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Originally Posted by stein johnsen
Lotus Cortina
KPU 382 was that not used by J. Clark in the RAC rally 66?
Latter sold by Tom Walkinshaw
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Jim Clark is reported as testing at Bagshot in a (red?) car carrying KPU386C prior to the 66 RAC.
On the 66 RAC he drove a white/green/black bonnet car registered NVW241C. Graham Robson has written that this was the ex-Soderstrom (red, Group1) 66 Monte Carlo Rally car. Whilst the 66 Monte Group 1 cars mostly seem to have been converted to Group 2 and used on later events (still red), a photograph of the badly damaged NVW241C back at Boreham after the 66 RAC prior to scrapping of the shell suggests it was a white car from new. It's origin is not clear to me. The new white/green cars (the first works rally Lotus Cortinas so-coloured since the one-off Taylor 63 RAC car) built for the 66 Alpine are believed to have been next (and last) used by the same drivers on the 66 RAC (R.Clark, V. Elford) (Elford's new 66 Alpine white car carried an old reg no, KPU380C, previously used on a red car, not a newer NVW number).
The post-66 RAC photo of the damaged NVW241C shows it carrying an Esso sticker on the bulkhead under the bonnet. The works cars were all Castrol supported (no advertising on cars then) at the time. J.Clark was, of course, Esso-contracted in F1 etc. and seems to have been tampering with the car...