Quote:
Originally posted by Jeremy Jackson
Michael,
Thanks for the detailed summary. Didn't get around tying all the Autosport comments together, and I completely missed the Gaspar reference at Estoril in June. Bonnier definitely didn't send cars to the Targa or Nürburgring. I tend to go for HU03 for Gaspar's car (this would then become Rouveyran's, contrary to what I supposed earlier on!), but it's only an opinion.
As I mentioned earlier in the thread, a T280 appeared in MNGT events here driven by Jeremy Lord in 73-74, but I don't know if that was a previously unused chassis or not.
Jeremy
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Jeremy
I've just been digging around a bit more and it seems the Bonnier cars contested a few other races, such as two Interserie rounds (but DNS at both of them 3/4/72 Ring and 1/5/72 Imola, plus de Fierlandt/Bonnier won the 4 hours of Le Mans on the Le Mans test day weekend (19/4/72).
Also Gaspar raced his T280 at Vila Real 9/7/72 and finished 3rd, then Casoni finished 5th in a T280 in the 500km of Imola 17/9/72. Maybe Gaspar sold his car to Casoni due to the reported sponsorship problems I mentioned earlier?
Takahara drove three races in a T280 in Japan, all at Mt Fuji Raceway. These were 3/9/72 (1st), 10/10/72 (1st) and 23/11/72 (1st). As the last World Championship round took place in the US on 22/7/72, it is reasonable to put forward the suggestion that Takahara bought/borrowed the surviving Ecurie Bonnier car, HU-01, but I don't have any firm evidence to back this up. In any case, I think they are unlikely to be the same car, because the dates overlap.
I'm currently looking into 1973, where Rouvreyan appears several times as well as a Jolly Club entry. Presumably the Rouvreyan car could be the ex-Gaspar/Casoni car, while the Jolly Club car was (I know someone mentioned this) an ex-Bonnier car - perhaps the one used by Takahara at the end of 1972? Lots of perhaps and maybes!
Cheers
Michael