10 replies to this topic

[wreckitralph]

here

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[Cooperman]

Wow. I was actually there at that time on that event. I was in a 'works assisted' Simca 1500 running at No.88. Most horrible car I ever had the displeasure to rally in! Happy memories of those days though.

The local lad Malcolm Gibbs was also there in an Anglia 1200. His family owned the Ford dealers 'Gibbs Brothers of Tredegar'. He was a good friend and sadly lost his life in a road accident on the M4 in fog.

Thanks for posting these photos.

[wreckitralph]

small world Cooperman..i will see if i can find you mate there are plenty of other pics of other cars but i cant post them here obviously

[phillrulz]

small world Cooperman..i will see if i can find you mate there are plenty of other pics of other cars but i cant post them here obviously

 

There is a section for non mini cars 

[wreckitralph]

ah new here didnt see that thank you

[sledgehammer]

I was in a 'works assisted' Simca 1500 running at No.88.

Most horrible car I ever had the displeasure to rally in! 

 

as an apprentice I had to service a few Simca's

 

as a joke the mechanics insisted I quietened the engine

 

as we all now know - nothing can make a Simca engine sound nice

 

they sounded like cutting sheet tin with a blunt chain saw - horrible cars

 

but probably cheap

Edited by sledgehammer, 15 October 2019 - 08:24 PM.

[Cooperman]

See if you can find No.87, which was a Renault 8 driven by Malcolm New and my best friend Bill Rogers, and No.88, the aforementioned Simca 1500 driven by Alec Lobb & me.

By coincidence Bill Rogers arrived here this morning from the USA to do the Lombard Bath 2019 with me in my 1964 Cooper 'S' this coming weekend. I did the 1967 Gulf London with Malcolm New in a Cooper S - retired with broken hydrolastic suspension.

The Simca 1500 was supposed to be a competitor to the Cortina GT. However, whilst Ford had homologated lots of competition parts, Simca had none, so we were left with a car with too many turns on the steering, the wrong gear ratios, too high a final drive, too soft springs and poor ground clearance. We managed to finish about 70th, which so far as we were concerned was hopeless. Alec soon sold that car and bought a Cortina GT with which we won the Morecambe National in 1965 and came 7th on the infamous Gulf London International as well. 

[wreckitralph]

its surprising the talent of the people on this forum fantastic experiences and memories and still competing cant fault you

the mk3[ clubman shell i  kind of  got for free  as part of a deal on another mini  was i think i have this right]  was oliver mellors? old auto cross championship winning car from 2010 i think  info via txt message from my mate i got it off   the shell initially was prepared by bill gwynne   rallying here in wales i think he was quite well known back in the day  and ive google searched o mellors i think hes a proton works driver   

[Cooperman]

Bill Gwynn sadly passed away in 2018. He was a superb driver and a really nice guy. I knew him well from when I was competing in the old Motoring News Championship back in the early to mid-1970's. he was always in an Escort and I was usually in a Datsun 240Z.

He had a preparation business near Silverstone at Turweston which is now run by his son. My son gets bits for his Escort RS2000 from there.

[wreckitralph]

funnily enough on the front end of the clubman [fibreglass] it  has motoring news and men and mototors  stickers

[AH11]

These are great!