1976 Marcadier Barquette Can Am

Tony Gomis, Marcadier Can Am, Course de Cote d'Etretat-Benouville 2015.

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Marcadier, Lyon, France.  This French kit car maker made a number of Renaut or Simca powered cars that looked like Can-Am cars in the early to mid seventies.  Most had Renault 8 Gordini engines. This one has a 1,598cc Renault R12 engine, unusually a Hewland rather than a Renault gearbox and a non-standard rear wing.  It is mainly raced by Londoner Tony Gomis in English hillclimbs and sprints and who has had the car since 2000.

Read about another beautiful Marcadier car, the Barzoi, by clicking on this link. 

1963 Abarth-Simca 1300 GT

The Teisserenc's Abarth-Simca 1300 GT, Tour Auto 2016

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Abarth, Turin, Italy. The Abarth-Simca 1300 GT was produced from 1962 to 1965.  It was based on a Simca 1000 after Simca went to Abarth to get a faster version of their basic car.  With the new Abarth aerodynamic aluminium body, based on the Bialberobore,  it is difficult to see any resemblance to the original Simca.  The engine was a new straight four1300cc dry sump twin cam unit designed by Abarth..  Disc brakes were standard.  It was of course rear engine rear wheel drive.  It was capable of over 140mph and could do 0-60 in about 6 seconds!   A very desirable small sports coupé in terms both of looks and performance.  Not surprisingly they were very successful on the race circuit, apparently scoring 90 victories in 1963 alone. They race with their boots open to help cool the engine.

Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint

Dominique Geoffray and Agnès Bonnet, Alfa Romeo Giulietta Sprint, Tour Auto 2016.

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Alfa Romeo, Milan, Italy.  The Giulietta was produced from 1954 to 1965 and normally had a twin cam straight four 1,300cc engine.  The sprint model was a two door Coupé instead of the 4 door saloon or convertible Spyder version.  Like all Alfas these were raced and rallied successfully including in the last Mille Miglia.

Note:  On the Tour Auto entry list this is described as a 1962 Alfa Romeo Giulia 1300GT but surely it is a Giulietta Sprint.  Comments please.

1950 Aston Martin DB2

Laurent & Marion Desplaces, Aston Matin DB2, Tour Auto 2016

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Aston Martin, Feltham, England.  The DB2 was produced from 1950 to 1953.  It had a straight 6 2.6 litre engine.   The first 49 had a chrome framed front grille split into three and side vents as in the photo above. After this it was a one piece non-framed grille and had no side vents as in the photo below. They had 2 seats and space for luggage behind.  According to contemporary road test reports hey were capable of 110mph and they had a 0-60mph time of around 12.5 seconds.  The works team entered them in the 1950 Le Mans 24 hours and they finished fifth and sixth and won the 3 litre class.  Contemporary drivers included Reg Parnell, George Abercassis, Eric Thompson, Raymond Sommer and Lance Macklin.  In the 1951 Tour de France a DB2 finished and was placed 15th.

1953 Aston Martin DB2, Tour Auto 2016

Alfa Romeo 1900 CSS

Adrien Cathiard, Alfa Romeo 1900 CSS, Tour Auto 2016.

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Alfa Romeo, Milan, Italy.  The 1900 was the first of the post war Alfa Romeo models and the first produced on a production line rather than being hand built.  The CSS was a top of the range model built in the early to mid fifties with the letters standing for Corto (short wheelbase) Super Sprint.  Not that many CSS were built and they had five speed gear boxes.  The sprint versions were coupés and thus had just two doors.  They had 1.9 litre inline 4 cylinders engines.  There were a number of body stlyes depending on the coachbuilder.  Like most Alfas a number were raced and rallied in the fifties and now compete in historic events.

1970 Plymouth Hemicuda

Christophe Schwartz, Plymouth Hemicuda, 2016 Tour Auto.

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Plymouth (part of Chrysler0, Michigan, USA.  The Plymouth Barracuda was produced from 1964 to 1974.  The car above is a third generation model.  The Hemis were the large engined 426ci versions with uprated suspension.  Chrysler France raced the Chrysler Hemi 'Cudas successfully during 1970 to 1973, winning a number of Group 1 championships and hillclimbs driven by Henri Chemin. They were also raced in the Trans-Am series, less successfully,  by Dan Gurney and Swede Savage.

1973 Ferrari Dino 246GT

Ferrari Dino 246GT, Tour Auto 2016

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Ferrari, Maranello, France.  Dino was a marque that Ferrari set up as an affordable sports car.  They had a yellow Dino badge rather than the famous prancing horse.  Nowadays the Dino 246GT is accepted as a Ferrari by all except the absolute purists.  The Dino was named after Enzo Ferrari's son who died young.  The 246GT was a 2.4 litre 6 cylinder engined mid-engined coupé.  Although the preceding 206GT was the real racing car, the 246GT did appear at a number of big and small events in privateer hands.

1961 Peugeot 403

1961 Peugeot 403, 2016 Tour Auto

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Peugeot, Paris, France.  The 403 was a long lived model being produced from 1955 to 1966 and the body was styled by Pininfarina.  The convertible model was made famous in the US detective series Columbo but more than a million of the saloons were made.  It was mainly powered by a 1.5 litre straight 4 engine.  In rallies it was rather successful winning the 1955 Rally Finland amongst others.

Siata 208S

Siata 208S, Tour Auto 2016

Siata, Turin, Italy.  Siata stood for Societa Italiana Auto Trasformazioni Accessori.  Between 1952 and 1955 they produced over 30 of these 208S sports cars.  They were powered by a 2 litre 8V Fiat engine.  The car was available either as an open car or with a hardtop. The most famous owner was Steve McQueen who raced one at Palm Springs.

1954 Studebaker Champion

Studebaker Champion, 2016 Tour Auto 

Studebaker Corporation, South Bend, Indiana, USA.  The car above is a 4th generation Champion that was produced from 1953 to 1956.  It was powered by a 2,7 litre or 3 litre straight 6.  One came 52nd on the 1954 Tour de France Automobile. Since the Carrera Panamericana was revived in the late eighties, Studebaker Champions have had multiple wins.

1959 Jaguar Mk1 Saloon

Pierre Le Gloahec-Heneannff and Ombeline de Clermont-Tonnerre, Jaguar Mk1, Tour Auto 2016, Sens Les Gaillards Special Stage

More photos of the 2016 Tour Auto coming soon on Rouen-les-afx.blogspot.fr

Jaguar Cars, Coventry, England, The Jaguar Mk1 was of course the predecessor of the more famous and iconic Jaguar MkII and was a luxury 4 door saloon.  It was produced from 1955 to 1959 and had 2.4 litre and 3.4 litre engines.  The large engine was mainly for the American market.  In the late fifties many famous drivers such as Mike Hawthorn, Stirling Moss, Tommy Sopwith, Ivor Bueb and Roy Salvadori drove them in salon car races and rallies with some success.  Mike Hawthorn unfortunately died driving his own modified Jaguar Mk1 3.4 litre saloon on the Guilford by-pass in early 1959.

Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe

Shelby Cobra Daytona Coupe, Magny Couras Classic Days 2014

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Shelby American, Venice, California, USA.  The Daytona Coupe was built as a specific project based on the AC Cobra to defeat the Ferrari 250 GTO in GT racing.  Only six were built in period but were very successful winning their class in ten major races during 1964 and 1965 and becoming World Manufacturers Champions for GT cars in 1965. Famous drivers included Phil Hill, Chris Amon, Jo Schlesser, Innes Ireland, Jochen Neerpasch, Bob Bondurant, Maurice Trintignant, Jack Sears, Dick Thompson, John Whitmore and Peter Sutcliffe.  Since the sixties many replicas have been made.  The original cars were powered by big 4.7 litre and 7.0 litre Ford V8 engines.  It was named the Daytona as the 1964 2000km Endurance race at Daytona was its first event.

Marcadier Barzoi

Didier Thorin, Marcadier Barzoi, Course de Cotes de Sancerre 2014.

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Marcadier, Lyon, France.  These cars built from 1967 to 1976 are very pretty little French sports cars.  They were made by André Marcedier who was inspired by Colin Chapman of Lotus fame.  He built a series of kit cars including this Barzoi coupé with gullwing doors.  I believe the original car had a 1,300cc Renault R8 engine but of course some have been re-engined over the years.  In 1968 one took a good eighth place in  the GP de Paris at Montlhery in a race won by Johnny-Servoz Gavin in a Matra.

Thomas Cheetah

Thmas Cheetah, Magny Cours Classic Days 2014

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Bill Thomas Race Cars, Anaheim, USA.  Bill Thomas developed the Cheetah with GM funding as a competitor to the Ford Shelby Cobras.  They had Thomas tuned Chevrolet 327 V8 engines that were very powerful.  It was a project that lasted from 1963 to 1966.  Around 10 to 20 were built originally in period but many replicas have been built since. The first cars were made with aluminium bodies but this was quickly replaced with fibre glass. The project ended after homologation rules were changed.  In any case the Cheetah had a few handling and overheating issues that effected its race performance.  Ralph Salyer won eleven minor events in the USA in a Cheetah but it never really became a Cobra beater.  Another was used in drag racing in the USA.

Healey Silverstone

Healey Silverstones at Chanteloup-les-Vignes in 2014

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For more photos of a re-run on one of the World's most oldest hillclimb venues, click on the link above.

Donald Healey Motor Co, Warwick, England.  Over 100 of these two seater open sports cars were built in 1949 and 1950 for racing, road use or both.  It had a 2.5 litre 4 cyl Riley engine and a lightweight body.  Top speed was around 110mph and acceleration from 0-60mph at around 11 seconds.  It was successful in racing and rallies driven by Donald Healey and others. The Healey Silverstone won its class and came second overall first time out in the Alpine Rally in 1949 driven by Donald Healey and Ian Appleyard.  It also won its class on the Liege-Rome-Liege rally in 1951.

Marcos GT

Marcos GT, Boullay-Thierry 2014

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Marcos, Bradford upon Avon, England.  Jem Marsh and Frank Costin founded Marcos and they produced some beautiful GT cars like the one pictured with a variety of engines from Ford, Triumph and Volvo.  A peculiarity of the Marcos GT was its plywood chassis, although in later models it was changed to the more conventional steel. Another unusual feature was the movable padals that made it a good sports car for tall drivers. The body was fibre glass.  The GT started it life in 1963 and continued until the company went bust in 1971.  Marcos GTs were raced by many including Jem Marsh himself who even tried but failed to qualify one at Le Mans.

Alpine Renault A110

Alpine Renault A110, Tour Auto 2015.

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Alpine Renault, Dieppe, France.   The Alpine Renault is undoubtedly the classic French sports car of the sixties and seventies.  It was first produced in 1961 and continued to be produced until 1977.  Over its life it was powered by a variety of Renault engines ranging from 1.0 litres to 1.6 litres.  The A110 was a very successful rally car in the early seventies winning the Monte Carlo Rally in both 1971 and 1973 and the World Rally Championship in 1973. 

1961 Lotus Elite Type 14

Lotus Elite, Tour Auto, 2015

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Lotus, Cheshunt, England. Lotus produced the Elite from 1957 to 1963 when it was replaced by the Elan.  It was a car with a revolutionary glass fibre monocoque chassis and a 1.2 litre Coventry Climax engine. For the road car performance was very good for its class and the time with a top speed of over 110mph and a o-60mph time of under 12 seconds.  The Elite had a successful racing history with drivers such as Jim Clark, Les Leston, David Hobbs, John Whitmore, Graham Warner, Trevor Taylor and Colin Chapman himself.  The Lotus Elite won its class at the Le Mans 24 hours many times and a number of national championships.  Although a fast race car the road versions were plagued by quality issues, although those still existing tend to have most issues resolved.  Nevertheless a landmark car for Lotus Cars.

1966 Ford GT40

Richard Meins, Ford GT 40, Tour Auto 2015, Egleny Special Stage.

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Ford GT40, Slough, England.   The GT40 was an anglo-american cooperation to defeat Ferrari at Le Mans and other major endurance races.  It was called the GT40 because it was exactly 40 inches high. Designed in 1963 it was first raced in 1964 and had its first win in 1965.at Daytona.  It became more successful with the MkII which had the larger 7 litre engine.  In 1966 the Ford GT40 won the Le Mans 24 hours for the first time and also won the same year at Daytona and Sebring.  Ford won four consecutive victories at Le Mans.  The MkIV won in 1967 and then after change of regulations the MkI returned to win in 1968 and 1969.

1984 Renault 5 Turbo

Sheridan Bell, Renault 5 Turbo, Course de Cote d'Etretat-Benouville 2015.

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Renault, Dieppe, France.  The R5 Turbo was produced from 1980 to 1986. Over 3,500 street and rally versions were sold of this very fast hot hatchback.  It had a mid-engined 1.4 litre turbocharged engine which drove the rear wheels.  The street version could do 120 mph and 0-60 in about 7 seconds. With a light body it cornered very well as well. On its Rally debut, Jean Ragnotti won the 1981 Monte Carlo Rally.  He also won the 1982 and 1985 Tour de Corse in the R5 Turbo, the latter in a Renault 5 Maxi which had a 1.5L turbo engine.  On the circuits they were used mainly in one-make series with relatively little success elsewhere.

Lola T620

Thomas Beaufils, Lola T620, Course de Cote d'Etretat-Benouville 2015

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Lola, Huntingdon, Engl;and. The T620 was a car produced in 1978 and 1979 to race in Formula Super Vee.  About 26 were originally constructed and had Volkswagen 4 cylinder 1,600cc engines. This one looks as though it has had some development over the years with its untypical side pods.  A few famous drivers cut their teeth in the Lola T620 including Arie Luyendijk. He won a number of European Championship Super Vee races in 1978 in a T620 before eventually moving on to Indy Car racing.  Thomas Beaufils runs this car in French Hillclimbs in the class D/E (2) which is for single seaters up to 1,600cc.  It would appear to now have a Skoda engine.

Lola, Huntingdon, Angleterre, La T620 était une voiture de course fabriquée en 1978 et 1979 pour Formule Super Vee.  Environ 26 était produit avec un moteur 4 cyl 1,600cc Volkswagen.  La voiture dans le photo a un moteurSkoda et quelques modifications.  Peut etre le plus connu pilot de la T620 était Arie Luyendijk qui gagnait deux courses de Super Vee en 1978.  Thomas Beaufils et le pilot actuel.

There is a nice video on You Tube of his ascent of the Etretat Hillclimb. Click below:

1934 Frazer Nash Norris Monoposto Special 3.5L

Julian Grimwade, Frazer Nash Norris Special, 2015 Course de Cote d'Etretat-Benouville.

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Norris Specials.  The two Norris Brothers, Frank and Jack, built two Alvis Engined Frazer Nash chassisied specials.  This one had the base of a 1934 Frazer Nash that raced at Brooklands with a Gough engine. I believe the Norris brother added the 3.5 litre Alvis Speed 25 engine just after WWII.  It has been successful in many VSCC hillclimbs.  Now owned and raced by Julian Grimwade it was previously in the ownership of Guy Smith and James Baxter.  In Baxter's hands in won fastest time of the day at many VSCC events.  I believe the current body dates to the sixties when Guy Smith renovated it.   Like many really historic cars that have raced continuously it has seen many changes over the years.

Ford Escort RS1600 Mk1

Two Ford Ecort Mk1s battle it out at Dijon-Prenois, 2015 GP del'Age d'Or. An RS 1600 chases an RS2000.

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Ford, Aveley Essex, England. The Ford Escort Mk1 was introduced in 1968.  In 1970 Ford introduced the Escort RS1600 with a Cosworth tuned 1,600cc 16 valve twin cam BDA engine.  This gave the Escort a power to weight ratio that enabled it to compete successfully in touring car racing and rallying with its already good handling. The top speed was over 110 mph and the 0-60mph time was under 9 seconds for the road version. Over the years the size of the engine progressed up to 2 litres and thus some cars became known as the RS1800 and RS2000.  Wins on tarmac included Jochen Mass and John Fitzpatrick's win in 1971 in the European Touring Car Championship event at Jarama but many other podiums and class victories were scored.  In rallying they were even more successful.  Roger Clark won the 1972 RAC rally in an RS1600.  Timo Makinen won the RAC Rally in 1973 and 1974 and the 1,000 Lakes in 1973 driving an RS 1600.

2006 Porsche RS Spyder

Jeroen Bleekemolen Porsche RS Spyder, Porsche Rennsport Reunion V, Laguna Seca 2015.

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Porsche, Stuttgart, Germany.  This was a car designed by Porsche in conjunction with Roger Penske to take part in LMP2 endurance racing.  It competed from 2005 to 2010. It won its class on its debut at Laguna Seca in 2005, In 2006 it won outright at Mid Ohio and scored six other class victories.  In 2007 The RS Spyder won eight races outright and then in 2008 scored its most famous victory by winning the Sebring 12 hours.  The cars continued to take class victories in 2009 and won outright at Lime Rock and Mosport in 2010.  The car won 3 Constructors and 3 drivers titles in the American Le Mans Series from 2006 to 2008 plus the Le Mans Series in 2008.

1965 Lotus Elan 26R

Jean Legras and Jean-Philippe Debrie, Lotus Elan, Tour Auto 2015.

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Lotus, Hethel, England.  The Lotus Elan was the popular sports car produced in the sixties and early seventies.  The 26R was the racing version of the Series 1 Elan and was produced from 1964 to 1966. It had a  Cosworth tuned Ford 1.6 litre straight 4 engine. Around 100 were built and at the time they cost around £2,000..  During 1964 some famous drivers such as Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, Mike Spence, Sir John Whitmore and Peter Arundell drove them.  Jim Clark won in the Ian Walker Racing Ltd Lotus Elan at Oulton Park in a GT race in April 1964.  Jackie Stewart won in the Chequered Flag Lotus Elan at Mallory Park and Barands Hatch the same year.  In 1966 John Miles won the Autosport GT Championship in the UK with 15 wins.  Many other successes were achieved by less famous drivers worldwide including 16th place in the 1964 Tour de France Auto.

1974 Fiat Abarth X1/9 Prototipo

Didier Marcacci, Fiat Abarth X1/9 Prototipo, Montée Historique de Beaune-St Romain, 2016

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For more photos of the Historic re-run of the Beaune-St Romain Hillclimb in 2016, click on the link above.

Fiat Abarth, Turin, Italy. Abarth was a specialist sports car maker founded by Carlo Abarth that was sold to Fiat in 1971.  Amongst other things, Abarth prepared Fiat's rally cars.  The Fiat Abarth X1/9 Prototipo was intended as a replacement rally car to the Fiat Abarth 124.  It was powered by a 1.8 litre engine derived from the 124  and was introduced in 1973.  About 5 genuine cars were produced and there are also a number of replicas.  The rally history was mainly in Italian National events.  It did win the Alpi Orientali and the Coppa Trabucchi rallies in 1974.  Its most famous driver was Clay Regazzoni who drove one in the 1974 Giro d'Italia but retired. Due to Fiat politics and other projects such as the 131 rally car the Fiat Abarth X1/9 project was not pursued after 1974.

Renault Sport Megane Trophy

Dominique Laure, Renault Megane Trophy, Dijon-Prenois 2016, Coupe de France des Circuit, GT race.

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Renault Sport, Les Ulis, France.  This is a special racing car produced for the Renault Eurocup and is just a silhouette of the road car.  It has a badge engineered Nissan 3.5 litre V6 engine, a glass fibre body and a racing tube frame chassis.  As well as the Eurocup they race in a number of other series and the Dubai 24 hours.  Dominique Laure has some success with his in the Coupe de France des Circuits.

DB Panhard Monomill 850

DB Panhard Monomill 850, Montée Historique de Beaune-St Romain 2016

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Automobiles DB, Champigny sur Marnes, France.  Charles Deutsch and René Bonnet formed Automobiles DB in the late 40s.  They mainly used engine and suspension parts from Panhard cars.  After achieving some success with sports cars at Le Mans in the early fifties they produced some F3, F2 and F1 single seater cars using Panhard components.  They were front engined and front wheel drive.  They used 500cc, 750cc and 850cc engines.  Some were supercharged.  The cars were very light and had some wins but couldn't compete with the best competition of the time.  In 1954 a French Championship for DB Panhard Monomill 850s was held.  The first race was held at Montlhery in April 1954 for drivers such as Pierre Levegh, Harry Schell and Alphonse de Portago.   The race was won by a young Jo Schlesser and the series by Paul Armagnac (who had the Nogaro circuit named after him).  In 1955 the cars were sold to a new racing school at Montlhery.

Ginetta G50 GT4

Bernard Lebaron, 3.7L Ginetta G50, Coupe de France des Circuits, Dijon Prenois, 2016

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Ginetta, Garforth near Leeds, England.  The Ginetta G50 was designed to celebrate the 50th birthday of Ginetta which had been founded in 1958.  It was one of the first cars produced  after Ginetta had been acquired by Lawrence Tomlinson and moved to Leeds.  The car is a GT4 spec car and is eligible for many racing series around Europe including a one make series in the UK. All G50s have Ford V6 engines. The G50 Cup has a 3.5 litres engine that produces 300bhp whilst the G50 GT4 has a 3.7 litre engine that develops 370 bhp. A relatively affordable GT4 car, it has also been very successful and Joe Osborne won the 2009 European GT4 Cup.   Various G50 road cars have been proposed but not got beyond the prototype phase.  However, the racing version has been one of the best selling Ginettas ever.

To see the much earlier Ginetta G4, click here.

1964 Volvo PV544

1964 Volvo PV544, Montée Historique de Beaune-St Romain 2016

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Volvo, Gothenburg, Sweden.  The PV544 was an evolution of the PV444 and was produced from 1958 to 1966. It was a two door small economical four seater saloon.  The PV544 had a successful rallying career.  Perhaps, the most famous was the Singh brothers' victory in the 1965 Safari Rally.  However, Gunnar Andersson and Gunnar Trana had already won numerous other rallies before this including the Rally of Sweden,  the Acropolis Rally, the RAC rally and the 1,000 lakes Rally.  Both won the European Rally Championship in a Volvo.  The car was also used with some success in circuit racing.

There is a nice video on You Tube of the Volvo's ascent of Beaune-St Romain.  Click on the link below: