Car history

[RICHARD PLANT]

Andrew,

I don’t want to contradict you but KUY would have first been registered in Worcestershire so I can’t see the Stapleton connection .

Mary,

Andrew Jackson also had a big shunt in his red Plus 8 at Oulton Park in his first race in this era


Chris,

Your book is the same as mine

Richard.

[Richard Thorne]

i knew i recognized the number
only walked past it a dozen or so times a day for the last few months

unfortunately i only know its most recent history and some techy details

RTCC was selling it on behalf of David Spurling erstwhile marketing director of Cambridge Motorsport and recent(ish) finisher of the peking-paris historic rally (slog?) in a flat rad

The car is allegedly to MSCC challenge Class A regs but not in any way comparable to current (Alhers,LLoyd,Hollins,Bryant) style weapons

i Only had the opportunity to cast the briefest of professional eyes over it and the only thing that leaps to mind is the fitting of a morris minor steering rack,
not a centre pivot rack as the current cars, but a traditional rack that definately bump steers far worse than the steering box it replaced!

love and hugs

Simon

[Andrew Potter]

OOps- must be a fading brain!

Andrew P

[Leigh Sebba]

I have now rummaged through the old boxes of programs and results and turned up a couple of results sheets which I’ll send on to Mary. 1984 BDC Morgan race Fred Campbell was 3rd (just behind Bryant and with Rob Wells the winner). I was 7th and Mary was 9th (but I was, unusually, using slick tyres). But still shows how times have changed – there were 23 finishers of which about half 8 cylinders and half 4 cylinders.

May 1984 Sports Car race at Snetterton had Fred again 2nd behind Bryant.
I was 12th and Lee Noble (of Noble car fame) was 6th in a Europa.

Interesting to look at the names on these old sheets. At a Silverstone meeting on 10 March 1984 the mixed scratch race had myself 6th and Frank McClain (+4 driver who returned to live in Texas) 8th and the winner was a Mr Mark Blundell who was described in the Autosport report (which I kept) as Man of the Day – a 17 year old with only one previous race to his credit. He was driving a Lola T6444E FF1600. And he only lapped me once !!

But of course back then club racing (and particularly the Willhire 24 Hours) was full of the Brundle Brothers, Jonathan Palmer, Mary Lindsay, and other glorious names……

[Bob Fawkes]

Hi, thankyou for the input. I bought the car a few months ago from David Spurling, through Richard Thorne. I've not been a morgan owner since 1990, but it goes to show there is no cure! I have tracked down Tom Hind & plan to pay him a visit, he is very interested in her & has a load of info. The car is a bit tatty, leaves oil slicks behind her but drives really well. I'm not sure if the cam & lifters are worn or whether the clearances need attention, the top end rattles well. Has a crane camshaft, I don't know which one & solid lifters. I reckon that I'm getting a bit ancient to race, it must be pretty competitive out there these days, might do a sprint or hill climb.

Kind Regards,
Bob.

[Leigh Sebba]

“ I reckon that I'm getting a bit ancient to race, it must be pretty competitive out there these days, might do a sprint or hill climb.”

Welcome to the forum Bob. There are some pretty ancient drivers out there, although, yes, it is competitive if you want to win.

[Plum Campbell]

KUY 743T is a Morgan +8, red, owned and driven by Fred Campbell and bought by him in January/February 1979 directly from the Morgan Motor Company in Malvern. We drove over in our Landrover (lucky really because there was a lot of snow and ice about) to collect it. The chap who had originally ordered it was temporarily financially embarrassed so Fred (who's real name by the way is Brian) took over the reservation.

It was raced for two seasons, and as far as I recall it did have a big "off" on a track somewhere north of Watford, possibly in the Midlands. The action shot was not of it leaving the track but of the marshalls running for their lives!

It was always street legal, taxed and insured and although Tom Hinds (who was our mechanic of Springhill Garage, Nailsworth drove it on slicks - he said it was too dangerous on road tyres) raced it in one of the series, Fred drove it mostly and won the Lew Wooster trophy one year. We kept it for a few years after its racing days were over - it was actually supposed to be a fully fitted bathroom but these things happen - and I suppose was sold 20+ years ago.

I have some photographs of it pristine as it arrived on the drive from Malvern plus a couple of other pictures which may be of interest. Fred has the bulk of them though including a spectacular one at Silverstone coming under the bridge with a wheel just lifting and the banner on the bridge saying "Better by design", and I have his email address if anyone is interested - he really does have the full story plus a cardboard box full of trophies, now sadly tarnished.

How do I know all this - I'm Plum Campbell, his now ex-wife (and previous polisher of said trophies).

Hope this helps with your quest for the history of this car which I have to say I drove round Silverstone on a test day and it terrified the life out of me. By the way I hope you've put a proper accelerator pedal on it now, it only had a roller ball in my day so every time it went over a bump my foot slipped off the pedal somewhat impeding forward motion.

Plum

PS: I was always a bit miffed when the chap who wrote the book said that Tom was the owner, particularly as I never did get the fitted bathroom!

[Mary Lindsay]

Hi Plum, thanks for the PM and also the information about the car. It is now owned and raced by Bob Fawkes, I will tell him to look at the forum as he isn't a regular visitor to it.
Sorry about the bathroom - Morgans are more fun though and you can have a shower in one just by leaving the hood down when it rains...
Mary

[Andy Downes]

it was actually supposed to be a fully fitted bathroom but these things happen

Hello Plum, fascinating bits of history. As the MSCC Awards/Competition Secretary of the time I well remember Fred (never knew he was Brian) and Tom Hinds racing the car.

Our 1969 4/4/ 4-seater, is actually a 'fully fitted kitchen' - and I thought it was just us

Have Fun

Andy