205 replies to this topic

[Gerard Gamand]

I think it's time to start a new thread on another French marque : Martini

Here the second Formula 3 cars built for the fantastic (and very late) Jean-Luc Salomon

The Martini MW5 is seen at Magny Cours during winter test, and I take this pic after speaking a long time with Jean-Luc on the color of his new helmet !

[Gerard Gamand]

I've forget to say the date : it's february 1970
and you can see the unfinished side of the single seater

[macoran]

You have been in the middle of things racing Gerard !!!

Teach us more please !

[gerard BARATHIEU]

MARTINI FIII COUPES DU SALON .MONTLHERY 1968.Etienne VIGOUREUX.

[Gerard Gamand]

Macoran,

I was just a great enthousiast and a very young man falling in love with single seaters

Here an other pic of Etienne Vigoureux on the very first Martini the MW1 F3 of 1968 (Thanks Gérard for the color pic)

[macoran]

Originally posted by gerard BARATHIEU


MARTINI FIII COUPES DU SALON .MONTLHERY 1968.Etienne VIGOUREUX.

I just adore the "Eagle" style nose !!

[Gerard Gamand]

In 1969, Jacques Lafitte had finished second behind Jean-Luc Salomon for the "Volant Shell" and the Winfield school gave hime the wheel of the new Martini FW3 Formula 3

[Frank Verplanken]

Yet another essential thread Gérard
Can you please tell us more about Salomon's helmet ? The few pics I saw of him racing was with an open-face helmet, unless I am very much mistaken... And what was its colour ?
Ditto for the Eagle nose !
I believe Martini's cars were from the start way above the other French makes (except the State supported ones of course) in terms of look, design and efficiency. The contemporary AGS F3 car does not compare favourably to its northern counterpart IMHO. But then I still prefer AGS for sentimental reasons

[Gerard Gamand]

I'm not absolutly sure, but I remember Jean-Luc decided to paint his helmet in the bright Shell yellow. He said to me that the sponsors would be essential in his career.

Here is a pic that I take at Nogaro for the first heat of FRench Championship in March 1970, with the new colors of his helmet...and the Martini MW5-01 finished !

[Allen Brown]

Good thread Gerard. (Again!)

Jean-Louis Staïano ran a Martini with considerable success in French hill climbs in 1969. The car then went to Richard Daniel in 1970 - when it had a 1440cc engine - and then to Régis Péchaire in 1971. It must have been a very early Martini. Anyone have any idea what it might have been?

Allen

[philippe charuest]

Originally posted by Allen Brown
Good thread Gerard. (Again!)

Jean-Louis Staïano ran a Martini with considerable success in French hill climbs in 1969. The car then went to Richard Daniel in 1970 - when it had a 1440cc engine - and then to Régis Péchaire in 1971. It must have been a very early Martini. Anyone have any idea what it might have been?

Allen

do you know if it was a formule france or a f3

[Gerard Gamand]

Allen,

I don't know for Staïano

Here is a pic of the Martini MW3-01 ex-Laffite bought by Jimmy Mieusset in 1970. I take this pic at Pau in 1970 for the formula 3 GP

[Gerard Gamand]

an other pic of the same car

[Gerard Gamand]

That is when Jean-Luc Salomon win the "Volant Shell" at the end of 1968 (where it beat Jacques Laffite) and a free season of FF in 1969 on a Martini MW2F sponsored by Shell

[Allen Brown]

Originally posted by philippe charuest
do you know if it was a formule france or a f3

No I don't unfortunately. I have only ever seen it referred to as a Martini or as a Martini 1440.

Allen

[Gerard Gamand]

Here is the Martini MW4 FF of 1969, sponsorised by Shell, drived by Jean-Luc Salomon

[Gerard Gamand]

I put an other view of the Martini MW3-01 drived by Jimmy Mieusset à Nogaro in March 1970.

This car was destroyed in a very big shunt one year later, when Marc Pozet who had put a 1600 FVA and a FT200 gearbox for Hillclimb, crashed heavily at Maleval in october 1971. He broked his legs.

For the following year (1972), Marc Pozet bought directly at the factory a "special" who was in fact a Formula 3 Martini MW5 chassis with some modification in the suspensions, with a 1980cc FVC make by Funda and the FT200. It was called FW5"B"-01

[Gerard Gamand]

You can see that the Jean-Luc Salomon helmeth was definitively bright yellow...the pic is not very good but historical interresting. The F3 Martini MW5 was a good looking car.

[Allen Brown]

Originally posted by Gerard Gamand
I put an other view of the Martini MW3-01 drived by Jimmy Mieusset à Nogaro in March 1970.

This car was destroyed in a very big shunt one year later, when Marc Pozet who had put a 1600 FVA and a FT200 gearbox for Hillclimb, crashed heavily at Maleval in october 1971. He broked his legs.

So did Pozet have two cars during 1971? He also drove the ex-Jean Lachaud F2 Pygmée MDB12 in hillclimbs.

Allen

[Gerard Gamand]

Marc Pozet said to me, at the period, that the Martini MW3 was loan by Mieusset at the end of the season, but I don't know why ??
They were preparing the 1972 season of hillclimb together, under the banner of "Côtes du Rhône Racing Team" (with the Martini MW5"B" for Marc "Guigui" Pozet and the March 722 for Robert "Jimmy" Mieusset)

[Gerard Gamand]

Allen,

See this pic take in his garage in Feb or March 1972 : I'm thinking that the Marc Pozet Pygmée used in 1971 was a MDB15 (and not 12 ????)

[Gerard Gamand]

And I just retrieved a pic that I take of the Martini MW5B (for a local newpaper during I was a student)

Behind on the left is Marc Pozet and his mechanic Jean-Claude "Pichoton" Didier.

And sorry Allen : You are right !!

It is a Pygmée MDB12 that he used in 1971

[Allen Brown]

Originally posted by Gerard Gamand
Allen,

See this pic take in his garage in Feb or March 1972 : I'm thinking that the Marc Pozet Pygmée used in 1971 was a MDB15 (and not 12 ????)

It's hard to be certain. The Pygmée book (p69) says he had the MDB12 that Jean Lachaud had raced in 1970 and Echappement (Aug 1971 p91) also refers to it as the "Pygmée de Jean Lachaud". However, it is possible this meant that he had borrowed Lachaud's MDB15 for that event. I still haven't gone through 1971 in any detail so I may be wrong about this.

Allen

[Gerard Gamand]

No, no Allen : you're right ! read above : Marc Pozet used a Pygmée MDB12 in 1971 (MDB12 and MDB15 lokk very similar indeed !!)

[philippe7]

Originally posted by Gerard Gamand
They were preparing the 1972 season of hillclimb together, under the banner of "Côtes du Rhône Racing Team"

"Côtes du Rhône Racing Team"......now, that is a good name for a team ......wish the "politically correctness" of today didn't make it impossible for such ventures to exist .....

[antony duprat]

Originally posted by philippe7


"Côtes du Rhône Racing Team"......now, that is a good name for a team ......wish the "politically correctness" of today didn't make it impossible for such ventures to exist .....

Salut Philippe.. You forget the Tati Beaujolais racing in the actual WSS600 world championship

[Gerard Gamand]

Just a precision : on #16 topic of this thread, I have make a mistake. The pic show a Martini MW2F for Jean-Luc Salomon, and of course not a MW4.

Tico built 9 chassis of MW2F for the 1969 season.

[Gerard Gamand]

For 1970, Tico Martini produced no less than 23 chassis (!) of the new Martini MK4
for Formule France.

All the concurents like GRAC, Pygmée, Alpine, and even Tecno was disgusting.

The New Martini MK4 (MK was for Martini and Knight) won 13 races on the 20 and the title with the little François Lacarrau.

Here a pic of the Martini MK4 of Lucien Guiteny who haved win the "Volant Shell".

[Gerard Gamand]

So, for the very early years of the young Tico Martini as a constructor we have :

1968 MW1 as a F3
1968 MW2 as a school Winfield chassis

1969 MW2F as a FF (9 chassis built)
1969 MW3 as a F3

1970 MK4 as a FF (23 chassis built)
1970 MK5 as a F3

[Mallory Dan]

Gerard, do you know why the mid-80s F2 Martinis were type-numbered 001 and 002, rather than in the usual MK run?

[Gerard Gamand]

Mallory,

It'was because of Marlboro.

They asked Tico Martini to built a new formula 2 for promote a french racing driver up to formula one.
So the works car was called "Marlboro-Martini 001" (as a new project if you prefer) for 1983.

The production of formula 3 cars continued with the traditionnal MK number, and the 1983 F3 was numbered as the Martini MK39.

Here the display of the brand new Marlboro-Martini 001, at Magny Cours, in February 1983

[Gerard Gamand]

Here the good (not really) picture !!

[Gerard Gamand]

From left to right :

Hugues de Chaunac , the team manager
Tico Martini, the author
Philippe Alliot, the driver

[Gerard Gamand]

The winter of 1972-1973 was very busy for the Martini factory because they haved sold 25 Martini MK11 of Formule Renault and 6 Martini MK12 of formule 3 !

Here the building of FR MK11 chassis at the factory in Magny-Cours

[Gerard Gamand]

And one of the 6 formule 3 : very little difference between the two models !

[Gerard Gamand]

An other viaw of the Formule 3 Martini MK12 of 1973

[Gerard Gamand]

For the 1976 season, Martini built

15 Martini MK17 for FR
14 Martini MK18 for FRE
2 Martini MK19 for F2

[Gerard Gamand]

The 1976 production in pictures :

The Martini MK17 FR



The Martini MK18 FRE



The Martini MK19 F2

[Gerard Gamand]

I've get an information, and I change the post 29 :

In summer 1967, Tico Martini, and the Knight brothers, built a prototype of the Martini MW1 with a Ford Cortina 1500cc engine and a Hewland gearbox. It used Rear and front upright of his Brabham BT21. After the first testing, they decided to built a little production of five chassis MW1-01, MW1-02, MW1-03, MW1-04 and MW1-05, with new Martini rear upright, for the Winfield racing school.

One of them was fitted with a 1000cc and the Brabham wheels for the formula 3 (I don't know which number ??). Tico and the Knight brother, give the wheel at Etienne Vigoureux, which had win the "Volant Shell" trophy.

After the 1968 season, this Martini MW1 F3 was converted back to the racing school, with a 1500 Ford Cortina.

So we have

1968 : 5 MW1 of whom a F3

1969 : MW2 for FF
MW3 for F3

[macoran]

Found these

http://fotos.iher.ne.....tini Mk16.jpg
http://fotos.iher.ne...artini Mk19.jpg
http://fotos.iher.ne...artini Mk22.jpg

[Gerard Gamand]

Find in my archive this very curious chassis of Martini.

It's the first who is not a single seater.

It is the 1982 MK35 number, expect to be a Groupe C car. I don't know if the car was really built and with wich engine ??

Any help ?

[bidochon]

hi Gérard , Tico Martini build some CN chassis with alfa romeo engine for the alfa romeo cup one or two race again in hillclimb now with BMW engine

[Gerard Gamand]

But the Alfa cup was for open cars ?

[AMICALEMANS]

Never heart about a Martini Group C; are you sure about the number ?
Perhaps, the car go on track with another name, like Sthemo, ALD or something like that.

The pic show that the car can be easily convert into an open seater....

We should look on the 82-83 starting grid : track, hillclimb,... to know under which name a little and new Group C came.

I this time i was a regular Auto-hebdo reader an i am sure that i never read about this project under Martini name.

where did you get the pic Gérard ?

I confirm, Alfa Romeo was open seater, but i dont remember about a Martini; It was later 1989 until 1995.

In sportscar, Martini build only some 905 Spyder...

[bidochon]

i see 7/8 years ago at the Mont dore hillclimb a Martini C3 (open car) powered by BMW the driver was a specialist of French hillclimb call Henry NEEL since this car was sold if i remember at a swiss guy

[Gerard Gamand]

I don't remember were the pic came from, but I'm sure that is a Martini MK35 chassis.

But after, I'm unable to say more about this car. I'm not sure that it was finished...

[HOULMAN]

desole gerard,cette photo est un poisson d'avril d'auto hebdo.je ne me souviens plus de la marque du chassis,peut etre ARGO.SI TU PEUX TRADUIRE POUR NOS AMIS ANGLAIS,ca m'arrange .au plaisir.

[Mallory Dan]

If I'm reading our friend correctly, the MK35 pic is an April Fool joke !!

[Gerard Gamand]

Alors là !!!

J'ai plongé à fond !! et depuis longtemps....


aaaarrrrhhhhhh !!

[AMICALEMANS]

i am glad about this april joke just because i thought that i was loosing my memory... so now back to single seater