1974 Gulf Mirage GR7-Ford Cosworth DFV

Stuart Hall, 1974 Gulf Mirage GR7, Dix Mille Tours, Paul Ricard 2017

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JW Automotive Engineering, Slough, England. Mirage was the name of the occasionally successful line of sports racing cars that JWAE produced from 1967 to 1982. The GR7 was an update of the M6 that had been quite successful during the 1973 season including a win the Spa 1000kms.   Four out of five M6s were rebuilt as the GR7 - the GR standing for Gulf Racing who provided the sponsorship.  The updates included reducing the weight by using titanium for some parts and improving the aerodynamics by moving the wing further back and lengthening the nose.  The chassis was a strengthened aluminium monocoque, the body was fibreglass reinforced polyester and the engine was a 3 litre V8 Cosworth Ford DFV.  First time out was at the 1974 Le Mans test where they proved slower than the main competition which was Matra-Simca and Alfa Romeo.   First race was the Monza 1000kms where Derek Bell and Mike Hailwood finished fourth.  They improved on this at the Spa 1000kms where they finished second with the same drivers. At Le Mans the car lasted the 24 hours and finished fourth with Bell and Hailwood again.  A series of other third and fourth places meant that Gulf Mirage finished second in the World Championship for Makes to Matra but berating Porsche and Alfa Romeo. In 1975 The GR7 was campaigned by the Gelo Racing Team of Georg Loos.  Best result was second in the Nurburgring 1000kms driven by Howden Ganley and Tim Schenken.

1976 Inaltera-DFV LM76 001 GTP

Henri Pescarolo, Inaltera-DFV, Le Mans Classic 2016

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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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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.