And now a few words from some people in the know...
'The Jowett Jupiter Corsa Spyder' by Geoff McAuley
Which choice takes preference for the typical kit car builder – body style or
donor vehicle?
Well, in my case at least, the acquisition many years ago of a derelict Jowett
Jupiter rescued from the nettles of a Scottish sheep farmer’s field, left me just
with the not so simple task of finding a suitable body.
The Jupiter’s moly-chrome tubular steel chassis was originally designed and built
by English Racing Automobiles (ERA) Ltd of Dunstable in the late ‘forties and
was based on the mechanical components of the highly regarded Jowett Javelin
saloon. It was anticipated that the client base would come from the specialist
coach builder fraternity, but the Jowett company was soon to take over the
project and fit their in-house designed aluminium body. This car was christened
‘Jupiter’. However, the chassis continued to appeal to independent
coachbuilders, and of the 1,000 or so constructed, more than 70 ‘Specials’ were
subsequently constructed over the years, some by famous coachbuilders such
as Stabilimenti Farina, and many others by lesser luminaries closer to home like
Mead and Rochdale.
So, I didn’t feel too guilty about using my poor rusty chassis in this way. And the
fact that I have owned, raced and rallied Jowetts for more than 40 years meant
that I’d amassed not a little knowledge of the cars’ oily bits, along with sheds full
of bits and pieces!
So, the quandary was, what body style? It may have provided some amusement
to go for a Lamborghini Diablo or Lancia Stratos option, but somehow this wasn’t
really in the spirit of things. Then, mooching around the 2005 National Kit Car
Show at Stoneleigh, I came across a small group of ‘40s look-alike sports racers.
The styling was spot on in terms of paying homage to the Jowett marque. The
shape of the bodies, named Fiorano Corsa Spyder by the kits’ current supplier,
is based on the pretty little Ferrari 166 Spider Corsa of 1947/48. So the era was
just right for my – er - ERA!
Trouble was, the Fiorano was designed to be nailed onto a Triumph Spitfire or a
GT6 chassis. So this was not going to be easy. But a subsequent bit of research
into a Triumph’s dimensional data persuaded me that the project would be quite
do-able. So, suitably armed with tape measure, camera and notepad, a trip was
arranged to see Fiorano’s current owner Mick Michaelides in Bromley. It didn’t
take long to be persuaded and so an order was immediately placed for the
manufacture of a body set (Fioranos are made to order), and in early December
2005, body number 13 (was this an omen?), was ready for its trip back to York.
A block and tackle was erected from the eaves of my garage, and the body
gently lowered towards the scruffy Jowett chassis. Oh dear! This wasn’t going to
be as easy as I’d imagined! I’d already calculated that the chassis would need a
bit chopping off its tail, but some of the other dimensions were looking a bit –
how shall I say – challenging. Furthermore, Jowett’s aluminium 1486cc flat four
engine resides far forward in the chassis – not at all similar to the Triumph’s
installation. So the body’s sloping nose was going to create some clearance
issues. And in order to achieve installation and access of the engine, it would be
necessary to slice off the snout of the body so as to allow it to become a front -
hinging ‘bonnet’.
Eventually though, having offered the body to the chassis maybe 100 times, lots
of cutting here and a little shaving there produced a suitable compromise, and
gave me the encouragement to send the chassis away for shot-blasting and
priming.
Eleven cans of Halfords satin black Plasticote later (it’s good stuff this), the
chassis lay resplendent once more, eagerly awaiting its new set of clothes. In the
tradition of earlier Jupiter Specials, I was keen to retain as much ‘Jowettness’ to
the project as I could. This meant utilising the original front and rear torsion bar
suspension, gearbox, engine, steering rack and column, brakes, radiator (albeit
remanufactured slightly shallower than standard), and even the column
gearchange. Please don’t cringe! The Jowett version of this popular fifties
device was one of the best around, and with a little practice, shifting cogs can be
satisfyingly swift. Furthermore, this arrangement allows for an unadulterated flat
floor – quite useful in a body as narrow as the Fio’s.
I chose to use Jupiter ventilated pressed steel 16” wheels which kept things in
the family, although most Fioranos do in fact employ 15” spoked versions. Tyres
are from Kingpin Remoulds – 175x16 Taxi size.
One of the few areas where I had to depart from the true Jowett specification
was caused by clearance problems with the high-mounted mechanical water
pump/cooling fan assembly (the Jowett radiator lives behind the engine with the
fan hung on the end of a long spindle from the front positioned pump). So I had
to opt for a Pacet electric fan and a Davies Craig electric pump. And in
recognition of the high-amp diet of these devices, the Lucas dynamo was
replaced with an alternator, the drive belt being diverted to run around an
improvised Golf cambelt tensioner pulley.
One aspect of the build which seemed straightforward (but which was anything
but!), was the mounting of the mudguards. Unlike the Ferrari, the Fio’s guards
are intended to be affixed to the hub backplates, and thus travel up and down
with the suspension. I spent many hours fabricating tubular steel struts, which, in
all modesty I say, looked quite nice. Trouble was, as I found on the first
shakedown of the car, the flapping of the ‘guards caused the struts to fracture at
the fixing points, and so a beefier square tube steel version had to be designed.
They don’t look as good – but at least they’re still in one piece!
Because the Jowett’s track is a little smaller that a Triumph’s, it wasn’t possible to
achieve full lock due to the front mudguards fouling the body side, so segments
had to be cut out on either side to accommodate them. It’s so nerve wracking to
start chomping away at your pretty GRP body, but with a bit of black leatherette
trim strip, the surgery now looks okay.
Eventually, with the (supplied) front and rear bulkheads slightly modified and
installed, and a Spitfire fuel tank neatly slotted in between the rear one and the
chassis crucible, the Jupiter Fio was ready for its floor. Jowett used marine ply
for the original car, so I followed suit, but because of the absence of steel sills it
had to be mounted on oak blocks. More oak was employed to provide
longitudinal rails for the body to sit on. Marcos – eat your heart out! Tin worm
won’t be a problem with this car – but woodworm might be!
In keeping with the traditions of the time, I made up a bespoke wiring loom using
colour coded, braided cable with soldered bullet connectors, all sourced from
the excellent Auto Electric Supplies of Tenbury Wells.
The rough-cut wooden dashboard as supplied with the kit was skinned with
turned aluminium sheet and holes were bored to take the instruments. Minor
gauges come from an old Sunbeam Rapier, (scrapped many years ago), whilst
speedo and rev counter are Jaguar, sourced at a local autojumble and
recalibrated to suit. An attractive four spoke Moto-Lita steering wheel finishes
the job off nicely.
A pair of old Spitfire seats was re-upholstered, and the bare fibre glass interior
of the body was trimmed with a sort of corrugated rubbery sheeting material,
bought from a local hardware store, and intended to cover your kitchen table!
All this, along with a hundred other jobs, caused the project to drag on much
longer than planned. Indeed, it was March of 2008 when the car made its first
tentative journey under its own power along the length of my driveway – some
27 months after the start date.
The surface finish of the Fiorano shell as supplied is excellent, and minimum
preparation was needed before its top coat (Ferrari Corsa Rosso – racing red.
What else?). In fact, I initially made an abortive attempt to colour the car using
aerosols, but I should have known better, so when finances allowed, off it went to
a professional spray shop.
And the driving experience? Well, having identified and fixed a few rattles, the
car now feels very well screwed together. At just 12.8 cwt (654 kg), it’s quite a lot
lighter than a standard Jupiter, so the ride is a little on the firm side. But it
handles very nicely in a drifty sort of way, and performance is quite brisk despite
having only around 60bhp available from the 1486cc engine.
Although the finished car is in the tradition of a coach built model, I could not
have done it without resorting to the kit car scene. Apart from the obvious bit –
the body - so many other parts have been sourced from established kit car
suppliers such as Car Builder Solutions of Staplehurst in Kent. I feel it’s been a
very successful combination of two rather different approaches.
Throughout the project I had wondered whether other Jowett owners, or indeed
kit car enthusiasts, might be a bit sniffy about what I’d done. But the car has
been very well received. Not only has it been accepted as a genuine Special
Bodied Jupiter by the Jupiter Owners’ Auto Club (JOAC) and the Jowett Car Club
(both of whom have judged it best in the Special Bodied Jowett class at their
respective awards ceremonies), it also attracted much interest and kind
comment from visitors to the 2008 Stoneleigh National Kit Car Show. And owners
of more traditional Corsa ‘48s and Fioranos have also been complimentary.
So, it seems everyone’s happy.
I certainly am!
To view photos of Geoff's car click here
Which choice takes preference for the typical kit car builder – body style or
donor vehicle?
Well, in my case at least, the acquisition many years ago of a derelict Jowett
Jupiter rescued from the nettles of a Scottish sheep farmer’s field, left me just
with the not so simple task of finding a suitable body.
The Jupiter’s moly-chrome tubular steel chassis was originally designed and built
by English Racing Automobiles (ERA) Ltd of Dunstable in the late ‘forties and
was based on the mechanical components of the highly regarded Jowett Javelin
saloon. It was anticipated that the client base would come from the specialist
coach builder fraternity, but the Jowett company was soon to take over the
project and fit their in-house designed aluminium body. This car was christened
‘Jupiter’. However, the chassis continued to appeal to independent
coachbuilders, and of the 1,000 or so constructed, more than 70 ‘Specials’ were
subsequently constructed over the years, some by famous coachbuilders such
as Stabilimenti Farina, and many others by lesser luminaries closer to home like
Mead and Rochdale.
So, I didn’t feel too guilty about using my poor rusty chassis in this way. And the
fact that I have owned, raced and rallied Jowetts for more than 40 years meant
that I’d amassed not a little knowledge of the cars’ oily bits, along with sheds full
of bits and pieces!
So, the quandary was, what body style? It may have provided some amusement
to go for a Lamborghini Diablo or Lancia Stratos option, but somehow this wasn’t
really in the spirit of things. Then, mooching around the 2005 National Kit Car
Show at Stoneleigh, I came across a small group of ‘40s look-alike sports racers.
The styling was spot on in terms of paying homage to the Jowett marque. The
shape of the bodies, named Fiorano Corsa Spyder by the kits’ current supplier,
is based on the pretty little Ferrari 166 Spider Corsa of 1947/48. So the era was
just right for my – er - ERA!
Trouble was, the Fiorano was designed to be nailed onto a Triumph Spitfire or a
GT6 chassis. So this was not going to be easy. But a subsequent bit of research
into a Triumph’s dimensional data persuaded me that the project would be quite
do-able. So, suitably armed with tape measure, camera and notepad, a trip was
arranged to see Fiorano’s current owner Mick Michaelides in Bromley. It didn’t
take long to be persuaded and so an order was immediately placed for the
manufacture of a body set (Fioranos are made to order), and in early December
2005, body number 13 (was this an omen?), was ready for its trip back to York.
A block and tackle was erected from the eaves of my garage, and the body
gently lowered towards the scruffy Jowett chassis. Oh dear! This wasn’t going to
be as easy as I’d imagined! I’d already calculated that the chassis would need a
bit chopping off its tail, but some of the other dimensions were looking a bit –
how shall I say – challenging. Furthermore, Jowett’s aluminium 1486cc flat four
engine resides far forward in the chassis – not at all similar to the Triumph’s
installation. So the body’s sloping nose was going to create some clearance
issues. And in order to achieve installation and access of the engine, it would be
necessary to slice off the snout of the body so as to allow it to become a front -
hinging ‘bonnet’.
Eventually though, having offered the body to the chassis maybe 100 times, lots
of cutting here and a little shaving there produced a suitable compromise, and
gave me the encouragement to send the chassis away for shot-blasting and
priming.
Eleven cans of Halfords satin black Plasticote later (it’s good stuff this), the
chassis lay resplendent once more, eagerly awaiting its new set of clothes. In the
tradition of earlier Jupiter Specials, I was keen to retain as much ‘Jowettness’ to
the project as I could. This meant utilising the original front and rear torsion bar
suspension, gearbox, engine, steering rack and column, brakes, radiator (albeit
remanufactured slightly shallower than standard), and even the column
gearchange. Please don’t cringe! The Jowett version of this popular fifties
device was one of the best around, and with a little practice, shifting cogs can be
satisfyingly swift. Furthermore, this arrangement allows for an unadulterated flat
floor – quite useful in a body as narrow as the Fio’s.
I chose to use Jupiter ventilated pressed steel 16” wheels which kept things in
the family, although most Fioranos do in fact employ 15” spoked versions. Tyres
are from Kingpin Remoulds – 175x16 Taxi size.
One of the few areas where I had to depart from the true Jowett specification
was caused by clearance problems with the high-mounted mechanical water
pump/cooling fan assembly (the Jowett radiator lives behind the engine with the
fan hung on the end of a long spindle from the front positioned pump). So I had
to opt for a Pacet electric fan and a Davies Craig electric pump. And in
recognition of the high-amp diet of these devices, the Lucas dynamo was
replaced with an alternator, the drive belt being diverted to run around an
improvised Golf cambelt tensioner pulley.
One aspect of the build which seemed straightforward (but which was anything
but!), was the mounting of the mudguards. Unlike the Ferrari, the Fio’s guards
are intended to be affixed to the hub backplates, and thus travel up and down
with the suspension. I spent many hours fabricating tubular steel struts, which, in
all modesty I say, looked quite nice. Trouble was, as I found on the first
shakedown of the car, the flapping of the ‘guards caused the struts to fracture at
the fixing points, and so a beefier square tube steel version had to be designed.
They don’t look as good – but at least they’re still in one piece!
Because the Jowett’s track is a little smaller that a Triumph’s, it wasn’t possible to
achieve full lock due to the front mudguards fouling the body side, so segments
had to be cut out on either side to accommodate them. It’s so nerve wracking to
start chomping away at your pretty GRP body, but with a bit of black leatherette
trim strip, the surgery now looks okay.
Eventually, with the (supplied) front and rear bulkheads slightly modified and
installed, and a Spitfire fuel tank neatly slotted in between the rear one and the
chassis crucible, the Jupiter Fio was ready for its floor. Jowett used marine ply
for the original car, so I followed suit, but because of the absence of steel sills it
had to be mounted on oak blocks. More oak was employed to provide
longitudinal rails for the body to sit on. Marcos – eat your heart out! Tin worm
won’t be a problem with this car – but woodworm might be!
In keeping with the traditions of the time, I made up a bespoke wiring loom using
colour coded, braided cable with soldered bullet connectors, all sourced from
the excellent Auto Electric Supplies of Tenbury Wells.
The rough-cut wooden dashboard as supplied with the kit was skinned with
turned aluminium sheet and holes were bored to take the instruments. Minor
gauges come from an old Sunbeam Rapier, (scrapped many years ago), whilst
speedo and rev counter are Jaguar, sourced at a local autojumble and
recalibrated to suit. An attractive four spoke Moto-Lita steering wheel finishes
the job off nicely.
A pair of old Spitfire seats was re-upholstered, and the bare fibre glass interior
of the body was trimmed with a sort of corrugated rubbery sheeting material,
bought from a local hardware store, and intended to cover your kitchen table!
All this, along with a hundred other jobs, caused the project to drag on much
longer than planned. Indeed, it was March of 2008 when the car made its first
tentative journey under its own power along the length of my driveway – some
27 months after the start date.
The surface finish of the Fiorano shell as supplied is excellent, and minimum
preparation was needed before its top coat (Ferrari Corsa Rosso – racing red.
What else?). In fact, I initially made an abortive attempt to colour the car using
aerosols, but I should have known better, so when finances allowed, off it went to
a professional spray shop.
And the driving experience? Well, having identified and fixed a few rattles, the
car now feels very well screwed together. At just 12.8 cwt (654 kg), it’s quite a lot
lighter than a standard Jupiter, so the ride is a little on the firm side. But it
handles very nicely in a drifty sort of way, and performance is quite brisk despite
having only around 60bhp available from the 1486cc engine.
Although the finished car is in the tradition of a coach built model, I could not
have done it without resorting to the kit car scene. Apart from the obvious bit –
the body - so many other parts have been sourced from established kit car
suppliers such as Car Builder Solutions of Staplehurst in Kent. I feel it’s been a
very successful combination of two rather different approaches.
Throughout the project I had wondered whether other Jowett owners, or indeed
kit car enthusiasts, might be a bit sniffy about what I’d done. But the car has
been very well received. Not only has it been accepted as a genuine Special
Bodied Jupiter by the Jupiter Owners’ Auto Club (JOAC) and the Jowett Car Club
(both of whom have judged it best in the Special Bodied Jowett class at their
respective awards ceremonies), it also attracted much interest and kind
comment from visitors to the 2008 Stoneleigh National Kit Car Show. And owners
of more traditional Corsa ‘48s and Fioranos have also been complimentary.
So, it seems everyone’s happy.
I certainly am!
To view photos of Geoff's car click here
'A Spit in the past', by Brian Marshall
My brief courtship with idol worship came to a depressing end the day that Mike
Hawthorn died in a stupid 'race you there' car crash on a wet public road in the
late 1950's. What a savage waste. But then the list is endless in the years of motor
racings inception even up until recently with Senna's death. Those far off years
seemed to have magic, panache. Even a picture of those cars - Connaught - BRM
- Mercedes - Maserati - Ferrari -Talbot - Jaguar, evoke the senses. One can
almost smell the exhaust, the hot oil, that peculiar smell of fresh paint work
enduring under heat. And the men - Straight out of the 'Boys own' magazine, with
their leather helmets, goggles and, later, visors, ordinary white overalls for the
most part, hands covered in blisters on the occasions when they had battled with
brutish weight and steering. Drivers blackened face with fumes, dust and oil leaks.
It seems romantic, but with hindsight must have been its own kind of madness at
the time.
However, as Bob Hope would say, 'thanks for the memories' - Cambell - Parry
Thomas - Nuvolari - Cortese - Ascari - Prince Bira - Hawthorne - Collins - Moss -
Salvadori and El Maestro himself ..... Fangio.
These days GP racing resembles giant slot car racing and the cars themselves
appear to be over engineered point and squirt machines with the driver just a
helmet shaped blob lost amidst the advertising logos. Those days of yore were
indeed vintage in every way and to recollect them now is almost like a dream....
Which brings me to the Type 48 Corsa Spyder. Alan has provided me with the
answer to many a dream. If you can remember with nostalgia those earlier days
then the Type 48 is for you. They have reproduced (in general terms) the
appearance of the first road racing Ferrari marque, the 166 Corsa Spyder, and in
my opinion, have improved the basic styling.... But judge for yourselves. They have
captured the essence of the original Ferrari in every respect, never trying nor
claiming it is a copy or a replica. No, this is a dream machine. Check that nobody
is looking (shut the workshop door), climb into the cockpit, shuffle your legs down
to the pedals and look down the length of the bonnet.......... If that isn't the
Mulsanne straight in front of you then you have no soul....Go and buy a Toyota!
My brief courtship with idol worship came to a depressing end the day that Mike
Hawthorn died in a stupid 'race you there' car crash on a wet public road in the
late 1950's. What a savage waste. But then the list is endless in the years of motor
racings inception even up until recently with Senna's death. Those far off years
seemed to have magic, panache. Even a picture of those cars - Connaught - BRM
- Mercedes - Maserati - Ferrari -Talbot - Jaguar, evoke the senses. One can
almost smell the exhaust, the hot oil, that peculiar smell of fresh paint work
enduring under heat. And the men - Straight out of the 'Boys own' magazine, with
their leather helmets, goggles and, later, visors, ordinary white overalls for the
most part, hands covered in blisters on the occasions when they had battled with
brutish weight and steering. Drivers blackened face with fumes, dust and oil leaks.
It seems romantic, but with hindsight must have been its own kind of madness at
the time.
However, as Bob Hope would say, 'thanks for the memories' - Cambell - Parry
Thomas - Nuvolari - Cortese - Ascari - Prince Bira - Hawthorne - Collins - Moss -
Salvadori and El Maestro himself ..... Fangio.
These days GP racing resembles giant slot car racing and the cars themselves
appear to be over engineered point and squirt machines with the driver just a
helmet shaped blob lost amidst the advertising logos. Those days of yore were
indeed vintage in every way and to recollect them now is almost like a dream....
Which brings me to the Type 48 Corsa Spyder. Alan has provided me with the
answer to many a dream. If you can remember with nostalgia those earlier days
then the Type 48 is for you. They have reproduced (in general terms) the
appearance of the first road racing Ferrari marque, the 166 Corsa Spyder, and in
my opinion, have improved the basic styling.... But judge for yourselves. They have
captured the essence of the original Ferrari in every respect, never trying nor
claiming it is a copy or a replica. No, this is a dream machine. Check that nobody
is looking (shut the workshop door), climb into the cockpit, shuffle your legs down
to the pedals and look down the length of the bonnet.......... If that isn't the
Mulsanne straight in front of you then you have no soul....Go and buy a Toyota!
Come March I will have spent three years on the project.... Good grief what has he
been doing?... Please, in my defence, let me explain. I work six or seven days a
week as manager of my son's poultry breeding farm. Very labour intensive and the
workload could have you going out of your head! In fact, if I had not started the '48
project, I would probably have walked straight down Skegness beach and out to
sea!
The car is being built in the farm workshop so in the summer I spend one or two
hours on it most evenings, in the winter, five minutes to nothing! My mechanical
experience is really limited to everyday car maintenance, but I have been a
plater/welder and have always been a DIY sort of person. That being to my
advantage, but on the down side if the instructions are written down I do not try to
remember them. So, all my 'mechanicing' comes step by step, hand in hand with
the instructions and a Haynes manuel. My nearest specialists are as far as
twenty-five and up to 40 miles away. Living here near Skegness has its advantages
but not as far as motoring facilities are concerned and I have never owned a
Spitfire before so in some respects it is a 'strange' car for me to work with. In the
main, I have followed the instructions closely for if I sell the car in future I can say
that it is as originally designed. That aside East Lincs Motor Sport re-worked my
1300 engine (higher revving that the 1500)...Slightly lightened flywheel...two
pounds...too much would upset the engine performance at low revs. We have fitted
a Kent fast road cam, shaved the head, had the original carburetors overhauled
and added KN filters with ram stubs. Triumph sports stainless exhaust manifold
vents through a single expansion box to twin tailpipes. East Linc Motor Sport have
guaranteed that it will go like 'spit off a hot shovel!' What more do you want? So,
what am i trying to achieve with this car? Will it pass the eye of the chap in the
street as a vintage sports racing car, recently overhauled? Will people stop me and
ask what it is, (mouth slightly open?)... They will!...Then that'll do for me...Will it
you?
Building the Old Growler, by David Speed
It would be easy to build a completely Triumph Spitfire based Type 48 in a few
months, but when there are two people building the car, each having good ideas
about how the car should turn out, the project is bound to take a little longer. Pete
Morris and I both had plenty of ideas, and our car took two years to complete.
Though the inspiration for the Type 48 was a 1948 Ferrari, the car is not intended
to be an accurate replica; it is a special in the style of the late 40's/ early 50's.
He first, and biggest, good idea was to fit a Fiat twin-can engine instead of the
Triumph. It is an excellent engine, and there are still cheap, rusty Fiat's and
Lancia's with sound mechanicals about. However, fitting the non-standard 'lump'
raised quite a few problems such as finding that the alternator intercepted the
steering column. This problem was solved by adjusting the alternator position and
canting the engine over to the left to clear the steering column. This raised another
problem, such as the clutch actuating lever now intercepted the chassis rail, and
had to be shortened, and the carburettor manifold had to have 7 degrees of extra
angle machined off it to keep the carbs horizontal.
Good idea two was the Grand Prix style outside exhaust, which Pete welded up
from mild steel tube, and which was hot-sprayed with aluminium powder, cheaper
and more fitting than chrome. The exhaust is particularly sunk into an aluminium
trough which runs the length of the body tub, and this in turn required a long slot to
be cut in the superb GRP body moulding. Taking an air saw to the pristine plastic
was not a job that I will forget in a hurry. We are rather proud of the (dubiously
legal) result. It's also rather good for frightening horses
We both thought that the head fairings fitted to old racing cars look great, so this
was the next good idea. We made a former out of expanded polystyrene, covered
it in plaster and sanded it to shape, then took a GRP female mould from it, and
moulded a fairing in it. The fairing covers a rudimentary roll-over structure of
purloined scaffolding poles, to which is attached to the fuel filler, (obtained from a
Corporation bus). The fuel tank itself is made from scratch by Pete; it fits snugly
behind the cockpit area. We were rather generous with the dimensions, and
haven't yet been able to afford to fill it up! At a rough guess, the capacity is about
15 gallons.
Another new GRP component is the air intake trunking which covers the K&N filters
for the twin Dellorto carbs -the filters would look far too modern stuck out in the
breeze. The car incorporates masses of bits and pieces made form raw materials
which happened to be to hand when a particular component was required. Some
heavy gauge brackets were made up from L-section aluminium taken from an old
Royal Engineers Bomb disposal van, and other bracketry came from a farm trailer,
and some from old motorbike luggage carriers. The cars radiator grille was made
from old Morris Minor grill slats, which fill the aluminium skinned radiator duct.
The interior of the car is paneled aluminium, which looks great and conceals the
inside face of the GRP body, so preserving the illusion that it is an aluminium
bodied car. Of course we wouldn't be so crass as to pass the car off as something
older than it is, but if people insist on thinking it's a real '50s racer, why should we
disappoint them? The cockpit opening is edged with an aluminium coating,
attached with lots of counter sunk stainless screws; this job took a whole weekend
of heating and bending to fit satisfactorily but the end result is well worth the effort.
Just stick at it -we learned first time. The wheels just had to be large, spoked and
skinny, to look the part. Triumph four-stud wire wheel hubs were laced into 15"
rims sprayed silver and fitted to 165 radial tyres. The mudguards (supplied with the
kit) are quickly detachable, R-clipped into place. The mudguards are painted
black, and the bodywork Jaguar racing green with chrome yellow bands around
the radiator and carburettor intakes.
The steering wheel came from a very early Morris Minor, wound with stout cod (no,
stout cord) as was racing practice when men, cord ( and cod) were stout. The
supplied seat mouldings were upholstered in tan leatherette (yes, real leatherette)
and then some of the padding removed to give a low sat-in look.
The headrest was trimmed to match. The driver's seat belt is the full monte
boy-racer rally ace job, black, with all the posey luminous labels removed. The
passenger does well to hang onto the driver; his, or preferably her, seatbelt merely
conforms to legal requirements. The dashboard is polished aluminium with
(hopefully) period looking instruments: I dismantled the speedo and tacho and
made new faces for them in white with black letters ( which is why the tacho reads
up to 150,000 rpm, a slight decimal misplacement which no-one noticed for weeks.
The engine coped quite well too!)
A cosmetic job has been done to disguise it's Fiat origins - the cam-box covers now
red 'Lampredi' after the engine designer. (He designed GP engines for Ferrari
also). The cam-boxes have been de-ribbed to further confuse interested
onlookers. The hideous yellow cam-belt cover was binned, and replaced with a
neat aluminium job that you might think covered a cam-chain.
What's it like to drive? Well. Its got a 1600 Fiat engine, with multiple carburetors
(twin UB40's as Gary said), and a free flowing (if unscientific) exhaust, so a
hundred bhp would be a realistic estimate. Putting that through those skinny tyres
is extremely entertaining. Power drifting is wonderful on roundabout's, but do not
lift your foot off the loud pedal half way around. If you do, please remember to
wave the following traffic as you rotate! For normal driving the car is a doddle. The
engine is tractable, the suspension works properly and comfortably; Pete even
confiscated the Escort's keys and encouraged his partner Jody to go shopping in
it; can't keep her out of it now! Handy for returning from the pub. Don't hesitate,
buy one today,and remember, when you drive an open car, the world is your
ashtray!
been doing?... Please, in my defence, let me explain. I work six or seven days a
week as manager of my son's poultry breeding farm. Very labour intensive and the
workload could have you going out of your head! In fact, if I had not started the '48
project, I would probably have walked straight down Skegness beach and out to
sea!
The car is being built in the farm workshop so in the summer I spend one or two
hours on it most evenings, in the winter, five minutes to nothing! My mechanical
experience is really limited to everyday car maintenance, but I have been a
plater/welder and have always been a DIY sort of person. That being to my
advantage, but on the down side if the instructions are written down I do not try to
remember them. So, all my 'mechanicing' comes step by step, hand in hand with
the instructions and a Haynes manuel. My nearest specialists are as far as
twenty-five and up to 40 miles away. Living here near Skegness has its advantages
but not as far as motoring facilities are concerned and I have never owned a
Spitfire before so in some respects it is a 'strange' car for me to work with. In the
main, I have followed the instructions closely for if I sell the car in future I can say
that it is as originally designed. That aside East Lincs Motor Sport re-worked my
1300 engine (higher revving that the 1500)...Slightly lightened flywheel...two
pounds...too much would upset the engine performance at low revs. We have fitted
a Kent fast road cam, shaved the head, had the original carburetors overhauled
and added KN filters with ram stubs. Triumph sports stainless exhaust manifold
vents through a single expansion box to twin tailpipes. East Linc Motor Sport have
guaranteed that it will go like 'spit off a hot shovel!' What more do you want? So,
what am i trying to achieve with this car? Will it pass the eye of the chap in the
street as a vintage sports racing car, recently overhauled? Will people stop me and
ask what it is, (mouth slightly open?)... They will!...Then that'll do for me...Will it
you?
Building the Old Growler, by David Speed
It would be easy to build a completely Triumph Spitfire based Type 48 in a few
months, but when there are two people building the car, each having good ideas
about how the car should turn out, the project is bound to take a little longer. Pete
Morris and I both had plenty of ideas, and our car took two years to complete.
Though the inspiration for the Type 48 was a 1948 Ferrari, the car is not intended
to be an accurate replica; it is a special in the style of the late 40's/ early 50's.
He first, and biggest, good idea was to fit a Fiat twin-can engine instead of the
Triumph. It is an excellent engine, and there are still cheap, rusty Fiat's and
Lancia's with sound mechanicals about. However, fitting the non-standard 'lump'
raised quite a few problems such as finding that the alternator intercepted the
steering column. This problem was solved by adjusting the alternator position and
canting the engine over to the left to clear the steering column. This raised another
problem, such as the clutch actuating lever now intercepted the chassis rail, and
had to be shortened, and the carburettor manifold had to have 7 degrees of extra
angle machined off it to keep the carbs horizontal.
Good idea two was the Grand Prix style outside exhaust, which Pete welded up
from mild steel tube, and which was hot-sprayed with aluminium powder, cheaper
and more fitting than chrome. The exhaust is particularly sunk into an aluminium
trough which runs the length of the body tub, and this in turn required a long slot to
be cut in the superb GRP body moulding. Taking an air saw to the pristine plastic
was not a job that I will forget in a hurry. We are rather proud of the (dubiously
legal) result. It's also rather good for frightening horses
We both thought that the head fairings fitted to old racing cars look great, so this
was the next good idea. We made a former out of expanded polystyrene, covered
it in plaster and sanded it to shape, then took a GRP female mould from it, and
moulded a fairing in it. The fairing covers a rudimentary roll-over structure of
purloined scaffolding poles, to which is attached to the fuel filler, (obtained from a
Corporation bus). The fuel tank itself is made from scratch by Pete; it fits snugly
behind the cockpit area. We were rather generous with the dimensions, and
haven't yet been able to afford to fill it up! At a rough guess, the capacity is about
15 gallons.
Another new GRP component is the air intake trunking which covers the K&N filters
for the twin Dellorto carbs -the filters would look far too modern stuck out in the
breeze. The car incorporates masses of bits and pieces made form raw materials
which happened to be to hand when a particular component was required. Some
heavy gauge brackets were made up from L-section aluminium taken from an old
Royal Engineers Bomb disposal van, and other bracketry came from a farm trailer,
and some from old motorbike luggage carriers. The cars radiator grille was made
from old Morris Minor grill slats, which fill the aluminium skinned radiator duct.
The interior of the car is paneled aluminium, which looks great and conceals the
inside face of the GRP body, so preserving the illusion that it is an aluminium
bodied car. Of course we wouldn't be so crass as to pass the car off as something
older than it is, but if people insist on thinking it's a real '50s racer, why should we
disappoint them? The cockpit opening is edged with an aluminium coating,
attached with lots of counter sunk stainless screws; this job took a whole weekend
of heating and bending to fit satisfactorily but the end result is well worth the effort.
Just stick at it -we learned first time. The wheels just had to be large, spoked and
skinny, to look the part. Triumph four-stud wire wheel hubs were laced into 15"
rims sprayed silver and fitted to 165 radial tyres. The mudguards (supplied with the
kit) are quickly detachable, R-clipped into place. The mudguards are painted
black, and the bodywork Jaguar racing green with chrome yellow bands around
the radiator and carburettor intakes.
The steering wheel came from a very early Morris Minor, wound with stout cod (no,
stout cord) as was racing practice when men, cord ( and cod) were stout. The
supplied seat mouldings were upholstered in tan leatherette (yes, real leatherette)
and then some of the padding removed to give a low sat-in look.
The headrest was trimmed to match. The driver's seat belt is the full monte
boy-racer rally ace job, black, with all the posey luminous labels removed. The
passenger does well to hang onto the driver; his, or preferably her, seatbelt merely
conforms to legal requirements. The dashboard is polished aluminium with
(hopefully) period looking instruments: I dismantled the speedo and tacho and
made new faces for them in white with black letters ( which is why the tacho reads
up to 150,000 rpm, a slight decimal misplacement which no-one noticed for weeks.
The engine coped quite well too!)
A cosmetic job has been done to disguise it's Fiat origins - the cam-box covers now
red 'Lampredi' after the engine designer. (He designed GP engines for Ferrari
also). The cam-boxes have been de-ribbed to further confuse interested
onlookers. The hideous yellow cam-belt cover was binned, and replaced with a
neat aluminium job that you might think covered a cam-chain.
What's it like to drive? Well. Its got a 1600 Fiat engine, with multiple carburetors
(twin UB40's as Gary said), and a free flowing (if unscientific) exhaust, so a
hundred bhp would be a realistic estimate. Putting that through those skinny tyres
is extremely entertaining. Power drifting is wonderful on roundabout's, but do not
lift your foot off the loud pedal half way around. If you do, please remember to
wave the following traffic as you rotate! For normal driving the car is a doddle. The
engine is tractable, the suspension works properly and comfortably; Pete even
confiscated the Escort's keys and encouraged his partner Jody to go shopping in
it; can't keep her out of it now! Handy for returning from the pub. Don't hesitate,
buy one today,and remember, when you drive an open car, the world is your
ashtray!
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