Group A Rover 3500 SD1/Vitesse - History & Whereabouts - Page 56

**Peter Mallett** · 28 Sep 2011, 16:17 (Ref:2962210)

Something puzzling about that car. The write up suggests it could be 001 or 002. Yet the pics clearly show the plate stamped with 001. The pics also avoid any view of the rear floor and the anti tramp tie bar system.

**chunterer** · 28 Sep 2011, 17:00 (Ref:2962221)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Something puzzling about that car. The write up suggests it could be 001 or 002. Yet the pics clearly show the plate stamped with 001. The pics also avoid any view of the rear floor and the anti tramp tie bar system.

Ken's kindly confirmed to us that he now owns 002 and will be restoring to Hepolite livery..

**Peter Mallett** · 28 Sep 2011, 17:21 (Ref:2962226)

Yes, I know that, but the write up doesn't seem to acknowledge the chassis plate. Which in turn suggests there may be another reason. Incidently I saw 002 the other day

and of course 020 ran at Spa over the weekend.

ken clarke · 28 Sep 2011, 19:16 (Ref:2962264)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Yes, I know that, but the write up doesn't seem to acknowledge the chassis plate. Which in turn suggests there may be another reason. Incidently I saw 002 the other day

and of course 020 ran at Spa over the weekend.

The car in the auction is 001 although it has 2 differing chassis plates on it. 001 above the o/s headlamp, this is the TWR chassis plate & 002 on an Austin Rover chassis plate inside the door.

I informed both the vendor & the auction house that the car was 001 & I owned 002, neither of them acknowled my email & the description of the car remained unchanged. Maybe the confusion over the chassis number put of some potential buyers.

Incidentally Peter Berts car is chassis 019 not 020.

**chunterer** · 28 Sep 2011, 20:27 (Ref:2962290)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Yes, I know that, but the write up doesn't seem to acknowledge the chassis plate. Which in turn suggests there may be another reason. Incidently I saw 002 the other day

and of course 020 ran at Spa over the weekend.

Cool, I didn't realise the angle of your post.

How did 019 get on in its event?

**Peter Mallett** · 29 Sep 2011, 09:50 (Ref:2962452)

Quote:

Originally Posted by chunterer

Cool, I didn't realise the angle of your post.

How did 019 get on in its event?

Oops, I meant 019. It went very well.

basmsport · 29 Sep 2011, 11:13 (Ref:2962483)

We didn't do so good as in the previous races where we had 2 podiums in 4 races.
I qualified 4th for the 1st race and was lying 6th O/all and 1st in class when a wheel nut came loose.
In the 2nd race the Throttle potentiometer started playing up with the engine cutting out in the corners.

**chunterer** · 7 Oct 2011, 07:59 (Ref:2966986)

Thanks for the note Bert, any chance you'll run it over here sometimes next season?

KA · 7 Oct 2011, 08:27 (Ref:2967004)

found a few of Bert in 019 at Spa on Flickr:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...in/photostream
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...n/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...n/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...n/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...n/photostream/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/mendama...n/photostream/

ken clarke · 7 Oct 2011, 18:13 (Ref:2967247)

Just put some pictures on Flickr of TWR 002 if anyone is interested.

KA · 7 Oct 2011, 19:28 (Ref:2967285)

Looking at French Supertourisme results earlier, which raises a question.

At the Paul Ricard round in April, Rene Metge finished 5th, but there was a second Rover, which finished 9th, driven by Jean-Pierre Gabreau
http://homepage.mac.com/frank_de_jon...%20Ricard.html

Now according to this post from much earlier in the thread, Gabreau's car was the ex-Metge 1982 championship winner:

Quote:

Originally Posted by MG Rover Sport

I guess the ebay car could also be the one raced by privateer Jean-Pierre Gabreau during the 1983 season. He acquired René Metge's 1982 French Production Car Championship winning Marlboro / Castrol sponsored car.

What's interesting is that looking at the season's results, Gabreau doesn't seem to have used it very much, or kept it for long- as far as I can see, the next time he shows up in the results is when Supertourisme takes a trip to Hockenheim in August, to support the German GP- but he's now driving a BMW 528i, as he does in the season-closer at Montlhery...

Now, we've talked about Rovers in Portugal quite a bit earlier in the thread, and IIRC two cars arrived there in 1983, both of French origin- one becoming the red 'Traffic' car of Pedro Meireles, the other being raced by Jose Peres, still basically in French Marlboro colours.
http://scgtclassic.com.sapo.pt/Cabanelas1.jpg
http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/5863/peres83yx5.jpg

So did Gabreau sell his car on to Portugal? Both Portuguese Rovers were apparently being raced there by July, suggesting that if one of them was Gabreau's car, he moved it on pretty quickly...

KA · 7 Oct 2011, 19:36 (Ref:2967286)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken clarke

Just put some pictures on Flickr of TWR 002 if anyone is interested.

That's brilliant Ken- interesting to see some of the detail of the car, and the Hepolite colours reappearing where you've started to strip the Bastos red/white...
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16445181@N08/

ken clarke · 7 Oct 2011, 19:43 (Ref:2967290)

I thought I had put them in order but they appear a little haphazard. I hate computers!!!

**chunterer** · 7 Oct 2011, 21:43 (Ref:2967348)

Crikey, that's amazing... seeing that yellow hue underneath the Bastos livery...

Ken it how did it feel to see that original colour appear before your very eyes?

You can't have seen that since it was last in its original spec, what, nearly 30years or so?

Have you sent the pics to Steve Soper yet?

ken clarke · 7 Oct 2011, 21:52 (Ref:2967357)

Quote:

Originally Posted by chunterer

Crikey, that's amazing... seeing that yellow hue underneath the Bastos livery...

Ken it how did it feel to see that original colour appear before your very eyes?

You can't have seen that since it was last in its original spec, what, nearly 30years or so?

Have you sent the pics to Steve Soper yet?

No, I have not seen it since 1984/5, 26 years.

Steve knows I have it, an ex colleague at TWR saw him at the Goodwood FOS & told him. I would like to get it rebuilt over the next couple of years & put him in it at Goodwood.

Maybe???

**chunterer** · 8 Oct 2011, 13:45 (Ref:2967574)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken clarke

No, I have not seen it since 1984/5, 26 years.

Steve knows I have it, an ex colleague at TWR saw him at the Goodwood FOS & told him. I would like to get it rebuilt over the next couple of years & put him in it at Goodwood.

Maybe???

Great stuff, or even better, get him out in the car in some classic racing??!!

I'm sure he's got enough money to fix anything if he breaks it!

**Peter Mallett** · 8 Oct 2011, 14:06 (Ref:2967578)

Ken, IIRC it ran the earlier front spolier in 1983, will you be returning it to that spec?

ken clarke · 8 Oct 2011, 18:50 (Ref:2967662)

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Mallett

Ken, IIRC it ran the earlier front spolier in 1983, will you be returning it to that spec?

Yes Pete it will have the earlier spoiler.

ken clarke · 8 Oct 2011, 18:52 (Ref:2967664)

Quote:

Originally Posted by chunterer

Great stuff, or even better, get him out in the car in some classic racing??!!

I'm sure he's got enough money to fix anything if he breaks it!

I believe he cannot race any more due to a neck injury sustained during his time with the Peugeot touring car team.

VIVA GT · 8 Oct 2011, 19:50 (Ref:2967675)

Quote:

Originally Posted by ken clarke

I believe he cannot race any more due to a neck injury sustained during his time with the Peugeot touring car team.

Sadly I believe this to be true...

**chunterer** · 8 Oct 2011, 21:55 (Ref:2967723)

Quote:

Originally Posted by VIVA GT

Sadly I believe this to be true...

I didn't realise he had been injured to that extent, that's a shame as it would be lovely to see Steve out in anger in his first Rover, a car I remember reading about a profile of Steve, where he discussed how he absolutely loved the car and revelled in it when he stepped up from the Metro.

VIVA GT · 9 Oct 2011, 21:51 (Ref:2968289)

Quote:

Originally Posted by chunterer

I didn't realise he had been injured to that extent, that's a shame as it would be lovely to see Steve out in anger in his first Rover, a car I remember reading an interview of profile where he discussed how he absolutely loved the car and revelled in it when he stepped up from the Metro.

When you consider Steve's background before hitting 'The Big Time' with the Rovers (and then beyond with WTCC RS500 & BMW team), it says a lot for the talent in British Club racing.
I remember him in the Radbourne Racing Fiat X1/9, plus various Mini's and Metros (didn't he win the Mini 1275GT Championship one year?) over the years, but his talent enabled him to achieve the dream of all club racers and become a very successful professional driver. Somed of his drives as Tim Harvey's team mate in the Vic Lee BMW 318 BTCC cars were incredible... (Sorry, but I've maybe veered off toipic a little here...)

KA · 16 Oct 2011, 11:04 (Ref:2971861)

From Jesper's 1987 Japanese Touring Car thread, a couple of JTCC clips on YouTube, showing the car that went to Japan at the end of '86

Clearly visible around 3:40 on this one, again making a pitstop at 4:38, having a scrap with a 635 at 5:31, then finally another stop at 6:03
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXAVd...eature=related

...and on this one, a look around the car in the paddock, and an interview with the drivers, from 1:28
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL29Q...eature=related

ken clarke · 16 Oct 2011, 13:17 (Ref:2971897)

Looks very much like chassis number 007.

KA · 16 Oct 2011, 13:29 (Ref:2971909)

Thanks Ken- 007 originally the Gitanes car IIRC?
Do you remember what colours it went to Japan in? As I remember it debuted at the Fuji race in late 86, with Jeff Allam and a Japanese driver.

I've got a vague memory of a black & white photo in Autosport showing it in what looked like Bastos livery, but with 'ARJ' logos and local sponsorship replacing 'Bastos'.

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