Episode 196 covers the Combined Sports Car Association (CSCA) & Triumph Sports Owners Association (TSOA) track day. On the 14th June I went down to One Raceway near Goulburn to meet with the drivers and watch some track action. I recorded six interviews with Triumph, Maserati and Jaguar owners during the day whilst watching the track action - clockwise and … [Read more...]
The New DeLorean Motor Company
Recently Motoring Weekly wrote a potted history about DeLorean, the stainless steel, gullwing sports car that was going to take the US by storm in the early 1980s until cash flow and legal troubles halted the infant company. When the company collapsed after making between 8,500 and 9,000 units, there was a factory full of parts and these were bought by an English ex-pat living … [Read more...]
Backbone Chassis
The backbone chassis was probably the easiest chassis to draw, however it was a major departure from tradition. It is similar to a ladder chassis in that the body and associated mechanical components are bolted to it. The main difference is shown in the naming of the chassis - a ladder chassis looks like a ladder and a backbone chassis looks like a …. backbone! Rover were … [Read more...]
Ford Cosworth V8
Some months ago, I wrote about Cosworth in a history article as the company was instrumental in developing technology for road and race cars. This week’s article explores arguably their most famous product – the DFV engine. I have also written about the Repco 620 V8 that won several Formula 1 championships in the mid 1960s. Cosworth were a major competitor to Repco, Honda and … [Read more...]
Sector111 Drakan Spyder
I first saw this car in an article about a year ago and as the writer stated, it reminded me of the Ariel Atom, however with more bodywork and with a much more powerful engine. The Drakan Spyder was developed by Sector111, a California based provider of performance parts for modern Lotus. The founder, Shinoo Mapleton, had been a GM employee who had worked on the Pontiac … [Read more...]