AutoPuzzles - The Internet's Museum of Rare Cars!
Puzzles, Games and Name That Car => Solved AutoPuzzles => 2015 => Topic started by: nicanary on October 15, 2014, 07:30:01 AM
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What is this car, and who is driving it?
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Experts?
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Jaguar base?
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Jaguar base?
No.
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British car?
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British car?
No.
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From Italy?
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From Italy?
The chassis originated in Italy. I think the body may have been made there, also.
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Maserati chassis?
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Maserati chassis?
Yes. In a way. It was originally a Maserati chassis but had been modified by the time the car looked like this.
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Bumped for more questions. Too easy for the Pros.
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Even a bump didn't get any interest.
Pros?
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That's Rod Coppins' TecMec Maserati.
Originally raced in single seater form by Johnny Mansel, it was a 250F, (#2504), that received a Corvette engine. It later was bought by Rod Coppins.
"Coppins could see no future in trying to tame the wild TecMec to race against the rear-engined Coopers in single-seater racing so he converted it to a sportsracing car by the simple expedient of buying the central-seat Ferrari sports car body which had been imported in 1956 by Ron Roycroft, on the 4½-litre V12 Ferrari bought from Louis Rosier. Roycroft had raced the car in this form a few times before converting the Ferrari back to its original singleseater form."
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That's Rod Coppins' TecMec Maserati.
Yes. I've just realised I didn't ask what the engine was, so you get the point. At this stage of the car's history it had a Corvette engine. The body used to make it a sports car came from Louis Rosier's Ferrari 375 Plus, who had a central-seat body made to order.
My badly-posted reply was done at the same time as your edit!
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Full story of the NZ carreer of #2504 can be found in Vercoe's book:
"Maserati 2504 started off as an A6GCM chassis powered by a 250F motor and delivered to White Mouse Stable for the Thai PRince Birabonge (...) to drive. (...). Shortly after his 'real' 250F chassis -2504- was delivered (...). The A6GCM was renumbered and sold to South America (...) and Bira's full-blown 250F adopted the 2504 chassis plate. (...). Bira then loaned the car to the Owen Organisation for the British Grand Prix as their own 250F had not arrived in time. The young Scot Ron Flockhart was the driver, but he inverted the car in the race, wrecking it. As Bira had just concluded a deal to sell the car to Horace Gould, he was a bit perturbated about Flockhart's accident. To appease Bira and Gould, the Owen group arranged for their own chassis, which was awaiting completition, to replace the damaged 2504. The Owen car was C2509, so that became C2504 and vice versa."
This is just the first part of it!
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Maserati were well=known for being a bit inventive with chassis-numbers. I think this car was at one point chassis #2523.