15 Attachment(s)
1972 March 729 Formula Ford
This March FF is currently at Bills home in Lompoc, CA
(Updated - Price Reduced / Trades and Offers Considered)
If you have any questions feel free to reach out to me
text or call 951-764-2468 or email lateapex42@gmail.com
Bill Will Consider Offers, if you are at all interested give him a call
The following text is from the owner Bill Pierce :checkered:
Bill Can be reached at 805-588-8787
For sale. 1972 March 729 vintage Formula Ford.
This car was built in 1972 in San Diego by Wayne Mitchell Engineering under license from March Engineering of the United Kingdom. Jim Johnson of Seattle bought the car as a basket case and restored it and raced with Sovern until he crashed heavily and stopped racing. The car was basically rebuilt from the ground up with meticulous attention to detail. I have Jim's account of the rebuild which I will be happy to share. The engine was rebuilt by Jay Ivey in 2015 and had one race weekend on it when the accident occurred. The engine was sent to Ivey and the lower end was rebuilt and the entire engine was dyno'd. I have copies of the dyno sheets on request. The transmission was also rebuilt after the accident as well. I have only run the car for three weekends since I owned it. That is the best I can do in terms of hours on the drive train. Since buying the car I have done the following. All new master cylinders and calipers rebuilt. Brand new custom fitted fuel cell by Harmon Racing Cells. Moved the shifter forward two inches. Relocation of the fire system. The car, under my ownership, has been race prepared and maintained by Dwayne and Mike Anderson in Temecula.
So, why sell? A few reasons. Some years ago I was injured in a Formula Ford at Buttonwillow. Since then, I cannot fully straighten my right arm which makes shifting very difficult. We have tried to solve the problem many ways (hence the forward placement of the shifter). It is better but still difficult and often painful. Secondly, I will soon be 71 years old and close open wheel racing, which typifies Formula Ford competition, may be in the past for me. I still like to go fast but we can't all be Bob Hatle, can we. I can tuck the car in here at home and smile at it whenever I see it, or, sell it to someone who can drive it as it was meant to be driven.
The body of the car is nearly perfect. It runs extremely well. There is a tiny invisible leak in the transmission case. Dwayne has been looking into this for me and tells me that several people who are very knowledgable have strongly recommended against attempting to weld on the case. It is literally a few drops per session. We have tried epoxy but have not run the car since the epoxy was applied. To my knowledge, it is the only issue with the car.
Spares include 6 gearsets, body molds for the nose and engine cover. A new unmounted set of tires, 4 steel rims, miscellaneous suspension parts and other odds and ends.
Please check out the links to a wonderful article on the car done by British Racecar magazine when Jim owned it. There is also a video of me in the car at Buttonwillow.
The car is for Sale or Trade. My interests tend toward vintage cars and motorcycles. I really like racing vehicles but would consider something street legal.
Also Check out this beautiful article from the previous owner Jim Johnson
Here is a YouTube video of Bill driving at Buttonwillow :checkered:
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6 Attachment(s)
1972 March 729 Restoration Photos
Quoted from and email from Jim Johnson who helped with the restoration
Post wreck, the March was hauled from Spokane back to the Seattle area by friend Ken Dye of DnD Fabricating and kept at his shop. My friend Tom Balzarini and I hauled it up to his shop closer to my home. We tore the car down completely and shipped the engine down to Ivey. The engine had undergone a complete rebuild by Jay in the winter of 2015-16 and had one race weekend on it prior to the wreck. It is my understanding they pulled the bearings from the bottom end and found some wiping and replaced all of them, then inspected the rest of the engine, re-assembled it, and ran it on the dyno to make sure everything was good.
Ken Dye and his son Tracy rebuilt the frame and fabricated replacement suspension parts. They also went through the gearbox and rebuilt it. Tony Garmey at Horizon Racing rebuilt the steering rack. Tom and I did the fiberglass work and Frank Martinez finished it up and got it ready to paint. Al Murray of Murray Motorcars did the final paint. All these guys are SOVREN members, and I wanted to spread the work around. Tom and I then put everything back together in his shop.
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Willow Springs April 18,19
Quote:
Originally Posted by
scorp997
Tom, you have always done great work… you should swing by the track sometime and catch up
We are planning to bring the car to the VARA race at Willow Springs April 19,19 if anyone cares to see it.
I can't believe this is still available
This car is exceptional. Someone above called it a work of art. That's not an exaggeration! Someone buy this car!!!
Still Available, Motivated Seller
Give Bill a call, he is motivated to make a deal on his beautiful FF