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| 1953 Sunbeam Alpine (Alpine Rally, 1954): Making a repeat appearance for Sunbeam in 1954, Stirling Moss along with co-driver John Cutts completed the third consecutive penalty free run on the Coupe de Alps, or Alpine Rally. This earned Moss the coveted Coupe d Or (Gold Cup), only one of three drivers in the Alpines history to do so. Moss and Cutts finished 10th overall in 1954, an improvement from 14th the year before in the same car. The Alpine starts and finishes in France after running through the famous mountain passes in Austria, Germany, Italy and Switzerland. Model by SOMERVILLE (Built Kit) 1/43 |
1954 Frazer Nash Sebring (Le Mans, 1957): Named in honor of Frazer Nash's 1952 win at Sebring, Frazer Nash produced the envelope body Sebring model from 1954-57. Sebrings were powered by a Bristol 2.0L stratight-six engine, which produces 140 bhp. Richard "Dickie" Stoop and Peter Jopp driving the Automobiles Frazer Nash Ltd. entry at Le Mans in 1957, classified 23rd, but did not finish due to an oil leak in the 24th hour. This car was raced at Le Mans three times. Model by BIZARRE 1/43 |
1954 Bristol 450 (1954 Le Mans): The 450 was built by the Bristol Aeroplane Company and constructed specifically to contest the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans endurance race, at which they won both their class and the team prize in both 1954 and 1955. This car driven by Tommy Wisdom and Jack Fairman, finished 8th overall at Le Mans in 1954. A Bristol 2.0L straight-six producing 155 bhp took the car to a top speed of 140 mph. Wind tunnel designed, but far from pretty. Model by BIZARRE 1/43 |
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| 1957 Cooper T39 Bobtail: At Le Mans in 1957, British cars claimed eleven of the top fifteen places, making it the best British finish ever at Le Mans. Among the top fifteen was this Cooper T39 Monaco entered by Cooper Cars and driven by Jack Brabham and Ian Raby, finished 15th overall and 3rd in class behind two Lotus 11's. Powered by a mid-engine 1.1L Coventry Climax four-cylinder engine producing 75hp, the 'bobtail' T39 with its tube frame chassis used its lightweight and aerodynamic body to maximize its performance and handling. At Le Mans in 1957, Brabham made his debut on the international stage driving for Cooper in the sole works entry. a string of repairs cost the Cooper entry eight places and the more reliable Lotus 11's took advantage, winning the class and Index of Performance. Model by BIZARRE 1/43 |
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| 1958 AC Ace Bristol (Le Mans, 1958): Using a John Tojeiro designed chassis and suspension, A.C. Cars unveiled the AC Ace in 1953, powered by AC's OHC 2.0L in-line six-cylinder engine. In 1956, the 2.0L Bristol engine became an option, increasing the power output of the Ace by 20 HP to 120HP. A four-speed transmission with overdrive gave the car a top speed of 116 MPH (187 KPH). Disc brakes were introduced in 1957, so when this standard production car (Ch# BEX 399) was raced at Le Mans in 1958, it was at the pinnacle of AC Ace development. With it at Le Mans in 1958 was the AC Ace LM prototype. Model by MEAKIT43 1/43 |
1958 AC Ace Bristol (Le Mans, 1958): At Le Mans in 1958, entered by A.C. Cars and in the colors of Ecurie Trois Chevrons, the team of Swiss AC importer Hubert Patthey; it was driven by Patthey and fellow Swiss Georges Berger. A mechanic crashed the car after a Le Mans practice on the way back to the A.C. HQ and it was badly damaged. A major rebuild was finished just before the start of the race, so great race results were not expected. However, working up from 34th to 9th place and 3rd in class, the car finished just behind the Ace LM, but was not classified, having just failed to cover the minimum distance. Model by MEAKIT43 1/43 |
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1958 AC Ace LM Bristol: (1958 Le Mans) Chassis LM5000 is a unique AC Ace, entered by AC Cars for Le Mans in 1958. The car was designed by John Tojeiro, powered by a special 2.0L Bristol engine, the car was light and aerodynamic. Peter Bolton and Richard Stoop drove the car to 8th place overall, 2nd in class. A "standard" AC Ace Bristol finished 9th overall, indicating they were every bit as worthy as the special. A beautiful car! Model by PINKO 1/43 |
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| 1958 Tojeiro-Climax: (1958 Le Mans) While John Tojeiro was probably most widely known for his Jaguar powered cars, his Coventry Climax powered ones may have been the most successful. In 1957, Toj formed the Tojeiro Motor Co. with Sussex farmer, business man and racing enthusiast John Ogier. While Ogier was not only a partner in the business, he was also a customer. It was Ogier that convinced Toj to design and build a car powered by the 1.1L Coventry Climax 71 hp, 4-cylinder fire pump engine as a lower cost alternative to their Jaguar engined cars. Model by RENAISSANCE 1/43 |
1958 Tojeiro-Climax: (1958 Le Mans) Five Climax powered cars were built and had great success in club and national races, in large part due to the durable engines. In 1958, Ogier financed a team entry for Le Mans, with regular driver Tommy Bridger who was joined by Peter Blond. The car was running very strong until around midnight when the rear axle failed. Up to that point they had been racing hard with the AC Ace which eventually finished 9th. An iconic 50's sports car design, the car is still raced today in vintage events. Model by RENAISSANCE 1/43 |
1961 Cooper T57 Monaco MkII: Tom Dickson and Bruce Halford drove this Ecurie Ecosse entry at Le Mans in 1961. Halford lost control and crashed in the rain under the Dunlop Bridge on the 32nd lap. They were in 7th place at the time and moving up the grid. With a 2.5L , four cylinder engine producing 260bhp, the Cooper was a successful part of the Ecosse stable of cars. Jackie Stewart raced the car in 1963 and scored eight consecutive wins, which ultimately earned him a F3 ride with Ken Tyrrell. The rest as they say, is history. Model by BIZARRE 1/43 |
1962 Sunbeam Alpine Le Mans (Le Mans 1962): Driven by rallye great Paddy Hopkirk and the late Peter Jopp at Le Mans in 1962, the Sunbeam Talbot team car ended its race after 187 laps. A big-end bearing failed just after dawn and the team fought to keep the car in the race. Since they were not allowed to put fresh oil in the car, the used Jopp's girlfriend's nylon stockings to filter the used oil to put back in the engine. The effort was for naught, with the 1.6L four-cylinder engine expiring shortly after the car resumed the race. Outclassed by the Porsche contingent in the GT-1600 class, Sunbeam would make one final attempt at Le Mans in 1963. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
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| 1963 Elva Mk7 - Porsche (Road America 500, 1963 - Winner): 1963 was the first year of the United States Road Racing Championship and Elva importer Carl Haas listened to Porsche distributor Ollie Schmidt's idea that the new Elva Mk7 would perform well with Porsche power. Designed for 1.1L to 1.6L Ford, Lotus and BMW engines, Elva modified the chassis to take the wider 1.7L flat-four Porsche DOHC engine. Producing 185 hp, the Elva proved to be fast. The first car was shipped to the USA to compete in the Schmidt sponsored car for the Road America 500. Bill Wuesthoff and Augie Pabst scored the outright victory. Model by AXELR 1/43 |
1963 Elva Mk7 - Porsche (Road America 500, 1963 - Winner): Elva was founded in 1955 by Frank Nichols who named the company for the French phrase "elle va" (she goes). The Mk7 was the next in a line of successful sports racers and followed the then new "lay down" body style. While about 70 Mk7's were made, only a handful of the 15 planned Porsche powered cars were made. While fast, they proved to be a handful under braking. In the 1964 USRRC however, Elva's finished 2nd and 3rd in the championship behind Jim Hall's Chaparral. Model by AXELR 1/43 |
1963 Rover-BRM Turbine (Le Mans 1963): The early part of the jet age saw experimentation with jet turbines in racing cars. Rover created this car to run at Le Mans in 1963. It was created on a BRM F1 car chassis, using a Rover gas turbine engine which was about 2.0L, producing 145 hp, with a top speed of 142 mph. Graham Hill and Ritchie Ginther drove this car to 8th place, but were unclassified due to the turbine. For 1964, the car was converted to a coupe, but did not run due to accident damage on the way to Le Mans. In 1965, Graham Hill and Jackie Stewart drove to 10th place. Model by BIZARRE 1/43 |
1963 Rover-BRM Turbine (Le Mans 1964): The Rover-BRM gained a new coupe body in 1964, but did not race due to damage on the way to Le Mans. In 1965, Jackie Stewart and Graham Hill drove the car to 10th place after one of the turbine blades were damaged due to sand getting sucked into the intakes. This caused the engine to overheat if pushed too hard. While Stewart was driving, the tip of a turbine blade broke off and created a massive explosion, although the engine kept on running. (Special edition exclusively for Racing Models) Model by PINKO 1/43 |
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| 1964 Sunbeam Tiger Le Mans (Le Mans, 1964): The Rootes Group answer to the AC Cobra was the Tiger and in 1964, they prepared two cars for Le Mans; both with coupe bodies and Kamm tails designed by Rootes Ron Wisdom. The cars were built at Lister Cars and were powered by a Ford 4.2L V8 's which were built and modified by Shelby American. They produced a respectable 275 BHP and a top speed of 162 MPH during Le Mans tests. However, a lack of testing to rectify its engine cooling problems would eventually sideline both of the two cars running at Le Mans in 1964. Model by SPARK 1/43 1/43 |
1964 Sunbeam Tiger Le Mans (Le Mans, 1964): Three Le Mans coupes were built, their aluminum bodies being built at Williams & Pritchard, with car assembly at Lister. Besides handling and brake issues they also had persistent engine cooling problems, which even new competition manager Marcus Chambers (former BMC) couldn't rectify. This car driven by Keith Ballisat and Claude Debois blew an engine after two hours. The sister car soldiered on until 1 am when it too lost its engine. It was the last appearance at Le Mans by Sunbeam. Model by SPARK 1/43 1/43 |
1965 Sunbeam 'Monster' Tiger: This car originally started life as one of the Sunbeam Lister Tiger Coupes (ADU 180B) which contested Le Mans in 1964. Alan Fraser collaborated with Bernard Unett, a Rootes factory test driver, on building the Tiger that would become the Monster after Fraser saw Unett cleaning up in the Le Mans Coupe, winning the Autosport Cup. They lowered the car 3" and removed the ultralight aluminum body panels off the Le Mans Coupe to use on the Monster. The fenders were widened to fit wider wheels, which in turn allowed oversized disc brakes. Model by AUTOMODELLO 1/43 | 1965 Sunbeam 'Monster' Tiger: To improve cooling to the brakes as well as the cockpit, they cut ducts and vents into the body. The 4.3L Ford V8 was fed by two Webers and produced over 300 hp. The made an extremely fast race car! It was painted flag blue over white with the cross of St. Andrew on the hardtop as a tribute to Fraser's Scottish heritage. With Unett driving, the car was very successful, gaining multiple wins and narrowly missing out winning the Autosport Championship of 1966. It was campaigned at select events in 1967 and 68, being sold off to the Canary Islands before it was rescued, restored and lives to compete in vintage events today. Model by AUTOMODELLO 1/43 |
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| 1966 BMC Mini Cooper S (Monte Carlo Rallye, 1966): John Cooper, owner of the Cooper Car Company saw the potential of the Mini for competition and he was right! Powerful, front-drive cars, Mini's soon dominated international rallying in the mid-60's. This car driven by Timo Makinen and Paul Easter finished first on the rally but were subsequently disqualified in a controversial decision made by officials to produce a French winner. It prevented a Mini sweep of the rally from 1964 to 1967. IXO 1/43 |
1967 BMC Mini Cooper S: Driven by Rauno Aaltonen and Henry Liddon, this car finished first in the '67 Monte Carlo rally. Powered by a 1275 cc four-cyl. of 76 bhp, these light cars were able to out perform larger engined rivals. Their durability, handling and speed made the Mini "S" on of the most successful rally cars of all time. From the introduction of the "S" in 1963, they became the star of BMC's competition department, muscling out the bigger Austin Healey 3000. Model by CORGI 1/43 |
1967 BMC Mini Cooper S (Monte Carlo Rallye, 1967 - WINNER): The Mini Cooper S earned acclaim with Monte Carlo Rally victories in 1964, 1965 and 1967. Minis were initially placed first, second and third in the 1966 rally as well, but were disqualified after a controversial decision by the French judges and the win awarded to Citroen. The disqualification related to the headlamps which the Citroen also had as well. BMC probably received more publicity from the disqualification than they would have gained from a victory Model by DEL PRADO 1/43 |
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| BMC Minin Cooper S (Monte Carlo Rallye Winners - 1964, 1965, 1967): The year 2024 marks the 65th anniversary of the Mini's introduction and the 60th Anniversary of the outstanding win on the Monte Carlo Rallye, proving the Mini formidable competition on the world rally stage. Mini's would go on to win the prestigious Monte Carlo Rallye outright in 1965 and 1967. A Mini finished first in 1966, but a bogus disqualification cost BMC its third win in a row, which would have been four with the win in 1967. I made this diorama for a cousin to display in the back of his Mini Traveler at shows. Diorama by OLD IRISH RACING 1/43 |
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| 1967 BMC Mini Cooper S (Monte Carlo Rallye, 1967 - WINNER): A larger scale model of the 1967 Monte Carlo Rallye winner driven by Rauno Aaltonen and Henry Liddon. Model by KYOSHO 1/18 |
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| 1970 Chevron B16: Brian Redman drove this car in the 1970 European 2-Litre Manufacturers Championship, winning the championship for Chevron and finishing in 2nd place in the drivers standings. The B16 had a 1800cc 4-cylinder Cosworth FCV engine which produced 245 hp. Redman finished in first place at Paul Ricard in this car. By the end of the season the Lola T280 was dominating the series and Chevron introduced the spyder version of the B16 to be able to compete. Model by LIBRA MINIATURES 1/43 |
Brian Redman - 1970 European 2.0L Champion - 1981 IMSA GTP Champion Diorama by OLD IRISH RACING 1/43 |
1970 BRM P154: The P154 was raced in the Can Am series and was powered by a 8.0L Chevy V8, which produced 760 bhp. This car was driven for most of the 1970 season by George Eaton and a sister car by Pedro Rodriguez. The car had promise, but BRM was over extended in their F1 effort and did not give it its proper due and it usually did not go the distance. The best finish was by Rodriguez at Riverside with a 3rd place finish. Click on image to see the Rodriguez car. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
1970 March 707: Powered by a 8.2L aluminum block Chevy V8 producing 730 bhp, the Robin Herd designed the aerodynamic March 707 to dominate Group 7/Can-Am racing. Racing the final three rounds of the 1970 Can-Am, this car piloted by Chris Amon scored a fifth place at Donnybrooke and fourth place at both Laguna Seca and Riverside. A great start, but March chose to focus on F1 racing instead and did not return to the Can-Am. Model by SOLIDO 1/43 |
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| 1970 Chevron B16-Cosworth (Le Mans, 1970): Driven by owner Ian Skailes and John Hines, this Ford Cosworth powered B16 failed to finish at Le Mans in 1970 due to valve gear failure. Powered by a 1.8L Cosworth FVC four-cylinder engine, the car was one of two cars entered by Chevron. They stopped for 90 minutes on Sunday morning to fix a seized tappet, only to exit the race after 213 laps in the 24th hour after having started 32nd on the grid. Its competition in Group 6 (P2000), aside from the other Chevrons, came from Ligier and Porsche 910s, outlasting them all. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
1970 Chevron B16-Mazda (Le Mans, 1970): Levis International Racing sponsored this 1.0L twin-rotor Mazda 2R powered engine B16, owned and driven by Jullian Vemaeve along with co-driver Yves Deprez. It started 48th on the grid, but the engine blew after four hours into the race, on the 19th lap. Of the Chevrons entered at Le Mans in 1970, all with different engines, this was perhaps the most radical with its twin rotor engine. The team had hopes of a better Le Mans finish after good showing at the Spa (15th) and Nurburgring (10th) 1000 Km races Model by SPARK 1/43 |
1970 Chevron B16-BMW (Le Mans, 1970): Entered by Chevron and Paul Watson Racing, this was the second of two cars entered by Chevron at Le Mans in 1970. Owned by Paul Watson, It was driven by Clive Baker and Chevron driver and owner Digby Martland. This car had a brand-new chassis, which had a 2.0L BMW 4-cylinder engine. The car had been running as high as 20th position when it was forced to retire with a broken valve spring at around 10 am Sunday morning and they had completed 167 laps. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
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| 1972 Duckhams Ford LM (Le Mans, 1972): Ferrari turned Alain de Cadenet down in his attempt to buy a 312PB, so he went looking to build his own car and found Gordon Murray at Brabham who designed this brilliant car, using suspension pieces from an old Brabham BT33 de Cadenet owned, around a new aluminum monocoque chassis and fiber glass body. Duckhams sponsorship helpe cover part of the costs. Despite limited testing, the car performed brilliantly running 4th overall at Le Mans in 1972, until final hour when de Cadenets co-driver Chris Craft went off in the rain. Despite the accident, the car finished 12th overall. Its first of three appearances at Le Mans. Model by DSN43/TROFEU 1/43 |
1983 March 83G-Porsche (Portland, 1983 - WINNER): Five 83G's were built in 1983, four of which received Chevrolet 5.8L V8 engines. Al Holbert bought three of the five cars, two with Chevy engines and one in which he had installed a Porsche 935/75 flat-six cylinder turbo charged engine of 3.0L, producing 650bhp. Holbert campaigned the early part of the 1983 IMSA season with the Chevy powered car until the Porsche ((Chassis #4) powered car was ready mid-way through the season. Holbert and co-driver Jim Trueman dominated all the races they entered that year, collecting 5 wins, including the win at the race I was at in Portland. The car was sold at the end of '83 and campaigned in 1984 by the Kreepy Krauly Racing Team, winning the 1984 Daytona 24 Hours. It was campaigned by subsequent owners through 1986. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
1983 March 83G (Riverside, 1983): In 1982, engineers Robin Herd and Adrian Newey redesigned the aluminium honeycomb monocoque chassis used in the BMW M1C to take a wide variety of engines. That car became the March 82G, which to take advantage of ground effects, the beautiful body had a gaping hole between the front fenders that fed the air to the massive under body Venturis. This gave unusual shape gave the car the nickname 'lobster claw', a natural for Red Lobster sponsorship. That car was revised for 1983 as the 83G and four cars were built to IMSA GTP specifications. The famous Red Lobster 83G(Chassis #3), which finished 3rd at the 1983 Riverside 6 Hour driven by Kenper Miller and Mauricio DeNarvaez, started in 8th. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
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| 1985 March 85G: Using a Porsche turbocharged 962 engine, this 85G (Chassis #85G/06) was raced in the IMSA series in with limited success. The best finish being 5th at Road America. It was sold to Richard Cleare who made his third run at Le Mans in 1986 with this car. Teamed with Lionel Robert and Jack Newsum, the private team placed 14th overall and 1st in the GTP class. Cleare raced the car in other rounds of ther World Prototype Championship in 1986, but it only other success was a 1st in class at Silverstone in 1987. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
Rover SD1 Vitesse (Monza 500 Km, 1986 - Winner): Tom Walkinshaw Racing (TWR) took over race preparation of the Rover Vitesse SD1's for the BTCC and ETCC. British Leyland realized the potential in the SD1 and were keen to capitalize on motorsport success to boost flagging sales. TWR did their magic and the 3.5 L Rover V8 engine produced approximately 340 bhp. This allowed the team to dominate touring cars in 1983, Rover stripped of its title over protest by BMW on the size of rear wheel arches. TWR concentrated on Jaguar XJS in 1984, but in 1985, Walkinshaw and Win Percy won six of the ETCC rounds in this car; finishing just behind Volvo in the Championship. Model by NEO 1/43 |
Rover SD1 Vitesse (Monza 500 Km, 1986 - Winner: For 1986, Walkinshaw and Percy won the first two races of thew 1986 season, including the Monza 500 Km round of the ETCC. Win Percy would go on to win three races and an additional seven podiums to initially win the ETCC Drivers Championship. However, a month after the championship, the FIA retroactively made a rule that each driver's lowest scoring result would be dropped. This gave the championship to BMW driver Roberto Ravaglia and the Manufacturers Championship also went to BMW. Percy ended up finishing second in points and Walkinshaw 3rd. TWR would turn its focus to Group 6 racing and winning Le Mans. Model by NEO 1/43 |
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| 1988 Spice SE88C (Le Mans 1988): Gordon Spice was already a successful driver when he and Ray Bellm established Spice Engineering in the early 80's, to prepare and develop C2 cars for the World Sportscar Championship. Using Tiga chassis cars at first, their success saw had Pontiac knocking at their door to develop a IMSA GTP car for 1986 using a Fiero based engine. This successful venture launched them into become a car manufacturer for prototype cars on both sides of the Atlantic, with a chassis capable of using Cosworth, Pontiac and Buick engines. Spice built their second generation car, the SE88C, to take the Ford-Cosworth DFL V8 engine (3.5L, 465 bhp, 205 mph) for Group C2 competition in the WSC. Spice and Bellm dominated the competition and 1988 saw Spice take the C2 Drivers Championship for the fourth consecutive year and Spice the Manufacturers title . At Le Mans for 1988, Spice and Bellm were joined by Pierre de Thoisy and the trio despite an early delay for a faulty fuel pump and tire puncture, led their class from 7 pm on, to finish 13th overall and 1st in Class. It was the second consecutive class win for Spice. This chassis was raced at Le Mans two more years by other teams, but its best finish was 16th overall, but no further class wins. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
1997 Lister Storm GTL (G-Force): The Lister Storm uses the 7.0L V-12 Jaguar XJR engine used in the Jaguar Group C and IMSA GTP cars. The GTL was introduced in 1997 as an improvement on the GTS GT1 class car, with more aerodynamic bodywork. It scored a 4th in class finish at Daytona, Two Storm GTL's were entered at Le Mans in 1997, this car having been driven by Julian Bailet, Thomas Erdos and Martin Skaife. Unfortunatelt gearbox issues forced them out early, being classified in 40th place. The GTL project was dropped in favor of the Lister GT development. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
2001 Lister Storm GT: The Storm Gt was created to compete in the FIA GT Championship in Europe. This car was campaigned from the 2001 season, with the Lister team taking a 2nd place in the championship in 2003. Powered by a Jaguar 7.0L V-12 from the XJR Group 6 cars, the Storm produced 546 bhp and was capable of 208 mph. This is how the car was campained in the final season (2005) before Lister concentrated on the Storm LMP for Le Mans, as driven by Justin Keen and Liz Halliday. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
2001 Bentley EXP Speed 8 (Le Mans, 2001): In 2001 Bentley returned to the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans race after a gap of 73 years, with Eric van de Poele, Andy Wallace, and Butch Leitzinger, finishing in 3rd place. The Bentley has a strong resemblance to and shares some technology with the Audi R8C, using the engine from the Audi R8, a 3.6 litre turbocharged V8. From its debut, the primary object was a win for Bentley and Volkswagen Group domination at Le Mans. Model by IXO 1/43 |
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| 2003 Bentley EXP Speed 8 (LE MANS WINNER - 2003): By the late 90's, Bentley was owned by the Volkswagen Group. This allowed close collaberation with the Audi Racing Team for the Bentley project. The engine from the Audi R8, a 3.6 litre turbocharged V8, was used as the initial powerplant in 2001, upgraded to 4.0L and 600 hp in 2003. The Bentleys ran 1-2 almost the entire Le Mans in 2003, finishing in that order, with this car placing 1st. It was driven by Rinaldo Capello, Tom Kristensen and Guy Smith, with Kristensen putting the car on pole. |
2003 Lister Storm LMP (Le Mans 2003): The name Lister was resurrected in the mid-80's to once again become a prominent name in motorsports with the Lister Storm GT using V12 Jaguar power. In 2002, Lister began development of an open LMP1 car for Le Mans and other endurance racing events. At Le Mans in 2003, Lister Racing entered this car (Ch. #N001) to be driven by Jamie Campbell-Walter, Nathan Kinch and Vincent Vosse. In Thursday qualifying after putting the car 14th on the grid, Campbell-Walter hit a bump in the Dunlop Esses, spun the car into a barrier at 146 mph, doing major damage. The car had to be withdrawn due to a lack of spare parts. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
2003 Lister Storm GT (Spa 24-Hours 2003): For the 2003 FIA GT Championship season, Lister ran this car with regular drivers David Sterckx and Andrea Piccini. After finishing 2nd at the Spa 24 Hours test race, they were joined by Gabriele Lancieri and Gaving Pickering for the 24 Hour race. They finished 10th. Lister Racing placed 2nd in the Team Championship in 2003, following their championship seasons in 2001 & 2002. This car was raced once more in the 2004 season and retired as Lister focussed on the Storm LMP project. Model by Altaya/IXO 1/43 |
2003 Lister Storm LMP (Le Mans 2004): Rebuilt following its Le Mans crash in 2003, the Andy Thorby designed Storm LMP had several unique aerodynamic features. Initially designed to take a Judd V10 engine, it was instead powered by a 6.0L Lister Chevrolet V8 engine producing 570 bhp. A lack of funding led to a lack of development and the team struggled and the forced withdrawal the year before meant the car did not race at Le Mans until 2004. John Nielsen, Casper Legaard and Jens Moller finished 24th overall after having qualified 15th. For 2005, the team started working on hybrid power in this car's chassis. An ultimate lack of funding brought a halt to that project. This was the only Storm LMP car built. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
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| 2009 Morgan Aero 8 Supersport GT3: Impressed with the Morgan Aero 8 after former F1 drivers Jaques Laffite and Jean-Pierre Jabouille had a successful drive at the Spa 24 hours in 2003; Laffite, bankrolled by the chairman of a Swiss bank created AutoGt Racing. The team developed two GT3 versions of the Aero 8 for the 2009 season and won both opening rounds of the European GT3 Championship at Silverstone. This race and win took on special significance since it was Morgan's Centenary Year with a win on British soil. Throughout the season this car was driven by Dimitri Enjalbert and Johan-Boris Scheier. Based on its 1930's design, the Morgan had an aluminum chassis with some traditional ash framing and carbon fiber body panels. Powered by a BMW 5.0L V8 producing 440 bhp, the 2381 lb (1080 Kg) car was a Gt3 contender from the beginning. It raced one year, with AutoGt Racing taking 6th place in the 2009 Championship. This is how the car appeared at Goodwood Festival of Speed in 2009, celebrating Morgan's 100th year anniversary. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
2014 Bentley Continental GT3: Andrew Mayack, Steve Kane and Guy Smith drove the M-Power Bentley in the 2014 Blancpain Endurance Series. The trio took their first win at Silverstone in the 3-Hour race, followed by a win at Paul Richard in France. The team finished in second place at the end of the season. The Bentley Continental GT3 is powered by a 4.0L Twin-turbo V8 engine, which produces 550 bhp. Enough power to propel the aluminum bodied race car to close to 240 mph! Not bad for the big car from Crewe! Model by TSM Model 1/43 |
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| 1954 Bentley R-Type Continental Franay: The R-Type Continental was designed as a high-speed car, ideal for touring on the long straight roads of Europe. The R Type Continental was at the time the fastest production four seater car in the world, capable of 120 mph from its 5.6L six-cylinder engine. A total of 208 cars were built. One of five cars bodied by Franay (Paris). Model by DINKY 1/43 |
1956 Bentley S1 Continental Fastback: The S1 was a update of the R-Type that it replaced. Powered by a larger 4.9L inline six cylinder engine, theS1 kept the R-Type,s beautiful body lines, but the car sat lower giving it a sleeker appearance. Fantastic touring elegance in a high performance luxury coupe. La vie est belle! Model by OXFORD 1/43 |
1956 Morgan Plus 4: The Plus 4 was introduced in 1949 and by 1956, the 1.8L Vanguard engine gave way to the 2.0L straight-four from the TR3. The TR engine produced 100 hp and gave the Morgan a top speed of 102 mph. You have to love the classic Morgan styling with its steel body using a wooden framework, mounted on a rigid steel chassis. However, a lightweight aluminium body was available, which made those cars ideal for racing. Model by VITESSE 1/43 |
1957 AC Ace Acea: AC Cars built the two-seat Ace roadster from 1953-1962 based on a John Tojeiro design. They added the Acea hatchback coupe in 1954 and originally both cars were powered by a 2.0L straight-six engine which produced 100hp and a top-speed of 103 mph. Like the Ace, the Acea was a hand built timber and tube steel frame/chassis over a formed alloy body. In 1956, AC introduced the Bristol engine which was based on a BMW design. The 2.0L six had triple carburetors and produced 125 hp, capable of propelling the cars to 120 mph. Overdrive was available and in 1957 , disc brakes. Bristol stopped providing engines to AC in 1961, which is when Carroll Shelby began discussions with AC to provide roadster bodies for his Cobra, which began production in 1962. At that time Ace and Acea production stopped. Model by NOREV 1/43 |
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| 1960 Morris Minor 1000 Traveller: Launched in 1953 and running for an impressive eighteen years, the Traveller proved to be a crucial expansion of the best-selling Morris Minor range, with more than 215,000 examples of this distinctive woody-style estate being produced. Initially powered by a 948cc engine rated at 37 bhp, the Minor 1000 Traveller was uprated to a 1.1L engine in 1962, which saw its power output climb to 48 bhp! Much loved, with the distictive Minor body styling, the Traveller stayed in production until 1971, by which time it was viewedas antique, but is a classic today! Model by OXFORD 1/43 |
1966 Alvis TE21: Produced between 1963 and 1966, the TE21 replaced the TD21 from 1958 and in turn was replaced by the TF21 in 1967. Made in both saloon anddrophead versions, the TE21 had Park Ward body construction and is distinguished by having twin headlights mounted one above the other. These cars epitomize the low production sporting British saloons of the day, intended for an upwardly mobile buyer, keen on a car with classic styling. Powered by a 3.0L six-cylinder engine, the TE21 had decent performance for a heavy car and was capable of 110 mph. Model by NEO 1/43 |
1970 Jensen Interceptor MkII: The Interceptor was produced by Jensen from 1966 to 1976, undergoing two major model revisions (MkII and MkIII) after its introduction. In 1969, the MkII version was introduced with revisions to the headlamps, grille and tail lamps,; as well as a substantially revised interior to meet US safety regulations. All Interceptors were powered by Chrysler V8 engines, with MkI and MkII versions like this one, having a 6.3L V8 producing 250 BHP. 1969 also saw the introduction of air conditioning as an option, which must have been welcome in warmer climates with all its glass! The automatic transmission which was also optional made the Interceptor an exceptional touring car. Donald Healey became chairman of Jensen in 1970. He used an Interceptor similar to this one as his personal car, including a trip to Le Mans in 1970 when the Healey XR37 (seen in the background here.) ran in the 24-Hour race. Model by OXFORD 1/43 |
1972 Rover 3500S: The 3500 was produced from 1968-77. Rover saw Buick's compact 3.5 L V8 as a way to differentiate the P6 from its chief rival, the Triumph 2000. They purchased the rights to the innovative aluminium engine in 1965 and it continued in production for 40 years in several British cars. The V8 produced 200 hp. This is a Series II model and it benefitted from updated interior and exterior styling. Model by VANGUARDS 1/43 |
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| 1976 Jensen Interceptor SIII: The Interceptor was a Chrysler V8 powered touring car which was designed by Touring and built by Jensen between 1966-1976. The SIII cars introduced in 1971 had a 7.2L Hemi-V8, producing 340 hp. The Interceptor is a RWD car, but is closely related to the Jensen FF 4WD car which looks similar. Model by NEO 1/43 |
1993-94 Lister Storm GTL: Until recently, the road going version of the Storm GTL was considered the world's fastest four seater. Only four road going versions of the Le Mans GT1 class competitor were built and only three currently remain. Powered by a Jaguar 7.0L V12 used in the Jaguar XJR race cars, which produced 546 hp. Its $350K price tag limited sales. Model by SPARK 1/43 |
2005 Caterham Super 7: The Caterham 7 is the direct evolution of the Lotus Seven which was launched in 1957. Caterham who had been a Lotus dealer purchased the rights to produce the 7 from Lotus in 1973 when Lotus planned to discontinue the model. A 1.6L Ford engine producing 150hp powers this iconic sports car, which has been popular with club racers for over 50 years. Model by VITESSE 1/43 |
THE SIGNATURE PROJECT & RACING DIORAMAS
GREAT AUTOMOTIVE MAKES & RACING TEAMS:
AMERICAN:
CHAPARRAL
CHEVROLET & GM POWER
COBRAS & DAYTONAS - SHELBY CARS
CUNNINGHAM EQUIPE - THE CARS OF BRIGGS CUNNINGHAM
FORD POWER: GT40's, MUSTANGS & MORE
MISC. AMERICAN MADE
BRITISH:
ASTON MARTIN RACE & PRODUCTION
AUSTIN HEALEY & HEALEY
BRABHAM F! & SPORTS CARS
BRM F1 & SPORTS CARS
LOLA SPORTS RACING CARS
LOTUS F1, RACE & PRODUCTION
McLAREN RACING & PRODUCTION CARS
MG CARS - RACING & PRODUCTION
TRIUMPH RACE & PRODUCTION CARS
MISC. BRITISH MADE
FRENCH:
BUGATTI
FRENCH MADE
GERMAN:
AUDI RACING
BMW RACE & PRODUCTION
MERCEDES BENZ RACE & PRODUCTION
MISC. GERMAN & SWEDISH MADE
ITALIAN:
ABARTH RACING
ALFA ROMEO RACE & PRODUCTION
LANCIA RACE & PRODUCTION
MASERATI RACE & PRODUCTION
MISC. ITALIAN & SPANISH MADE
JAPANESE:
DATSUN/NISSAN RACING
TOYOTA RACE & PRODUCTION CARS
MISC. JAPAN, ASIAN & AUSTRALIAN MADE
LAND SPEED AND ENDURANCE RECORD CARS
THE TRIPLE CROWN OF ENDURANCE RACES:
THE 24 HOURS of LE MANS 100 YEARS - 1923-2023
THE 12 Hours of SEBRING WINNERS
THE 24 HOURS of DAYTONA WINNERS
DRIVER TRIBUTES:
THE OLD IRISH RACING HALL OF FAME
JUAN MANUEL FANGIO TRIBUTE
STIRLING MOSS TRIBUTE
WORLD DRIVER & CONSTRUCTORS CHAMPIONS 1950 - 1985
PLAY BALL! - IT'S BASEBALL TIME:
A TRIBUTE TO BOYHOOD HEROES AND MY DAD
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