Lost Race Cars

[Carlo]

We worked a few things out at Timaru over the weekend where there was a bit of a gathering and two names came up, Ross Cameron in Dunedin and possibly prior to then the late Lyn Johnson. Ross of course is still around and very active in the sport and would be able to fill you in on it's earlier days.

[Andy G]

Right we have got to the bottom of the owners of the Mk1 Escort V8 that I found in Lake Hawea after months of phone calls.
It turned out to the car I was hoping it was!
Owners are, from first to last, Roy Harrington, Don McMillan (metropolitan cranes) with Dave Silcock, Bob Homewood, Grant Aiken, Ross Cameron, Allan Dick/Don Peddie, Steven Marks, Ian Wilkins, Robin Sherriff, Dennis Knight , Karsten? (Mosgiel) , 'Dingle' (Lake Hawea) and Andy Giles.
I Have also found a F85 Olds engine that may be one if the 2 engines that Ross had for the car, it was sold to some one to put i a jetboat as was the one that I have found but it has been sitting in a hay barn for 15 yrs + unused in a apparently 'very' modified state. So I will continue to investigate this.
If anyone has any photos of the car in any form over the years I would love to see them so I can decide what colours and spec the car will be rebuilt in to.
Regards Andy Giles

[woody]

Andy, Are you any relation to Ted Giles in Dunedin. Ted had or has a genuine Mk1 Lotus Cortina.

[Andy G]

Yes he is my father.

[Steve Holmes]

Right we have got to the bottom of the owners of the Mk1 Escort V8 that I found in Lake Hawea after months of phone calls.
It turned out to the car I was hoping it was!
Owners are, from first to last, Roy Harrington, Don McMillan (metropolitan cranes) with Dave Silcock, Bob Homewood, Grant Aiken, Ross Cameron, Allan Dick/Don Peddie, Steven Marks, Ian Wilkins, Robin Sherriff, Dennis Knight , Karsten? (Mosgiel) , 'Dingle' (Lake Hawea) and Andy Giles.
I Have also found a F85 Olds engine that may be one if the 2 engines that Ross had for the car, it was sold to some one to put i a jetboat as was the one that I have found but it has been sitting in a hay barn for 15 yrs + unused in a apparently 'very' modified state. So I will continue to investigate this.
If anyone has any photos of the car in any form over the years I would love to see them so I can decide what colours and spec the car will be rebuilt in to.
Regards Andy Giles

Wow, Andy, thats great! Congratulations. Sounds like you saved an important car from certain death. It would have been killed on the speedway.

So is this the car you have?

Roy Harrington:

Dave Silcock:

Given it raced initially with a twin-cam, when was the V8 dropped in it?

[Andy G]

I presume it is bob Homewood would know he says it was the first Harrington escort and it was blue so I would think so. I only have pictures of it at this point when Ross cameron owned it and Ian Wilkins.

[Jac Mac]

[color="#0000CD"]If this is the car Im thinking of Bob was in the process of fitting it with the Olds motor when he did a deal with Grant Aitkens OSCA ~big bore Mini Clubman, I dont think Grant actually ever got the V8 Escort running or raceworthy before he bought the Ex Fahey Escort, so I am not sure which of the subsequent owners got it going in V8 form.. [/color]

[Andy G]

Jac it was Ross that got it going I believe. I have some photos at home of Ross racing that I will post but I'm working out of town for the week

[Andy G]

Andy, Are you any relation to Ted Giles in Dunedin. Ted had or has a genuine Mk1 Lotus Cortina.

yes and yes woody He still has the Lotus it has about 45k miles and totally original. He also still got the Rorstan Sports. Not sure how many years he has had them but Im 33 and Teds had them longer than Ive been around! In fact Ive only been for a ride in the Cortina once!

[GD66]

Jeez, Andy. Don't mean to derail the thread, but someone in the Bay Park thread mentioned Feo Stanton's Mercedes dealership in Tauranga the other day, and it occurred to me they had a dividing screen at the back of the showroom, behind which lurked the under-construction Rorstan sports car : unpainted but good-looking body, and Climax-powered. Could you briefly shed any light on its' subsequent race history, or even a pic ? Often wondered how it turned out.

[markec]

Cooper T53
"F2-8-60" A new car built late in 1960 but using the identity of one of the 1960 works F1 cars. Tommy Atkins (UK) 1961 for Bruce McLaren in Intercontinental - Bruce McLaren (UK) 1961 for 1962 New Zealand and Australian Internationals - David McKay (Australia) 1962 for Australian Gold Star - Bill Thomason (New Zealand) 1963 for New Zealand Gold Star - Feo Stanton and Ian Rorison (NZ) 1964 or 1965 and rebuilt as Rorstan Sports with 2.7-litre Climax ... Danie Lupp (NZ) 1970 ... Bob Moore (NZ) with 4.5-litre Oldsmobile and then 2-litre Vauxhall Victor ... Kerry Pennell (NZ) - Ted Giles (NZ) by late 1980's: retained 2001 still in Rorstan Sports specification. Ted Giles (NZ) 2001
Copied out of"oldracecars.com"

[GD66]

Incredible. Thanks a bunch !

[Andy G]

yeah from what I have found is that its been a club, rally, lotus t/c, osca I am getting some pictures from Australia of the car in 1977 when one of the owners Ian Wilkins (Ashburton) picked the car up from Dunedin. Apparently in his gold Capri with the trailer on the back and had to back down a very steep street. Ians brother in law who I got hold of thinks it had a v8 in it when Ian got the car and believed it is a factory T/C but we will see...Will let you Know it looks bloody terrible at the moment in matt black with lovely pink decals! I have striped some paint and its every colour, white roof and metalic blue sides,there is red and black and white and that was just the back l/h guard and the front l/h flare.
Andy Giles.

These photos are of the late Ian Wilkins with the First Harrington/metropolitan cranes escort we have. The photo of the car when it is black is as per when he brought the car without the Weatheral Jewellers decals and engineless. At this stage I believe Ian and Terry Butt his mechanic (backyard as he told me!) had put in the original t/c engine that they drove the Wellington to buy. Then the car was painted red I believe it first had a 12a rotary in it then a 13b pp. trophies are for 2nd in osca and 2nd in b class. The car was then stripped and the running gear was put into a rwd 323 and the shell was sold after a while under some trees. more pics to come. Andy.

[Andy G]

Ross Cameron in the F85 Escort in 1975? at Timaru. Car behind is a Cologne Capri with 302 engine ex Australia driver was John Dymond , Ross tells me the rear flares had just been put on by Robin Officer.

[pallmall]

Cooper T53
"F2-8-60" A new car built late in 1960 but using the identity of one of the 1960 works F1 cars. Tommy Atkins (UK) 1961 for Bruce McLaren in Intercontinental - Bruce McLaren (UK) 1961 for 1962 New Zealand and Australian Internationals - David McKay (Australia) 1962 for Australian Gold Star - Bill Thomason (New Zealand) 1963 for New Zealand Gold Star - Feo Stanton and Ian Rorison (NZ) 1964 or 1965 and rebuilt as Rorstan Sports with 2.7-litre Climax ... Danie Lupp (NZ) 1970 ... Bob Moore (NZ) with 4.5-litre Oldsmobile and then 2-litre Vauxhall Victor ... Kerry Pennell (NZ) - Ted Giles (NZ) by late 1980's: retained 2001 still in Rorstan Sports specification. Ted Giles (NZ) 2001
Copied out of"oldracecars.com"

There is a bit missing in the above. 1963 the car was driven by Chris Amon, he bought it back from Aussie and had the damage from David McKay's 'toilet' crash repaired. Bill Thomasen had it in 1964, painted red, it must have gone to Feo Stanton after this.

[Andy G]

74 or 75 Ross Cameron in the Escort running the F85 for the first time. Wigram Olds F85,Muncie m22, Holden torana LSD Rear 13" WheelsSorry for some reason the picture kept on turning upside down!

[Andy G]

RE : Rorstan Sports, I will get Ted to log in and talk on it but I think you are right Pallmall Im sure it cleanned out a toilet block in aus.....

[David McKinney]

Cooper T53
"F2-8-60" A new car built late in 1960 but using the identity of one of the 1960 works F1 cars. Tommy Atkins (UK) 1961 for Bruce McLaren in Intercontinental - Bruce McLaren (UK) 1961 for 1962 New Zealand and Australian Internationals - David McKay (Australia) 1962 for Australian Gold Star - Bill Thomason (New Zealand) 1963 for New Zealand Gold Star - Feo Stanton and Ian Rorison (NZ) 1964 or 1965 and rebuilt as Rorstan Sports with 2.7-litre Climax ... Danie Lupp (NZ) 1970 ... Bob Moore (NZ) with 4.5-litre Oldsmobile and then 2-litre Vauxhall Victor ... Kerry Pennell (NZ) - Ted Giles (NZ) by late 1980's: retained 2001 still in Rorstan Sports specification. Ted Giles (NZ) 2001
Copied out of"oldracecars.com"

This is fairly old info - in fact I think I may have supplied it to ORC about 20 years ago
I wouldn't have missed the Amon connection

Since it was written, it appears that there were three (at least) F2-8-60s:
1. The 1960 works car
2. The 1961 Atkins Intercontinental (and occasional F1) car
3. The 1962 NZ car. David McKay inspected this car before it raced in NZ, and says Bruce told him it was brand new

[Howard Wood]

David,
That is a fine example of the convoluted process needed to trace the history of specific cars and the apparent disregard for Chassis IDs by constructors of the period.
Can you expand on the reasons or series of events which led to these 3 cars carrying the same #no?

[Oldfart]

David,
.
Can you expand on the reasons or series of events which led to these 3 cars carrying the same #no?

What I was told on a visit to Coopers went along the lines "We could not afford more than 3 carnets at a time. I could tell what chassis plate was at a race meeting, but could not be have any confidence of what it was attached to"