The Bruce Wells Collection - Oran Park - Part 1

[Steve Holmes]

Richard, thanks for this. I assume by your username you have a connection with this car?

[Cannan Morris]

Yes Steve, I have owned the car for quite some time & I'm at present working on it to get it back on track, a bit of a mystery car I couldn't find a single photo of its early life. A few years ago I was able to find the original driver, John Channon thanks to the ease of the internet, he then supplied some much needed photos for me to go on, he was the Singer Car Club Captain & told me that when the club initially got Oran Park Circuit laid out & graded the car was the very first car to put its wheels on the track & drive completly round start to finish. The car was designed & built by Colin Cannan & John Channon when they were young fellows that wanted to go racing.
Cheers Richard.

[Steve Holmes]

Richard, thanks so much for this. I'd love to see more photos of the car, and find out how you came to own it. What amazing history to have been the first car to complete a full lap of OP. Please feel free to create a dedicated thread on this car Richard, I know it would be of great interest.

[howardvs]

Is car 47 the Citroen Special of Don James?

[Dale Harvey]

Yes.
Dale.

[Steve Holmes]

Is car 47 the Citroen Special of Don James?

Thanks for the info.

[bootlegger]

SOME of these cars are what we want for the "Going Even Older" class.
The Bambina is well modded, radiator shows not very Fiat!

My name is dave pagano and i am the current owner of warick holyoaks amazing little racer.
Warwick actually directed me to this forum.
The car has had a wonderful adventure being bought almost new by warwick in italy. Warwicks family owned cc tyres and sponsored one of the corners at oran park.
He then drove it around europe for eighteen months before shipping it here.
It seems to me that it became a race car as soon as it landed.
The transformation of this car into a sprite powered special was gradual but eventually it became a force to be reckoned with it its class holding the oran pk lap record in 61 and 62.
I bought the car off warwick in 2008.
It has a heavily modified sprite engine with the stan brown crafted alloy tail extension.
Up front it has fj holden brakes with the wheels cut down to twelve inches.
I am restoring the car in its second last guise with non cut down front gaurds and the radiator mounted inside the bonnet area.
The body is almost ready for paint and all the machining for the engine is done.
I have been to a few historic car meets. Ive tried to find out what class it would run in.
When i describe the car the officials look at me like i have two heads. I have no idea what class it would fit into.
I am very interested in boat racing history also and have a pretty large collection of vintage raceboats old cars trucks and bikes.
One of my boats is powered by a rolls merlin and won everything there was to win here in the late sixties early seventies.
I plan to have this car done this year. I want warwick to run her again.
Any other info regsrding the car would be greatly appreciated. I cant wait to see this car run.
I too thinks its a little weapon. Dave 0413766501

[Steve Holmes]

Hi there Dave, sorry I hadn't replied to your post sooner, as you can see the forum gets a bit quiet at this time of year.

Thanks so much for joining the site and posting about the Fiat. I'd love to see any other photos you can share, and also how the restoration is coming along. Please feel free to create a dedicated thread for the car, it certainly deserves to have its own thread. I can only imagine what officials must think when you mention the car. I know there are plans under way to bring together some historic sports sedan grids, and this is certainly where this car needs to be, although it really pre-dates sports sedans. This would be one of the cars that eventually spawned the sports sedan phenomenon, and deserves to be recognised for this.

[bootlegger]

Thanks steve. At present i am setting up a new workshop so all my projects are on the back burner.
I plan to have the fiat done mid year.
I have no idea how to post pics. Im happy to forward you a couple of emails with lots of pics.
Some are already on this thread.
My plan for the car is to just get it done. Run at wakefeild pk gear days. Im figuring i can run in regularity. Plus i need to get a COD.
I am also gathering parts to build a maserati 450s replica.

[Steve Holmes]

Dave, please feel free to email me any photos you'd like posted up here, I'll create a thread and post the photos, and you can fill in the details. Would be of huge interest here.