14 replies to this topic

[Librules]

(Australia) Sadly, I believe Alan Hamilton has crossed the finish line. A great life and racing career, not just as a driver but also as a patron/sponsor of others......and those cars...wow!!

Edited by Librules, 03 March 2025 - 19:51.

[ellrosso]

Very sad news. Alan Hamilton RIP. Hard to know where to start - such an enormous impact on Australian Motor Sport, both as a driver and an entrant. Linked to Porsche for the majority of his career and as mentioned in the last post - wow! The cars he brought to Australia were world class

and a major contribution to the quality of machinery racing here. I've included a small selection of his cars now - many I saw in the flesh, the first being the wonderfull orange 911S in '69 at Symmons Plains. He came so close to winning the 1969 ATTC - he was only 150 or so meters away from Norm Beechey's sick HK Monaro 327

at the flagfall. 1 more lap at the final Symmons round would have given him the championship. Not meant to be....

[Lola5000]

Very sad news. Alan Hamilton RIP. Hard to know where to start - such an enormous impact on Australian Motor Sport, both as a driver and an entrant. Linked to - many I saw in the flesh, the first being the wonderfull orange 911S in '69 at Symmons Plains. 

Even more rare the ATCC was a factory 911T/R in RHD form ,same model the Factory built for the 68/9 European Touring car championship.

 

RIP A very nice man and quality driver .And successful Businessman

 

Can we be please not have dozens of paper and magazine clippings of Alan ,as all of us in the past would have read the same articles .

Edited by Lola5000, 03 March 2025 - 22:15.

[Tim Murray]

Can we be please not have dozens of paper and magazine clippings of Alan ,as all of us in the past would have read the same articles .

Not all of us, I suspect. Certainly not me.

[malomay]

Very sad to hear re - Alan Hamilton.

 

There is a photo (available on Lindsay Ross's Old Race Photos site) of the Porsche 906 Spyder going into the viaduct at Longford 1967.......in a perfectly balanced cornering powerslide.

Edited by Vitesse2, 04 March 2025 - 09:16.
Removing extraneous text after merge.

[MarkBisset]

 

Quickie Obit in Auto Action...

 

https://autoaction.c...eur-and-entrant

 

Brian Stratton's wonderful shot was taken at Oran Park in 1976. Alan Hamilton, Porsche Carrera RSR

Edited by MarkBisset, 03 March 2025 - 23:43.

[Ray Bell]

What a great asset he was to Australian Motor Racing for so many years!

 

It was always a pleasure talking to him about the sport and his involvement. Of course he came to notice first in that ex-Targa Bergspyder, car, then he had the 906-type spyder, the 911T following those, but it was the F5000 era which saw him shine. He was up against the big guns when he stepped into the ex-Niel Allen M10B and he didn't impress on that first outing at Lakeside. But onlookers didn't know what was behind that.

 

I puchased the (dismantled) 002 along with all the parts necessary to complete the car. Niel treated both Kevin and I very fairly as far as price was concerned.

 

Niel's mechanics, now Kevin's, Peter Molloy and and Graeme Adams, were largely responsible for the building up of my car, time was extremely short to complete the car and get to Lakeside in Queensland for the first of the Gold Star events for that year.

 

Towing the car through the hills on the NSW-Queensland border our tow car ran  out of fuel as, in those days, there were very few 'all night' service stations. After pumping fuel out of the McLaren we managed to get to an open servo and make our way to Lakeside only hours before we were due to practice!

 

Up until this point I had never driven an open-wheeler except for a few laps at Oran Park in Leo Geoghegan's Lotus 39, into which I did not fit and really could not drive... So my first drive in a single seater was in one of the fastest cars in the world at that time, and in official practice.

 

After that first exploratory drive I hadn't even been using full throttle! However, I settled in fairly quickly and by the end of the meeting - after finishing third - was wondering how we might get the car to go faster.

 

But Alan had, well prior to this, decided on something quite important:

 

My driving had been noticed and I received offers to co-drive at Spa and Le Mans. 

 

At this point I deserted my wife and sister-in-law  and took myself off to the Black Forest to have a board meeting with myself. As a result, the decision was made that motor racing for me would be a hobby, not a profession. I had a wife, increasing responsibilities in the family Porsche business and, at 26, there were other priorities.

 

The years rolled on, the cars came and went. Alan was embittered by the deal which saw him miss out on getting a T300, but was ready to bounce back at full strength with the T430s. That, of course, led to him giving Derek Bell a drive, then crashing badly at Sandown to end his driving career, finally to putting cars under Alf Costanzo which would turn him into the true Champion that he was.

 

But even beyond that, Alan tried to help the sport along. I recall visiting him one day in his 'toy shop' (after Porsche had taken away his distributorship) where he was planning to put together a field full of Toyota-powered sports cars to help people go racing. It was quashed, of course, in the usual way, but I believe Alan always wanted to see the sport prosper.

 

The smell of his pipe irritated me, but I always had time for the man... 

 

To his close family I now offer my condolences, and to Alfie too, as they were as close as brothers.

[ellrosso]

Few more shots of Alan Hamilton. The Symmons ATTC round shot was much closer than I first thought - probably only 20-30 mtrs in it. The McLaren M10B shot from the wet Gold Star round in 1971 down the back straight is one of my all-time favourite shots.

I was there that day and poor Alan thought he had that one in the bag - gut wrenching retirement. He had a few of those in his career but more than made up for it as an entrant, especially with Alf Costanzo driving.

Edited by Vitesse2, 04 March 2025 - 09:19.
Removing extraneous text after merge.

[Lola5000]

 

Quickie Obit in Auto Action...

 

https://autoaction.c...eur-and-entrant

 

Brian Stratton's wonderful shot was taken at Oran Park in 1976. Alan Hamilton, Porsche Carrera RSR

That RSR/Paris Motor Show Turbo prototype show car ,1st appeared here in public at the Sandown round of the 1976 Rothmans round, parked in the pits with the VIC rego AH 908.Still have the photos.

 

It's now back in Europe, but sadly restored not with the RSR motor, but with a 3.0 Litre turbo engine.

 

I was offered the car in 2003; at the time I was racing a 911 Carrera 3.0 in Historic Group SC with success. The plan was to buy that RSR and race it in SC, but CAMS told me it would need to run in Group Q Sports cars, so I walked away from the purchase. It was not suitable for road suitable for public roads ...Oh well.

 

Edited by Lola5000, 04 March 2025 - 05:35.

[Paul Newby]

This is sad news.

 

I first met Alan at the Sydney launch of the Tony Loxley F5000 book launch that was hosted by the HSRCA in late 2015. I organised to interview him for Australian Muscle Car magazine in Canberra of all places - his daughter was living there at the time - over the Australia Day weekend of 2016. We met over breakfast. I didn't know what to expect but I recall him saying that nothing was off the record - even the Porsche Australia debacle. Looking back at my notes, they ran to over 5,000 words - I don't think I used even half of it in my story. Alan was generous with his time, had fantastic recall for detail and was very candid. Fascinating stuff - what he achieved on and off the race track is unparalleled in Australia. He was a pleasure to interview and a lovely guy to boot.

 

I needed a profile shot for my story, and learning that he owned a vineyard, found a suitable prop for my shot.

 

[cooper997]

Another one of the good guys gone. Porsche in Australia wouldn''t have the history it has enjoyed without Norman and Alan's efforts.

 

Just a short reminder that the existing Hamilton's thread may have some interesting re-reading./ viewing.

https://forums.autos...alia/?p=9118524

 

My condolences to the Hamilton family

 

 

Stephen

Edited by cooper997, 05 March 2025 - 08:45.

[cooper997]

The following is the family death notice from the 2 Melbourne-based newspapers. If you click The Age ling it has some memories and photos from family and friends.

 

3/3/25 Alan Douglas McKinnon Hamilton death notices

https://tributes.the...ary?id=57716445

Published by The Age on Mar. 5, 2025.

and

https://www.mytribut...kinnon/6283756/

Publication: Herald Sun

Date Listed: 4/3/2025

 

"29.07.1942 - 03.03.2025

 

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Alan Hamilton, Australian Motor Racing Champion and former Porsche importer. Known for his bold, entrepreneurial spirit and his boundless generosity, Alan was a true pioneer and a man of vision. His legacy in Australian motorsport and the automotive industry will endure.

 

He leaves behind his loving wife Lorna, children Garnet, Travis and Fleur, and three adoring granddaughters.

 

Alan passed peacefully surrounded by his family in his final days. In line with Alan’s wishes, there will be no funeral. A memorial service will be advised at a later date.

 

Godspeed number 9. You will be so very missed by so many.

29/07/1942 - 03/03/2025"

 

 

Stephen

[cooper997]

This week Melbourne news outlet, The Age ran a piece on Alan's final resting place - buried at sea. You will probably hit the paywall, but with a little luck you should be able to view a very nicely put together film on Alan's final journey complete with chequered flags flying on the boat.

 

I tried to add the direct link to the film, but looks like it's blocked.

 

https://www.theage.c...408-p5lq83.html

 

 

My snap of Alan at the 2011 Phillip Island Classic

 

 

Stephen

[Ray Bell]

I was able to watch it, thank you Stephen...

 

Would anyone know the reason for the sea burial?

[Catalina Park]

He didn't want to be buried or cremated.