6 replies to this topic

[doc knutsen]

Our Scandinavian Historic racing season finished, we had great fun last week-end, running at the Rudskogen circuit with an inboard camera fitted to my Imp for a few laps, for the first time. My son Matt fitted the video camera, and put the result up on Youtube. It is at

For the record, this is my FIA Period G 998 Imp racer, run in Team Hartwell colours (and nicknamed Pumpkin, the orange and white reminding my wife of pumpkin pie with cream).
It features a Reg Patten-built full-race 998, with a Hartwell 410 cam in a machined-from-solid camshaft housing, twin Dell'Orto 40DHLAs on a Hartwell manifold, a Knight four-speed dog box with LSD, in true period style, and the correct front disc brakes with Vauxhall Viva discs and Girling light alloy callipers. Wheels are Minilite lookalikes, 6"x13" fronts, 7"x13" rears. Tyres are Yokohama A48s.
My little Scottish lassie has been totally reliable for two seasons,and has notched up excellent results against some much bigger and more powerful cars.
A racing Imp Imp, when properly sorted, is great fun to drive. It feels like a proper racing car, with an engine that revs to 9500 and a miniature Hewland gearbox. And as will be seen on the video, it is quick enough to get power oversteer in 3rd!

Edited by doc knutsen, 30 September 2009 - 20:57.

[Roger39]

Looks great fun! Can you show us some pic's of the car?

[doc knutsen]

Looks great fun! Can you show us some pic's of the car?

Plenty of pics on Matt's site, www.shag.no.

That is, the Small Historic Autos Group. Matt tells me he keeps getting people visiting his site who have no interest in historic saloons. Cannot think why
Incidentally, we'll have two Imps running next year. The Hartwell look car, and the Bevan lookalike, George. And the GTA Alfa replica should be well on its way.

[David M. Kane]

Very cool, quick hands!

[h4887]

A racing Imp, when properly sorted, is great fun to drive. It feels like a proper racing car, with an engine that revs to 9500 and a miniature Hewland gearbox. And as will be seen on the video, it is quick enough to get power oversteer in 3rd!

I used to take my Ginetta G15 to 10000 until I decided discretion was the better part... An Imp on full song is music to the the ears

[NPP]

Great stuff, must be immense fun to drive!

Have you tried her on period tyres - I seem to remember Y48s are modern sticky ones?

[doc knutsen]

Great stuff, must be immense fun to drive!

Have you tried her on period tyres - I seem to remember Y48s are modern sticky ones?

Period tyres would be proper racing tyres, which the FIA does not allow. Ever for Period G, that is up to 1971, we have to run road legal tyres. Y048s are used by most everybody, including the period spec Escort Twinks.
Finding road legal tyres that are within the dimension range of circa-1970 racing tyres has been a major pain. It now runs 155/55x13
fronts, and 165/60x13 rears. I have tried running it on CR65 Dunlops, but it needs setting up very differently on those tyres.

The Imp is a very rewarding car to run in Historic saloons. All the good bits are readily available, and at prices nowhere near those needed for a similar-spec Cooper S. And as you can tell from the video, yes, it is immense fun to drive!