One of my favorite automotive books is Doug Nye’s “Motor Racing Mavericks”. Published in 1975, it explores failures—high-end failures—in Grand...
Now available on Netflix is “A Life of Speed: The Juan Manuel Fangio Story.” The 92-minute movie originates in Argentina...
Bristol, once a significant marque, has relocated to the “Great Paddock In The Sky.” For some time it had been on life support and a car make in name only. In 2011, it had been acquired by Kamkorp a privately-owned small group of engineering companies, among them Frazer-Nash Research Ltd....
For most of my adult life I have lived within two miles of the Goodwood Motor Circuit. Between the last...
Before WWII, the company which became Jaguar was called Swallow Sidecars and it had diversified into making special bodies for...
Aston Martin has announced a collaboration with revived motorcycle company, Brough Superior, to make the AMB001, a limited edition track-only bike. It is unclear whether the 001 designation is a statement of future intent (up to 999 models or if it is a reference to 007.) The one thing most...
For the majority of VR’s readers, 2019 has been the 50th anniversary of Formula Ford, although it actually started in...
Bentley is to make 12 “continuation” examples of the supercharged 4.5-liter Birkin “Blower,” one of those cars whose legend far...
One of the most memorable motor races I have ever seen was broadcast from the 1959 Easter Monday Goodwood Meeting and it was for 1100-cc sports cars. For three years, the class had been dominated by the Lotus Eleven, but the top three spots on the grid were filled by...
In a recent “Last Lap” [60 Years of the Upscale Mini] I considered the expensive customized Minis of the Swinging Sixties,...
The Lister Motor Company has made “continuation” examples of the “Knobbly” Lister-Jaguar. An auction house has claimed that a car...
This year is the 60th anniversary of the Morris Mini-Minor and Austin Se7en, and the Goodwood Revival will feature some examples once owned by stars of the period, including the odd Beatle. The Mini was praised for being egalitarian, which fitted the mood of the time when social barriers were...
Anyone who has studied literature will know about footnotes and the glossary of terms because the language is constantly changing....
We are frequently told that Formula One is at the cutting edge of technology, but that has been true only...
Most people when launching a new product normally try to come up with a new name to reflect innovation. Then it comes to cars, however, there is a trend to resurrect a name from the past so we have had Allard, Connaught, Osca, Lea-Francis, Jensen, Invicta, Spyker, Ermini and that...
Australia has decided to demote FF1600 and install Formula 4 as its national starter series. Formula 4 gives each country...
Mike Jiggle’s recent article on the ex-Moss Cooper Mk IV-J.A.P. (VR, July 2015) prodded a few memories about the formula....
Recently, I was contacted by a chap in New Jersey who labored under the impression that I know much more than I do. He had bought an MZ 850 single-seater and wanted to know more. Not only had I not heard of the make, I had no knowledge of the...
There has been some debate within these pages about the wood used to make Frank Costin’s Protos F2 cars. The...
Here is a question to ponder: when was there last welding equipment in a Formula One pitlane, or that of...
At the end of last year, I moved from Chichester to Oxford or, to put it in terms even the most geographically challenged reader will understand, from Goodwood to Silverstone and the heart of the British motor racing industry. Three Formula One engineers live within 50 yards of me and...
There is a minor industry in new James Bond novels and if we include Young James Bond and the Moneypenny...
One of the delights of Vintage Racecar is reading the small ads and being reminded of the sheer diversity of...
Recently, yet another attempt to revive the Allard name was announced. There have been three Allard revivals to my knowledge, but this one comes with the involvement of Sydney Allard’s son and grandson, and a new car is promised. Sydney Allard was a London garage owner (his business was called...
One of the anniversaries celebrated at the 2014 Goodwood Revival Meeting was 50 years since Jackie Stewart won his first...
Up to ten of the “continuation” “Knobbly” Lister-Jaguars are being made, and these are available in either full racing or...
This year we celebrated the 70th anniversary of D-Day. Within weeks, what had been RAF Westhampnett, now the Goodwood Motor Circuit, was virtually deserted as operations moved to France. Before the first Revival, I went with Stirling Moss, his manager Ken Gregory, and the engineer, Tony Robinson, to the place...
It is 50 years since John Surtees won the F1 World Championship for Ferrari to add to the seven championships...
In 1957 Maserati was supreme. Fangio won the F1 Championship and the Maserati 450S came within an ace of winning the WSCC, and then Maserati suddenly withdrew and left the way clear for Ferrari to become the dominant Italian marque. For a moment, Maserati had the laurel within its grasp....
