1956 Fiat 306/2 Bartoletti

Fiat 306/2 Bartoletti transporter at the Le Mans Classic 2016

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Fiat, Turin, Italy.   This is a very famous and much travelled racing car transporter.  Maserati actually owned it first and had Bartoletti convert the 1956 Fiat bus chassis into a racing car transporter.   After Maserati withdrew from F1 racing in 1957 they sold the transporter to Lance Reventlow who needed one for his Scarab cars. Scarab raced in F1 in 1960 and in Formula intercontinental in 1961. In 1962 Scarab folded and the transporter was bought by Caroll Shelby. Shelby added the third axle which was needed for the weight of his Cobras.  After Shelby stopped using it, it went to Team Lotus and then Alan Mann Racing.   The next owner was David Piper, who rented it to Steve McQueen for the film Le Mans.  In the film it appears in a number of different colour schemes!  The Fiat originally had a Fiat 12 cylinder engine but at some stage that was replaced by a 11.5 litre Leyland 6 cylinder.   

1952 Jaguar XK120 C Type

Nigel Webb, Jaguar C Type - Le Mans Classic 2016

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Jaguar Cars, Coventry, England.  The C of C type stood for Competition, there was no A or B type.  It was the first Jaguar to win Le Mans, doing so on its first attempt in 1951 and then again in 1953.  Th chassis had the engine and running gear of the Jaguar XJ120 in a special tubular frame and lightweight low drag aluminium body.  The 6 cylinder 3.4 litre engine was specially tuned to produce over 200bhp.  Over 50 C types were made in period and many replicas since.  As well as wining at Le Mans, C Types won the Tourist Trophy in 1951 and the Reims 12 hours in 1953 plus many minor national and international races. The car pictured above was the first privately owned C-Type Jaguar and was owned by Duncan Hamilton.  In his autobiography Duncan Hamilton said the C Type was last sports racing car that was equally as home being driven on the road and on the track.  

1982 Rondeau M382-Cosworth Group C

Mr John of B, Rondeau M382, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Rondeau, Le Mans, France.  After winning at Le Mans in 1980, Rondeau produced a new design for the new Group C formula.  However the M482 was not ready in the first year so they used the existing chassis with a modified body and new suspension in 1982.  This was the M382.  Rondeau even sold some customer cars and thus some were raced at Daytona that year where they were classified 31st and 34th but later in the year came 3rd at Sears Point.  The works cars were more successful in Europe.  In round 1 of the World Endurance championship at Monza, Henri Pescarolo and Giorgio Francia won in the new Rondeau. They also finished second in the Nurburgring 1000km but were the first Group C car home and fifth at Silverstone where they were the third group C car home. This gave them the championship lead going into Le Mans. Unfortunately, the reliability of the Cosworth engine proved not to be sufficient for the 24 hours and the two OTIS works cars retired, and a private entry could only finish 15th.  A fifth place at Spa meant that they only finish second to Porsche in the Championship.  But what a great effort for this small manufacturer.  Otis were disappointed that they lost only because Porsche could score with a non-Group C car at the Nurburgring.

1989/1991 Cheetah G606 / SGR001 / ROC 002

Eric Richenbacher, 1989 Cheetah G606, le Mans Classic Group C Racing 2016.

ROC / Chuck Graemiger, Switzerland.  This rare Group C rare was produced by Chuck Graemiger and Racing Organisation Course and went through a number of name changes.  It only appeared at Le Mans and Magny Cours in 1991 where it started but failed to finish.  The drivers were Pascal Fabre and Bernard Thuner.  It had a Cosworth DFR engine and a carbon fibre monocoque.  The car was designed to sell to privateers but Group C was declining and it never happened.   It now appears as a welcome participant in historic racing.  First known as a Cheetah like Chuck's first Aston Martin engined car, it quickly became an ROC and an SGR.

1993 Peugeot 905 Evo 1 Bis Group C

Dominique Guénat, Peugeot 905 Evo Bis, Le Mans Classic Group C Racing 2016.

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Peugeot,  Vélizy-Villacoubray, France.  The Porsche 905 made its debut part way through the 1990 Sports Car championship and proved immediately to one of the fastest 3.5 litre cars.  In 1991 they completed a full season but were not as fast as the Jaguars. They did however win at Susuka but retired at Le Mans. Towards the end of the season they improved the aerodynamics with the Evo B model.  It then went on to win at Magny Cours and Mexico and thus Peugeot clinched second place in the Championship.  In 1992 with the main competition from Toyota, Peugeot won 5 out of 6 rounds of the Championship including the Le Mans 24 hours.   Yannick Dalmas and Derek Warwick won the drivers championship and with Mark Blundell, Le Mans as well.  In 1993 Group C racing imploded and thus the Peugeot team concentrated just on the Le Mans 24 hours with the Evo 1 model that they had ran the previous year rather than the Evo Bis 2 they had started to develop.  At Le Mans they managed a 1-2-4 victory with Eric Hélary, Christophe Bouchot and Geoff Brabham driving the lead car.  Following this, Peugeot used the engined for its F1 programme with somewhat less success.

1974 Dodge Charger 7.0L Hemi V8

Christophe Schwartz, 1974 7 litre Dodge Charger Hemi V8, Lr Mans Classic 2016.

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Chrysler, USA.  In the seventies there was a class for NASCAR cars at Le Mans in order to try and attract more cars following the fuel crisis.  In 1976 Herschel Mc Griff, a long time American stock car driver,  brought over an Olympia beer sponsored Dodge Charger in the colours pictured above to Le Mans . Unfortunately it only finished a couple of laps before retiring as the European fuel didn't suit the car because it had the wrong octane level.   The original car was lost but Christophe Schwartz has created a replica using a Petty prepared Grand National car that won the the 1977 USAC Stock Car championship winning car as a base. Top speed of the original car was 215mph along the Mulsanne straight.  The 1973 type Dodge Charge was a favourite amongst drivers of the time in NACAR and USAC racing.  In 1977 Paul Feldner drove the car above to its USAC title.  In 2016 Christophe Schwartz finished in the top half of the field in the Le Mans Classic just behind the ex-Robin Hamilton Aston Martin.

1978 Rondeau M378-DFV

Marc Devis & Martin O'Connell, 1978 Rondeau M378 - Cosworth,  Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Rondeau, Le Mans, France.  This was the first of the cars to bear Jean Rondeau's name, although previously he had built the Inaltera cars that had borne the name of the wallpaper manufacturer.  This car was built just to race at Le Mans and was powered by an endurance version of the Cosworth DFV engine.   It was similar to the Inaltera but it had a longer tail and partly cover rear wheels. The aerodynamic body was designed by Bureau de Design Ovale.  As with the Inalteras it was entered in the GTP class rather than Group 6 that Porsche dominated.  With Jean Rondeau, Bernard Darniche and Jacky Haran driving it finished ninth in the 1978 Le Mans 24 hours and won its class.   In 1980 Jean Rondeau would go on to win Le Mans in a car bearing his name, the only man to have done so.  Sadly, he was killed near Le Mans on a level crossing when his car was hit by a train.

1975 Moynet LM75

1975 Moynet LM75, Le Mans Classic 2016

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Moynet, France.  André Moynet had a colourful career as fighter pilot, test pilot, politician and entrepreneur.  After a couple of unsuccessful attempts to start at Le Mans, in 1975 he conceived this car.  He obtained support from Esso, a Porsche gearbox and a 2 litre 4 cylinder 190 hp engine from Chyrsler Simca.  The car was entered in Group 5 and had three women drivers - Christine Dacremont, Marianne Hoepfner and Michèle Mouton.  Incredibly, after technical problems early on, it went on to win its class, albeit in 21st place overall.

1979 Lancia Beta Monte Carlo Group 5

Mr John of B & David Ferrer, 1979 Lancia Betat Grp V, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Lancia, Turin, Italy.  Lancia Corse collaborated with Dallara on the Chassis, Pininfarina on the body and Abarth on the mechanicals to make this Group 5 silhouette car of the Lancia Beta Montecarlo.  The engine developed by Abarth was a 1,425cc turbo but it developed over 400bhp.  The car competed successfully in the 1979 and 1980 World Championship of Makes, winning the 2 litre class in both years. Overall race wins came at Brands Hatch, Mugello and Watkins Glen.  For 1981 it was given a bigger engine.  

1973 Gulf Mirage M6-Cosworth DFV.

1973 Gulf Mirage, Le Mans Classic 2016, Chris MacAllister.

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J.W. Automotive Engineering, Slough, England.  Produced by John Wyer's company after the Ford GT and Porsche 917 projects, this Group 5 sports car was powered by a 3 litre Cosworth DFV.  Its only win came in the 1973 Spa 1000 kilometres driven by Derek Bell and Mike Hailwood.  It retired at le mans after 163 laps.  This was a great era when Matras, Ferrari, Alfa Romeos, private Porsches and the Gulf Mirage were competing.

1963 Alpine M63

Jean-Charles Rédélé, 1963 Alpine M63, Le Mans Classic 2016, Plateau 4.

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Apline, Dieppe, France.  This was the first sports racing car developed by Alpine. Designed in 1962 it competed from 1963 to 1965.   It had a 1 litre Renault Gordini T55 engine, chassis designed by Boyer and Bouleau, suspension designed by Len Terry and a plastic berlinette body designed by Marcel Hubert.  In 1963 it won its class at the Nurburgring.  In 1964 it won its class at Le Mans and won the Index of Thermal Efficiency.  A beautiful and successful little car.  

1965 Bizzarrini 5300 GT

Malte Fromm, 1965 Bizzarrini 5300 GT, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Bizzarrini, Livorno, Italy.  Giotto Bizzarrini worked for a number of the prestigious Italian sports car companies but after being fired by Ferrari in 1963 set off on his own but also worked in collaboration with Rivolta's Iso company.    This collaboration produced the 5300 GT which was powered by a 5.3 litre Chevolet V8 engine.  It was front engined but had an engine very close to the cockpit.  Both racing and road version were built.  The Bizzarrini 5300 GT and the Iso Grifo AC3/C  are basically the same with Bizzarrini name being used after Rivolta's death.  They raced and in 1964 one racing under the Iso name finished 14th and won its class at Le Mans.

1968 Alpine Renault A220

Besson & Dougnac, 1968 Alpine Renaault A220, Le Mans Classic 2016.

Alpine Renault, Dieppe, France.  The A220 was the biggest capacity car that Alpine had produced to date.  It was built for the new 3 litre prototype regulations that came into place in 1968.  Alpine got Gordini to join two of their 1.5 litre 4 cylinder engines together to produce a 3 litre V8.  However, it proved less powerful than the competition at only 310bhp.  The A220 chassis was a modified A210 chassis but it didn't handle as well with the bigger engine.  It was, however, reliable and it finished 8th at Le Mans in 1968.

1969 Aston Martin DBS V8 RHAM/1

Paul Chase-Gardener & David Allen, ex-Robin Hamilton Aston Martin V8, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Aston Martin, Newport Pagnell, England.  Robin Hamilton, an Aston Martin dealer, was the privateer who took Aston Martin back to Le Mans in 1977 and a number of years thereafter.  In 1977 the car was a modified 1969 DBS 5.3L V8 with a turbocharger and aerodynamic mods.  Driven by Robin Hamilton, Dave Preece and Mike Salmon they finished 17th and third in the GTP class.  The car was nicknamed "the Muncher" as it ate brake pads due to its weight, or in France as "Le Petit Camion" because of its size. The car also raced at Silverstone that year in the 6 hours where it ran in the top ten.  The car produced 520bhp and achieved 188mph at Le Mans on the Mulsanne straight.

1978 Renault Alpine A443

Jean Ragnotti & Alain Serpaggi, Renault Alpine A443, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Alpine, Dieppe, France.  This Group 6 sports racing car was built by Alpine with a 2.1 litre turbo-charged Renault engine.  The chassis was similar to the previous A442 but had an enlarged Renault V6 engine in a slightly lengthened chassis.  At the Le Mans 24 hours in 1978 it was the fastest car in the field driven by Jean-Pierre Jabouille and Patrick Depailler but retired after 18 hours.  It's pace, however, had also broken the Porsches and thus an earlier A442B was able to take the win.  The cars had over 500bhp and could easily exceed 20 mph on the Mulsanne straight.  This was the car's only major race and thereafter Ranault concentrated on F1.

1929 Bentley Blower 4.5L

J.Ernst, Blower Bentley, Le Mans Classic 2016.

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Bentley, Cricklewood, England.  Tim Birkin, the famous Bentley driver, came up with the idea of supercharging the 4.5 litre Bentley as a way of beating the supercharged Alfa Romeos of the time.   The idea did not meet with the approval of W.O.Bentley who favoured building a bigger engine to keep the reliability that had proved one of Bentley's strong points.  Nevertheless, Tim Brikin persuaded the Bentley chairman Woolf Barnato to build over fifty super-charged examples so that they could enter the 1930 Le Mans.  The supercharged or blower Bentleys had a top speed advantage of about 12mph over the non-blown versions. The blower bentley's did as, W.O. had predicted, prove unreliable.  Neither of the two blown cars finished the 1930 Le Mans 24 hours.  However, Tim Birkin did finish second in that year's French GP in the blown Bentley behind a Bugatti Type 35.

1990 Nissan R90CK Group C

Katsu Kubota, Nissan R90CK, Le Mans Classic Group C Racing 2016.

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Nissan, Yokohama, Japan.  The Nissan R90CK was an evolution of the R90C that ran in the 1990 World Sportscar Championship. It was a collaboration between Nissan and Ray Mallock Limited.  In 1990 the car finished third in the Spa 480km, and the Dijon 480km, and second in the Montreal 480km and Mexico 480km.  in 1991 it finished second in the Daytona 24 hours.  Drivers included Mark Blundell, Kenny Acheson, Julian Bailey, Bob Earl, Derek Daly, Chip Robinson and Geoff Brabham. The car was powered by a Nissan 3.5 litre twin turbo V8.

1990 Spice SE90C Group C

Eric De Doncker,  Spice SE90C, Le Mans Classic Group C Racing 2016.

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Spice Engineering, Brackley, England.  Spice Engineering was founded by long time driver and team owner Gordon Spice and his brother Derek with funding from Ray Belm.  This, the SE90C, was one of the final cars produced by Spice Engineering.  It was for the 3.5 litre Group C when Spice found itself competing in the main category rather than C2 which it had dominated.  It had a Ford Cosworth DFR V8 engine.  Best results were 3rd at the Silverstone and Donington 480km events in 1990.  Drivers included Bruno Giacomelli and Tim Harvey.

1992 Lola T92/10 Group C

Peter Garrod, Lola T92/10, Le Mans Classic Group C racing 2016.

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Lola Cars, Slough, England.  This was a car built by Lola as a Lola customer car, after years of building the cars for the Chevrolet and Nissan sports car teams.  It was designed by Wiet Huidekoper, but only three were made as Group C quickly came to an end in the early nineties.   The chassis and body were carbon fibre and was powered by a 3.5 litre Judd V10, derived from the F1 engine, through a 6 speed Lola gearbox.  Best result was a fourth place at Donington in the 500kms driven by Heinz-Harald Frentzen and Phil Andrews who were in the Euro Racing team.  The same car finished thirteenth at Le Mans.

1990 Mercedes-Benz C11 Group C

Shaun Lynn, Mercedes-Benz C11, Le Mans Classic Group C racing 2016

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Mercedes-Benz/Sauber, Germany/Switzerland.   This was the first of the Sauber built Group C cars to carry the Mercedes-Benz name.  It superceded the Sauber C9 and used the same Mercedes-Benz M119 5.0 litre V8 engine as its predecessor.  Top speed was over 250 mph.  It did not compete at Le Mans in 1990, concentrating on winning the World Sports-Prototype Championship.  It scored one-two finishes at Monza, Dijon, Nurburgring, Donington plus wins at Spa, Montreal and Mexico.  It continued to have podium finishes at Susuka and Monza in 1991.  It competed at Le Mans in the 24 hours in 1991 and finished fifth.   Drivers included Michael Schumacher, Jochen Mass, Karl Wendlinger and Heinz-Harald Frentzen.  Mario Baldi and Jean-Louis Schlesser won the World Sports-Prototype championship for drivers in the car and Team Sauber Mercedes the constructors title in 1990.