GRX 309D

[mk1]

Postby worksminis » 11 Apr 2017, 19:04

Rally of the Flowers (Rallye dei Fiori) February 1966. Hopkirk/Crellin. Group 2. Built by Brian Moylan. One of 4 new Group 2 1293 unarched cars built to the new (1.1.66.) FIA Appendix J before the “definitive” 66 Group 2 spec cars emerged with the black wheel arch extensions on the Circuit of Ireland. Second event for the pivoting 4 lamp bar (first used on at least one car on the Swedish Rally earlier in Feb 66).

Used as a recce car on:
Circuit of Ireland April 66 (Hopkirk/Harryman).
Austrian Alpine May 66?? (Fall/Wood) (or French Alpine September 66 Fall/Wood?? See below).
Acropolis May 66 (initial route recce Easter/Liddon and maybe later final recce by an entered crew – Hopkirk/Crellin or Makinen/Easter – Aaltonen/Liddon believed to have used GRX555D).

Sold to Johnny Organ (works mechanic) as complete car without registration, with a 970 S engine installed. Later sold on.


Polish Rally August 1966. Fall/Krauklis Group 2. 999cc (to take advantage of favourable handicap). All evidence points to this being a new car (“unarched” as 4.5” wheels not then homologated for the 970 S and standard 3.5” used). Believed to be a new car for this event.

Used as recce car on French Alpine (Coupe des Alpes) September 66?? Fall/Wood (see above).

No data on disposal.

RAC Rally November 1966. Hill/Boyd Group2. Front mud flaps and Aley roll-over bar introduced for this event on all works Minis (except no bar on GRX5D for Makinen). All cars except GRX5D used AEG510 camshaft in anticipation of mud/snow following experience of the 65 event. Believed to be a new car for this event, as for other BMC entries.

Welsh Rally December 1966. Fall/Wood. Deciding event (between Fall and Fidler) for 1966 RAC British Championship. NOTE: Both Browning and Price record the 66 Welsh Rally as taking place before the RAC Rally. It didn't. It ran after the RAC. Believed to be the Hill car that had retired early from the RAC (with replacement transmission or engine/transmission for the Welsh). Could have been a number plate swap but question then arises as to which car, since all other ex-RAC cars damaged or more worn. Left the road and suffered damage (costing Fall the British Championship). Extent of damage believed significant (variously reported as rolled or extensive rear end damage) and thus unlikely to have been repaired by works. Confirmed by Price that 4th GRX309D (Sebring race car) was a new car and not this one.

Said to have been used as a recce car for the January 1967 Monte Carlo Rally. There appears to have been a shortage of recce cars for this event. The reg number of the private Freeborough Group 2 car was borrowed for a standard white/black recce car for Aaltonen. A red/black standard car (with roof rack carrying 4 studded tyres) called in at the Lydden Hill rallycross (in which the works team was competing) en route to Dover for early Monte recce with Liddon and (Easter?) after the RAC but before the Welsh. It does not therefore appear that this standard one could have carried the GRX309D registration but another car for the later recce phase could have done as an ID swap.

No data on disposal. Registration number later used on replica of the Hill RAC car (replica in that the accurate markings would not have been the original 66 RAC ones if car used after the RAC before disposal by works – no data on any body/mechanical parts used).

Sebring 4 Hours (3 Hours in previous years and often referred to as “3 Hours” this year). March 1967. Although Browning states that they converted one of their rally cars, Price has later clarified that this was a new race car built for the event and the GRX309D registration was applied to it to speed up the issue of documentation for it to be sent to the USA as (initially) a temporary export.

Sold to BMC USA (later into private ownership in USA).

[mk1]

Postby worksminis » 07 Sep 2018, 20:51

Flowers (Dei Fiori) 66

66 Flowers HopkirkCrellin.jpg

Hopkirk 66 Flowers.jpg

HopkirkCrellin 66 Flowers.jpg

[mk1]

Postby worksminis » 08 Dec 2017, 17:51

Sadly, Damon Hill has just announced that his mother Bette has passed away. Both appear with the third GRX309D in films of the start of the 1966 RAC Rally.

[mk1]

by davidscothorn » 29 May 2017, 16:11

DVLA AUSTIN 1966 1275 DOR 1/95 SORN MOT2/10

[mk1]

by spoon.450 » 19 Apr 2017, 18:41

Having done lots of research into GRX 309D over the past few years, in conjunction with Paul Bates, owner of the original car, this summary appears very accurate to me. If I / we can help with any more info regarding Pauls car ( which we are still researching, and finding new info periodically ), please do not hesitate to ask.

Regards
Dave

[mk1]

Postby spoon.450 » 11 Apr 2017, 20:33

Paul Bates and Ron Crellin with the original 309D

004-K150.jpg

[mk1]

Images

[spoon.450]

Lovely photo of the replica 66 RAC car that carries the V5 / registration number.

[surfblue63]

1966 Polish Rally

[AndyPen]

Postby spoon.450 » 11 Apr 2017, 20:33

Paul Bates and Ron Crellin with the original 309D

004-K150.jpg

Is anyone on here in touch with Ron Crellin? Sadly his son (my friend) no longer speaks to him, and apparently he has a degenerative brain illness - so sad.

[spoon.450]

Although I haven’t spoken to him for a few years Andy I think I still have a contact number for him. I’ll have a look and PM you.

[mk1]

275864911_1657333734616299_1342029277533295857_n.jpg

[surfblue63]

1966 Polish

1966 Poland grx 309d.jpg

[surfblue63]

1966 RAC

[LMM76C]

NGH indicating to the foreign press that someone is a....banker? or was he misheard?
John Sprinzel behind NGH's left shoulder? and Erik Carlsson in hat in the distance holding court?

[surfblue63]

I think the reporter is Michael Frostrick, who was a presenter on the BBC show Wheelbase amongst other things.

[LMM76C]

If it is he'd had an extreme makeover and gained a much more youthful and foreign appearance!
No - and the photo came from a French source.
Maxwell Boyd in car looking his age and I think it's a bystander rather than Sprinzell's co driver David Benson (another UK journalist of the same era) beyond the car.

[LMM76C]

It was drawn to my attention that, in a recent...ish major book on works Minis, (actually in the section on HJB656D) GRX309D is referred to twice as a 970 Group One car on the 66 Polish Rally "to take advantage of the handicap".
The use of a 970S was indeed to take advantage of a handicap but only as a Group Two car. The 970S was not homologated in Group One under the 1.1.66. Appendix J. The spec listed in the GRX309D section makes it clear it was Group Two.
Under the previous Appendix J, Group One required 1000 in a year, as for Group Two. However dodgy the 1000 might have been, the 5000 required for Group One after 1.1.66. was out of reach to a totally different degree for the 970S (even if the Lotus Cortina along with its "Special Equipment" option somehow had got into Gp1).
Interesting we still see confusion over unarched Gp2 cars (arches were homologated for the 1275 but not the 970 at that point). I believe there was confusion when the original GRX309D was found, with some telling the finders it was GRX55D (which had been sold as an unregistered Gp1 car with the GRX55D reg transferred to a new Gp2 car that was destroyed on its first event).

[spoon.450]

Good info. Keith, thanks.
The initial confusion between the 309D and 55D identities was clarified and is explained and documented within the 54 pages ( so far ) of the ' Works car found ' thread. Also, again detailed within the thread, I recall posting, that during the 70's, while owning the original GRX 309D ( then GMM 51B ), Alan Bell was offered, in poor condition, the original GRX 55D ( group one car ? ) less many Works parts and registration, but turned it down, even though it was only a few hundred quid. I'm not sure, but somehow very much doubt, if this is the car that wears the GRX 55D registration now ??

Dave

[surfblue63]

1967 Sebring car. Note side exhaust.

1967 sebring car grx 309d.jpg