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The Saga of the Caswell BNC Part 1

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BNC in garage-under-cardboard

French Charm seeing the light of day after forty years. Photo by George Lymber.


French Charm

By Eric Davison

Getting involved in writing about old cars is something like a disease that is incurable. The symptoms keep on recurring. Case in point: Last year I was involved in helping my friend Phillipe Defechereux with the latest edition of his book about Watkins Glen in the period from 1948 to 1952. (Watkins Glen, The Street Years. 1948 – 1952. Dalton Watson)

The intention was to try to locate some of the cars that appeared at the Glen during those years and to tell where they are today. Unfortunately I had only a few months in which to work. To do a comprehensive job would take years and would make a pretty good book all by itself.

The famous cars were easy. Just about any car that Briggs Cunningham was involved with is in the Collier Museum in Florida. Talbot Lago Figoni coupes, while rare and wonderful, are easily traced. Poison Lil is a legend all by itself. Cars like 2.9 liter blown Alfas don’t disappear; they wind up in important collections. However it was the rare, unusual and not so famous cars that aroused my curiosity.

What's that car? Number 5 is George Caswell at Waktins Glen, 1948. The modified nose would make the car hard to identify. Behind him is the MG of Dean Bedford, Jr. Both cars would finish the Junoir Grand Prix. Photo by Harold Lance.

[Read more…] about The Saga of the Caswell BNC Part 1

Goodbye, John

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John Fitch

Elizabeth and John Fitch celebrate a win with the Cunningham C4R. Photo John Fitch collection.

John Fitch, one of America’s greatest drivers, died on October 31st at the age of 95. Shortly after, I received two short remembrances, one from Carl Goodwin and the other from Eric Davison. I was struck by how similar both sketches were in scope and nature; both Carl and Eric captured his kindness and sincere, warm personality. John’s racing life is well known by our readers and also covered in Carl Goodwin’s book “They Started in MGs”.
Below, a side of John Fitch rarely seen from two of our finest contributors.

By Carl Goodwin

It was a great pleasure to know and work with John Fitch for the last 28 years of his life. Some of it was for magazine articles but most of it was as the volunteer publicist for his company Impact Attenuation LLC, which held and developed John’s designs for energy-absorbing safety barriers to be used in racing (www.racesafety.com).

It was not always glamorous. But all of it was interesting. In fact Fitch was the most interesting person you could ever know. If only you could have been with us.

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Peak Experience

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Bobby Unser in his heyday. IMS Photo.

Eric Davison has had many interesting experiences in the automotive field; his epic eight-part memoirs of Watkins Glen appeared last year in VeloceToday and more recently his recollections of Le Mans in the 1970s brought a lot of appreciative comments. The other day, noting the sad news in Colorado, he sat down and wrote about his adventures at Pikes Peak with a guy named Bobby Unser. Enjoy, we did! Ed.

Story by Eric Davison

The devastating fires that have ravaged the Colorado Springs area of Colorado have caused the delay of the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, originally scheduled for last weekend, until August 12. Both events are cause for sadness. Colorado is considered one of the most majestic of states and to think of it in ashes is heartbreaking.

Anything goes at Pikes Peak...the diversity is astounding.


To me, the Pikes Peak event represents what is perhaps the most inclusive and unusual of motorsports events. In many respects it is the opposite from the other famous American race venue, Indianapolis. The lack of creativity and individuality on the Indy car circuit is the obverse of the technical variety seen and promoted at Pikes Peak. The organizers have a competitive category for just about anyone. If someone showed up with a motorized uni-cycle I feel pretty sure that he would have a chance for a trophy. Run what ‘ya brung seems to be the byword and what’s more, local residents are as likely to be as competitive as the international stars.

The Unser Experience
While I have only attended the actual hill climb once I have had a Pikes Peak experience that many could only dream of. I had a ride part way up the hill with Bobby Unser at the wheel. For those who don’t follow Pikes Peak, there was a time beginning in 1934 that the name Unser was synonymous with first place at the event and Bobby Unser could surely be labeled ‘king of the hill.’ The Unsers, from the local area, literally owned the hill beginning with Uncle Louie. Bobby Unser still holds the all time win record at the mountain and his son Rob won the event driving a Peugeot 405 in 1989.

Which reminds us that there is often a French flavor to rustic Colorado hillclimb. French star Michèle Mouton won with the Audi Quattro in 1985 (watch video ) …. And of course there was the famed Milliken Bugatti that placed 6th overall in 1947.

Bill Milliken (with tie) at Pikes Peak with his team. Yep, that's a Bugatti.

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Davison’s Le Mans: Privileged in France

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Mary Davison with sons at the start of the 1972 Le Mans 24 Hours.

By Eric Davison
Be sure to listen to the Matra V-12, below!

The month of May is regarded by American racing fans as “Indy” month. In France and in most of Europe June belongs to Le Mans.

In January of 1972 we (me, my wife and two sons) were sent to France where I took up residence in the Paris office of McCann-Erickson Advertising as the resident guru on the General Motors/Opel business. It was a dream assignment. My wife, the lovely Mary, was ecstatic and our two sons ages 14 and 11were anxious to leave Michigan where we had returned after spending a couple of years in Mexico. They were up for another adventure. Plus, beyond all the joys of Paris, there was the sunshine of Saint Tropez, skiing in Chamonix, and to top it all off, there was Le Mans. And we were going!

It was easy to work my way into the good graces of my new GM associates. To most Europeans racing is a very important activity and when they found out that I was a rabid enthusiast, I was welcomed by Jean-Louis Maesen, the Opel Marketing Director and included in their Le Mans activity.

Jean-Louis Maesen and the new (at the time) Opel Commodore in Brittany. The occasion was the press introduction of what was the first competitive Opel.

[Read more…] about Davison’s Le Mans: Privileged in France

Bugatti on Ice

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bugatti t 35

Del Lee in the Bugatti at Lake Orion Michigan. Note the leather strap holding the crank. Photo by Harold Lance

Imagine, if you will, the prototype Bugatti T35 on an ice-covered lake in Michigan. Eric Davison tells the true story of Ettore’s first T35.

There is no doubt in my mind that I grew up in the most fortunate of circumstances. While my family was not wealthy we were comfortable. We had a nice house, three square meals a day and loving parents. What made my circumstances so fortunate was the fact that my dad was an absolute gear head. He loved great cars and he dragged me along on his wonderful adventures into the world of sports cars. He had been born in England and his preference was for English sports cars but all great cars were covered by his enthusiasm. Detroit, Michigan was where he found work as a commercial artist, painting cars and trucks for ads for ads and catalogs for the Big Three.

While “Detroit” was a word that was instantly recognized by most as a euphemism for big, strong and chrome plated automobiles, it was also the home of a small cult of serious car worshippers who by 1948 had banded together to form the Detroit Region of the Sports Car Club of America

Among those early revolutionaries was Harold Lance, a car enthusiast, original Detroit Region of the SCCA member and a Bugatti fanatic. In those days, the early 1950s, you could count on your fingers and toes, the sports cars to be found in Detroit. There were few Bugattis except the beautiful Royale that was owned by Charles Chayne, then the chief engineer of Buick. There was also a Type 37 that had been the property of Edsel Ford. That car was on display in the Henry Ford Museum in Greenfield Village on the Ford property in Dearborn, Michigan.

While Lance was a young army veteran who was just starting a family and could not afford a Bugatti, he had a subscription to the English Motorsport Magazine and spent considerable time scouring the classified ads.

One day, in the June 1951 edition of Motorsport, he found an ad for what was declared to be a Type 37A Bugatti. This particular car had been fitted with a supercharged Brescia engine and the price was only 400 pounds sterling or around $1600. [Read more…] about Bugatti on Ice

Requiem for a Salesman

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Del Lee's Allard, which he would give up in order to get a Bugatti. Photo by Eric Davison.

By Eric Davison

I am about to do something that on one should ever do: That is to repeat a story once told by a legendary story teller.

The late David E. Davis told this tale many years ago. He may go down in history as one of the great story tellers of all time and that is a tough act to follow. Since he is no longer around I think it is my responsibility to keep this bit of lore going. The story involves two men who have been part of earlier stories that I have related and is just too unforgettable to let fade. Both parties were friends of David E. who watched the following drama unfold when he was a young salesman at Falvey Motors.

Lee in his Bugatti Type 37 which would later be determined to be a T35. Photo by Harold Lance.

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Musings at the Mullin

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Photo by Hugues Vanhoolandt.

As we have all learned, Eric Davison has been around cars for a very long time, from his Watkins Glen days with his father to haunting car and art museums with his wife. So when we found he was going to the Mullin, we asked him to bring back a report on something off the beaten path. Said Davison of the assignment after he returned, “It sounds so very easy but when you are in the Mullin Museum and basically overwhelmed by the magnificence of the cars and of the building’s French decor and the general ambience, the task becomes more complicated.” So did he succeed and bring back a few surprises? We think so—
[Read more…] about Musings at the Mullin

Watkins Glen Memoirs Part 5: 1951

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Within a few weeks Dad was contacted by the person who had left the note on our SS100. He was serious about wanting the car. While Dad had not contemplated selling, he was bitterly disappointed by the fact that he did not get to race at the Glen. He named a price, one that covered the purchase price, the paint job and a small profit. The car was sold and one Saturday a mechanic showed up and with Dad’s help, replaced the rod bearing and drove off.

Fortunately I had convinced Dad to do a painting of the car and I was the recipient of a magnificent rendition of DWU 834, a lasting memento of the car and of his talents.

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Waktins Glen Memoirs Part 4: 1950

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Preparations for the 1950 expedition to the Glen included ordering a British Cromwell crash helmet and obtaining a seat belt from a local Army/Navy surplus store. Dad assembled all his Whitworth tools and arranged to drive in tandem with his friend Norm Couty. Couty and his wife were in his new Olds and it had plenty of trunk space for our extra gear. He had also thrown in a lengthy and stout rope ‘just in case’ the SS100 had problems.

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Watkins Glen Memoirs Part 3: A Car for the Glen

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Finding an SS100 for sale wasn’t an easy task. They surely weren’t listed in the classified sections of the local newspapers and, unlike today there was not much of a market for old sports cars. But, in the classified section of Motor Dad found one listed; a 3 1/2 liter, gunmetal gray, red carpets and red bucket seats. The price was just about what an MG TC cost at that time, about $1800. Because the car was in England that opened up a possibility for paying for it.

In 1949 the Garroway Jaguar SS100 appeared at the Glen. After seeing it, Charlie Davison decided that he had to have one but an SS100 was not easy to find. This is the Garroway (in passenger seat) SS100 at the Glen in 1950. Photo by Frank Shaffer.

My paternal grandfather had died in 1946. He had lived in London and had been widowed about three years earlier. He had survived the Battle of Britain and all the horrors and privations of the war. He was scheduled to come to America and to live with us. The struggle to obtain the permissions necessary to leave England became more and more protracted and he eventually just gave up and expired.

His estate wasn’t much, about 700 £ (something less than $3000) all went to Dad. He was an only child. The money sat in the Bank of England. Cash was not to leave the country. For England every farthing counted.

But, by working through the Royal Automobile Club Dad was able to find a way to use some of the money. Dad sent cash to the RAC from the US. He was able to transfer money from his Bank of England account to the RAC who then purchased the car and resold it to Dad and exported it to America. Complicated but it worked and the SS100 was on the way.

It came by boat to New York and was shipped by truck to Detroit. It was a rare warm February day when Dad arrived home with his prize. After dinner he pointed me to my coat and the garage with the statement “Let’s see what it will do!”

Charlie sitting in his pride and joy on the grid at Edenvale, Ontario, Canada in 1950. There, however, the pre-war Jag met up with two new XK120s, and he had to settle for third in his first race with the SS100. Harold Lance photo.

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(Vignale) Ferrari Beaters

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A personal account by Eric Davison
With thanks to Marcel Massini and Richard F. Merritt

The recent story by Wallace Wyss about Ferrari ‘beaters’ (The Joy of Beater Ferraris) brought back a memory about a time when there were even Vignale Ferraris that were beaters, although that pejorative had not yet been used in conjunction with automobiles.

Unlike today when the name Ferrari evokes dollar signs and the older the Ferrari the more dollar signs, in the late 50s and early 60s an old Ferrari sports racing car was just a tired old piece of outdated aluminum that had outlived its competitive life having been surpassed by the latest model.

0332MM in the early 1990s after a complete restoration. Car in lead image above is not 0332MM. Photo courtesy Marcel Massini

But, there were people who had an inkling of what was to come. One such man was a gentleman named Herb Armstrong. Herb was employed by Chrysler International and was headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. [Read more…] about (Vignale) Ferrari Beaters

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