Formula Super Vee research project

[allenbrown]

Do you mean Jaktlund? He drove a "RPB" car from 1971 to 1975 and a "Lin Jak RPB" in 1976.

Allen

[gfm]

Yep. I'm sure he worked for a while for Opert as an engine builder. The car was a space frame home built but good.

[HH Tech]

Hello
Jaktlund have a prep shop in Sweden still making race engines.

Here is two pics of Super Vee's that races in our series

March 1980
http://www.classicformula.se/pic2005...29-028_JPG.jpg

VeeMax 1978
http://www.classicformula.se/Mantorp...25-006_JPG.jpg

Henrik

[Dan Rear]

On Allen's FSV site in the 79 results, there appears to be a great deal of car variety. Not only the usual F3-type RT1s, March 79Vs, Argo JM2s/4s, but also some Chevrons and Lolas, and a VeeMax no less. I presume the Chevrons were the Nelleman B50s, though were any converted F3s I wonder. The Lolas appear to have been the 1978 T620 series, but also apparently some 79-spec Ground effect T720s.

Anyone have any detailed info on these perhaps from 1st hand dealings ??

[gfm]

I drove a water cooled FSV called a Davron, sort of 77 or 8. Less said.

[Dan Rear]

Originally Posted by gfm

I drove a water cooled FSV called a Davron, sort of 77 or 8. Less said.

Did this company have some connexion with Reynard John, it rings a vague bell with me. If so I wonder whether the car was a converted FF2000 Reynard. A year or 2 later Dave Greenwood did a Reynard SF78/79 conversion to a FSV, and I think, won the British series, though by then, 80-81, it was pretty much dead as I recall.

[allenbrown]

The FSV project is still looking for an 'editor' or 'leader' or 'owner' or whatever you want to call it.

Duties include: doing it any way you want to do it; getting someone to transcribe the results; drafting web pages; and basically being the driving force.

Please form an orderly queue! If I do get multiple volunteers, maybe we break it down between Europe, US, UK, Brazil, marques, results, etc.

Allen

[gfm]

Less said Dan! I don't remember it having any Reynard connection; maybe somewhere underneath! They did get Nigel Mansell to give it a run apparently, who proclaimed it quite fit. I didn't think so.

[Lola Registry]

Glad to see the Super Vee board active again, you can check my web site for production numbers for most of the Lola FSV's at www.TheLolaRegistry.com . Also if you know any Lola Owners, please let them know about the site and register their cars. Thanks Allan

[Wolfgang]

Keke Rosberg's a Kaimann Super Vee build 1975 you will find on http://www.racecar-collection.com. The will come back on track in 2006!

[USSSRACER]

Hi, Okay so I am late. I see that this discussion was going on several years ago. I have discovered some additional infirmation on the cars that were designed by Bob Riley. Outside of Bob Riley there are a few key players and 2 basic designs, The first cars which were designed by Bob in 1977. I have any artical from Autoweek from 1981 that talks a little about that first design. Denny Moothart built some real history with that first designed car. It was most recently on EBAY in France in June of this year. It should be noted that I owned that car in the late 90's before I sold it to Jim Vawter in California. It was originally regristered as a MRA-Riley. It has been listed on many occasions as the "First Ground Effects Super Vee Designed and Built in the United States". The reaserch I have shows this car running its first race at Watkins Glen in 1978. However there is another Super Vee from this Bob Riley design. It was owned by Jim Griffith. It was driven by Roger Bighouse also in 1978. It was registered as a Riley-Griffith in the SCCA records and as a Riley in the USAC records. This car's first race was at St. Jovite the race before Watkins Glen in 1978. I purchased this car at the same time I purchased the MRA-Riley from Robbie Glover of Omaha NB in the mid 90's. I spoke to Jim Griffith about a year and a half ago and according to Jim I indeed may have this car. So at this point I believe that there were only 2 cars in the first design. The Second design was the PR-2 designed in 1979. David Boles owned the imfamous Gary Pratt car which he ultimately donated to a technical collage. I believe that there were possibly as many as 8 of the PR-2's but I don't know for sure. Is there anyone out there that know's anything more about either of these designs? Or information about when other manufactures fitted their cars with "Ground Effects Tunnels"?

I can be reached here or at FastwheelsRfun@aol.com or by phone at 303-808-1969. Thanks for your help
Harold

[USSSRACER]

Hi, Okay so I am late. I see that this discussion was going on several years ago. I have discovered some additional infirmation on the cars that were designed by Bob Riley. Outside of Bob Riley there are a few key players and 2 basic designs, The first cars which were designed by Bob in 1977. I have any artical from Autoweek from 1981 that talks a little about that first design. Denny Moothart built some real history with that first designed car. It was most recently on EBAY in France in June of this year. It should be noted that I owned that car in the late 90's before I sold it to Jim Vawter in California. It was originally regristered as a MRA-Riley. It has been listed on many occasions as the "First Ground Effects Super Vee Designed and Built in the United States". The reaserch I have shows this car running its first race at Watkins Glen in 1978. However there is another Super Vee from this Bob Riley design. It was owned by Jim Griffith. It was driven by Roger Bighouse also in 1978. It was registered as a Riley-Griffith in the SCCA records and as a Riley in the USAC records. This car's first race was at St. Jovite the race before Watkins Glen in 1978. I purchased this car at the same time I purchased the MRA-Riley from Robbie Glover of Omaha NB in the mid 90's. I spoke to Jim Griffith about a year and a half ago and according to Jim I indeed may have this car. So at this point I believe that there were only 2 cars in the first design. The Second design was the PR-2 designed in 1979. David Boles owned the imfamous Gary Pratt car which he ultimately donated to a technical collage. I believe that there were possibly as many as 8 of the PR-2's but I don't know for sure. Is there anyone out there that know's anything more about either of these designs? Or information about when other manufactures fitted their cars with "Ground Effects Tunnels"?

I can be reached here or at FastwheelsRfun@aol.com or by phone at 303-808-1969. Thanks for your help
Harold

[allenbrown]

Thanks for this Harold. Can you tell me the date of that Autoweek article? I'd like to look it out and read it.

[pedro917]

Originally Posted by gfm

Taurus was Ronnie Grant's one off designed and made by Patrick Head. Beautiful little car.
Moot point - whether ATS modified Lolas were ATS built in fact.

Here's a picture of Ronnie Grant's Taurus (#32) taken at Zandvoort in 1977 :

[pedro917]

Ronnie Grant would be a very grand old chap now if he's still about. Quite how he got his nose in a full face, I don't know. Clapham based wasn't he, close by an alley/arches place with Ray and one or two others in there?

Here are 2 pictures of Ronnie Grant (52 years young then - 85 now if he's still around) after winning the 1977 Benelux Trophy race for Super VW cars in his Taurus :




Uploaded with ImageShack.us

Second was Belgian Daniel Herregods and third was Dutchman Kees Trouw, both in Lola's. (Pictures Luc Ghys).

[Alan Morgan]

The last I heard, Ronnie G was still around, looking not much older than he did in those days. I'm currently in the process of restoring the prototype Elden PRH14 Supervee, and have been given a lot of period Super 8 footage of thr car which I have transferred to DVD. Ronnie features a lot in the paddock shots.

Google "Clapham North MOT" for a link to a fascinating article about him from Motor Sport a few years ago.

[ErleMin]

The significance of Andrew Kitson's reference to the lack of cooling fan on the Royale RP9 was that at the first Super Vee race in Europe in 1971 at Hockenheim, Cyd WIlliams' car was the only one to have this feature. As a result he had about 5hp more than the others, helping him beat 'em all.
Allen Brown was asking the difference between an Austro-Kaimann & a Kaimann. I would say that the former was an Austro (Porsche Salzburg's Vee outfit) modified by Kurt Bergmann and the latter a complete car made by him.
Keep the Super Vee fires burning please, particularly the authoritative contributions from gfm. We now have 3 racing at the moment in the UK with 2 waiting in the wings, so to speak.

[Dan Rear]

Originally Posted by pedro917

Here's a picture of Ronnie Grant's Taurus (#32) taken at Zandvoort in 1977 :

Great pic, Pedro. I assume thats a Lola next to Ronnie, whats the car behind? Looks like a March nose on it, but they didn't make FSVs 'til 78 I think.

[Unit 2 Racing]

Originally Posted by Dan Rear

Did this company have some connexion with Reynard

No Reynard connexion I know of Dan.

Davron Racing Components Ltd
Were based in Chackmore Farm Road, Maids Morton, Buckingham.
Dave ? + Ron Washer were the owners (DAVeRON) better known for its racing engine building, Ford 2000 & FSV chassis were I think built in the late 70's
Designer John Lipman. I dont remember seeing the F2000 car race.

[USSSRACER]

Originally Posted by allenbrown

Thanks for this Harold. Can you tell me the date of that Autoweek article? I'd like to look it out and read it.

Allen, Auto Week October 12, 1981 had an artical titled "Living the life of Riley". I have a poor photo copy of it if you can't come up with the artical. Sorry this response has been so slow.

Harold
FastWheelsRfun@aol.com

[USSSRACER]

Hi Allen, Sorry for this slow response. I don't get back to this site too often. The artical in Autoweek was from October 12, 1981. It was titled Living the life of Riley. David Bowles also sent me an artical titled The Technician that was published in Car and driver. I don't know what month the artical was published. I can only tell you that it was published before July of 1997. I have that date only because there is a promotional advertisement on one of the pages that has a "Offer Expires" date of 7/97. If you have any more questions please ask. my email is fastwheelsrfun@aol.com.

Harold

[chevron b50]

Originally Posted by Dan Rear

On Allen's FSV site in the 79 results, there appears to be a great deal of car variety. Not only the usual F3-type RT1s, March 79Vs, Argo JM2s/4s, but also some Chevrons and Lolas, and a VeeMax no less. I presume the Chevrons were the Nelleman B50s, though were any converted F3s I wonder. The Lolas appear to have been the 1978 T620 series, but also apparently some 79-spec Ground effect T720s.

Anyone have any detailed info on these perhaps from 1st hand dealings ??

I got one of the 4 Chevron b50 there was built, it is complete and it not a convertet F3 it was build as a Super V but of course most of the parts come from other models i got a list of what there was used. The B46 and the other danish car is now in Finland.
Regards HANS

[deimh]

I see that I am very late onto this scene...

I have been having a number of conversations with Fred Opert of Fed Opert Racing about the history of my Titan FF that I have recently bought and that was also one of his team cars in 1971/2.

During one of these converstations he was telling me a story of Bertil Roos racing a Super Vee at the Ring (I think it was under the Fred Opert Racing banner with Valvoline sponsorship) - I will try to get some additional info when I talk to him next if you want...

On a more concrete note, I can add a bit of info for your database on Super Vee cars built.

Titan produced just two Super Vee's - called the Mk7. Reading between the lines on the Titan Registry website, it would seem that the Mk7 was built about 1973 (as the Mk8 was built in 1974). The Titan Registry has one unaccounted for and the other owned by an individual in West Yorkshire.

There is a picture of a Titan Mk7 chassis on the Titan Registry website too if anyone is interested.

[Dave M]

This will not be of any use in your search for numbers but I have an anecdote about Celi.

In 1983 I had been keeping an FF1600 on the ground floor of a large repair garage in Brussels. I never had any reason to go to the first floor. One day, the garage owner introduced me to a M. Celi & told me he used to manufacture F. Vees & Supervees upstairs.
I took up the offer to take a look & was immediately dumstruck at what I saw. The whole floor was a fabrication workshop complete with engine dyno! There were numerous monocoques, complete or otherwise, engines, gearboxes, bodywork, wishbones & spares of all descriptions. Enough to make several cars.
M. Celi had obviously given up & just left the workshop. I never found out why as I only met him the once - a diminutive but very pleasant man.

I had thoughts about putting in an offer for the place and constructing a 2 litre sports car with an engine he claimed was giving great horsepower. Never came to fruition though.

On a recent visit I noticed the whole place is now a large furniture store I could not trace the previous owner.

[chunterer]

Welcome Dave!

Thanks for the snippet, must've been like finding an Aladdin's Cave!!!