Chevron B34

[Patrese256]

Not sure if this is the right place for this given the different Chevron threads but it appears that Riccardo Patrese's European F3 Championship winning B34 is alive and well.

I was recently contacted by someone who had bought chassis 06 which was later driven by Piercarlo Ghinzani. According to Riccardo this car was sold to Ghinzani after it won the Euro F3 title at Vallelunga, and was then used by Piercarlo to race Riccardo at the final round of the Italian F3 championship at Magione, which Riccardo won.

Where the car has been since I'm not sure if anyone knows?

[allenbrown]

Don't have much on B34s as far as I can see so I'll drop this here. Kit Henry is advertising on ebay two B34s, chassis 9 and chassis 35. Described as follows:

1976 Chevron B-34 Formula Continental Specs in the 70’s and 80’s. 1100 cc Cosworth BDJ, recommend full dis-assembly and reassembly motor was freshened and put in storage in 1983. Spares include parts to return car to Formula A/B specs. Car is partially disassembled for storage purposes. Numerous Cendiv Ne Ohio Regional Championships. Ex-Howdy Holmes/Bill Scott Racing Canadian Series car. Chassis #9.

1976 Chevron B-34 Formula Atlantic. Car is complete with Vanguard/Mong BDB. It was he most powerful BDD in existence in 1977. Engine was recommissioned and started 2 years ago and returned to storage. Car has extensive SCCA history including CenDiv NeOhio national and regional championships. Car includes complete spare package including a spare floor skin. Chassis #35 – last B34 built. Never crashed. Ever. Held several lap records in its day, great car to drive and quite roomy, as is the B-25/27. Car was also F5I national champion in 1978 driven by Paul Henry, beating all the F5000 cars.

These cars include numerous spare including gears, wheels both original and after market, Suspension pieces, shocks everything that Paul Henry Racing Ltd. had for campaigning these cars in their day. Selling to fund the next generation driver, Cap Henry, www.caphenryracing.com.

Allen

[Chris Townsend]

B34s a quick summary

76-02 1976: Tony Martin [SA] retained 1977; 1978 Evan Boddy [SA]

76-03 1976: Bill Brack for S.A series and then to Guy Tunmer [SA]

76-06 1976: Trivatello for Patrese [based on above info]

76-08 1976: Basil van Rooyen [SA] retained to at least 1978 when used by Desire Wilson

76-09 1976: Bill Scott Racing for Holmes [based on Henry sales information] However, Holmes burned out a car in an electrical fire at Laguna Seca in April, and it was replaced with a new car in May [which would probably have a higher build number than this, so I reckon 09 is the first Holmes car rebuilt]

76-12 1976: Fred Opert team car, drivers unknown, spare car in NZ 1977

76-19 1976: Fred opert team car for Juan Cochesa, Rosberg in NZ 1977 then to Norm Lankshear and then Bryan Hartley

76-20 1976: "Used in US Atlantic" but not known which driver, used by Del Schloemer in SEA from 1979

76-21 1976 Opert team car; first noted on Eddie Marcello's car at Philipines GP, then to Pocholo Ramirez 1977

76-24 1976: Works F3 car for Lees, appears June. If so then either F3 1977 with KWS team and then David Brotherston [AS describes Schlesser's 77 B34 as ex Lees] OR John Lewis [F3 1977] and then the basis of Richard Parsons's Atlantic car in Ireland. [Also called ex Lees] [I think that this car might have been the "development" B34 used by Crawford in 76 G8 as Lewis was a Chevron mechanic]
This number also on B34 for sale a few years back in NE USA

76-25 Opert team car for Tambay and perhaps Smiley. Kozarowitzky in 1977 NZ series tehn to Narcisco de la Merced

76-27 KWS for Rudi Dotsch retained 1977

76 -37 Albert Poon

76-35 Paul Henry

The unknown cars are legion!

Chris

[Chris Townsend]

Unknown B34s

Atlantic

Bobby Brown [delivered Feb 76]
Bill Anspach [actually to FC spec, delivered Feb]
Bill Brack [delivered March]
Bill Scott for Crawley/Gerber [delivered March]
Ken Duclos
Kevin Cogan [delivered April]
Lloyd Callaway
Robert Nelkin
Scott [Holmes replacement car]
Gilles Leger
Rick Bell
Marcel Talbot
Opert must have had at least one, and probably two more cars.

F3
Fernando Spreafico [Trivatello]
Rupert Keegan [July]
KWS second car

Chris

[Bryan Miller]

Chris,

B34-76-37 , two letters , one from Albert Poon and another from Chevron Cars [ Roger Andreasson ].
Chevron say built for Poon , probably last B34 done and del. circa July 1976 , colour yellow.
Albert Poon advises same , used all over S.E.Asia and N.Z. Stuvyesant Series, nil accidents in Poon's hands , sold as he was taking delivery of new B42 [ which he says was no where near as good a car].
Came to Western Australia 1979 to Peter Nicol till end 1980 , thence 1980-1982 Peter Morris [ W.A. ] 1982-1994 Jim Runciman [ W.A. ] 1994-1998 to Richard Fearon [ Victoria] , to Noel Robson [ Victoria ]end 1998 , thence to Current owner Peter Mohr of [ now] Queensland.
Kevin Bartlett told me this is the car he drove one year at Macau.
Bryan.

[Patrese256]

Originally Posted by Chris Townsend

B34s a quick summary

Chris, when this particular B34 came to my attention I contacted Riccardo to see what he remembered of the car. He did say that Trivellato had three B34 chassis that year.

'06' did appear for sale on eBay

[Marcus Mussa]

I was told (but this is from the seller of 06) that there were 4 Trivellato cars, 01-06-17-31. Is there any way of checking this info? Are there any official Chevron records? And Patrese apparently crashed a car early in the season (01?).

[Chris Townsend]

Marcus

01, 06, 17 and 31 might well be correct. It's interesting that the nominated
numbers fall into gaps into my notes. That would be very difficult to do by coincidence, and I don't suspect the seller of 06 of knowing the chassis histories of the FAtlantic cars to know where the gaps are.
01 was almost certainly the works F3 test car, if Patrese stuffed it early in the season that might explain why - with pressure to supply the American market, and there were 3 B34s written off at Laguna Seca in April 76 - Geoff Lees didn't get his works car until June.
17 would be about the right number for a replacement for an early season demolition of chassis 01, and 31 could just be a late season spare. But such a record might also suggest that 06 was initially meant to be Spreafico's car...

I'm afraid that my access to Chevron records seemed to skirt round B34s. Perhaps someone would care to talk to Roger Andreasson?

Chris

[Dan Rear]

From memory the Brotherston F3 car was the ex-Keegan one.

[Dan Rear]

Kim M told me today that he was told by Derek Bennett that his car WAS the ex-Villeneuve car, crashed in ZA in early '77. That car was described as a B39 at the time, but following its return to Bolton, it was rebuilt, and they decided to call it a "B34D".

After Kim it went to Ken Brill as we know, who promptly duffed it up. The remains later turned up, he thinks, with Richard Evans in Derek Bell races. Apparently Brill also converted what he had into a 'new' car...

[Chris Townsend]

Dan

What went to ZA in early 77 was a B39. The problem is that two cars were taken [one for Martin and one for Villeneuve] These are chassis 1 and 2 in the build record which I've seen. Both survive with continuous histories and both had those plates in the early 1980s at least.

Villeneuve did for at least one tub in the S.African races and had a few other adventures... His car did go back to the works, but a B39 with 1 on the plate went to John Sisk in the USA and then to NZ. I suspect that Kim got the old tub and various other bits. Given the dog that the B39 was in its early stages [Tony Martin threatened to cancel his payment and give the car back when it proved slower than his year old B34] it wouldn't surprise me if Bennett had put a B34 tub onto B39 suspension to see if that worked better.

Chris

[Dan Rear]

Chris, very probable, especially given the help Derek B was keen to extend to Kim at the time. Thats probably why they, Kim and Derek, decided to call it a 'B34D', which Kim confirmed yesterday was for "Development".

He also said in passing, that others gave him a deal of help in that period, John Cooper, Jim Evans, Geoff Richardson among others.

[Davhut]

76-19 1976: Fred opert team car for Juan Cochesa, Rosberg in NZ 1977 then to Norm Lankshear and then Bryan Hartley

76-20 1976: "Used in US Atlantic" but not known which driver, used by Del Schloemer in SEA from 1979


Number 20 was used at the beginning of the season by Gordon Smiley. He finished third in the first event of the year to Gilles and Brack. I've just received some old photos and will post soon. Car details, mechanics working and action photos. Car was baby blue (Opert's colors), Smiley promoted sponsorship from "The Bay" (Hudson's Bay Co. department targeting young adults in apparel. He ran out of money half way through the season after some promising results.

[Chris Townsend]

Davhut

Was this the car used later in 76 by Lloyd Callaway?

Chris

[Davhut]

I don't know that answer...I will try to make some inquiries.

[Davhut]

Some photos of Chassis No. 20. No luck yet on what happened to this car when Smiley ran out of money...

[Dan Rear]

Originally Posted by Dan Rear

From memory the Brotherston F3 car was the ex-Keegan one.

Anyone confirm my thoughts on this one? And where did it go after Brotherston in 1979, Ireland maybe ?

[Chris Townsend]

Dan

Don't think any B34s went to Ireland other than the ex Lees one used by Richard Parsons, certainly none show up in Atlantic.

Wasn't Brotherston's car ex KWS or am I confused?

Chris

[Dan Rear]

Chris, Brotherston car may well have been ex-KWS, can't recall too much about him or the car now. Except that when I saw it in F3 1979, it was coloured v similar to the BAF Keegan car of 76.

[Dan Rear]

Crawford used a B34 Atlantic in late 1976 G8 races here, I suppose a works backed/owned car of some sort, or maybe Opert. Anyone see it? And where did it go after, I don't think it stayed here. Far East perhaps, or US??

[Davhut]

Crawford's car may have been the one taken by his team manager, Bob Fernley to India and that area in the after 1976. I've been totally unsuccessful in obtaining race/chassis information for whatever that championship was then called, but Crawford was the series champion after about 6 races.

[allenbrown]

David Brotherston has just been in touch and can add to a couple of cars' histories:

the Keegan B34 was definately chassis no 29, as I owned the car from late '76 to '80 when I sold the car to Bob Howlings.

The Ex Lees car was no. 24 which I just missed purchasing at the end of the season, I was told that it had been sold to Japan ( possibly in Atlantic spec ) however conflictingly I was told that this was the Schlesser car, what the spare KWS car was I have no idea, but it was definately not my car, nor did mine go to Ireland except when I raced it there in '80.

[Dan Rear]

Good stuff Allen. What did Dave B race his B34 in Ireland in in 1980, Atlantic I presume?

[Chris Townsend]

I think that the answer to Parson's Irish Atlantic B34 being 'ex Lees' is that it is the ex John Lewis car, itself described as ex Lees when it appeared in F3. However, as Lewis was a mechanic at Chevron and often appeared late season with current models that he'd built up from spares, I suggest that the 'ex Lees' bit of this might well be various bits that had been discarded from the works F3, and doubt that the car would carry a plate, or if it did, like many late season Chevrons, ever appear in the build records...

Chris

[allenbrown]

More from David (who can't join as he has a hotmail email address)

The answer to your friends query as to was the car in atlantic spec? The answer to that is no, it was an Eddie Jordan organised non championship race meeting sponsored by the ferry company, " Barnyard, " Devaney won in a Roger Heavens March 793. Rob Moores was second in his ex Daly B38 and I was third it was good prize money and we had a dreadful 12 hour crossing from Liverpool arriving at Mondello in the middle of the night! we awoke to find practice on not having slept for 36 hours due to the ferry delay and long crossing! John lewis raced a B47 that definately had a chassis plate and the late style large sidepode endplates that could acommodate the by then banned sliding skirts, I saw that it had a chassis plate but paid no real attention to it, I saw it with both a wide nose and a narrow one but only remember it racing with a narrow one in '79 and I saw it close up in races! and at the works where both John and Barry Green ( ex Gailliard B43 ) kept them in the customer workshops out the back where we were as well at numerous times that season, it was a great atmoshere that year as Jim Crawford was there a lot as well! Hope this helps further

Regards Dave