possible to remanufacture almost any part for any vehicle that has ever been built so long as an original copy exists to be scanned.

I hope you have enjoyed today's Forgotten Marque edition of 'Getting a lil' psycho on tyres' and that you will join me again tomorrow for another forgotten marque. Don't forget to come back now !

05/09/11 Looking into the name of this model I have come to realise it is properly called a Warwick 350GT not 305GT as originally published. Apologies for any confusion.