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Parnell and Turner MGs


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#1 Dutchy

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Posted 28 June 2006 - 15:24

While researching the Turner connection with Lea Francis engines I happened across something I'm curious to find an answer to.

In the early 1950s Jack Turner built a single seat special for John Webb out of the ex Reg Parnell MG K3 with the unique McEvoy/Pomeroy twin cam head. This car was raced in VSCC events by Phillip Walker and more recently Mark Piercy.

Pre war photos of the Parnell car show it as a single seater already and fitted with Lancia sliding pillar ifs. I had assumed that this car survived in that form as raced today by Richard Last. It is fitted with a twin cam head.

There is a third car to consider which is the K/N special built in the 1980s by Roger Sweet. That car was fitted with THE McEvoy/Pomeroy head.

I havn't seen all three cars together so I don't know if the original head has migrated back to one of the first two cars referred to and I suupose it is poosible that some new heads have been cast.

However I'm confused as to the identity of the real Parnell K3

JH

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#2 Steve L

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Posted 28 June 2006 - 16:49

The Richard Last car IS the Parnell one.

I'm not sure if it still has THE original twin cam head, though. I think not.

Many new twin cam heads have been produced based on the original.

There was an article by Roger Sweet in one of the Triple M Yearbooks a couple of years ago as to how he tracked down the original twin cam Parnell engine and how he then made new batches of heads - I think the design was improved with each batch made.....

#3 David McKinney

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Posted 28 June 2006 - 18:40

This is not my area of expertise, but my understanding is as follows:
1) Webb raced Turner's ex-Parnell MG with a different engine. This car was sometimes called a Turner.
2) Turner and Webb also ran a different car, always called a Turner, with the 2ohc MG engine. This was rebuilt around a new chassis in 1952
3) The final Turner was the LeaF-powered one

Some confusion possibly arises from the fact that Philip Walker had both the ex-Parnell car and the Turner-LeaF about the same time (ie, around ten years ago)

#4 Richard Cass

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Posted 28 June 2006 - 23:14

Turner MG - another 1
The 2004 MMM yearbook has an article by George Rozwadowski about his Turner Special. This car started as an L-type Magna chassis (lightened) with a K3 engine. Built by Jack Turner it was known as the Turner MG. The project was started in the late 30s and resumed after the Second World War. The special was campaigned in sprints and hillclimbs between 1948 and 1950. Turner sold the car when he started his car business and after a series of owners was eventually bought by Philip Walker in 1992. Walker rebuilt the car with enlarged engine of 1650cc and raced it during 1995. The car was purchased by Rozwadowski in 1997 and now has a 1408 cc engine.

#5 Dutchy

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Posted 29 June 2006 - 06:03

Thankyou Gentlemen, it all becomes clear now.

JH

#6 Vitesse2

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Posted 29 June 2006 - 09:57

Originally posted by Dutchy
While researching the Turner connection with Lea Francis engines I happened across something I'm curious to find an answer to.

In the early 1950s Jack Turner built a single seat special for John Webb out of the ex Reg Parnell MG K3 with the unique McEvoy/Pomeroy twin cam head. This car was raced in VSCC events by Phillip Walker and more recently Mark Piercy.

Pre war photos of the Parnell car show it as a single seater already and fitted with Lancia sliding pillar ifs. I had assumed that this car survived in that form as raced today by Richard Last. It is fitted with a twin cam head.

There is a third car to consider which is the K/N special built in the 1980s by Roger Sweet. That car was fitted with THE McEvoy/Pomeroy head.

I havn't seen all three cars together so I don't know if the original head has migrated back to one of the first two cars referred to and I suupose it is poosible that some new heads have been cast.

However I'm confused as to the identity of the real Parnell K3

JH

There's quite a bit of discussion about Reg's K3 and the McEvoy head(s?) in this thread:

http://forums.autosp...&threadid=78679

#7 Dutchy

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Posted 29 June 2006 - 12:22

Thankyou Vitesse for pointing me in the direction of the previous thread. As a new subsciber to TNF I should have run a search rather than diving straight in.

Having read the thread I am surprised that no one positively identified the pale blue car - it is the Parnell car as now owned and raced by Richard Last. If I remember correctly the car presently has a capacity of 1.4 litres.

The third car pictured, at Monterey, has no connection with the story at all. It was incidentally for sale recently in the UK.

JH