Tag Archives: Colmar

Major Reliability Leap – Hispano Amilcar Special

The motor powering Robin Baker’s 2 speed, chain drive 1930 Hispano Amilcar Special is a 1916 Hispano Suiza V8 aircraft engine.

Hispano Amilcar Special, Robin Baker, VSCC Prescott

Marc Birkigt’s HS8 design with a swept volume of 11,760 cc / 717 cui originally produced 140hp and was only accepted for use by the French Military after it had passed a 50 hour full speed test, more than three times longer than any comparable test held hitherto.

Hispano Amilcar Special, Robin Baker, VSCC Loton Park,

After demonstrating it’s major leap in reliability a new SPAD S.VII fighter was quickly designed around the new motor which helped the Entente, British, French and Russian, air forces regain air superiority during the 1914-18 war.

Hispano Amilcar Special, Robin Baker, VSCC Prescott

By the time production of HS8 motors ceased in the mid 1920’s they were producing 300hp and they had been built under licence in 21 different factories under licence in Spain, France, Britain, Italy, and in the United States where they were recognised as superior to the Curtiss OX5 V8.

Hispano Amilcar Special, Robin Baker, VSCC Loton Park

By 1930 I believe the only Amilcar chassis being built large and substantial enough to carry a 185 kg / 407 lbs HS8 would probably have been a C8 which would have originally been fitted with a 2 liter / 122 cui or 2.3 litre / 140 cui straight 8.

Thanks for joining me on this “Major Reliability Leap” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be visiting the Avenue Drivers Club. Don’t forget to come back now !

Shafer 8 – Rigling Buick

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Like the Wonder Bread Special I looked at last year today’s featured chassis is credited as being the handy work of Herman Rigling who is said to have built no fewer than 8 of the 40 chassis that started the 1931 Indy 500.

Rigling Buick, Silverstone Classic,

Foremost of the 8 entries that Herman had a hand in building was the Buick powered #12 example driven Phil Schafer known as the Schafer 8 which started 23rd and finished 12th.

Rigling Buick, Heinz Bachmann, Silverstone Classic,

The following season Phil returned to Indy to drive the #33 Shafer 8 Rigling Buick from 26th on the grid through to an 11th place finish.

Rigling Buick, Silverstone Classic,

In 1933 Phil was absent from the Indy 500 grid having failed to qualify the #7 Abels Fink Auto Special in an officially sanctioned qualifying session, he did qualify on the morning of the race, but officials realised they had overstepped their jurisdiction by allowing the running of a qualifying session on race day morning !

However the #8 Abels Fink Auto Special, Phil’s Shafer 8 dating back to 1931 , was driven by H W Stubblefield from 10th on the grid to a fifth place finish.

Rigling Buick, Silverstone Classic,

Phil entered two Shafer 8’s for the 1934 Indy 500, it would appear his original Rigling Buick was entered as the #36 for Al Miller and his mechanician Pinky Donaldson while Phil and mechanician Earle Frost drove the #26 Shafer 8.

Rigling Buick, Silverstone Classic,

Al drove to a 6th place finish from 8th on the grid while Phil starting from an Indy 500 career high 6th on the grid recorded his only Indy 500 retirement with a broken cam shaft drive after completing 130 laps to be classified 16th in his last drive at the Brickyard.

Rigling Buick, Silverstone Classic,

Phil continued competing in the AAA championship until 1936 and continued to participate in the Pikes Peak Hillclimb until 1952.

Heinz Bachmann is seen at the wheel of a Rigling Buick above that is believed to be the Shafer 8 that Phil Shafer failed to qualify at Indy in 1933 but with which Paul won the AAA non Championship race at Elgin Illinois, as described at the end of the post by John Glenn Printz, and raced in his final Indy start in 1934.

My thanks to Vitesse2 and Michael Ferner at the Nostalgia Forum for their help with some of the details in today’s story, I highly recommend reading Michael’s retelling of the 1933 Indy 500 qualification saga part 1 of which appears linked here and part 2 linked here with the race report linked here.

Thanks for joining me on this “Shafer 8” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow when I’ll be looking at a DIY Backie. Don’t forget to come back now !

Brynfan Tyddyn Winner – Kieft CK52

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After a brief and unsuccessful attempt at hillclimbing in a Marwyn 500 Swansea born Cyril Kieft ended up buying the Marwyn company when it folded.

8 or 9 Kieft Mk 1’s incorporating Marwyn parts and ideas were manufactured for the 1950 season with the works teams greatest achievement being the capture of 13 records in the 350cc and 500 cc class at Monterey using Norton Engines and with Stirling Moss, Ken Gregory (Moss’ manager) and Jack Neill doing the driving.

Stirling and Ken had plans to build their own 500 Formula 3 car to beat the predominant Coopers for 1951, but were short of finance.

Kieft CK52, Race Retro, Stoneleigh

When they approached Cyril with the idea of employing Ray Martin to design and build a car to Stirling’s specifications Cyril agreed and with Stirling aged just 21 and Ken as co directors Kieft Car Construction Ltd, a new entity, was founded in Wolverhampton.

The CK51 with a Norton engine was an immediate success with Moss scoring a debut win, 27 seconds ahead of Alan Brown’s Cooper Mk V at Goodwood in May 1951, unfortunately Stirling’s growing list of commitments elsewhere meant the main beneficiary of the new Kieft would be Don Parker.

After testing Stirling’s prototype Kieft Don bought a Kieft CK51 and incorporated many of his own idea’s into it. With his personalised Kieft Don won the 1952 Autosport Formula 3 Championship, Light Car Challenge and Veterans Trophy and the national title again in 1953 missing out on a hatrick by just one point to Les Leston in 1954.

Kieft CK52, Race Retro, Stoneleigh,

Ironically while Don Parker was clocking up 30 wins during the 1953 season Stirling concluded that the Cooper Mark IV was a better bet than the Kieft CK52, like the one seen in these photographs, and he resigned as director of Kieft as a result.

This particular car was sold to Dick Irish of Cleveland Ohio who raced it to numerous victories the most notable of which was the Brynfan Tyddyn Challenge Cup run over a road course north of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

Kieft moved on to building Formula 2 cars in 1953 and aborted Formula One project intended for the 1954 season.

Kieft CK52, Race Retro, Stoneleigh,

Don Parker kept faith with Kieft until 1956 when he too inevitably bought a Cooper.

Today’s featured car returned to the UK in 2005 and after it was restored was raced by Nigel Ashman who drove it to the 500cc Owners Association Club Championship title in 2010.

Thanks for joining me on this “Brynfan Tyddyn Winner” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

100 Grannies Knitting – FIAT 2300S Coupé

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At the 1960 Turin Motor Show FIAT showed off a new Coupé based on the soon to be manufactured FIAT 2300 saloon chassis and running gear and with a body styled by Sergio Sartorelli at Ghia, who with hind site produced a 4 seat vehicle not unlike the contemporary Sergio Pininfarina styled Ferrari 250 GT/E.