V-to-C Miscellany, December 1992, December 1992

The Ford Sidevalve OC is healthily active and it is encouraging to observe how many of these basic Fords have survived, in their various varieties. The current issue of Sidevalve News contains many pictures of such Fords, at the National Sidevalve Day and the Dagenham Pilgrimage, etc. The Club operates many area sections. Membership Secretary: Mike Crouch, 30 Earls Close, Bishopstoke, Eastleigh, Hampshire SOS 6HY.

To celebrate its 40th anniversary, Automobile Year, with its French and German sister publications, initiated a debate as to which were the top 20 cars of the period 1953 to 1992. An international jury of over 35 editors from 18 countries, which included WB of Motor Sport, voted and the result was that the Citroen DS19 topped the list of 185 cars, by one vote from the Porsche 911, run close by the Audi Quattro. The rest, in order of voting, were: the BMC Mini, E-type Jaguar, NSU Ro80, Mercedes-Benz 300SL, Renault Espace, VW Golf series 1, Range Rover, Chevrolet Corvette, VW Golf GTi, Lamborghini Muira, Ford Mustang, Ferrari 250GT0, Ferrari F40, BMW 1600/2000/2002, Lexus LS400, Mazda MX5/Miata, and Renault 16.

As usual, the Sunbeam MCC is ready with regulations for the 1993 Pioneer Motorcycle Run from Tattenham Corner, Epsom, to Madeira Drive, Brighton, for pre-1915 machines, which last year had over 360 veteran entries. This 56th Run will be on March 21st. Route and details from: Marjorie Ayers, 59 Beechwood Road, Sanderstead, Surrey CR2 OAE (081 657 4671).

In view of the return of “Chitty II” to the National Motor Museum, it is opportune to mention that Onslow’s have been able to obtain the photo albums and photographic collection of Count Louis Zborowski that passed to Clive Gallop after the Count’s fatal accident in the 1924 GP at Monza, together with the RFC papers of that officer and some medals Zborowski and he won in motor-races, etc. These will be auctioned next year.

Being in the habit of correcting others’ clangers, it is only right that I should admit to my own. In last month’s piece on the Alfa Romeo Bi-motore I made a nonsense of the handicap it would have had to overcome had it started in the 1937 Whitsun Coronation Gold Trophy race. The erudite Brooklands handicapper A V Ebblewhite did not, as I implied, set Dobson to start 12 sec behind Cobb’s Napier-Railton, but 12 sec before it; the Bentley-Jackson was to have got away 24 sec before “Ebby” flagged the Bimotore away. In fact, it non-started. As the Napier-Railton had already lapped at 142.44 mph, a speed which represented 69.44 sec a lap, and had done 139.90 mph on three days in a race at Easter, say at just over 71 sec a lap, and as the race was over seven laps, those of a mathematical bent will be able to calculate what speed “Ebby” expected the Bi-motore to achieve.