12 replies to this topic

[Eshe]

Hardie Ferodo had a test track that was built on an old air strip in Pitt Town, NSW, Australia. The attached photo was taken around 1990. The area has now been subdivided into rural housing (shades of Amaroo Park...) and the Ferodo test track is but a pale outline visible on Goggle Earth at the north east end of the strip.

Can anyone enlighten me on the history of the track, the airstrip or other motor racing activity that occurred there.

[2Bob]

Can you provide the google maps reference so we can see just where it was?

I can remember competing in a couple of motorkanas (sp) on an old airstrip in that area around 1964/5. Events were run by the UniNSW car club. Ran an MGTC in one and then with another guy rented a Morris 1100 for one event (and broke a cv joint!) and a also ran a rented Viva in another (that was all we could get).

[seldo]

I can't cast much light on it other than to say that I have done about 50 laps on it as a test to ascertain suitability for a proposed endurance record of some sort. It was deemed to be far too tight and was just a slightly banked oval which was quite hard on tyres

[Terry Walker]

Today's state of play

There used to be an air photo in Dunlops ads in motor sport magazines back when.

[Catalina Park]

From what I have been told the motorkhana ground was on the other end of the airstrip, on the bit that is now Airstrip Road.
I attended the release of a new brake pad from Ferodo (they had dropped the Hardie name by then) in the early to mid 90s at the track and it looked pretty useless. The corners were way too tight for any high speed stuff. It was probably too narrow to even race karts. I got taken for a few laps in a Commodore doing panic stops to try to overheat the pads thus proving how good the pads were.

Here is an advert from SCW magazine from March 67. You can see how the Airstrip continues across the road.

[repcobrabham]

'hardiebestos?' oh dear...

[David Shaw]

Back in the days when they were proud to associate themselves with asbestos.

[cosworth bdg]

Originally posted by David Shaw
Back in the days when they were proud to associate themselves with asbestos.

Yes ,very proud to wave the banner......

[Catalina Park]

Another one from SCW.


Sure James Hardie used asbestos but so did every other Australian brake manufacturer.

[Ray Bell]

Originally posted by Catalina Park
.....Sure James Hardie used asbestos but so did every other Australian brake manufacturer.

Not only Australian... I'm sure that internationally there were very few brake bads or linings without the stuff at that time... nor clutch plates, probably...

I was going to comment on another item before... the 'Ferodo' name had come from England IIRC. James Hardie's tie up undoubtedly came from their access to asbestos mines. They made first class building materials using asbestos-reinforced cement, as every good Aussie knows. 'Fibro'... designated 'asbestos cement' in the venacular of the architect and draftsmen, wall sheeting, roofing materials, cover strips, corner moulds. Great stuff!

Post-war Australia's building boom must have taken a lot of asbestos out of the ground!

[Doug Nye]

A Mr Frood founded Ferodo, the company being based at Chapel-en-le-Frith in the Derbyshire Peak District. One of the first freelance magazine features I ever wrote involved a visit to Ferodo Comps Manager Harold Thayer there, which involved something like a twelve hour drive there and back one winter's day with plenty of snow about. Copper-laced asbestos brake pads and linings have been etched into my memory ever since, DS10, DS12...really tweaky stuff in its day, applied to my 105E Anglia upon recommendation from the man 'imself.

DCN

[Ray Bell]

'e didn't let you 'ave the DS11s, Doug?

They were the gun material...

Naahhh... who'd waste them on an Anglia? In later years, when people were still racing Falcons with drums on the rear at Bathurst, some who'd saved up their good shoes were grateful that they had... once asbestos was banned, nothing could match the good brews that had come out of Hardie Ferodo.

I think that stuff was called '1103'...

[David Shaw]

The 1103 material was developed in time for the '71 Hardie-Ferodo 500 when they realised that everybody was going to be so much quicker than before. It was such a success that for the first time in the history of the race the winner didn't require a pad change.

And this was with Moffat, the winner, setting a practice time over 13 seconds under the lap record.