[What'saCobra?]

Of course, what you say is true. As the truth gets out about cars that are already accepted, but clearly illegal, as it inevitably will, the FIA is in a fix either way.

There is a certain car up the M40 that is a complete replacement, along with changed engine mounts and one of the early non-Daytona's with the transmission tunnel "bridge trestle". The Daytona "trestle", as you remember, was a state secret for many years that helped inprove the otherwise awful 289 chassis flexibility in the years of the World Championship.

How that chassis modification got by the FIA in the day is a wonder. Ferrari certainly didn't do their homework, did they? Or does the race GTO have similar mods, of which i am completely unaware? It is certainly not a fillet or gusset to improve safety, unless you are meaning SA's investment of FORD's money in the car. So, because SA considered this mod rather proprietary, in the day drivers of their un-trestled 289's were at a disadvantage, weren't they?

It is interesting to note that the 427 chassis was, at least to my knowledge, never "bridged" like this. Perhaps it is not necessary? Perhaps no one bothers? Perhaps i am touching a live wire?

But, you are sadly correct, my son; i suppose that in the end the promoters need grids and the FIA has already looked away for too long and the deeper waters are already mucked. i actually hope that the grids would be more open, but it puts nice old originals at a serious disadvantage, since the new cars will inevitably have new improvements which the old cars must adopt to remain competitive.

It is certainly tolerated here in the US, even in the CanAm cars, in which new M6B McLarens sprout out of the desert ground from time to time. And, yes, the Lola T70's are all becoming MKIIIB's, since "real" FIA papers here are not necessary and ignored, much to the loss of more than a few sadly uninformed buyers.

i know of at least one FIA documented March 707 that has an entire M8F suspension system in the rear to replace the March kluge. If Peter's German McLaren M8F knew about it, i am sure he would have protested, but it is stateside now or has been for a while. But, i suppose since he might not have been all that popular, he never found out...