Newbie in Oz needs help.

[tombartley]

Hi all, wondering if someone can help a old bloke who would like to get into Historic Fomula Ford.?

After campaigning a PRB-Birkin S3 Clubman for a few years, I thought it was time to step up a tad.

Couple of questions: Given a choice of Lola t200, Royale and a Lotus 51 which would you choose for reasons of, cost and ease of running, handling ability and residual value..?

Got a budget of between AUD$15 to 25k.

I know I'll get some owner bias here, but what the heck....

Cheers cobbers,

Ozzie Tom.

[Hawke]

Tom,

All of those cars are fine, and bits are available in Melbourne. Contact the VHRR at VHRRcom or Phil Marion who is listed on http://www.formulaford1600.com.au/ . Both should put you in the right direction.

I know someone who willl have a PRS for sale soon, If that interests you, send me a PM.

[Wes Allen]

Good Day! Actually I would choose the Merlyn 11,17 or 20. Better than the Lola, more cockpit room than the Lotus.
Wes Allen

[tombartley]

G'day Wes,

Thanks for the prompt reply. Knowing absolutely nothing about Historic Formula Ford, the Merlyn ment nothing to me. I will get cracking on Google to find out as much as I can....cheers mate for your help.

Tommy .

[Larry]

Aesthetically and historically, the Lotus 51 is a winner--plus there are plenty of folks stocking parts for it. On the race track, not so much. If you want to have a car capable of winning, it's more likely the Royale. From a resale view, it would be a toss-up between the Lotus and the Lola. Personally, I opted for a Titan Mk 6, since it's widely acknowledged as the best of the period--so I won't be able to blame the car if I perform poorly.

Larry Oliver
International Racing Products

[Wes Allen]

I might be biased,I own a Merlyn MK-025 it's a great car with fantastic mechanical grip. Check out <www.merlyncars.com> Clive Hayward is still active making spares to support the many cars they made.The fastest would be the MK20. But I agree with Larry, the Titan MK6 is a great car too!
Wes

[Larry]

No argument on the Merlyn being a great contender, but I was trying to answer his question. I threw the Titan in for free.

Larry

[bob darcey]

But to answer your original question, the Lola may be the best choice of the three you listed--lots of that series still in use, good parts availability, etc. Lola T-200/202/204 series cars get a bad rap in the US, but if you look at Historic FF in GB, the Lola's and the Merlyn's seem to be the cars of choice: http://www.hscc.org.uk/results-archive.html In the right hands, they can be very competitive. And, while a Lotus 51 is not generally considered to be a fast car, there are a couple in CVAR/Texas that are really stout. So, it's basically an individual thing. My advice is to look around in your country and choose a car that has a good support network, will have a good resale situation and, most importantly, buy the car that trips your trigger.

[Rick Kirchner]

Don't forget to check the fit. I've heard the RP-3 is on the small side. Second thing I'd consider is parts availability and third would be bad habits/known weak points (ex: top outer heim on rear suspension of 90-93 VDs - big expensive heavily loaded part that likes to snap off right as you hammer the throttle out of a 2nd gear corner)

[tombartley]

Many thanks for the replies guys..it has certainly given me a bit to think about..don't know if it's actually narrowed the field ...!! Still quite interested in a Lotus 51a/b/c though. As I'm not out looking for silverware, just fun, maybe the slightly uncompetitive '51 might still fill the bill.

It looks like the US is the place to find one as they are quite thin on the groung here.

Thanks once again and should anyone have any further advise I'm all ears.

Tommy in Oz

[Larry]

I just sold a beautiful Lotus 61. It went to England, and it was really a beautiful car. It looked like it had about 6 races on it (but there were more). It was very original right down to the Holbay valve cover and fluid-carrying tubes. You can find some good deals here, but you've got to be prepared to act quickly. Buying a used race car sight-unseen is a scary proposition, too, as there is no title and especially with the older cars, no way of knowing exactly what it is. The SCCA logbook only reflects what was told to the original scrutineer that issued it, and early cars had no requirement for a homologation certificate.

Larry Oliver
International Racing Products

[tombartley]

"Caveat emptor" no doubt Larry...the other issue is that Historic Racing in Oz can be a bit sticky when it comes to having you car accepted...all parts origional, documented race history...blar, blar..

It would require a trip to the States for me, but hell, thats not such a bad thing anyway...!

Cheers mate,
Tommy.

[Hawke]

Tom,

Here's a couple of Lola's for sale in Melbourne.

http://www.vhrr.com/forum/showthread.php?t=596

[Mark G]

Tommy,
As an expat Aussie FF driver living in Los Angles I think I am qualified to stick my 20cents worth in here. I ran an Elfin 620B in historic and club racing (moslty HSRCA) in Sydney for many years. I am restoring a Lola T342 FF here in LA

The Lola is a good buy and its the one I would go for because it is a well known name and parts are readily available.

Re a Titan or a Crossle - I never saw either make in Australia . I have been gone for 10 years so there may be some there now. However, the point is that while these two brands are definitely great cars and are very competitive in the USA - they are relatively unknown in Australia. So the resale value is probably not going to be what it should be.

If you need any help with sourcing a car from the US - send me a PM and we can talk.

regards
Mark Grundy
Los Angeles

[LolaT340]

Tom,

That 342 you were asking for pics on in the Vic Historic forum can be found in the Feb Formula Ford newsletter in the same forum under Newsletters funnily enough. On page 14, to be precise.

[tombartley]

Tom,

That 342 you were asking for pics on in the Vic Historic forum can be found in the Feb Formula Ford newsletter in the same forum under Newsletters funnily enough. On page 14, to be precise.

Thanks Lola for the heads up on the T342....".go the Waratah's.."

Cheers,

Tommy.

[tombartley]

Tommy,
As an expat Aussie FF driver living in Los Angles I think I am qualified to stick my 20cents worth in here. I ran an Elfin 620B in historic and club racing (moslty HSRCA) in Sydney for many years. I am restoring a Lola T342 FF here in LA

The Lola is a good buy and its the one I would go for because it is a well known name and parts are readily available.

Re a Titan or a Crossle - I never saw either make in Australia . I have been gone for 10 years so there may be some there now. However, the point is that while these two brands are definitely great cars and are very competitive in the USA - they are relatively unknown in Australia. So the resale value is probably not going to be what it should be.

If you need any help with sourcing a car from the US - send me a PM and we can talk.

regards
Mark Grundy
Los Angeles

Thanks Mark...sent you an e-mail.

Tommy.