Rephlex

Superb! I've only ever been there in June and whilst I've driven those roads, it's always chocka.

Paul284pt

Cheers mate! The Mulsanne was busy as its a main through road, but the rest of the track was practically deserted


Paul

Cheeksyboy

As everyone else has said, stunning car Paul.

Paul284pt

Thanks Cheeksboy,

I'm trying to put a few miles her now!

Hi All,

Hot Shots - Part Deux - Chateauneuf Du Porsche

Actually there were only 8 Porsches and a TR4 but when have the facts ever restricted a headline in the press

Setting off to Le Chateau D'Lude with Martin leading in his everyday car, we had to let him come in that he organised it











Or leader's Audi hidden around near the tradesmans entrance for the purposes of aesthetics



Noel's 2.4S targa in silver, one of only 10 in RHD. The going price is apparently £140k, I know that because another member on the trip had one of the other 9 and it was in the process of being sold in Mayfair. Not to worry though he also has a genuine 2.7RS (engine being rebuilt by RUF at the mo), oh, and another 16 Porsches of collectable varieties. He's an absolute top bloke too! I wanna be sick





Mine with Dave Walkers' lovely blue Carrera 2 Tip.



We were treated royaly at the Chateau with a splendid lunch laid on by the Countess who very handily is a friend of Martin's so it really was a treat to enjoy their hospitality in the stunning dining room.

The Chateau is situated alongside the Loire about 40 minutes from Le Mans and is open to the public from May to August if anyone fancies a visit.








More later,
Paul

Mondrian

The build was fun but this is definitely more fun - thanks for sharing Paul.

Paul284pt

Brilliant! Thanks Mondrian!

Hi Guys,

Finally t end this road trip I thought I'd share 3 old photos I took from the Hotel de France's scrapbook which I thought you might find interesting.

Really there were so many great photos from the '50's right through to present day e.g. Stirling Moss sat outside playing cards with Carol Shelby etc. but the ones I have for you give a flavour of what it must have been like when the cars (in this case the Aston Martin Team of DBR1's) arrived and were preparing for Le Mans 24 Hours. Many other teams including, Shelby's AC Cobras, John Wyer and the famous Gulf Porsche 917's were prepared here too.

The alleyway in which the cars were prepared is to the right of the hotel (my car in the foreground) where you can see a gap in the ivy, the angle makes it appear narrower than it actually is.



The alleyway as it is today and an arty shot, the purpose of which is to show that nothing much has changed, although the hotel bedrooms have been updated considerably updated, just in case you fancy paying a visit





Back in the day- the DBR1's





And the GT40's



As you can see, not a lot has changed and standing in quiet of the alleyway (on the way to the pool) it doesn't take a lot to imagine the frenetic activity which took place here not so many years ago.



On the way from Caen to Portsmouth on the Tuesday night before Goodwood this beauty was parked just in front of me on the ferry.





A chap was actually driving it from Switzerland to the Revival to be auctioned at Bonhams, it's a very special car and it was fantastic to see it been driven as intended and not in the back of some transporter. You read all about it here http://www.bonhams.com/auctions/22725/lot/364/

Happy driving,
Paul

ramans

Paul a couple of questions.

Was the basket weave the actual basket weave they make or the thing that's done with the impression (pressed in?) version from the pictures and the website I can't tell

How much of each smooth/basketweave did it take you to do the car?

Big Al HURT123

What an epic trip. You guys are so lucky to have the option to travel Europe in your cars. I wish.

Paul284pt

Hi Ramans,

The basket weave is really woven leather and it has a strong cotton backing to stop the weave spreading. Care should be taken when re-trimming to make sure every panel also has the borders stitched.

There are 4 full red hides of around 3.5 to 4.5m.sq. each. Approximately 15m.sq. required plus the basket weave 3.5m.sq. There was a little left of the hides but there was very little of the weave left.

There is also some black leather for the door caps and dash etc.

Thanks Big Al!

Us on this side of the pond think the same about you guys over
there, one day.....

When I put the photos of up in the first place of the Aston Martin DBR1's I should have mentioned that the no. 5 car in the foreground was the 1959 Le Mans winner driven by Roy Salvadori and Carol Shelby being prepared prior to the race. The no. 4 car was driven by Stirling Moss and Jack Fairman under team orders to run flat out and break the Ferraris. They must have done a good job because the other DBR1 (not shown) came in 2nd driven Maurice Trintignant and (soon to be Porscheophile) Paul Frere. They must have done an, erm, stirling job because the next car was 25 laps behind. Stirling Moss stuck to his task and drove so hard his car was unable to finish but it was mission accomplished, the team Aston's came in 1st and 2nd.

Update:

Start of a few winter jobs. My starter motor was sticking a little so I decided to go for a replacement Bosch model instead of messing about trying to fix the old one. It wasn't too bad as they take the old one back as a part exchange. All good now, I also placed the earth strap and cap.





Cheers,
Paul

LPMM

Great trip Paul, thanks for sharing. It's been too long since I have driven these roads, I need to come home for a visit. Your 964 looks fabulous as always and lovely choice for the watch.

aceking4u

Paul, these are absolutely amazing. Seat envy indeed.







As you can imagine the seats have been the most difficult parts of the re-trim and the rest should come together more quickly but it's definitely been worth waiting for.

Paul284pt

Hi Laurent,

I hope you are keeping well. Thanks mate, I know it's a Monaco but I took it to it's spiritual home of Le Mans

Thanks Aceking4u.

I'm very pleased how they turned out and a few people have told me they are encouraged to do the same as I did so it's kind of nice how things have filtered down from the Singer Recaro's

Cheers,
Paul

mnmlod

Those seats are amazing.

Paul284pt

Thanks mnmlod!

I'm on with the boot/trunk/frunk or whatever it's called these days. It will be trimmed out to match the car's interior with the leather I have left so I'll put up a few shots when I have something decent to show.

Cheers for now,
Paul

mnmlod

Good. Then I'll have pics of what I want mine to look like. I'll be able to say, " make mine like this ".