The Vintage Drop

30/06/2023

Let's start a little project using the power of the internets!

2024 marks the 90th anniversary of the 1934 AGP at Phillip Island. And with the 100th anniversary of the 1st (or maybe the second?) Australian Grand Prix approaching quickly, this will fit into the bigger project.

Let's see if we can track down the whereabouts of the entire grid of the 1934 Australian Grand Prix. Maybe a gathering at the Island in March '24 for a party?

Even better would be period, and contemporary pics of each car?

Happy to have information PM'd or emailed too!

Ok - let's begin the adventure!

14/10/2022

With our weekend of fun at Tarrengower rained out; we did some archive digging instead.

Here's some of the action from the Geelong Revival Motoring Festival from 2014.

06/10/2022

One of the original goals of this page is to put the period race cars of the 1920’s-(early) 1960’s of Australia; but a second focus was to do put together a record of those cars (or remnants of) who competed in the pre-war AGP’s with the intent of hoping to gather as many of them together as possible at some sort of event in March 2028 to celebrate 100 years of the Australian Grand Prix at Phillip Island (or do we do it in ‘27? There’s a can of worms!)

The 1978 AGP program listed the previous winners. Let’s see if we can at least start with them!

Know where the car is? Own one of the cars or know where it is? (And the owner is happy with us knowing) Let us know!

Happy to be hit up via direct message to this page, or email me at [email protected]

04/09/2022

Some exotica from the F1 Australian Grand Prix earlier this year.

03/09/2022

Scrolling through some shots on Friday night and spotted a set of unlikely beasts on the start line at prewar Rob Roy a few years ago (maybe the last before Covid got us?).

Keen to get back there again soon once the track works are complete. The Rob Roy Revival event looks like it could be an impressive weekend!

20/05/2022

Historic Winton Regularity 2 rolling out from the dummy grid.

18/05/2022

It’s nearly time for Historic Winton again! Always a cracking assortment of cars across the classes. A weekend of all sorts of action both on and off the track and with no COVID related limitations, it’s bound to be a ripper.

Anyone getting along? Anyone competing?

18/04/2022

10/04/2022

How awesome is a flatty cruising past after its run with Mr Russell having wrung it’s neck?

09/04/2022

Snuck out of the house early this morning and spent the day wandering and salivating at the F1 Australian Grand Prix today.

Seeing Maybach in the flesh is always special sight though!

29/03/2022

How’s that for a line-up of some ripping Specials?

26/03/2022

Historic racing is BACK! (We missed PI Historics)

Out at Eddington today enjoying the sights, smells and sunshine.

More to come!

30/10/2021

Some more of Abingdon's finest in their garages at Historic Winton. We've some snippets of video footage from the Regularity and Group L crews as well once we get some time to polish it up.

29/10/2021

As much as I've a soft spot for Austin 7's, a pre-war MG tickles a few of my fancies for sure. And their pre-war racing pedigree here in Australia was impressive. Between the Bugatti's and the MG's, those first ten Australian Grand Prix's were well and truly accounted for.

A few more on their way tomorrow ;)

25/10/2021

Sorry for the radio silence! COVID had me staring at a screen all day, so I often didn't touch it at night! Hopefully, we'll get back to some regular hours and routines now though! (And with Sandown coming up in a few weeks, hopefully a chance to fill the camera-coffers! (IF they let us in!)

Anyhow - back to Historic Winton and a wander through the V8 Pits. The light is always fun to play with down there and means you can get some moody, backlit shots!

05/10/2021

Oooooo! What's this?

More to come soon!

29/09/2021

A bit of American steel tonight. Or aloooooominum!?!

Caught Mr Russell with his Silvo out too!

27/09/2021

Dear Santa, I'd like an orange Austin 7 for Christmas! Please!?!?!

Back into editing again over the weekend - so some more posts a-coming!

Here's some of the Austin 7's that were at Historic Winton. There used to be a PLAGUE of these things running at the event in the past. (Given it's an Austin 7 Club Inc event!) But they seem to have either retired their drivers, or been retired to the barn/shed/storage.

I wonder how we can coax them back out again and get the pre-war fields flooding these events again?

14/09/2021

Some 'under the hood' shots. Mostly 4 bangers, and not 'strictly' in sticking with the aim of the page, but we'll let it slide for tonight.

The little window through the front of the JWF Milano gets me every time too.

Awesome engineering on show!

01/09/2021

This started off as something I could do quietly on the couch at night. And after a few nights of plugging away, this is becoming an epic monster of a task.

Maybe that explains why no one has tried it before......

28/08/2021

The Normal Wilson Special.

30-degree slanted Holden. Triple webers that were originally destined for Maybach, and an incredible connection to the early days of the Repco Brabham program and some very german-inspired lines.

Another ingenious Aussie-Special of the late 50's and early 60's.

27/08/2021

Bit of love for the Loose Fillings brigade!

27/08/2021

The Glyn Scott Repco Holden. What a car!

24/08/2021

Geez I love seeing this kind of detail in the cars. Sure, the painted, polished and well presented stuff is always hard to top, but seeing them in this state, with all their raw workings, weld line and hammer marks really does tell the story!

22/08/2021

A bit of action from Regularity 2 at Historic Winton. Austin, Riley, So-Cal, Vauxhall, Healey. Big mix of all sorts in this field!

07/08/2021

Doug, whispering a few sweet nothings before his next run?

06/08/2021

Here's the start of the Group L Sports and Racing Handicap at Historic Winton earlier in 2021.

We got lazy on the editing front in the last few months, so we'll fire up the whirly things, and get busy over the next few months and start editing all this stuff!

Like us here and on Instagram, and throw us a subscribe over on Youtube too :)

https://youtu.be/PYLBar4fsiA

Action from the handicap race for Group L Sports and Racing at Historic Winton 2021. The weather was perfect. The racing was fantastic!

28/07/2021

This is the kind of stuff we'd love to put together from an Australian perspective!

Anyone got a shed/story/car (but not a collection!) to share, and keen to tell us, please flick me an email!

https://youtu.be/jOlqWFr6qkA

Duncan Pittaway is a Goodwood legend, but not many know that there is far more to his arsenal than the incredible Fiat S76 Beast of Turin. In fact Duncan's c...

25/07/2021

Whilst we are keen to lean towards the pre-war cars, the early post-war years in Australia generated some incredible builds. Lots of war-surplus ‘bits’ could be had very cheaply, and started the ‘Australian-special’ philosophy.

Here’s a great example of one up close and personal; with the beast that is the Aljon Special. This is the marshalling area at the end of the Eddington Sprint. Proper old-school, picnic styled country race meeting!

24/07/2021

Group L finishing their parade lap and joining the grid on Sunday Historic Winton

23/07/2021

Some of the mid pack head off, hoping to escape the clutches of the fire-breathers still sitting on the line!

22/07/2021

Ford v Riley at the start of the Group J/K Handicap at Historic Winton

11/06/2021

The Coad-Brother’s Vauxhall Special. Built and raced by the brothers in the 50’s and back with the family for a long time now. It still gets regular exercise!

31/05/2021

Let's do a little cheeky, soft launch, for those of you that are already here.

It's not finished, it's not even close, but I needed to do a few checks that I couldn't do without a video on the page, so here ya go!

PM me your feedback too, I won't be offended!

https://youtu.be/THXVy773p4k?list=PLPaZ4MMTJrI1VxJBdqzlDBO15vIbLoTZF