The early cars

Author

admin

Browse pages
Current page

1

Current page

2

Current page

3

Current page

4

Current page

5

Current page

6

Current page

7

Current page

8

Current page

9

Current page

10

Current page

11

Current page

12

Current page

13

Current page

14

Current page

15

Current page

16

Current page

17

Current page

18

Current page

19

Current page

20

Current page

21

Current page

22

Current page

23

Current page

24

Current page

25

Current page

26

Current page

27

Current page

28

Current page

29

Current page

30

Current page

31

Current page

32

Current page

33

Current page

34

Current page

35

Current page

36

Current page

37

Current page

38

Current page

39

Current page

40

Current page

41

Current page

42

Current page

43

Current page

44

Current page

45

Current page

46

Current page

47

Current page

48

Current page

49

Current page

50

Current page

51

Current page

52

Current page

53

Current page

54

Current page

55

Current page

56

Current page

57

Current page

58

Current page

59

Current page

60

Current page

61

Current page

62

Current page

63

Current page

64

Current page

65

Current page

66

Current page

67

Current page

68

Current page

69

Current page

70

Current page

71

Current page

72

Current page

73

Current page

74

Current page

75

Current page

76

Current page

77

Current page

78

Current page

79

Current page

80

Current page

81

Current page

82

Current page

83

Current page

84

Current page

85

Current page

86

Current page

87

Current page

88

Current page

89

Current page

90

Current page

91

Current page

92

Current page

93

Current page

94

Current page

95

Current page

96

Current page

97

Current page

98

Current page

99

Current page

100

Current page

101

Current page

102

Current page

103

Current page

104

Current page

105

Current page

106

Current page

107

Current page

108

Current page

109

Current page

110

Current page

111

Current page

112

Current page

113

Current page

114

Current page

115

Current page

116

Current page

117

Current page

118

Current page

119

Current page

120

Current page

121

Current page

122

Current page

123

Current page

124

Current page

125

Current page

126

Current page

127

Current page

128

Current page

129

Current page

130

Current page

131

Current page

132

Current page

133

Current page

134

Current page

135

Current page

136

Current page

137

Current page

138

Current page

139

Current page

140

After six seasons with Ferrai-based Thinwall Specials, it was time to go it alone…

You can imagine GAV’s foul mood when the organisers of the 1954 Swiss Grand Prix at Berne rejected his entry. They had plenty of cars, thank you. Their dismissive attitude to this new British car was, however, partly GAV’s fault. He eschewed PR to such an extent that the official programme for the BRDC International Trophy meeting in May, scene of the debut of his 2-litre Vanwall Special, carried no more information about this important car than its name, its entrant and its driver, who was Alan Brown. Tony Vandervell had seen the folly of the fanfare that surrounded the V16 BRM and was determined not to fall into the same trap.

He had also seen BRM delay and delay and delay. GAV was much more up and at ’em, firm in the belief that the only way to learn was to compete — when he was allowed to, that is. The Swiss snub, however, would be just one of many hiccups over the next two seasons. GAV’s team was learning, but it was learning the hard way.

Surrey’s Alan Brown, a driver not of the highest order but a man in demand because of his testing skills — and availability — drove the ‘mysterious’ Vanwall Special on its debut. He did well to qualify on the front row for the first heat and finished sixth. In the final, however, he retired with a broken oil pipe when running fifth.

These performances received a great deal of favourable comment. The doubters, however, were misled by the car’s two-litre engine and low-key exhaust note, dismissing it as a Formula Two car that had missed the boat. In fact, the car had been designed with the new 2.5-litre formula in mind and the team was working flat out on the next phases of the engine’s development. Peter Collins used an interim 2.3 in the British GP at Silverstone (he retired after 17 laps with a cylinder head problem) and the Italian GP at Monza (where the car finished seventh after a stop to mend a broken oil pump). The 2.5 finally turned up at Goodwood’s Autumn meeting — as did Mike Hawthorn, who drove the car to fourth in the Formula Libre Woodcote Cup; Collins had earlier finished second in the Goodwood Trophy for F1 cars.

The results were beginning to come, albeit in sprint races, and GAV’s plans were taking shape. Hawthorn and Collins, in fuel-injected evolutions of the car, was his dream team for 1955. He was, however, getting a little ahead of himself.

The team ended 1954 on a down note, Collins writing off the car in practice for the Spanish GP at Pedralbes. The young man from Kidderminster would then further queer GAV’s plans by signing for BRM but not having the courage to tell ‘The Guv’nor to his face. Instead he gave Vanwall’s lawyer the runaround. A homesick Hawthorn took little persuading to sign on the dotted line, but by time the ‘Collins Affair’ had run its course, there were no top-ranking drivers left on the market. The all-round talents of Ken Wharton plugged the gap. And to think that GAV had considered running three cars in the grands prix of 1955.

In many respects, the second season proved tougher than the first: expectations were higher, but reality bit.

Wharton was burnt in his first race for the team, Silverstone’s International Trophy, and Hawthorn soon became disenchanted with the handling of the reworked car. His mood darkened further when GAV “buggered” the clutch while driving the car from the hotel, through traffic, to Spa before practice for the Belgian GP. With a face like thunder Mike trudged to the pits on foot when the unit let go on his first lap out. He retired from the race, too, after just nine laps, because of a gearbox oil leak. Heated words were exchanged, and Hawthorn and Vanwall went their separate ways.

It’s true that Vanwall were now without a proven race-winner, but on reflection this was perhaps a good thing. A dose of Harry Schell press-on geniality was just what the doctor ordered. Plus the team was now able to learn the ropes without the pressure of expectation.

Schell made a spirited debut with the team in the British Grand Prix at Aintree. He lined up an encouraging seventh, only to fluff his start and finish the first lap way down in 19th place. Furious, he charged through the field to be 11th by lap five. He then proceeded to pass the Ferrari 555s of Maurice Trintignant — and Hawthorn! He was running eighth on lap 20, which is when it happened — Harry snapped the throttle pedal off at its root!

That first win did come, though, Schell prevailing in a heat at Crystal Palace before finishing second in the final in July’s BARC International Trophy. There was more. In the Redex Trophy at Snetterton in August, Schell and Wharton finished 1-2, comprehensively beating the Maserati 250F of Stirling Moss, who had his hands full that day with the cheeky Cooper ‘Bobtail’ ofJack Brabham.

Schell would score two more wins that season, the F1 and Libre races at Castle Combe in October. However, the real proof of the pudding was the Italian GP at Monza, where both Schell (suspension) and Wharton (fuel injection pump brackets) were out before 10 laps had passed.

Progress had been made but it was clear that there was still a large gap to span between Vanwall and the GP-winners. The engine was GAV’s only real love and he was confident that it was powerful enough to do the job. It was the chassis that was letting the side down. Something had to be done. Something radical, because catching the pace-setters was not enough, they had to be overtaken.