2017 Cadillac DPi-V.R.

The winning Wayne Taylor Racing Cadillac DPi-V.R. at the Twelve Hours of Sebring 2017.

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Cadillac, USA.  This car marks Cadillac's return to endurance racing.  It is made to IMSA's Daytona Prototype international rules which are similar to LMP2 but more liberal in terms of the engine and body work.  The chassis is an LMP2 chassis by Dallara.  The body work is by Cadillac Design.  The engine is a 6.2 litre naturally aspirated Cadillac V8 engine producing 600hp. With Wayne Taylor Racing, the car has already won the 2017 Daytona 24 Hours and the Twelve Hours of Sebring.  Action Express have also entered two cars and achieved podium finishes.

1901 Gladiator Type 4 Voiture Légère

1901 Gladiator at Gallardon for the Ateliers des Pionniers 2016.

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Clément-Gladiator, Levallois-Perret, France.  The car pictured above has been in the same family's hands since the current owner's bought it new around 1901!   Gladiator was a company founded by Alexandre Darracq and Paul Aucoq that made cycles and motorbikes.  It was eventually bought by Adolphe Clément and others to form Clément, Gladiator & Humber Ltd which in France was called Clément-Gladiator.  In 1898 they started producing cars.  Production in the early 1900s reached over 1,000 cars a year.  The car above has a 669cc 6.5hp Astor motor built in Saint-Denis and is capable of powering the car  up to 40kph.  Tonneau is the name of the coachwork type on this car which means it has open rear seats and a rounded rear end resembling a barrel.  The Gladiator name as a car manufacturer disappeared in 1920.

1976 Inaltera-DFV LM76 001 GTP

Henri Pescarolo, Inaltera-DFV, Le Mans Classic 2016

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For more photos of Plateau 6 at the 2016 Le Mans Classic, click here.

Rondeau, Le Mans, France.   Jean Rondeau was a racing driver and constructor who eventually won the Le Mans 24 hours in a car he constructed, the first to do this.  His first Le Mans car was this one sponsored by the French wallpaper manufacturer, Inaltera.  It was powered by the Cosworth DFV 3 litre engine that had powered the winner in the 1975 24 hour race.  Running in the GTP class and starting 12th on the grid, it finished eighth and won its class driven by Jean-Pierre Beltoise and Henri Pescarolo.  The other Inaltera was third in class and 21st overall.  The car pictured, chassis 001, also entered the Daytona 24 hours in 1977, qualified third but did not finish. The cars was a fully enclosed mid-engined sports car designed specifically for the Le Mans 24 hours and thus had aerodynamics that made it very quick on the Mulsanne straight.  In 1977 the team returned to Le Mans and again won the GTP class and finished fourth overall driven by Jean Rondeau himself and Jean Ragnotti. After 1977, Inaltera withdrew their support following changes in their management, but Rondeau continued to enter Le Mans but under his own name.  The Inaltera team was managed by famous racing driver Vic Elford.

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1968 Chevron B8-BMW

1968 Chevron-BMW B8, Le Mans Classic 2016

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For more photos of the 2016 Le Mans Classic plateau 5, follow this link.

Chevron, Bolton, England. Chevron was the name given to the cars produced by Derek Bennett, an amateur racing driver.   The B8 followed on from the B6 and was a 2 litre Group 4 sports/GT car. Although 50 examples were required to homologate it into Group 4, there were probably only 44 built between 1968 and 1970. Since 2006 more have been produced by Chevron as New Factory Continuation Cars and are eligible for historic racing.  Most B8s had a mid-mounted 4 cylinder 2 litre 195 bhp BMW engine powering the rear wheels.  Some cars were powered by Ford Cosworth engines such as the FVA. One car was delivered  with a 2.7 litre Climax engine.  Chassis was an aluminium semi-monocoque steel space frame and the body was glass fibre.  John Bridges debuted the car at Cadwell Park in March 1968 and John Lepp scored the first win at Mallory park the same month.  Other drivers to win with the car included Chris Skeaping, Barrie Smith, John Blades, John Burton, Nigel Morrison and David Purley.  Best International result was a class win and sixth overall in the 1969 Daytona 24 hours.  The B8 also finished first in class and seventh overall in the 1969 BOAC 500.  They were good looking, fast and reliable cars and it is good to see them still compete in historic racing today.

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Citroën SM

Citroên SM, Traversée de Paris, Montmartre, 2016

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Citroën, Paris, France.  Produced from 1970 to 1975 this was Citroën's flagship car of the early seventies.  It was also a high performance four seater with a top speed of around 140 mph and a 0-60mph time of around 8.5 seconds.  Unusual for such a fast car, the SM was front wheel drive. As Citroën owned Maserati at the time, power was from a Maserati V6 of either 2.7 or 3.0 litres and giving 170bhp or 180bhp.  The gearbox was either 5 speed manual or 3 speed automatic.  It was a fast genuine Grand Tourer with a long range from its big tank and 19mpg and good ride from the Citroën self levelling suspension. The car was quite big for a coupé and had quirky looks and a cut-off Kamm tail.  Nevertheless a true classic.   Famous drivers included Mike Hailwood of bike and car racing fame and he used to drive to the European races in it.

1965 Ford Falcon Sprint

Frits Campagne, Ford Falcon Sprint, Dijon Motors Cup 2016, NKHGT race.

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Ford, Edison, USA.   This was the second version of the Ford Falcon and predates the Mustang by a few months. The Mustang was a sexier package for not much more and thus the Sprint version of the Falcon was not the success it might have been.   Compared to the base model of the Falcon, the Sprint had a 4.3 litre and then in 1965 a 4.7 litre V8, stiffer suspension and a louder exhaust.   Slightly larger and roomier than a Mustang, it is still a compact 2 door four seater with some power.   They were raced in era both in the US and Europe but without any conspicuous success.  They are still raced today in series such as the Dutch Historic GT and Touring car championship.

1960 Scarab-Offenhauser F1

Julian Bronson, 1960 Scarab Offenhauser F1, Dijon Motors Cup 2016

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For more photos of the Historic Formula One race at Dijon-Prenois in 2016, click on this link.

Reventlow Automobiles, Venice, California, USA.  Lance Reventlow was the heir to the Woolworth fortune being the only son of Barbara Hutton. He started racing in the mid-fifties and in 1957 started building Chevrolet V8 engined sports racing cars that he and Chuck Daigh raced in 1958 with quite some success winning the SCCA championship. Following the Sports Car program Reventlow decided to build an American F1 car.  The car was late and didn't enter any GP in 1959 when it might have been more competitive.  The Scarab was a traditional front engined F1 car but by 1960 all of the top cars had rear engines except for Ferrari who had a great engine.  Powering the Scarab was a specially commissioned 4 cylinder 2.5 litre aluminium Offenhauser engine with desmodronic valves that never ran properly in period races.  The cars made their debut at the 1960 Monaco GP but did not qualify.  Both cars ran but retired with engine problems in the Belgian GP.  The only finish was Chuck Daigh's tenth place in the US GP at Riverside at the end of the season.   In 1961 Scarabs raced briefly in the Intercontinental formula with enlarged engines but best finish was just seventh in the International Trophy at Silverstone. The car pictured above is chassis 003 that never raced in period, was exhibited as part of the Donington collection for a number of years, but is now a very fast historic front engined F1 car.  Today the engine has about 240bhp and more torque than in period.  

1965 Ford Mustang 289

Christian Odin, 1965 Ford Mustang 289, Tour Auto, 1st  Special Stage 2016.

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Ford, Dearborn, USA.  The first Mustangs appeared in 1964, even if they were referred to as 1965 models and were either 2 door hardtops or convertibles.  Driver train components were from the Ford Galaxy but the car was designed to have universal appeal, including to women, with bucket seats, room for 4 people and a $2,500 price tag.  The basic model had a low power 2.8 litre 6 cylinder engine but the 289 had a 4.7 litre V8 with better performance.  Top speed for the 289 was a little under120 mph and it had a 0-60mph time of a little over 8 seconds.   It was immediately a successful car with huge sales for Ford and the term "Pony Car" was created for it and its imitators.  The Mustang made its public debut as the pace car at the Indy 500 in 1964 and a convertible appeared in the film Goldfinger.  They were immediately raced and rallied worldwide.  In 1964 the Alan Mann entered Mustang 289 won its class and finished eighth overall in the Tour de France Auto driven by Peter Procter and Andrew Cowan.  The Mustang emblem on the front of the car has become a true automotive icon.

Maserati Gran Tourismo MC Trofeo GT4

Mark Klenin, Maserati Gran Tourismo MC Trofeo, Sonoma 2016, Pirelli World Challenge.

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Maserati, Modena, Italy.  This car is the racing version of the road going Gran Tourismo S and was designed for a 2010 one-make series.  It has a 4.7 litre V8 488 bhp engine powering its steel chassis and carbon fibre body.  The body has been lightened and given more aerodynamic aids compared to the base road car.  The windscreen and windows are all lightweight lexan.  The one make series ended with the 2015 championship.  Since then the cars have been raced in GT4 spec in series such as the Pirelli World Challenge and the European GT4 championship.  In GT4 spec the power is reduced to 430bhp.  A beautiful car like almost all Maseratis. 

Cadillac ATS-VR GT3

Johnny O'Connell, Cadillac ATS-VR GT3 winning at Sonoma 2016 in the Pirelli World Challenge.

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For more photos of GT cars at Sonoma in 2016, click on this link. 

Cadillac, GM, New York, USA.  In Europe we know Cadillac as a luxury car maker but in the USA they have had a successful racing program for many years.  The ATS model is a compact luxury sedan that has been in production since 2013.  For the 2015 Pirelli World Challenge Cadillac has built a FIA GT3 version of the ATS-V coupe powered by a 3.6 litre twin-turbocharged V6 producing 600hp.  Cadillac have chosen to built a GT3 model for the first time so that they can if they wish sell and race versions of this car worldwide and thus build the brand.  The body is a production one but with reinforcement and a safety cage.  There is also the addition of an aero package to add downforce.   Top speed is around 170mph. Johnny O'Connell won the 2015 Pirelli World Challenge GT class in this car and came fourth in 2016.  His team mate, Michael Cooper came third in 2016. Between them they have nine victories.  

KTM X-Bow GT4

Martin Barkey, KTM X-Bow GT4, Sonoma 2016, Pirelli World Challenge.

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For more photos of Sonoma GT racing in 2016, click on this link.

KTM, Graz, Austria.   KTM is a motor cycle manufacturer whose first  four wheel model was the spartan, lightweight and technologically advanced X-Bow. Together with Reiter Engineering they have produced a GT4 version of the car for racing.  It has a 4 cylinder 2 litre 335hp VW/Audi engine and an aerodynamic lightweight body and chassis.  Compared to the street legal X-Bow there is much more bodywork on the GT4 version. The car won the Pirelli World Challenge GTS class in 2016 driven by Brett Sandberg who had 3 victories over the year.

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.   

1957 Fiat 642 RN2 Bartoletti

Superb 1957 Ferrari Transporter at the 2016 Le Mans Classic

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Fiat, Turin, Italy.  The best off-track display at the 2016 Le Mans Classic was undoubtedly that of the racing car transporters, including this beautiful Fiat truck used by Scuderia Ferrari.  This Fiat bus chassis was bought by the Scuderia Ferrari in 1957 and transformed by coachbuilder Bertoletti at Forli into their race car transporter which was used until the early sixties.   As well as transporting the cars it gave the mechanics a portable workshop and a place to sleep.  So much more inspiring than the modern versions! The Fiat had a 92hp 6 cylinder diesel engine and it could transport three GP or sports racing cars around Europe to famous tracks such as Spa, Monaco and the Nurburgring.  Must have been amazing to see one of these fully laden on the road.  Unlike the Ferraris it carried it had a very modest top speed of just 85 kph.

1937 Delage D6-70 Cabriolet Le Dandy Chapron

Beauiful Delage D6-70 Cabriolet Le Dandy Chapron in the car park at the Le Mans Classic 2016.

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For more photos of the 2016 Le Mans Classic pre-war cars, click here.

Delage, Paris, France.   The D6-70 was produced between 1937 & 38 and was a follow on from the D6-60S.  This was the era when Delages shared many parts with Delahayes but this model had a 2.7 litre 6 cylinder Delage engine.   Bodies were offered by a number of coachbuilders including the Chapron cabriolet version seen here with its torpedo wings.  Only about 3 of this particular example were made.  Henry Chapron had a coachbuilding business in Lavalois-Perret where Delage started off.  The Le Dandy name was used later on a number of Citroen DS Cabriolets produced by Chapron.

Ligier JS53 Evo 2

Ligier JS53 Evo 2, Magny Cours, TTE Racing 2016

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Ligier, Magny Cours, France.  The JS53 Evo 2 follows on from the JS53, JS51 and the JS49. The project was one in conjunction with Onroak Automotive.  It is designed for CN sports prototype class racing such as the VdeV series or hillclimbs and has a 2 litre 255 bhp Honda 4 cylinder engine.  More powerful versions exist for hillclimbs.  This good looking car has a carbon fibre monocoque and glass fibre body.  Compared to the JS53 it has better aerodynamics and improved electronic management system.  First produced in 2013. 

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.  

Radical SR3 RS

The Radical SR3 RS of Team Saint Aubin at Magny-Cours at the TTE meeting in 2016 

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Radical Sportscars, Peterborough, England.  Radical have been producing sportscars since the late nineties.  The SR3 was their third model and was built starting in 2002.  It is a two seater open sports racing car built to international racing standards and can race in the FIA C3 class.  Power is provided by a 1.3 litre Susuki 210hp motor-cycle engine.  Top speed is around 155mph and 0-60mph is just a little over 3 seconds so great performance for a car that can even be converted for road use.  There has been a one-make series for these cars.

Peugeot Spider THP

Romain Ronchin in a Peugeot THP Spider at Magny-Cours 2016 during the TTE meeting.

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For more photos of Free Racing at Magny-Cours, click here.

Peugeot Sport et Mygale, France.  THP stands for Turbo High pressure.  The THP Spider series was the follow on from the 207 Spider Cup.  The 207 Spider originated in 2007 and was a cooperation between Peugeot Sport and Mygale at Magny-Cours who designed and built the cars.  The THP engine is a turbocharged 1.6 litre injection engine that was a partnership between Peugeot and BMW.  In the Spider it generates 220hp.

1973 Jensen- Healey

A Jensen-Healey racing in the Youngtimer Touring Car Challenge at Dijon in 2016 driven by Kim Christensen.

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Jensen Motors, West Bromwich, England.  This two seater convertible sports car produced between 1972 and 1976 was the best selling Jensen of all time.  The design was a join venture between Donald and Geoffrey Healey and Jensen Motors. Production was at Jensen's West Bromwich plant,  A lightweight alloy 2 litre 16 valve Lotus 907 4 cylinder engine was the powerplant. Performance was just under 120mph top speed with a 0-60 mph time in about 8 seconds.   Jensen-Healeys raced mainly in the USA where they were successful in winning the SCCA class D Production Car Championship in both 1973 and 1974.   Some continue to race today.

1973 March-BMW 732 Formula Two

March-BMW 732 racing at Dijon in Historic F2 in 2016 driven by Nick Osborn.

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For more photos of Formula Two cars at Dijon, click on the link above.

March Engineering, Bicester.  For the 1973 season, BMW gave March exclusive use of their new 2 litre Formula Two engine.  March produced a straightforward aluminium monocoque chassis.  Both Harvey Postelthwaite and Robin Herd were involved in the design and development of the car.    The works team had STP sponsorship and the driving talents of Jean-Pierre Beltoise, Jean-Pierre Jarier and Hans-Joachim Stuck.  There were lots of private 732s as well as March had to buy a minimum of fifty entries from BMW and thus needed the sales.  At the first race of the season at Mallory Park, Beltoise took pole position but Jarier took the win.  Jarier went on to dominate the Championship with seven outright victories.   Privateers such as Vittorio Brambilla and Jacques Coulon also had success with the car and took a win each.  The car was very successful as it had good braking and good acceleration out of the corners due to the BMW engine.