Turkish GP this weekend
Istanbul
Otodrom
The Turkish GP is on this weekend in the
Istanbul “Otodrom”, which as the old song went, “You can’t
go back to Constantinople, ‘coz it’s Istanbul, not
Constantinople”.
This is another circuit designed by Hermann Tilke, and
everyone was amazed that it was very good, especially when
there had been many reservations expressed before the first
ever GP in Turkey a couple of years ago. Herr Herman can
produce a good F1 track. Places for passing did occur and it
is an interesting layout, with hills and hollows. Also of
interest from last year was the fact that there appeared to
be more than adequate run-off areas, with nobody hanging
their cars on walls.
The circuit is about 80 km east of Istanbul, and is 5.3 km
long and the theoretical top speed should be around 320 kph.
The race is over 58 laps and expect lap times down around 1
minute 24. Racing is anti-clockwise, and for much more than
that you will have to watch the TV as I do.
The GP should be at 7 p.m. Thai time, but check your local
feed to confirm this. I will be watching as usual from my
perch at Jameson’s Irish Pub on Soi AR (next to Nova Park),
and we watch the South African feed which has some decent
commentators and no adverts! Join me for a meal and a natter
first. They might even have turkey on in the carvery section
(or perhaps large chickens)!
Will Ferrari be as dominant as they were in Spain? Will
Hamilton find the half second that he needs? Will BMW find
that little bit extra to pass McLaren? We will all know by 9
p.m. Sunday night.
Prince Bira’s ERA’s
An article I wrote some time ago about one of
Prince Bira’s ERA’s has prompted Michael Doland in the UK to
contact me, via Martin Kent in Jomtien. Martin wanted
Michael to expand on the White Mouse Stable cars, which he
has done.
Raymond
Mays congratulates Prince Bira
“Hanuman (chassis R12C) was renamed Hanuman 2 by reason of
having been rebuilt with bits from other ERAs following
(Prince) Bira’s very hairy crash at Rheims only months after
(Prince) Chula (Prince Bira’s cousin, Prince Chula
Chakrabongse, who’s team was White Mouse Racing) took
delivery of it in 1938 from Bourne, the ERA place in
Lincolnshire. Most of the important bits were donated by
R8C, which had been comprehensively wrecked by Earl Howe in
1938; other items were scrounged from Bourne or made
available by other ERA owners, or retained by past owners.
R12C was the first of the (Prince) Chula cars to become blue
and yellow, “gracious permission” having been given by HM
the King for White Mouse to use the Royal racing ‘Silks’.
“Romulus, R2B, was (Prince) Chula’s 21st birthday gift to
(Prince) Bira in 1935. Remus, R5B, joined the stable in
1936.
“While all three cars are now blue and yellow, in their
beginnings the first two were hyacinth blue all over applied
with an eggshell finish. The choice was made at the birthday
party, when (Prince) Bira noticed a pretty girl’s evening
dress and said that its color would be just right for the
car. (Prince) Chula took a cutting from the dress’ hem and
had cellulose mixed to match.
“Romulus and Remus were fielded everywhere in 1936 and 1937.
In the latter year (Prince) Bira started to drive the
ex-Whitney Straight 2.9-litre Maserati; when I last heard of
it, it was black, I think, and owned by a US gent.
“Upon choosing Hanuman, Remus was sent to ERA’s for Tony
Rolt to use, but whether (Prince) Chula traded it in or sold
it directly to Rolt I don’t know.
“In pre-War days I think Romulus was the most successful
car; post-War, Remus was the one most often seen, raced very
vigorously by the late Pat Lindsay, chief auctioneer at
Christies. It is still in the hands of the Lindsay family
and is expected to appear again this year driven by Pat’s
son, Ludovic.
“Romulus is the one that spent the War in Cornwall. Princess
Narisa, without any warning, recently sold him to a very
rich Microsoft executive who owns a lot of good cars and is
said to be a great anglophile. Having regard to the car’s
long inactive periods and, therefore, being in doubtful
condition, English experts have been commissioned to
completely rebuild it; it is to take to the tracks later
this year.
“Hanuman survived the War in a lock-up garage in
Hammersmith, remarkably enough! He was crashed again badly
at Goodwood in 1951 - I was there! - and, as you know, all
three White Mouse cars were raced from 1946. Although
uncompetitive in Grand Epreuves, they were often remarkably
successful.”
(Thank you Michael. Unfortunately many people in Thailand
are unaware of the talent possessed by Prince Bira, the
first truly international Thai sportsman of world acclaim –
Dr. Iain.)
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week I noted that the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, the
Chevrolet Corvette of 1957 and the Triumph TR 5 all had
something in common as a first in their home countries. What
was it? It was just that they were the first fuel-injected
mass market motor cars in Germany 1954, USA 1957 and the UK
in 1967.
So to this week. We mentioned Jaguar and its new XF. Think
back to when Jaguar was winning Le Mans, three times in a
row, with the first two times being factory entered racers
and the third victory was from a privately entered Jaguar.
After Jaguar officially withdrew from racing, the factory
had some racers left over. The question this week is, what
did they do with them?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be the first correct
answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
Natter Nosh and Noggin
The monthly car enthusiasts meeting will be at
Jameson’s Irish Pub on Soi AR next to the Nova Park
development. The car (and bike) enthusiasts meet on the
second Monday of the month, so this time it is Monday (May
12) at Jameson’s at 7 p.m. This is a totally informal
meeting of like minded souls to discuss their pet motoring
(and motorcycling) loves and hates. Many interesting debates
come from these evenings, including quite a few topics for
the Autotrivia quiz. We will also be discussing the Bangkok
International Motor Show, and hope to have a representative
from the Jungle Adventure Tour company to address us. I went
on one of their two hour jaunts a few weeks ago and it was
great fun.
Ford says Ta-Ta to
Jaguar
According to the latest international news,
Jaguar Land Rover will be another Indian Tata company in
June. This is a month ahead of schedule.
The $2.5 billion sale of the two British icons to the Indian
manufacturer was to be finalized at the start of the new
financial year, but Jaguar Land Rover have said it would now
be June 1.
Jaguar
XF
A Jaguar spokesman in Australia said, “We have been going
pretty well. We don’t see the change of ownership as a big
immediate issue for us, Tata has a reputation for being
non-interventionist.”
His comments were backed by Jaguar Land Rover UK chief
financial officer David Smith; who said, “Tata has been
quite explicit that they want us to run the business.”
However, he did not rule out some Indian ingredients in
future Jaguars or Land Rovers. “One-fifth of our parts are
made in other countries and we have sourced from India
before and have had components from Tata.”
The future of Jaguar now hinges on the acceptance of the new
Jaguar XF, which has been receiving very good reviews in the
overseas motoring press. For my money, it looks a little too
like the Lexus IS 250, but the XF apparently has a host of
gimmicks, such as before you even start the engine the
Jaguar XF wants you to know it’s ready for business. A red
light in the Start/Stop button gently pulsates, simulating a
heartbeat. Then the gear selector knob gently rises to its
driving position. Great to show the mates down the pub, but
in that section of the market, you need a bit more than
gimmicks.
XF
interior
The XF range is comprehensive with a V6 diesel (152 kW), V6
petrol (175 kW) and two petrol V8’s with the top of the
range being supercharged (219 kW and 316 kW).
A standard seven-inch color touch-screen operates most
vehicle functions, leaving the real wood-trimmed dash
uncluttered. Another new system dubbed JaguarSense enables
the glovebox to be opened and overhead lights switched on or
off at the touch of a sensor.
As well as the full quota of driver and passenger safety
equipment, the XF is the first Jaguar saloon to feature the
company’s pedestrian impact system (PCSS), which reduces the
likelihood of injury by firing actuators that angle the
bonnet to provide a cushioned space between the bonnet and
the engine. Remember too, that the leaping jaguar bonnet
mascot was killed off by the safety wallahs many years ago.
Standard equipment across the range also includes twin
front, front side and side curtain airbags, electronic
stability control, plus the usual alphabet soup of ABS with
EBD, EBA and cornering brake control, an electric parking
brake, LED tail-lights, heated power mirrors, power windows,
auto headlights, rain-sensing wipers, remote central locking
and rear parking sensors.
Also standard is satellite-navigation, Bluetooth
connectivity, dual-zone climate-control, cruise control with
speed-limiter, keyless starting, power front seat and
steering wheel adjustment, driver’s seat memory, an
eight-speaker 140-Watt sound system with six-CD changer and
“Bond Grain” leather-faced seats, dash and door trims.
All this is included in the basic Luxury grade for 2.7D and
3.0 V6 variants, which ride on 18 x 8.5-inch alloy wheels.
Moving up a trim level, the 4.2 V8’s Premium Luxury
specification adds metallic paint, folding and auto-dimming
wing mirrors with puddle lights, 19-inch alloys, a rear
parking camera, Soft grain leather trim, Burr Walnut veneer,
keyless entry, a 320-Watt sound system and bi-Xenon
headlights with cornering lamps, washers and auto-leveling.
Finally, the SV8 adds the active suspension system from the
XK, a ‘Dynamic’ mode that disables the stability control,
tyre-pressure monitors, massive 20 x 8.5-inch front and 20 x
9.5-inch rear alloys, heated/cooled front seats with
16/12-way power adjustment, Rich Oak veneer, a 440-Watt
Bowers & Wilkins surround-sound system, voice recognition
system and a TV tuner.
Options include a sunroof, steering wheel heating, adaptive
cruise control, electric rear window blind, and a blind-spot
monitor, as seen on Volvo’s flagship S80.
Of course, the question mark still hangs over the
upholstery. Will the new (Indian) Jaguars continue to have
cow hide, or will it be pig-skin from now on?
