R4D at Prescott in 2016 (Gareth Tarr).
two Le Mans wins in an Ecurie Ecosse D-type Jaguar. R4D’s next owner was Ken Wharton who used it to win the Hill Climb Championship yet again. Amongst subsequent owners were Neil Corner, Anthony Bamford, Anthony Mayman and Vijay Mallya (owner of the Force India Formula One team).
Mac Hulbert’s route to R4D started with a family appreciation of the Alvis Silver Eagle and a desire, with his father, to create a racing version of what was, at the time, a largely forgotten car. With the help of the likes of Rod Jolley, Mac eventually got his wish. During this period he got to meet ‘the welder from Bristol’ – Julian Bronson – with whom Mac was to co-own a number of cars. His first two attempts to acquire an ERA ended in failure but in 2000 he managed to acquire R4D. Describing the car, Mac said the acceleration was hard to beat (dur- ing the evening he showed a few film excerpts that demonstrated this), its brakes were good, if prone to locking, but the handling was not as good as an
A or B-type ERA. In today’s specification it runs a Godfrey, Roots-type blower which gives a maximum boost of 24psi to the 1,980cc engine. With over 300bhp the car accelerates from nought to 120mph in 12.33 seconds and on to a top speed of around 160mph. The pre-selector gearbox is estimated to save about one second per lap compared to a fully-manual transmission. Consumption of methanol is 1 to 1½mpg (ouch!) Mac sold the car to Brian Fidler in 2015.
Mac’s book ERA – The autobiography of R4D is published by Porter Press and is available in the Museum Shop. Additional research for this article came from David Weguelin’s definitive ERA history The History of English Racing Automobiles (White Mouse Editions 1980) – around £300 if you can find a copy – and Great Motor Sport of the Thirties – a personal account by John Dugdale (1977). Dugdale was a junior Autocar reporter at the time and the book contains lots of Brooklands recollections amongst others. Gareth Tarr
BTM CHRISTMAS LUNCH 2016 T News
he 2016 Brooklands Trust Members’ season came to an end with the now traditional Christmas Lunch in the Napier Room on the last Sunday before Christmas. For many of the 157 members and guests attending it was their first time on-site since the Bellman Hangar had been completely dis-assembled, giving an opportunity to see the unrestricted view from the front of the Clubhouse to the Members’ Banking. The day was therefore a chance not just to look back on the year past but also for a foretaste of what is to come in 2017 when the Re-Engineering project is completed.
After the sell-out audience had scoffed the roast turkey and entertained themselves with balloons there was a joint speech, entitled ‘Two Wheeled Adventures’, by Zoe Cano and Martin Gegg. Zoe was a returning guest having spoken at one of the
Speakers Zoe Cano and Martin Gegg (Gareth Tarr). 15
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