Innholdsfortegnelse for #261 18-04 i Just Cars

After more than a decade in limbo, British sports car brand TVR is back in business, with an all-new Griffith making its global debut at the Goodwood Revival this past September. Speaking at the unveiling, TVR chairman Les Edgar said: “(This) is the culmination of nearly three years of tireless work by the team, and we’re all proud to be able to show the new TVR Griffith to the world.” Edgar is one of more than a dozen investors who acquired rights to the TVR name in 2013, following a disastrous period under Nikolai Smolensky’s ownership that saw production grid to a halt in 2006. With key partners in the form of Gordon Murray Design and Cosworth supporting the reborn company, the brand’s owners say the new car stays true…

Jaguar has produced an electric-engined version of their classic E-type roadster and say the technology could be applied to other classic Jaguar models. What some may see it as an advance and others as an abhorrence, was unveiled at the Jaguar Land Rover Tech Fest in London this past September. SAME, BUT DIFFERENT Produced by Jaguar Land Rover Classic (JLRC), as part of a comprehensive restoration of a 1968 ‘Series 1.5’ E-type roadster, the “E-type Zero” looks exactly the same as its conventionally-powered namesake, but under the bonnet, a lithiumion battery pack occupies the space normally taken by a 4.2-litre ‘XK’ six-cylinder petrol engine, while an electric motor with reduction gear replaces the 4-speed manual gearbox. Aft of this, a new driveshaft connects to a conventional diff. The inverter and…

The early 1970s, just before the oil crisis struck and ruined the fun, was a wonderful time to be out supercar shopping. The Italians in particular were creating automotive works of art housing thumping V8s and V12s, offering increasingly tasty power figures and top speeds. Exotic, fast, sexy and restrictively expensive, these were the hero cars that inspired a generation. But what if you could get the looks and performance without the huge cost? Enter the De Tomaso Pantera (Italian for panther) of 1971. Here was a car featuring textbook Italian supercar looks with its wedge shape and purity of line, while midmounted in front of its raised angular rump sat a tried-and-tested American Ford V8 engine. A Ford-stamped 5.8-litre (351 cu in) Cleveland V8 may rob the Pantera of…

OK. Let’s get one thing clear from the start: Ford never built a utility on the Mark II Cortina platform. The pictures here may lead you to think otherwise, but the idea of a factory-built Cortina for the farm didn’t appear until the Mark III (known as the TC Series here) and was made in South Africa. There are rumours, and a few images floating around the ‘net, of a MkI Cortina ute, but based on what I’ve seen, that’s more likely to be an individual conversion, rather than a factory effort. So, unless the publication of this article proves otherwise, I’m pretty confident the vehicle featured here is the only one of its type in Australia. The boys in the Delgiglio family who created this ute are confident that…

In 1964, Carroll Shelby asked fabricator John Ohlsen to take a Daytona Coupe, the fixed roof version of the Cobra, and lengthen the chassis and body to allow the standard 289ci V8 engine to be replaced with a larger 427ci NASCAR-spec V8. Shelby’s goal was to produce a “secret weapon” for that year’s Le Mans 24-Hour Race. Ohlsen completed the first conversion, on chassis CSX2286, after which it was tested by development drivers, one of whom speculated that it could have topped 200mph (320kph) at the La Sarthe circuit. However, in transit to Le Mans, the truck carrying CSX2286 was involved in an accident that damaged the car too badly to race, so it never ran a lap in anger with the 427. CSX2286 did go back to Le Mans…

Amidst all the new car reveals at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, the Project One hypercar from Mercedes-AMG stole the show. Unveiled by three-time Formula 1 World Champion Lewis Hamilton, Project One is still under development and more than 18 months away from hitting the road, but that hasn’t stopped the total production run of 275 units selling out. Trucking magnate Lindsay Fox is rumoured to be one of eight Australians who’ve put down a deposit for a car that’ll carry a local price tag of more than $5 million. GENUINE PEDIGREE While many cars have claimed to be a “Formula 1 car for the road” over the years, the Project One arguably comes closer than any other, as it uses the same 1.6-litre turbocharged V6 engine as the current…

Emotions run deep with certain cars, and it’s often generational, too. Last year, JUST CARS readers met third-generation Blue Oval man David Forbes, who punts the same model XK Falcon that his father raced. On the other side of the Ford-Holden divide, there’s a similarly one-eyed stalwart, Phil Barrow, who not only races the same sort of car his Dad did, it’s the same car! FATHER FIRST In the early ’60s, Phil’s dad Alan Barrow was one of a legion of ‘Humpy Holden’ men in the Appendix J class. Entries, fuel and tyres were cheap back then, and for a toolmaker like Alan, a bit of head- scratching and backyard fettling got you faster each weekend. Alan raced the legendary NSW tracks of the period – Catalina Park, Gnoo Blas…

Ahead of the end of Australian vehicle manufacturing operations for both Ford and Holden, most of Australia’s state and territory police forces started the move to imported vehicles for their fleets some time ago, but performance Falcons and Commodores have been retained by most forces for highway patrol work. That’s set to change soon, with Victoria Police confirming they’ll move to BMWs next year. In a deal supported by BMW Australia, as many as 80 specially-equipped 530d sedans will replace the existing VF Commodore SS in the Vic Police highway patrol fleet by the end of 2018, with other states and territories expected to follow Victoria’s lead. The 5 Series sedans will come from Germany with a ‘police pack’ factory-fitted, but without some of the higher-end trim and luxury features…

MOTORING FESTIVAL 24th-26th NOVEMBER 2017 For nearly 50 years, the Geelong Sprints brought a magnificent collection of classic sports vehicles to Geelong’s waterfront for the classic ¼ mile sprints, attracting many of the world’s best drivers including Sir Jack Brabham, Stirling Moss, Dick Johnson, Jim Richards and Alan Jones. Towards the late 90s and early 2000s, the event was generally regarded as the largest classic motorsport event of its type in Australia before it fell dormant. Quite literally ‘revived’ as the Geelong Revival Motoring Festival in 2012, the event has expanded to celebrate all things vintage and offers the motoring community a chance to see over 1000 valuable and unique cars that are rarely seen in public. ¼ MILE SPRINTS Spectators will witness 400 unique cars and motorcycles sprint down…

Last year’s 25th edition of Historic Sandown was one of the biggest and best historic events ever hosted at the suburban Melbourne track. More than 70 historic touring cars took part, including the small and large runners in Historic Touring Group Nb and Group Nc. David Brown and his Datsun 1600 SSS were uncatchable in the smaller filed (Gp Nb under 4.5L and Gp Nc under 2.0L) last year, while Fraser Ross and his Mustang were first to the flag in two out of three races in the larger-capacity field. Last year’s event also attracted some rarities to the historic party, like Ross Muller’s Chevy Nova, Mick Stupka’s Volvo Amazon and Ian Mewett’s Jaguar Mk2, so if you’re looking for something a little ‘different’, you’re likely to find it at…