Silverstone July 1994

I took this photograph during the Chopard HGPCA 100 Mile Grand Prix Race at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1994.

Leading this group is the 1955 Cooper Bobtail of Katharina Schmidt, which is the 2 litre Cooper T40 Bristol that Jack Brabham drove in his first World Championship Formula 1 race in 1955. Behind that is the 1952 Connaught A-Type of Spike Milligan, chassis A7, and bringing up the rear is the 1953 Cooper Bristol T23 of Graham Burrows.

1952 Connaught A-Type

This car competed in the Maserati UK Race for Pre-1961 Grand Prix Cars at the Coys International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone in July 1999.

It's the 1952 Connaught A-Type of David Wenman which has a 4-cylinder inline engine based on the 1,767cc Lea Francis unit with the capacity increased to 1,960cc in line with the then current Formula 2 regulations. It is chassis A4 and one of Connaught's works team cars in 1952, when it was usually driven by Dennis Poore, then in 1953 it went to the Écurie Belge team where the drivers were Johnny Claes and André Pilette. It was driven in this race at Silverstone by Barrie Williams.

1953 Connaught A-Type

This car took part in the Richard Seaman Historic Trophy race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's meeting at Oulton Park in June 1963 at a time when cars designed 12 years or more earlier were designated as Historic Cars.

It's the 1953 Connaught A-Type of John Horton, chassis AL10, which has a 4-cylinder inline engine based on the 1,767cc Lea Francis engine with the capacity increased to 1,960cc in line with the then current Formula 2 regulations.

1952 Connaught A-Type

This was one of the competitors in the Historic Car Championship Race at the Aston Martin Owners Club's Autumn Historic Car Races meeting at Oulton Parkin September 1992.

It's Tony Smith's 1952 Connaught A-Type, chassis A8. The car was designed and built by Connaught Engineering's Rodney Clarke and Mike Oliver with a 1,960cc engine based on the Lea Francis 4-cylinder 1,767cc unit, and competed in 1952 and 1953 Grand Prix races which were run under the 2-litre capacity formula. A8 was part of the Connaught Works team in 1953, being mainly driven by John Coombes, Stirling Moss and Prince Bira.

1953 Connaught A-Type

I took this photograph in the paddock at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1969.

It's Alan Cottam in his 1953 Connaught A-Type, chassis AL10, which has a 4-cylinder inline engine based on the 1,767cc Lea Francis engine with the capacity increased to 1,960cc in line with the then current Formula 2 regulations.

1953 Connaught A-Type

I photographed this car at Lodge Corner in the Cheshire Building Society Allcomers Race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1981.

It's the 1953 Connaught A-Type of Alan Cottam, chassis AL10, which has a 4-cylinder inline engine based on the 1,767cc Lea Francis engine with the capacity increased to 1,960cc in line with the then current Formula 2 regulations.

1952 Connaught A-Type

This car took part in the two Corporate Jets Historic Grand Prix Cars races over the weekend of 25th and 26th July 1992 at the Christie's International Historic Festival meeting at Silverstone.

Gerry Porter and Barrie Williams were listed in the programme of the event as drivers of this 1952 Connaught A-Type which has a 4-cylinder inline engine based on the 1,767cc Lea Francis engine with the capacity increased to 1,960cc in line with the then current Formula 2 regulations. The yellow colour suggests that it is chassis number A4 which was at one time campaigned by the Ecurie Belge team.

1952 Connaught A-Type

This was one of the competitors in the Allcomers Scratch Race at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies meeting at Oulton Park in June 1973.

It's Gerry Walton's 1952 Connaught A-Type with a 1,960cc engine based on the Lea Francis 4-cylinder 1,767cc unit, and is chassis A8. Ten Connaught A-Types were built and A8 is one of only two that  featured a Hilborn-Travers fuel injection system instead of the Amal carburettors that were fitted to the other eight cars. It was mainly driven in period as a works car by John Coombes, Stirling Moss and Prince Bira. A later owner, Mike Young, sold the 2 litre engine and installed a 2½ litre HWM-Alta engine in 1955 to take part in Formula One racing and later took the car to South Africa. Phil Bowker subsequently bought the car and Gerry Walton sourced the Lotus 10 with the original engine which was reunited with A8. Gerry Walton acquired the car in the late 1960s and fully restored it to its 1953 state, competing with it until 1988.

1952 Connaught A-Type

This is a photograph I took at the Vintage Sports Car Club's Richard Seaman Memorial Trophies Meeting at Oulton Park in July 1987.

It's a 1952 Connaught A-Type which was designed and built by Connaught Engineering's Rodney Clarke and Mike Oliver with a 1,960cc engine based on the Lea Francis 4-cylinder 1,767cc unit. There's no race number on the car and there are three Connaught listed for the the Cheshire Building Society Allcomers Race and a later Allcomers Scratch Race in the programme of the event, but two of them are B-Type Connaughts the only A-Type being the number 36 of Gerry Porter. It was shown a a reserve for the second of those races, but I don't remember it taking part in either of them. Only eight A-Type cars were produced in the 1950s, a further car being built from Connaught parts in the early 1960s, but this is the only occasion I can recall seeing one painted red - and I can't find any photographs or any mention of such a car. The Italian driver Piero Scotti bought a Connaught B-Type in 1956 with which he took part in the Belgian Grand Prix and several minor races, but I don't know if he had it painted red and he doesn't seem to have raced one of the A-Types.