20 replies to this topic

[P.Dron]

When did Ronnie Hoare of Maranello Concessionaires fame die? I think it must have been about 1985. I have tried the Search thing here but came up with nothing. I am surprised, considering his colourful life, that there seems to be no Wikipedia entry for him and I have tried in vain to Google an obituary.

[ReWind]

Just look here.

[P.Dron]

Just look here.

Thanks for that.

[Parkesi]

Tony,

 

Ronnie Hoare 31.08.1913 (London) – 03.09.1989 (Monaco).

 

There are two chapters in Anthony Pritchard`s books:

• Scarlet Passion / Haynes Publishing / 2004 / „Colonel Ronnie Hoare, Founder of Maranello Concessionaires“, p. 246- 250
• Ferrari – Men from Maranello / Haynes Publishing / 2009 / „Hoare, Colonel Ronnie“, p. 131-132

 

And two articles in:

• Motor Klassik / November 1989 / Der Bestseller / Marcel Massini (German text)
• Auto Italia / June 2016 / The Visionary / Mike Taylor incl. input of the son Chris Hoare

 

& of course: Doug Nye - The Colonel`s Ferraris / Ampersand Press / 1980

 

Regards, Andreas

[David Birchall]

But no Wikipedia entry which seems a shame.  Somebody here could give him the credit he deserves, surely?

[D-Type]

Was the Colonel related to Pat Hoare, the New Zealander who was able to buy a Ferrari Dino when nobody else could?  Or is the same surname purely a coincidence?

I think I may have asked this before but can't remember the answer.

Edited by D-Type, 26 September 2017 - 16:17.

[Allan Lupton]

But no Wikipedia entry which seems a shame.  Somebody here could give him the credit he deserves, surely?

Well it's not difficult to put an entry in Wikipedia but it's equally easy for others to "correct" it and/or vandalise which can put normal people off. They've also got a bit too restrictive with photos, requiring the permission of the original photographer. I fell foul of that when a photo, taken c1920 was arbitrarily removed a couple of years ago (i.e. when the photo was 95 years old, so one couldn't expect the photographer to still be alive) which is a bit demotivating..

[Tim Murray]

Was the Colonel related to Pat Hoare, the New Zealander who was able to buy a Ferrari Dino when nobody else could? Or is the same surname purely a coincidence?

I think I may have asked this before but can't remember the answer.

You did, Duncan, you did, but the question was never definitively answered. In 2004 Tonicco gathered the various discussions on Pat Hoare into one thread:

Pat Hoare and Enzo Ferrari - why the special relationship?

Perhaps, thirteen years down the road, some new more concrete info may have emerged.

[P.Dron]

Was the Colonel related to Pat Hoare, the New Zealander who was able to buy a Ferrari Dino when nobody else could?  Or is the same surname purely a coincidence?

I think I may have asked this before but can't remember the answer.

I do not think he was closely related to his fellow colonel, 'Mad' Mike Hoare, though both were eccentric characters, to say the least.

[Jack-the-Lad]

It's astonishing that two English speaking men, from opposite sides of the world, with the same surname could have had such similar...and quite narrowly defined.....business interests, and yet not be related. Perhaps a statistician could give us the odds of that ever happening.

[Collombin]

I calculate it at 0.4 BA approximately.

[Jack-the-Lad]

Show us your work papers, please......

[Collombin]

Literally, 0.4 BA = two fifths of bugger all.

I guess it very much depends on the overall frequency of the surname in question - if it were Jones rather than Hoare for example then the likelihood of being related is much lower.

On the other hand, go back a thousand or so years in the family tree and we all related.

[Doug Nye]

I believe the surname match between Ronnie Hoare and Pat Hoare was coincidental within the Ferrari world.

 

The Colonel did have a reputation for consorting when abroad with - ahem - some pretty rugged high-mileage self-employed females.  Where they are concerned, the words "wouldn't", "bargepole", "someone else's', and "touch" spring to mind ...   

 

'The standard' as jocularly discussed around the circuits and within the Steering Wheel Club, the BRDC and the motor trading world back home was usually characterised as "rough".

 

But aside from this particular spare-time hobby he was just another very worldly-wise and generally extremely organised, upper-crusty, somewhat pompous, self-consciously 'entitled', quite snobbish, military gentleman fairly typical of his war-wearied generation. He ran a tidy team - within which it was first class all the way - and he achieved very considerable success. He was well respected.  And when I compiled "The Colonel's Ferraris" book with him he was faultlessly helpful and friendly.

 

DCN

[kayemod]

The Colonel did have a reputation for consorting when abroad with - ahem - some pretty rugged high-mileage self-employed females.  Where they are concerned, the words "wouldn't", "bargepole", "someone else's', and "touch" spring to mind ...   

 

'The standard' as jocularly discussed around the circuits and within the Steering Wheel Club, the BRDC and the motor trading world back home was usually characterised as "rough".

 

DCN

 

The Colonel might have been partial to "a bit of rough" from time to time, but he did have a "constant companion" who was anything but that, a real bit of class to my young eyes. I saw them together a couple of times at the Ford dealership he owned in Poole. Pat something or other I think, her appearance and bearing were straight out of Tatler, I think she was a television presenter.

 

Knowing no better in my younger days, I drove a few Fords, and bought two new ones from the Colonel's dealership in Poole, F English. This is a strange area, it must be the snobbery capital of the UK. because someone thought that a Bournemouth address was more classy, they claimed to be situated there, but they were actually firmly in Poole by about half a mile. The Post Office got quite upset about this, and at one point threatened to stop delivering wrongly addressed mail, though it was probably sorted out in the end. I knew a couple who moved house, for no other reason than to get a legitimate Bournemouth address. Doug mentions snobbery in his post, but I wouldn't have thought that the Colonel would lower himself to behaviour of this kind, so I doubt if the attempted address deception originated from him. I think he only visited to play with what must have been one of the largest model railway layouts in the Country, it filled a large purpose built place at the rear of the site's filling station.

[mariner]

I remember going to F English when the UK leg of the Monte Carlo Rally started there - in mid 60's I think. 

 

My memory may be wrong but I think I saw a Ferrari V-12 on a stand in caged-off workshop area. Maybe some  local rich mans Ferrari had gone bad and F English did the engine?

 

It seemed a very odd sight at the time in a Ford Dealership but I didn't know he owned the Bournmouth business.

[kayemod]

I remember going to F English when the UK leg of the Monte Carlo Rally started there - in mid 60's I think. 

 

My memory may be wrong but I think I saw a Ferrari V-12 on a stand in caged-off workshop area. Maybe some  local rich mans Ferrari had gone bad and F English did the engine?

 

It seemed a very odd sight at the time in a Ford Dealership but I didn't know he owned the Bournmouth business.

 

I saw a silver/grey Pininfarina 2+2 there quite a few times, I always assumed it was the Colonel's own car, possibly in his shed playing with his trains, I can't remember ever seeing others. F English were Ford Rallysport dealers, which might suggest higher standards, though my experience was anything but that, they were the worst I've ever come across. They returned my Escort RS turbo after a 1987 service with all the plug gaps and tyre pressures miles out. Most troublesome car I've ever had, that saga went all the way to Dagenham. I dumped it after 7 months and told them I'd never buy another Ford, I don't think I've even so much as sat in one since. Not that I'd have blamed the Colonel for any of that though, I got the impression he was never very hands-on. The guy who seemed to be running things in 87, when I think Ronnie still owned the place, was a rather unpleasant Irishman named Con Justice, always drove a Rolls, maybe he never sat in a Ford either, I wonder if the Colonel did.

 

Can anyone put a name to his posh woman friend ? I think they were "an item" for quite a few years, though I have a suspicion she might have been married to someone else for at least some of the time.

[P.Dron]

One notable consort of "the spanking colonel" was a fruity B-actress known as Beth Rogan, whose real name was Jeni Puckle.

[exhillclimber]

I believe the surname match between Ronnie Hoare and Pat Hoare was coincidental within the Ferrari world.[/size]
 
The Colonel did have a reputation for consorting when abroad with - ahem - some pretty rugged high-mileage self-employed females.  Where they are concerned, the words "wouldn't", "bargepole", "someone else's', and "touch" spring to mind ...   
 
'The standard' as jocularly discussed around the circuits and within the Steering Wheel Club, the BRDC and the motor trading world back home was usually characterised as "rough".
 
But aside from this particular spare-time hobby he was just another very worldly-wise and generally extremely organised, upper-crusty, somewhat pompous, self-consciously 'entitled', quite snobbish, military gentleman fairly typical of his war-wearied generation. He ran a tidy team - within which it was first class all the way - and he achieved very considerable success. He was well respected.  And when I compiled "The Colonel's Ferraris" book with him he was faultlessly helpful and friendly.
 
DCN

Ronnie Hoare was a friend of my parents, his wife Anne was a Deterding of the Shell Oil family and the initial source of Ronnie's funds. When my Dad died suddenly I had to get a job quickly instead of going to University, so Ronnie gave me a job driving new Fords every day from Dagenham to Bournemouth, which involved an early train and tube journey carrying my trade plates. Pretty boring when it was an Anglia or Prefect but good fun with a bare truck chassis, perched on a wooden box and spinning the wheels in all four gears.
One day, passing Mike Hawthorn's Farnham garage I saw a red XKSS for sale. On reaching Bournemouth I told Ronnie and a couple of days later there it was at F.English alongside his pale blue D-type. The job lasted until I joined Dormer in Sheffield, and all the time I was there Ronnie was extremely kind and thoughtful.

[MCS]

One notable consort of "the spanking colonel" was a fruity B-actress known as Beth Rogan, whose real name was Jeni Puckle.

 

I prefer Jeni Puckle.

[Tim Murray]

She sounds quite a character - she was apparently the inspiration for the film Darling, and also grew her own cannabis:

Beth Rogan