10 replies to this topic

[Darren Galpin]

1921 Ballot 318LC, 1908 Sizaire-Naudin 125HP




1923 Bugatti T32




1926 Panhard-Levassor 35CV




1929 Bugatti T35, 1926 Amilcar Decalee CO, 1933 Bugatti T51A




1928 Bugatti T35A




1936 Maserati, 1938 Maserati 4CL





1948 Maserati 4CLT, 1949 Talbot GP250





1939 Mercedes-Benz W154, 1937 Mercedes-Benz W125





Bugatti engine





1955 Maserati 300S





1950 Simca Gordini Coupe 15S





1963 Ferrari 156B, 1961 Lotus 18

[Hans Etzrodt]

Darren,
Thank you for the pictures. They also show the Mercedes-Benz W125 as used in the 1939 mountain climbs. First time I saw another picture of this car besides the ones taken at the race.

[Roger Clark]

The 1963 Ferrari looks most unusual. THe wheels and engine cover are quite different from the car Surtess drove that year. Can anybody identify it?

[John Cross]

Roger,

1963 was when Ferrari finally abandoned his beloved Borrani wire-spoked wheel in favour of Campagnolo cast magnesium wheels. At the start of the year they used knock-off centre locks, but replaced these with bolts at the Nurburgring (as used by the Brits for some time!). I have a picture of the car in Spa trim and the wheels seem similar to the museum car (apart from the bolts, of course).

As for the engine cover, all my sources show the 1963 car had a low cover, so I don't know where this one came from.

[Roger Clark]

I've had a closer look, and the engine cover looks like the trim in which Surtees won the German GP. Earlier in the season the engine cover had a low head rest which covered the inlet trumpets, but this was replaced by the gauze covering shown.

The Compagnola wheels were of quite a complex design and at first glance I though they were much simpler, more like the dunlop wheels used by BRM. Closer examination suggests I was wrong.As John says, they had knock off hubs until the Nurburgring. By the next race, Surtees had the monocoque. so, apart from the racing number, it looks very much like the German GP winner.

Sorry for the blind allay.

[SteveB2]

Would the Ballot be one of the ones that Jimmy Murphy beat in the '21 ACF in the Deusenburg? I hope I haven't completely boggled up the dates here.

[Darren Galpin]

Murphy beat a Ballot 3L and a Ballot 2LS in the 1921 GP d'ACF, so it would seem to be different. I may be wrong though!

[Barry Lake]

I was interested in the two 1930s Maseratis with non-standard noses. I imagine they had been raced somewhere after their original GP cars and had been "updated" by their later owners.
This is not unusual for museums to "restore" a car as it was when found or purchased for the museum, rather than taking it back to its original guise.
Daimler-Benz have been guilty of this with a lot of their museum cars.
Can anyone throw any light on these Maseratis?

On another note, when I went to that museum one of the things that really stuck in my mind was the rows and rows of Gordini race cars. They had more on display than I had imagined were ever built - and they had more in the workshop.
Are the Gordinis still displayed en masse like that?

[Darren Galpin]

Barry - no they aren't. I remember the same when I went ten or so years ago, but they've moved them all out now.

[Barry Lake]

They must have a VERY interesting storage centre somewhere.

[Flicker]

1921 Ballots
Jules Goux, #18

Louis Wagner, #14


And... visit http://www.motorspor...mans21/lemans21 for Motorsport 1921 LeMans Gallery