Six Elfin type 300s in Australia for the first time

[SJ LAMBERT]

I think that for the first time there will shortly be six type 300 Elfins in Australia. With the return of the prototype, frame no. SS 67-4 after many years in New York and a couple in the UK, that means every type 300 from first to last will be domiciled down under! From the little 1150cc Holbay powered one through the 2.0 litre Climax powered one that spent many years in Africa to all the Twin Cam powered ones. If one includes the one off type 350 as an honourary seventh car in the "300 Series" then we can look forward to their appearance in numbers at historic meets!!
So congratulations to all you gents currently campaigning them, I reckon that the "300 Club" ought be formed to allow you fellows to exercise (or should that be exorcise?) your obsessions!! Half a dozen of the prettiest sports racers ever produced in Australia on the same grid at Albert Park, Mallala, Winton or even Eastern Creek would look pretty impressive!
James Lambert

[John Turner]

Welcome SJL. Any pics, anyone? Also if anyone has a history of these 6 or 7 cars they would be prepared to knock together for the Chassis Archive, please do so.

[johnh875]

Here is a pic (link only for copyright reasons! )
link

[SJ LAMBERT]

The initial Sports racing 300 was originally ordered by Carl Haas in 1965 for SCCA Sports Modified Racing in the States. Single seaters took priority at the Elfin factory, so, by the time the car was completed, testedat Mallala and shipped to the New York, the contract had been passed to Chuck Kreuger, his home track was Watkins Glen -it was raced sparingly there and at Cumberland in SCCA National events before an extended period of storage in Upstate New York.
The prototype passed into the hands of Graham Allen in the UK in 2007, receiving a thorough restoration, all the while, in Graham's words "retaining the remarkable originality of the car" - with only modifications being concessions to FIA safety requirements such as the rather demure original roll bar making way for a more substantion hoop. Even the original aluminium hand beaten body courtesy of John Webb that was used to create the mold for the following cars has been returned to it's brilliant best. Graham ran the car at Brands Hatch and is now in the process of shipping it back to Australia, where Ron Lambert, a member of the Elfin Build Team in 66/7 is looking forward to reacquanting himself with SS67-4.
Photo attached of car looking as fresh as a daisy a few months ago.

[SJ LAMBERT]

G'day John
I could knock together something for the chassis archive - it would be sourced from old RCNs, Barry Catford's materials and the Elfin Register. Dad (Ron) and a couple of other ex Elfin employees would, no doubt, be willing to test their memories too!
Cheers James

[John Turner]

Please do. You can put it on this thread if you like. I can then copy the relevant posts across.

[SJ LAMBERT]

No.1
Prototype frame SS67-4 - Holbay Ford 1150cc downdraft engine, Mk iv Hewland Box, 13" wheels, 8s front, 10s rear.

Lapped Mallala 1.20.2 coutesy Garrie Cooper

shipped to New York around July 67

Owners
Charles Kreuger Aug 67 -
Graham Allen 2007
Ron Lambert 2009

No. 2

Frame SS67-5 (Sept 1967) Climax FPF 2.0 litre engine
Owners
1967 Garth McGillewie
-finished 4th overall in Capetown 3 hour race
-won 1968 South African Sports Car Championship
early in its life it was raced by both Garth McGillewie, Tony Jeffries and Jos Viljoen. It apparently held many records in it's class (Any South African out there are invited to provide some specifics!)
1994 Ron Watt - Zimbabwe
2002 David Lubransky Victoria
2007 Bill Hemming Victoria

No.3

Frame SS67-6 (Nov 1967) Ford Twin Cam
Owners

1967 Mal Ramsay South Australia
1969 Dennis Uhrahne Victoria
1972 Ian McDonald Victoria
1972-3 Terry Hook
1973-6 Max Patterson Victoria
1976 R K Beard Victoria
1976 Ken Wasley Queensland
1979 Bruce Lynton Queensland

Both this car and frame SS67-7 appeared at Calder on 21 Jan 1968 - Mal Ramsay took 1.6 secs offIan Geoghan's Lotus 23 Lap record.

[SJ LAMBERT]

No.4 Frame SS67-7 (Dec 1967) Ford Twin Cam

Owners
Dec 1967 Dave Robertson Victoria
1971 Dick Heales
1974 Greg Doidge
1976 Warwick De Rose
1978 Barry Duckworth
1979 David Medley
1981 Dave Mawer
1989 Howard Blight

Dave Robertson took four seconds off the lap record at Winton in early in 68. Also took Hume Weir class record at Easter 68 with a 51.3.
Mal Ramsay in SS 67-6 lowered Mallala record to 1:17.8, Calder 48.1 at Surfer's Paradise took two seconds off Glyn Scott's record to leave it at 1:17.7. Put up a 1500 cc class record at Warwick Farm of 1:36.9 I think (quicker than Bob Muir in a Lotus 23B - Bob employed a larger engine, running in 2 litre class won the race, Mal quickest lap).

Ray Bell reports on the Autosport forum that in a little over 15 months the three cars in Australia took class records on every circuit they visited except Sandown.




No. 5 SS69-8 designated Type 300B

Engine Ford Twin Cam 1750cc

fitted with Elfin made one peice hub flange and axle units (had previously used Hillman Imp hub shafts )

Owners
June 1969 Mal Ramsay/Elfin Works Car
Mal raced it successfully in Kuala Lumpur and Singapore, placed fourth in each of the Grands Prix and won both the sports car races, taking the class record at each circuit.
Hengkie Iriwan (Indonesia) bought the car whilst it was on this fly away trip.
Rodney Seow bought it off Hengkie in Singapore (I don't know when).
2004 Vaughan Stibbard (NSW) bought it off Rodney in Singapore & is restoring it currently.
Vaughan would love some photos of this one being built or in use prior to it heading overseas............
I understand that the type 350 may well have been built alongside this one. That notion accords with it's frame no. which fits chronologically.




No. 6 SS69-10 designated type 300C

Engine Ford Twin cam -


Nov 1969 Mal Ramsay (Mal must reckon the 300 goes allright) took delivery of his third (and according to Barry Catford the seventh and last of the Type 300 Elfins to be built ie Barry's including the 350 in with the 300s). This one reverted back to 1500cc engine but went on a weight loss program. Mal landed a drive in a Repco Brabham powered works Elfin 600 soon after taking delivery of this frame.

1970 Phil Moore (who later went on to win the 1972 Australian Sports Car Championship in a 2.5litre Repco Brabham powered Elfin type 360) acquired this frame and was runner up in the 1970 Australian Sports Car Championship in this car. (A certain type 350 Elfin saluted first in the 1970 Championship -more about that car in a tick).

1971 Derry George (Peter Larner also driving)
1971 Bob Muir
1971 Mike Bruce
1973 Bill Peacock
1974 Col Pavic
1975 John Blanden
1977 Eroll Davidson
Trevor Bassett at some stage
1981 Daryl Muller
1986 Phil Segat

Elfin Specifications of the day offered Mk iv and v Hewland g-boxes as well as the FT 200 for 2.5 litre engines. Engines envisaged were the four cylinder range of Ford based Holbay and Cosworth units as well as Mk111 FPF Coventry Climax and Alfa Romeo v8.



Elfin Type 350 Frame SS69-9 Delivery Date June 1969

Bob Mills, of Elfin Sports Cars sent a pre delivery photo to Ron Lambert (who was at the time a recently departed employee, prior to Bevan Gibson's death, advising Ron that a 2.5l Repco-Brabham V8 was in the frame to be fitted to this vehicle, it did not come to pass, I'm not sure, but I think that Bob Jane may never have taken delivery of the car.

The engine first fitted was a 2.5 litre Climax FPF unit. Garrie Cooper put inch and a half aluminium strips along the centre of the front wheel guards and made a new wider rear section to accomodate its wider track. Peter Woodward, with Rex Colliver spinning spanners for him, won the 1970 Australian Sports Car Championship using this Elfin Sporty.




Owner
1969 Bob Jane
1969 Peter Woodward
1970 Mike Bruce Tasmania
1970 Jim Miller Tasmania
1972 Steve Roomes Tasmania
1976 Allen Aitken NSW
1976 R Johnston NSW
1980 John Holmes Qld

This car is also undergoing restoration at the moment.

[John Turner]

Excellent; thread now copied across:-

http://tentenths.com/forum/showthread.php?t=118742

[SJ LAMBERT]

Here's a couple of pics of Bill Hemming in the Climax powered 300 at the Morwell/Moe hillclimb on 4 Oct 2009.

I think the engine in it is still the originally fitted one - it was reputed to have had a cracked block for quite a while, though it has been rectified in a recent restoration.

This engine is said to have propelled Jim Clark around in a Lotus in a former life, can anyone tell me which one?

Don't seem to be able to upload pics - the link posted by johnh875 shows this car......

[SJ LAMBERT]

Got it this time

[SJ LAMBERT]

300 no.2 has more rubber on the road than the prototype

[SJ LAMBERT]

The first type 300 debuting at Cumberland in 1968 with Chuck Kreuger at the wheel.

[zac510]

Pretty car

[SJ LAMBERT]

Added pic - Chuck Kreuger - Cumberland 1968

[SJ LAMBERT]

The type 350 was delivered to Bob Jane in 69 (earlier I said I wasn't sure) before passing to Peter Woodward later in 69.

[vstibbard]

James,

The rebuild project has slowed at the moment due to birth of child and business, plenty of photo's are being taken and happy to drop you the link when I get it all sorted, Mal Ramsay kindly gave me copies of the photo's of the car the day is was finished about to be loaded onto BOAC flight to Singapore, prize giving and few others.

The car was delivered with Lotus T/C 1750CC which I still have, whilst in Asia it was also campaigned with Martin 12 Valve 1860cc engine which is also still with the remains of the car.

I'd love access to any photo's in build, racing etc that may be hidden away.

The car when completed will remain in Sydney, other a trip which is on my to be achieved list, I've plans on the 300B and 26R taking a Summer vacation to Europe.

Regards Vaughan

[vstibbard]

Photo of the day it was finished, straight onto the BOAC flight to Singapore GP, note wider rear wheels and flares and supposedly the oil cooler duct was slightly higher to allow for the heat.