12 replies to this topic

[Henk Vasmel]

In the thirties I come across these two names, as well as many variations in spelling. What I would like to know is whether we are talking about one or two persons? Nationality is given as Polish (PL) or Portuguese (P). A mistake is easily made of course. A lot of references are to Spain/Portugal/South America.

Anyone out there who can help me?

[Vitesse2]

 

Henrique Lehrfeld was born in Lisbon. His father was an engineer of German orgin who owned a chemical factory near Lisbon, his mother had been born in Switzerland. In his career Lehrfeld drove a white and red Bugatti T35 B, except at his first two races when he raced an Opel and one race when he raced a Gardner. He took part in many Portuguese national events, from the 1929 "II Quilómetro de Arranque do Campo Grande" until his retirement after the 1937 Estoril Circuit. He took part the 1931 GP de la Baume beach race in France and also went to Brasil to race at the Gávea circuit in 1935 and 1936. Lehrfeld pulled out racing because the new Portuguese rules banned GP cars and he did not like racing sportscars. Lehrfeld died of cancer in 1962.
(He is not to be confused with a Polish driver named Henryk Liefeld)
(Info supplied by Ricardo Grilo)

 

http://www.kolumbus....snellman/dl.htm

 

I don't think Henryk Liefeld ever actually existed. If you click the link to the one race which Leif has listed under his name - the 1933 Penya Rhin - you will see that it has actually been corrected to Lehrfeld in the entry list.

[Vitesse2]

See also: http://oestadodasart...e-lehrfeld.html

 

http://portugal.port...ca/#entry152245

[ReWind]

http://www.kolumbus....snellman/dl.htm

 

I don't think Henryk Liefeld ever actually existed.

 Then, who is that?

http://www.kwa-kwa.p...ldt-henryk.html http://pl.wikipedia....Henryk_Liefeldt

[Vitesse2]

That's Henryk Liefeldt, not Henryk Liefeld 

Edited by Vitesse2, 09 March 2014 - 14:28.

[D-Type]

I don't understand Polish, but looking at his record in the newspaper cutting, Liefeldt appears to have raced mainly in Poland so it is unlikely he would have entered the Penya Rhin race

[Felix Muelas]

On the Penya Rhin 1933 entry : we have Javier del Arco mentioning the entry of car #14 as E. LEHRFELD. He mentions three things : of Portuguese nationality, driving a Bugatti 2,3 C and...he was 3rd on the Rabassada hillclimb in 1931. That´s interesting because I had Zanelli in that position in 1931...

I then found a 2008 article in Spanish about an expo in Lisbon of some old Bugattis. So they go on about Lehrfeld´s one (let me paste the text and I´ll extract some parts from it)

 

 

 

Uno de los modelos Bugatti expuestos, la T35 (Tipo 35) es considerado el mayor vencedor de carreras de todos los tiempos, atribuyéndose-le 1850 victorias en competiciones. El coche que estará en la Motorclássico es de 1930 y fue comprado por Henrique Lehrfeld en París. Era el modelo más potente de la Bugatti y que más victorias conquistó en los grandes premios en los finales de los años 20, habiendo sido fabricadas sólo 40 unidades. Lehrfeld estrena su nuevo Bugatti la 4 de Agosto de 1930, en el "Kilómetro de Arranque de Setúbal" ganando el 1º premio a 118 km/h. Este coche participó en incontables pruebas, destacándose el récord nacional del "Kilómetro Lanzado" obtenido en el Mindelo, en Noviembre de 1930, a la media de 194 km/h, el 3.º lugar en la " Rampa de la Rabassada" (Barcelona), 5.º lugar en el "G.P. de la Baule" (Francia) el 2º lugar de la general en la " Gávea" (Río de Janeiro) en 1935. Venció también el "Circuito de Vila Real", en 1934, conducido por António Herédia.

So they reckon there will be a 35 that Lehrfeld bough in Paris 1930. He drove it first in August 4th 1930 in Setúbal (Portugal) and won. In November that same year, the combo earned the flying km in Mindelo, and then, without telling the year, they include a 3rd place at the Rabassada, 5th at La Baule and 2nd at Gavea (this, in 1935). Some guy named Antonio Heredia won with that car a race at Vila Real (again, Portugal) in 1934.

 

Does any of this ring a bell?

 

The Gavea race we have under control, La Baule...well that is where, at Sheldon´s you can find a "creative" way of dealing with our man, namely "Henri Lehrsfield"...

 

 

[Felix Muelas]

As it happens, I was wrong thinking that Zanelli was third in the Rabassada 1931. Lehrfeld was.

 

Caracciola won the Sports Cars Class, Tort won the Racing Cars Class (where Zanelli was second and Lehrfeld third).

 

On another note, and reading through the La Vanguardia classification published before Mont Ventoux, Lehrfeld finished fourth at the second race of that Championship, the one at the Czech Republic, Zbraslav-Jíloviste

 

[D-Type]

In Portuguese is "Henrique" or "Enrique" the more common?  Admittedly things are complicated by Lerhfeld's German / Swiss parentage

[Vitesse2]

 

As it happens, I was wrong thinking that Zanelli was third in the Rabassada 1931. Lehrfeld was.

 

Caracciola won the Sports Cars Class, Tort won the Racing Cars Class (where Zanelli was second and Lehrfeld third).

 

On another note, and reading through the La Vanguardia classification published before Mont Ventoux, Lehrfeld finished fourth at the second race of that Championship, the one at the Czech Republic, Zbraslav-Jíloviste

 

 

If you search El Mundo Deportivo, you will find Lehrfeld's name mentioned as a possible entry for the 1946 Penya Rhin! One of many fictions perpetrated on your unsuspecting countrymen in the run-up to that race ...

[Michael Müller]

Henrique Lehrfeld owned 2 different Bugattis. The first was a T35C (8C-2000 s/c), chassis #4930, which he accquired from Philippe de Rothschild after the San Sebastian Grand Prix in July 1929. This was sold to one Adalberto Marques and substituted in May 1930 against a T35B (8C-2300 s/c), chassis #4952, delivered new by the factory. Lehrfeld raced #4952 until 1937.

[Michael Müller]

This board does neither accept quotes nor copy-paste text!!

Would like to reply to Felix' post #7, but how??

 

The car he bought in 1930 was #4952, possibly he bought it not at Molsheim but at the Bugatti showroom at Paris (Champs d'Elysée). Setúbal is correct. On 7 Sep 1930 he won the 1 km speed trial at Caldas da Rainha, and on 9 Nov 1930 the 1 km of Mindelo (near Porto?). 3rd at the Rampa de la Rabassada on 17 May 1931 is correct. He finished 5th at the GP de la Baule on 13 Sep 1931, 2nd at the Circuito Campo Grande (14 May 1933), 2nd at Boavista (13 Aug 1933), and 1st at the Rampa do Cabo da Roc hillclimb (19 Nov 1933). At the Circuito Parque Eduardo VII he crashed the car, obviously he was injured then because 2 weeks later at the Circuito do Vila Real the car won on loan to António Guedes de Herédia. In 1935 Lehrfeld took the car to South America where he finished 2nd at the Gran Premio do Rio de Janeiro (2 June 1935), back in Portugal he was 4th at the Circuito do Estoril (20 Oct 1935). He went to Rio again next year (7 June 1936), but crashed. The following year he was 6th at the Circuito de Vila Real (25 July 1937), and retired at Estoril (15 Aug 1937) due to mechanical problems. This was the last race I have reported for him.

[Michael Ferner]

Many thanks, Michael. Your inability to quote is, sadly, nothing new, and has been troubling several members since the last software downgrade.