14 replies to this topic

[johnno1943]

Good day, Gentlemen. I have been following your forum for months since I accidently came across it while looking for info on Paul England's twin engined VW Ausca. I find it fascinating. I have been a lover of Jowetts since a teenager and have always loved the Wylie Javelin. I was recently looking through an old Sports Car World from October 1963 and came across an article on a Javelin Special called the SPAD built by Neville Hooke. I can't find any other info. on the car. Did it actually race and have any history? Does it still exist or what happened to it?

[john medley]

I recall the article. If my memory is correct, I think the car was built in a service station on Victoria Road down the slope from Gladesville towards the mental hospital. I dont think it ever raced, but I believe was bought by another Jowett enthusiast Eddie Wolf, brother in law of then Wylie Javelin owner Bruce Polain who, of course barely spoke anything other than Jowett back then. Eddie still uses one of his several Jowetts(including his Jupiter and his Duckett Special) at an occasional GEAR Club meeting

[Ray Bell]

Other than the Jowett Javelin-engined Specials, there were plans for other Specials using the Jupiter chassis...

I seem to recall that five chassis were imported for various people (was John Snow or John Crouch involved, John?) and Rex Law was one who bought one.

I have no idea what happened to the Rex Law chassis, but I know he went no further with it.

[GMACKIE]

When I was a lad, our next-door neighbour had a Jowett Javelin that he drove in rallies. His name was Desmond Pinn. Like most Javelin owners, he had a second car for spares. Strange isn't it, but the thing that I remember most about that car, was the broken crank that he showed me one day!

[Ray Bell]

Yes, the crank used to break quite readily, even in normal driving...

Apparently (trying here to remember what Bruce Polain told me 45 years ago) one of the oil galleries wasn't big enough in the earlier models.

[Allan Lupton]

Yes, the crank used to break quite readily, even in normal driving...

Apparently (trying here to remember what Bruce Polain told me 45 years ago) one of the oil galleries wasn't big enough in the earlier models.

Later engines had what was referred to as the oval crankshaft (that referred to the webs, not the journals ) which could be fitted to earlier engines.
Crankshaft breakage is rarely caused by poor lubrication, and the bigger webs would have added strength to the otherwise weak crankshaft.

[austmcreg]

Other than the Jowett Javelin-engined Specials, there were plans for other Specials using the Jupiter chassis...

I seem to recall that five chassis were imported for various people (was John Snow or John Crouch involved, John?) and Rex Law was one who bought one.

I have no idea what happened to the Rex Law chassis, but I know he went no further with it.

Interesting! In Tasmania, Jock Walkem built a special reputedly based on a Jupiter chassis, circa 1952 which he raced in 1953, including at the first Longford meeting. The story in Tas was that this was based on a crashed Javelin saloon ex Don Gorringe (who was the Tasmanian Jowett agent), but visually it was fairly obviously Jupiter based (wheels and grille at least). I do have a photo and will post it when I am back at my home computer.

I wonder if this could be such a chassis - Gorringe would certainly have had the influence to get one if they were available.

Rob Saward

[D-Type]

Don't forget that in 1949-50 Jowett were having production difficulties with bodies for the Jupiter. They therefore supplied several rolling chassis to coachbuilders in Britain, Europe and Australia (according to an article I read). This probably includes the five chassis that Ray mentions in Post 3. The point is that new Australian bodied Jupiter chassised cars existed in period.

[Allan Lupton]

Don't forget that in 1949-50 Jowett were having production difficulties with bodies for the Jupiter. They therefore supplied several rolling chassis to coachbuilders in Britain, Europe and Australia (according to an article I read). This probably includes the five chassis that Ray mentions in Post 3. The point is that new Australian bodied Jupiter chassised cars existed in period.

Quite so, and there's a good bit about coachbuilt Jupiters on Ed Nankivell's Jupiter site and an article just about the Coachbuilt cars which you may have seen.

[austmcreg]

Quite so, and there's a good bit about coachbuilt Jupiters on Ed Nankivell's Jupiter site and an article just about the Coachbuilt cars which you may have seen.

Thankyou for these references - I am now quite confident that the Walkem car in Tasmania, shown here obviously very new with unfinished body started life as one of these Jupiter chassis. I have accessed the photo by remote (wonders of modern communication): taken at Longford, Tasmania, Australia in March 1953.


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Rob Saward

[Gordon Graham]

Might this be the Ducket Special referred to by John Medley?



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Edited by Gordon Graham, 28 July 2011 - 12:26.

[EdWolf]

Good day, Gentlemen. I have been following your forum for months since I accidently came across it while looking for info on Paul England's twin engined VW Ausca. I find it fascinating. I have been a lover of Jowetts since a teenager and have always loved the Wylie Javelin. I was recently looking through an old Sports Car World from October 1963 and came across an article on a Javelin Special called the SPAD built by Neville Hooke. I can't find any other info. on the car. Did it actually race and have any history? Does it still exist or what happened to it?

Hi Johnno, Greg Mackie alerted me to your question. I bought SPAD 2 from Neville Hooke of the BP Garage Victoria Road Gladesville in about 1972 and obtained pictures of SPAD 1 from Neville at the same time. The car featured in SCW was finished and tested and photographed at Warwick Farm in a private testing session but the unusual rear suspension collapsed and the car never raced or was tested again. The body was sold off to an unknown Sydney Speedway driver, the chassis was cast aside and components such as the front end, the diffgearbox, engine and the wheels were used in a second attempt that had more conventional ideas. When I bought the "bits" (principally because it contained the Jupiter engine that matched my sportscar) the rear suspension was not complete. It was missing any form of uprights and wishbones.
I bought a set of Rennmax uprights from Bob Britten and ended up with the car in rolling condition but realised that as a project the economics would not work. The creation of a body and the finishing would have cost more than the thing was worth particularly as it had no racing history and would have been barely competitive by the 90's.
I sold the rolling chassis to Brian Holmes in Queensland and he is in the process now of getting the thing finished.
The Wylie Javelin using a similar layout is now owned by Joe Caudo who resides with the car in Perth WA.
When I work out how to attach pictures I will do so of Spad 1 and 2.
Ed Wolf

[GMACKIE]

Hi Ed, and welcome. Glad to see that you found it.......thought later, that I may have been a bit 'light on' with information!

Cheers, Greg

P.S...........Sorry about the 'oil' on Wednesday.

[johnno1943]

Hi Johnno, Greg Mackie alerted me to your question. I bought SPAD 2 from Neville Hooke of the BP Garage Victoria Road Gladesville in about 1972 and obtained pictures of SPAD 1 from Neville at the same time. The car featured in SCW was finished and tested and photographed at Warwick Farm in a private testing session but the unusual rear suspension collapsed and the car never raced or was tested again. The body was sold off to an unknown Sydney Speedway driver, the chassis was cast aside and components such as the front end, the diffgearbox, engine and the wheels were used in a second attempt that had more conventional ideas. When I bought the "bits" (principally because it contained the Jupiter engine that matched my sportscar) the rear suspension was not complete. It was missing any form of uprights and wishbones.
I bought a set of Rennmax uprights from Bob Britten and ended up with the car in rolling condition but realised that as a project the economics would not work. The creation of a body and the finishing would have cost more than the thing was worth particularly as it had no racing history and would have been barely competitive by the 90's.
I sold the rolling chassis to Brian Holmes in Queensland and he is in the process now of getting the thing finished.
The Wylie Javelin using a similar layout is now owned by Joe Caudo who resides with the car in Perth WA.
When I work out how to attach pictures I will do so of Spad 1 and 2.
Ed Wolf

Thanks, Ed for the information. I'll be able to sleep at night again now. It's always intriguing to attempt to follow an old story like this one.
Johnno 1943

[john medley]

Hi Ed
Regards
JM