23 replies to this topic

[Rainer Nyberg]

Interesting images and the story of Elva to be found at :

http://www.elva.com/elva-story1.html





Rainer

[Rainer Nyberg]

An interesting Le Mans venture....

http://www.elvacouri...tory/part2.html




Rainer

[Rainer Nyberg]

1960s VW Beetle rearlights....

[dbw]

triumph herald hubcaps[per lotus 7]??

[cjpani]

Rainer:

Although I didn´t check the link you posted thoroughly, I think I recall from one of my old books a thing called Elva-Porsche. Does such car exists or is my mind playing a trick on me???
Thanks in advance,
cjpani

[Mike Argetsinger]

George Follmer won the 1965 USRRC (United States Road Racing Championship) in an Elva-Porsche.

[Ray Bell]

Although Follmer's car was a bit of a rare bird, with a Speedster motor, I feel sure, Elva went to Germany for engines later on, many cars being BMW 2-litre equipped.
Of course, some struggled on with Ford twin cams.

[dbw]

i think by 65 follmer's car could have had a "flat fan" spyder engine.....a pretty potent unit when running properly.......

[Rainer Nyberg]

From the Elva-site : Here is a pic of the Porsche-powered
car, sans bodywork...



Rainer

[Ray Bell]

That's a surprise to me, I always concluded that the car was something of a 'bitza' put together in the States.
Certainly looks like a flat fan, too.
Good concept in that car, losing the complication of the radiator as well as getting better and more reliable horsepower than the usual Ford engines gave.

[cjpani]

Everyone:
Thanks for clarifying my mind, and great pictures, thx.
Regards,
cjpani

[tombe]

Rainer.

Perhaps of little interest to the majority of TNF, but the combination of your last two topics, Elva and Langton, prompts me to ask if you know anything about Ernst Paulsson.
This Swede raced a Porsche Abarth Carrera in the GT class in domestic races in the early sixties. He then bought a Elva (Mk.7 ?) and put the Carrera engine in the back.
In what I seem to remember was the car's first outing at Falkenberg (the old road circuit), he clashed with fellow competitor Hans Radefalk in practice and crashed. Paulsson was seriously injured, but my source at the time, IMS, never followed it up. I got the impression he had a long way to go to recover, if he ever did.
Do you have any info?

BTW Radefalk later bought and raced the car.

Tom Berge

[Rainer Nyberg]

Tom,

I don´t know much about him. Your own sources are better than mine from the 1960s. My earliest IMS magazines are from 1973.
But I will remember your request, and should I stumble into the matter I will let you know.

Rainer

[Don Capps]

Mike,

Correct me if I'm wrong, but Joe Buzzetta ran the Elva-Porsche (as the "Bosch Special") in the 1965 USRRC and George Follmer was in the Lotus 23-Porsche sponsored by Trans Ocean Motors in Pasdena. I just looked at a picture in Sports Car Graphic from the Pensacola race which Follmer won - Overall! - and boy!, are the Lotus and the Elva hard to distinguish at a glance.

[Ray Bell]

Of course! I was wondering why things didn't seem too right, and Elva weren't really in the hunt at the time.
My memory was saying "it was a Porsche Carrera engine fitted to a regular chassis that everyone else was using to win the 1500cc class with a Ford."
Yes, Lotus 23.
Just shows, I need to get my SCGs back...

[Mike Argetsinger]

Don - you are of course correct. I never thought to look it up (although I did just now!) because it was so firmly fixed in my memory as an Elva. Why, I have no idea. I apologize to everyone for taking us down a false path.

[Don Capps]

Mike, Don't apologize. The Elva 7 and the Lotus 23 used to screw me up all the time when you only got a glimpse of them, especially the '65 Buzzetta Elva (7? or an 8?) using the Porsche engine, just like the Follmer Lotus. Hey, I had to think about it! I knew there was an Elva in there somewhere, I just had to figure out whose!

[Mike Argetsinger]

I almost froze to death in an Elva Mk5! The car belonged to Millard "Rip" Ripley and he and my father and Bill Milliken were entered at Sebring to race it in the 12 Hours. This was 1958. My father picked it up from Ripley in late February in Ithaca, NY with the intent of putting some road miles on it and getting used to it. The night he brought it home we were hit with a major snow and ice storm. The roads were completely impassable and the week passed with the car never leaving the garage. The night before the car had to go back to Ithaca the roads cleared although it was still bitterly cold. My father drove to Smalley's Garage in Watkins Glen with me as passenger. Of course the car had only a competition windscreen with nothing at all on the passenger side to deflect the wind. It is only 4 miles from our Farm to Lester Smalley's garage and we got there very quickly - but upon arrival I had to be literally lifted out of the car and placed in front of a fire to be thawed out. Neat car though. Now as I reread this I am second guessing myself (since I have made at least two mental lapses tonight on TNF already). In my mind it is a Mk5 but I wonder if it may have been a MK4. I don't know enough about Elvas to be sure. Perhaps someone who really knows their Elvas could figure it out from the year. It was pretty much a pure sports racer and it was a new car at the time.

[Don Capps]

Mike, I fully understand the problem. Whereas I could once instantly identify the various Maserati, Ferrari, Elva, Lotus, McLaren, Lola, etc. sports racers almost at a glance, now I have to think really hard some times...and still get it wrong! Aaargh! Earlier tonight I spoke with someone about a question he sent me about a car he was researching. Fortunately I hesitated before answering and when I pulled out some reference material -- where is Phil when I need him? -- I had my wires crossed. Double Aargh! However, once focused, I was on target and had the info down cold. Perhaps that is a subtle sign to slow up a mite...

[elvaMKII]

Dear Don, Mike and Friends of Elvas:

“Elva 50th Anniversary at Sebring. “ March 12-14, 2008

The SVRA Vintage Races at Sebring March 12-15, 2008, will honor the 50th Anniversary of Elva sports racers at Sebring. In 1958, M.R.J. “ Doc” Wyllie, Chuck Dietrich, Burdie Martin. Rip Ripley, Bill Milliken, Cameron Argentsinger, John Bentley, Frank Baptista, and other pioneers of American sports car drivers entered Elva MK II and MK III sports racers in the 12-Hour race. Their history and these cars will be saluted at Sebring in March 2008 during three days of racing and social events. SVRA invites all Elvas Marks 1 through VIII, Couriers and Elva Fr Jr’s to take part in the racing on the famous 4-mile track. Elva cars will share paddock space and there will be a Reception for present and former Elva drivers, display of selected Elvas in the Gallery Tent, and for selected Elvas an escorted drive to downtown Sebring and some Exhibition Laps.

Elva entrants from overseas will be granted complimentary SVRA race entry.

A full three-day HSR event will be held on the same Sebring track the first week of March, and SVRA will have events both before and after the Sebring vintage race.

There will be more information and updates at www.elva.com/ or contact Bob Engberg at bobengberg@aim.net/ or Roger Dunbar at roger.dunbar@elva.com/ for UK/Europe. Entry forms will be at www.SVRA.com. Other info will appear at http://www.sebringraceway.com/

[bobbo]

Originally posted by dbw
i think by 65 follmer's car could have had a "flat fan" spyder engine.....a pretty potent unit when running properly.......

I sort of seem to remember that the Elva Porsche of Follmer had a 904 engine. Anyone have any better information, either confirm or more definitive info?? I just hate it when my memory starts to fade . . .

Bobbo

[RA Historian]

Originally posted by bobbo


I sort of seem to remember that the Elva Porsche of Follmer had a 904 engine. Anyone have any better information, either confirm or more definitive info?? I just hate it when my memory starts to fade . . .

Bobbo

First of all it was a Lotus 23 with a Porsche engine, not an Elva. It was a 2.0 Porsche flat four, with the upright fan, not the horizontal fan as seen in Elva Porsches.
Tom

[antonvrs]

The works Elva-Porsches are, I believe, something of an embarrassment to Porschephiles. When Porsche was the honored marque at the Monterey Historics a few years ago there was no mention of such a thing and certainly none to be seen.
I think Porsche used them as a stopgap while they figured out how to build a space frame and proper suspension.
Anton
Darth my ride


http://www.conceptca...IA/default.aspx

[bobbo]

Originally posted by RA Historian
First of all it was a Lotus 23 with a Porsche engine, not an Elva. It was a 2.0 Porsche flat four, with the upright fan, not the horizontal fan as seen in Elva Porsches.
Tom

Like I said . . . I hate it when the memory fails . . . Or I don't read all the thread . . .

Bobbo