Bandini 750 Crosley and Offy/Alfa

Below is an article first published in the August 5, 1985 edition of AutoWeek as a Escape Road feature, written by the Editor and featuring the Bandini 750 Sports, then owned by Dave DeBrul. Having gotten the reader suitabley reved up, we follow that with a description of the famous Offy-Bandini. It was known to many of us as “The Offy That Ran”, and seen in the June, 1957 edition of Sports Cars Illustrated written by Karl Ludvigsen. This Bandini has been restored and is now for sale.

By Pete Vack

Ilario Bandini’s main source of income was derived from owning and operating a thriving Lancia dealership in Forli, a small town whose main claim to fame was 1) being the birthplace of Mussolini or 2) the site of Nuvolari’s first victory with a Ferrari, or 3) a town through which the Mille Miglia was routed, depending on what history one chooses to read.

From 1946 to the early 1970s, our Lancia dealer also produced a variety of racing and road cas under the sign of the rooster. In all, about 72 cars were handcrafted in a small backroom of the dealership. According to the late Bandini expert Jerry Greaves, there were at least seven identifiable types of Bandinis, ranging from a modified Topolino in 1946 to a 1300 cc 16 valve sports racer.

Although Bandini was successful at selling both formula cars and sports racers with different displacements, by the end of the 1950s the tiny firm was eager to increase sales by introducing a small displacement 750 cc GT car, no doubt inspired by the Abarth 750 GT and Record Monzas. But only three tiny GTs were ever built: A lovely Motto bodied coupe, another with an attractive Zagato body (looking like a miniature Pegaso), and an 1100 cc rear engined coupe. The Motto bodied car was destroyed in an accident, the Zagato bodied car passed through the capable hands of Jerry Greaves, and the rear engined GT was found by Gijs van Beusekom of Holland. The GT venture failed to materialize and Bandini returned to the construction of race cars, concentrating on the new Formula Junior.

The most memorable of all Bandinis was perhaps the ‘clamshell’ spyder model of the mid 1950s. The chassis was simple but effective, consisting of oval tubing for the main members, connected at the front to double unequal length wishbones with coil springs over shocks. At the rear, Bandini used Fiat rear ends from the 500, 1100 or 1400 depending on the size of the engine. This was covered by a lightly wrapped aluminum body, which featured removable fenders with pop up headlights – an idea that pre-date the Lamborghini Miura by about a decade.

Ilario Bandini raced his cars throughout Italy, but would probably have remained obscure had it not been for an Italian immigrant named Tony Pompeo, who operated a Nardi dealership in New York City and imported just about anything the Italians could cobble up. Thanks to Pompeo, Bandini became a buzzword throughout the SCCA, as the loud little cars with the rooster on the badge tore up the tarmac across the U.S.

To say that Bandini was overwhelmingly successful would be stretching the point though. While a first in class was never a guarantee, Bandini, along with Stanguellini, Ermini and Moretti added a touch of the exotic to the small bore classes.

Dave DeBrul’s car, pictured here, underwent a major restoration in 1964, and is typical of the spyders race here in the 1950s. The Crosley engine develops about 60 hp, making the 800 lbs. car very responsive. Before DeBrul owned it, the car was in the care of George Sterner, and pictured in Georgano’s A History of Sports Cars.

One You Can Buy

By Brian Morrison

This 1952 Bandini Siluro Motto Siata 1400cc, Offy 1625cc, Alfa Romeo Veloce is being offered for sale publicly for the first time since being completed in 1952. It is a four-owner car with a fantastic and unique race history. The car was purchased from the third owner in 1972 and has been in the current owner’s care for the last 49 years but for a total of 51 years. The car was originally owned and raced with great success in the northeast from 1952 to 1954 by first owner Jim Pauley with a 1400cc Siata engine. Pauley raced at Thompson, Bridgehampton, and as well as other tracks and hill climbs in the Northeast. While Pauley had success with the mighty little Siata engine, he ended up blowing up the 1400cc motor, he then sold the Bandini and moved on to a Ferrari Mondial. Pauley sold the car to Jim Mathews and Fred Sinon of NJ, and the new owners had an American solution to replace blown Siata engine.

The Bandini continued its winning ways in the hands of new owner Jim Mathews’ driver, Dave Micheals. However, while Mathews owned the chassis and drivetrain, his friend Fred Sinon owned the freshly installed 1625cc Myers-Drake Offy in the engine compartment. With the newly minted combination of owners Mathews, Sinon, and driver Micheals the car was christened the Offy-Bandini and continued winning at tracks and hill climbs in the Northeast.

In fact, Michaels held the overall track record at Thompson for a year and a half, only to lose it to Maston Gregory in a brand-new Ferrari 250 TR, showing just what a potent combination the two made. Mathews also scored an impressive 2nd place in the unlimited class at the Mt. Equinox Hill Climb. The successful partnership only lasted a few years and ended with Sinon pulling out his Offy motor and Mathews selling the car to Tom O’Brien also of New Jersey.

Tom O’Brien was making himself known on the race tracks in the Northeast as a driver, but also as a race shop owner and builder. Thus, on the advice of his friend Ken Miles, who pushed Tom to build a special to run in H-Mod like Miles had with his MG Special the Flying Shingle, Tom bought the now engineless Bandini. O’Brien went to work installing one of this special Alfa Romeo Guilieta 1300 engines in the Bandini (which also currently sits in the car now see original pictures of the engine install) and used the car to race at the Pocono Hill Climb. However, a growing business and factory Alfa team driver spot forced O’Brien to sell the now Alfa powered Bandini to his friend John Gaeto in October of 1959.

Tom O’Brien would go on to become a factory Alfa driver, NART Ferrari Team driver, and Alfa and Ferrari dealer among many other fascinating careers. John Gaeto raced the car in hill climbs for a few years and then parked the car in his garage until the early 1972 when Tom O’Brien convinced him to sell him the car back with hopes of restoring the Bandini and vintage racing it. However, with Tom’s continued job and family responsibilities the Bandini sat in his garage and moved around with him until 2015 when Tom performed a full restoration on the Bandini. The car has been owned by Tom O’Brien for a total of 51 years and it retains +90% of its original body, parts, and driveline. The car retains the original Alfa 1300 Giulietta engine as well as the Alfa ZF transmission Tom installed in it in 1958 and comes with the original spare period Alfa 1300 AND the original Siata 5-speed transmission.

• Period installed Alfa Giulietta 1300 engine with sand cast early weber carbs 40DCO3
(Spare Alfa 1300 engine included)
• Original Alfa 4-Speed ZF transmission installed in 1957 by Tom O’Brien
• ALSO comes with original Siata 5-speed transmission
• 90%+ original built with Bandini body and 100% original Bandini frame
• Original rear axle, Alfin drum brakes, suspension, 16-inch Boranni wheels (3 spare
wheels included)
• Original windshield
• Upgraded fuel cell
• New brake master cylinders.

POA
Brian Morrison
gtsportscars76@yahoo.com
617-461-6388

1952 Bandini Siluro PDF

Much more on Cliff Reuter’s excellent website