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March 793
One of the largest build runs for a March F3 car [25 built] and a lot still running or in collections, but so far very little input on chassis history or who had which car in period.
So, I'm starting this thread in the hope that current owners who know something of the history of their car will join in, and maybe attract a few period observations to boot.
Known chassis numbers
1: Works for Thackwell [period observation]
2: Unipart: Nigel Mansell
4: Claimed to be Alboreto's Euroracing chassis
12: Tiga for de Cesaris
13: Kenneth Acheson
15: Unipart: Brett Riley [probably new around Monaco, as is Acheson's car] Unipart run a 783 alongside 793-2 early season
17: Tiga for de Cesaris [new at Donington May] used only twice in season
19: Roger Heavens Racing new at Monaco, used by Bleekemolen and Borgudd in 1980 but maybe Boutsen's car in 1979
20: Project 4 for Serra [period observation], probably new May. Sold to Japan and used by Sasaki to win 1980 Japanese F3 championship, still being used in Japan 1983 by Kozo Okumura [period observation]
25: Unknown until 1983 until observed on Urs Hauenstein's car at Ecce Homo hillclimb
This leaves a lot of gaps. Given that de Cesaris has a 793 from early March and his first car is chassis 12, and Acheson doesn't get 13 until Monaco, the first batch seems to be 12 strong and we know four of them.
Debuting before Monaco in unknown cars we have:
Riccardo Paletti
Michael Korten
Pietro Villa
Freddy Schnarwiler
Mauro Baldi
Jurg Leinhard
Chico Serra
Piercarlo Ghinzani
It may be, of course, that March delivered later numbers out of sequence, and there were probably works "U" cars - although 1977 seems to be the last year that March do that with F2s and there are no "U" plates in the 1978 records for any of their cars.
Later in the season we have cars for:
Jean-Louis Schlesser
Stefan Johansson
Eddie Jordan, also used by Bernard Devaney [sold to Rick Whyman in 1980]
a second car for Roger Heavens
Michele Kropf
another Euroracing car
Jurg Leinhard
after 1979 one of the de Cesaris cars is used by Fred Krab, another goes to Tarry Racing
for Ian Shaw
Any advance on this??
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