1962 Formula Junior

[kylekosir]

Probbly belongs in the racing formum, but a classic open wheel car i have alwayzd love was the 1962 Formula Juniors. Front engine only 600lbs with-out the driver. A friend of mine has one with a Cooper engine. Only 90hp. But they should do look nice. I don't know the chassis name but it looks like the picture below. Its a shame they dont race em as an official stepping stone to Formula 1. But they do race em as a historic event. Jochen Ridt and Jim Clark also used it to Move up to Formula 1.
Well any question or comment feel free, i will try to answer them to my best of knowledge.
http://blog.hemmings.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/may1978hmn_formulaJr_resized.jpg

[henk4]

we have an article on Juniors under preparation, with lots of shots from different cars. The series ran from 1958 to 1963, and while the first cars where indeed the front engined ones of which you show a picture, later on the rear engined cars took over and by 1962 the series was so much dominated by factory teams from Lotus and Cooper, that it had lost its purpose as an entry base for motorsports. It was continued as the F3, 1000 cc, but the initial charm (and its role as a breeding ground for new constructors) had disappeared almost alltogether. Probably few people know that already in 1960, Laurie Bond presented a full monocoque FJ, (two years ahead of the Lotus 25), which also featured front wheel drive....

[Chronos CSR]

I restored Mark Donahue's first race car, a 61 Elva FJ, it had a kent 1600, the car has so many missing body parts I had to use the photo from the book "the unfair advantage" to reconstruct the rear half. spent a year on it. The car now is running the vintage circuit. After a 15k rebuild on the engine I can say it is the fastest 1.6 litre car I have ever driven.

[henk4]

I restored Mark Donahue's first race car, a 61 Elva FJ, it had a kent 1600, the car has so many missing body parts I had to use the photo from the book "the unfair advantage" to reconstruct the rear half. spent a year on it. The car now is running the vintage circuit. After a 15k rebuild on the engine I can say it is the fastest 1.6 litre car I have ever driven.
But illegal as an FJ which was limited to 1100cc maximum :D

[culver]

Perhaps its because I liked what I knew but I think the classic Formula Fords were better looking.
http://www.lotustalk.com/forums/attachments/f163/128047d1248233316-lotus-51-formula-ford-sale-dscn7745.jpg
http://www.motorsnippets.com/cars/VSCC_SprintStart_Apr_02/graphics/formula_ford_5.jpg

I prefer the longer cigar shape to that of the older roadster shapes. The 1970s FF's lost some of their beauty as they went for the wide body look of the Indy and F1 cars of that era.

[henk4]

This is a Junior too (Stanguelline Delfino)...The Cigar shaped FJs from Lotus and Cooper sort of killed off the class, and it moved up to F3. (1000 cc screamer engines)

[Chronos CSR]

I'll dig up a pic of the Elva, positive about the 1600 though. Not sure why we would have put an incorrect engine back in.

[culver]

This is a Junior too (Stanguelline Delfino)...The Cigar shaped FJs from Lotus and Cooper sort of killed off the class, and it moved up to F3. (1000 cc screamer engines)

That's nice looking as well. I just don't dig the looks of many of the front engined open wheel racecars.

[henk4]

That's nice looking as well. I just don't dig the looks of many of the front engined open wheel racecars.
Well, you have to realise that FJ ran from 1958 to 1963, and the shape passed the same revolutionary development as F1 cars. Shown in a 1959 Bandini, utterly conventional, and the second car is the monocoque Lotus 27 of four years later. Both Juniors according to the same set of rules.

[faksta]

I think I've finally realised what car is pictured in post #1. Guess it is a Scorpion - DKW owned by Ray Heppenstall in 1960 or a similar one. Scorpion was an Elva name for their USA business, as far as I get it.

[csl177]

I think you're right, faksta. Pete Stowe's site has Heppenstall's history as well as the car: Ray Heppenstall Pete Stowe (http://website.lineone.net/~pete.stowe/pete_heppenstall.htm)

[henk4]

Thanks Sascha for identifying the car.

A Scorpion does not need to be a DKW engined car, I saw two others with a Ford engine.
First and third one is Mr. FJ himself, Duncan Rabagliati at Laguna Seca in 2008
Second one was shot at the Goodwood Revival 2010.

[faksta]

You're welcome. This idea has hit me when I was browsing the page that csl177 has referred a couple posts above :)

[csl177]

Henk is correct, of course... using Ford Kents was common practice in FJr. Odd as it may seem, the one pictured in the OP was noted in Hemming's blog about old ads with this copy: "We also spotted this late 1950s Formula Junior Grand Prix racer, “believed to have belonged to Mexican racing driver Rodriguez,” the seller stated. Apparently, the engine was a Rytune DKW, serial number 88610113-1, and the chassis a Rytune Scorpion, serial number 500S-3-EX, all available for $1,900 out of Schwenksville, Pennsylvania."

Given it's specification and seller's location the "Rodriguez" story sounds highly unlikely, and could well have been Heppenstall's car. I sure wish I'd spotted it in 1978, wonder who has it now?