4 replies to this topic

[oldgoat]

Remembering Valerio Colotti and Alf Francis

I knew both Valerio & Alf well. Alf & I, whenever in the same location, often had lunch or dinner together. In Modena, this meant lunch with Valerio as well.

Before I go on, I must digress some as to how this posting come about. I’m going to purchase a new car; considering a Mini (37mpg). Looked up Mini, and memory began to return about a Mini that I had many years ago (Colotti gearbox). I happened to web search for Colotti, your site came up, and more long forgotten memories returned. Here are some.

I spent some time in Formula Junior and had a wonderful time meeting so many people, that had so many different thoughts. For a time I was under the tutelage of Louis Chiron, and travelled with him to Monte Carlo a number of times. He was known in every great restaurant from Milan to Monte Carlo, and I was able to go with him into the kitchens of these restaurants. (Today, I still enjoy cooking for my wife & myself just about every day).

Early on in the development of the gearbox for the Stirling Moss/Rob Walker cars, I remember being with Alf & Colotti, going out in the middle of some field near Modena, where a tiny, ugly, rusted out metal shack was located, yet inside was a metaI milling machine of one kind, that would do one specific type of work. Parts were then taken to another similar looking, remote location where more work done. I was amazed that this kind of work could be done this way. Under the Artisan laws in place at that time, quality control was not easy to manage. Certainly, Colotti had to be regularly in personal touch with each machinist.

With Alf's help I talked Pippbrook garage (Rob Walker’s stable) into assembling a Lotus 18 for me. A couple of the team’s mechanics worked on it during off season. It had modifications as were done to Stirling Moss’s car, and was a beautifully handling car. I always tried to go thru a corner with all four wheels pointing in the same direction, and make the car quick under those conditions. Not so easy in a Stanguellini, but in this Lotus it was as easy as if you were parked.

My memory has faded, but I believe I had a Colotti gearbox put in the Lotus (the first in an FJ car), once missed a shift and spat out the gears. A further thing regarding Alf & myself. At the 1961 Monte Carlo Grand Prix, it was quite a hot day. The seat in Moss’s Lotus was closely formed for him, and hot. Alf borrowed the seat from my Lotus, a standard Lotus seat, much more open and cooler. And I still have that seat sitting above my garage.

I also had a Mini Minor that I installed Colotti gears by myself. It certainly was the only Mini with a Colotti gearbox in the US. I remember having a lot of fun driving it. I think it was 5 speed, and once moving, even though it was a non-synchro gear change, you could shift without using the clutch.

A third Colotti experience was with the transmission used in the Ford GT40.

I undertook the task of trying to sell this to Indycars in the US. We had the gearboxes in a couple Indycars, one of which was the car driven by Bobby Marshman. The gearing was set so he would use one top speed with full tank, another top speed with half tank. We looked for success, it looked like he was running away with the race at Indy until he was forced low in lapping another car, which ended the race for him. This was a V-8 Ford powered car. The Offys used a two speed transmission.

However, this was at the time when the Offy engine was the main engine. I visited the Offy factory a number of times, and we had a few tries using the Colotti with the Offy. The 4 cylinder Offy was far too brutal for the Colotti gearbox, and project ended.

We sold that transmission to several teams in the large rear-engined sports cars arena, but other transmissions with enhancements were now on the scene.

Anyway, it was a just such a wonderful time in my life, Valerio Colotti was a very polite, honest, down to earth person. The same could be said about Alf.

Peter Carpenter

[David McKinney]

Welcome Peter, and thanks for sharing your reminiscences

[Option1]

Wonderful vignettes! Thank you and welcome.

Neil

[fines]

Ditto!

[llmaurice]

Don't worry ,Alf will certainly stay in some of our memories . The book of Alfs life up to the late '50s is one of the most honest motorsport books I've come across .