Bondurant/Whitmore flipmobile now in British mag restored

Historybuff · #1 (**permalink**) 07-15-2008, 03:20 PM

Waited a half year to see the full story finally hit the newsstands in a British magazine (I think it's Classic Car July '08 issue) on the GT40 targa, puke green, that Bondie flipped in the targa in '65. Ronnie Spain (famous author/expert on GT40s)in his books always listed it as destroyed, well, listen up, this story says that when a team was vintage racing a GT40 recently some bloke comes up and says "do ya want a GT40" and they told him to get lost but he persists and months later they go over to look at it, with Ronnie Spain and it was the car, much the worse for wear. They restored it in only nine months and it raced at Goodwood last year. Would I love to be near Bondurant when he sees the car he flipped on its side to see what cues he looks for to see if it is "his "car. I will never believe anymore anyone who says a car has been destroyed, I think of how many times I went to the UK , never looking for the car because I believed the history books...

DTurnbull · #2 (**permalink**) 07-16-2008, 05:51 AM

So how did the bloke aquire the car in the first place, and how long had he had it? Another great "barn find."

FatBoy · #3 (**permalink**) 07-16-2008, 07:18 AM

I believe the car was discovered in a lock-up garage in east London when the site was being cleared to make way for the London Olympics due to take place in 2012.
My understanding is that some employees of Ford were instructed to destroy the car following the crash, but they sneaked it out and locked it up in a garage intending to rebuild it, but never did.

Paul

DTurnbull · #4 (**permalink**) 07-17-2008, 02:30 AM

Thanks, Paul. Stories like this always fascinate me.

Trevor Legate · #5 (**permalink**) 07-17-2008, 06:12 AM

At least there is one good thing that came out of London 'winning' the Olympics! Still not certain how that was restored and racing within 9 months though - obviously some midnight oil was burned??

FatBoy · #6 (**permalink**) 07-17-2008, 11:10 AM

I know the car was "restored" by Gelscoe Motorsport and they manufacture pretty much every part required to build a new car, so it wouldn't surprise me if most of the car was new.

, which would help to explain the very short "rebuild" time.

427sharpe · #7 (**permalink**) 07-17-2008, 11:57 AM

In a car that was flipped/crashed/burned/abused and neglected for 40 years in a garage, I wouldn't drive it UNLESS most of it was replaced!

Still, it would be fascinating to see a good pictoral layout on the car today and see it up close for comparison.

Trevor Legate · #8 (**permalink**) 07-17-2008, 02:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by FatBoy

I know the car was "restored" by Gelscoe Motorsport and they manufacture pretty much every part required to build a new car, so it wouldn't surprise me if most of the car was new.

, which would help to explain the very short "rebuild" time.

Assolutely..... :-)

Historybuff · #9 (**permalink**) 07-18-2008, 09:43 AM

The fact that some employees supposed to destroy it couldn't bear to do it
reminds me of the story told by historian Mike Lamm about the GM employees told to take various dream cars down to the wrecking yard. Some couldn't bear to do it and took the car home but then had to hide it for 40 years because if they ever took it out of the garage they'd be charged with theft. Finally when Joe Bortz started his Blue Seude shoes car collection to promote his restaurant, he began getting phone calls pleading to take the car away, so now he has more than 20 dream cars, some of which are worth millions.

Legally I wonder if Ford could reclaim the car? I think not because once they "scrapped it" and got a tex credit for the write off, they relinquished their ownership right--a battle GM once fought over the XP-819, a rear engined Corvette that they gave to Smokey Yunick who cut it in half but someone bought the halves, reunited them and sold the car at auction

computerworks · #10 (**permalink**) 07-18-2008, 10:43 AM

Is this the car?

Historybuff · #11 (**permalink**) 07-18-2008, 03:23 PM

That picture is on the restorer's website

http://www.gelscoemotorsport.co.uk/i...d=25&Itemid=35

but the old cars in the background make me think that's a period
photo. But since there were only four small block targas made, it is a good representation of what they looked like new.

I don't count the big block targa as one of the four.

One of the others, about 99% restored, is in Los Angeles, at a customizer's shop. He has a 260 cubic inch DOHC Ford Indy engine in it, but that could be yanked out and a 289 put in if you're bent on authenticity