This was my first members meeting (MM) at Goodwood. What a great experience it was.
The weekend was especially fantastic given that I was a guest of IWC, which are the main sponsors and official timekeeper of the Goodwood members meeting (MM).
This meant a black dinner at Lord March’s house on Friday, VIP day at Goodwood on Saturday with the opportunity to meet Jochen Mass, Hakkinnen and see some silver arrows (w196 and the w196 streamliner) up close. Not to mention the numerous GT40s, 512 Ferrari and the 917 Porsches that were standing around, being serviced, tested, and raced right in front of me. If that was not good enough, I received a private paddock tour by Doug Nye – one of the most important car historians out there.
It was a unique and unforgettable experience. Lets get started.
You know you arrive in Goodwood when in the parking lot of the Goodwood hotel, a dream 1950’s Bentley R type is parked.
Vintage Bentleys are among the most elegant cars made by the British in the 1950s – along perhaps with Aston Martin.
A nice welcome letter by the host IWC signed by its CEO. I also loved the little model car w196 silver arrow I received-which I would later see in real driven by Hakkinen.
Wondering around in the bar of the hotel I saw this nice Goodwood poster from 1950. I assume with great certainty it is original.
Dinner in Lord March’s house was quite an experience. British elegance and sophistication at its best.
The next morning I found this in my welcome package. I can get used to this kind of treatment (thank you IWC).
When you see this sign 74th MM you know you’re about to enter a very special place with a lot of history.
One of the first cars to greet me at the Goodwood paddocks – was this sublime 917 Porsche.
The Porsches 917 were brutal machines not only for their speed but also for the driving position. In fact the drivers used to sit so far in front that their feet were literally only centimetres from the front of the car. I admire the bravery of racing drivers who stepped into any 917.
This fantastic green Porsche 917 is owned by David Piper, a well-known race-driver and Ferrari enthusiast. It was in a 917 for the movie Le Mans that David Piper suffered a serious leg injury. David Piper, now in his 80s was present at Goodwood this year again.
A last picture of the fabulous 917 Porsche.
In the beginning I was not convinced of this series but the more I see these cars up close – the more I begin to have a serious crush on the low sleek design and color not to mention technology behind them (flat 12cylinder capable of speeds up to 380km/h). The car is so low is almost touches the ground. I do like the ‘Gulf’ 917 very much below.
The 917 is one of the most successful race cars for Porsche and would secure two Le Mans wins for Porsche in 1970/71.
This 74th members meeting was interesting as it pitted the legendary 917 against its arch rival – the 512 Ferrari (two cars below). Porsche would end up beating the 512 Ferraris in the 1970s.
The 512 Ferrari was powered by of course a V12 and were often called 512 M – M for Modificata to take on the 917. However I prefer the design of the 917.
Lets move on to an all time American great – the Ford GT40. There were an estimated 30 of them present – the largest single gathering ever (according to Lord March personally). That’s about $1.2bn worth of Ford motorcars at Goodwood. Not too bad.
This red GT40 was owned by a Canadian collector, who I talked to briefly. There was something about this red GT 40 that was very attractive. Maybe it was the white roundels together with the red color that made it nice.
Lets take a look at this monster again from the front. This car is so wide – that it barely fit on my camera. In fact it did not fit. Too wide.
The Ford GT 40’s are interesting as they gave Ferrari one big headache and pushed them from monopolizing yet another World championship season. Also it must not have helped that Ford tried to buy Ferrari and Enzo kindly rejected the offer after learning that the racing department would not be under his control anymore.
The more I see the GT 40 the more I like it. And it has next to Ferrari – among the best sound. This grey GT40 was a dream. Notice how wide this car is. It is a monster.
Ever seen the front come off a GT40? Well here is one example.
Listen to the sound of these awesome machines. Simply marvelous.
The cool thing about Goodwood is that many people drive their GT to the track directly. Like this young man with his stunning purple Carrera RS 2.7.
We move on to a superb 1954 Alfa Romeo 6C 3000 PR (for Passo Ridotto) which was a dream (thank you The Vintage Hour for the correct information).
The car is powered by six-carb engine apparently and one of only two spiders made, bodied by Colli. Notice the headrest and tank all in one. A superb car.
Before we move on to more cars lets take a look at the control tower – where VIP’s had fantastic views of the cars racing. Yes it was sponsored by IWC who fittingly where there with their Ingenieur line.
Pellaton who created the first bi-directional winding system in the world, was responsible for bringing the Ingenieur line to life in 1955 (Pellaton was also a well known Petrol head). Today the Ingenieur line is one of the best known lines for the watch brand from Schaffhausen.
It is not surprising that IWC and Mercedes have a close partnership. Both share a passion for performance engineering.
It was nice to see the W196 and the W196 Stromlinie (or Streamliner) at Goodwood – two legendary cars that now sit in the Mercedes Benz Museum. Both are essentially the same cars but just with a different chassis (as explained to me by the Mercedes Benz classic experts).
The w196 was developed by Uhlenhaut for the F1 1954/55 season and secured Mercedes two world championship wins. The great Fangio and Stirling Moss drove and won for Mercedes in these cars. I personally prefer the Streamliner (because of the curves) which is the first car.
Lets have a look inside the w196. I love the tartan seats and the large rev counter in the middle. This is the view that Fangio or Stirling Moss would have driving to victory back in the day.
We move on to Italian cars to finish. Here a nice trident. Notice the interesting graphics of the Nr 6 (something Davemcdus pointed out).
For the last car we have a fantastic back of a 375 MM Ferrari. I do like the large fuel cap.
I love the graphics and badges on this car. You can also see the ‘F’ badge – which means one thing: Bodied by Pininfarina.
Perhaps the coolest part of this car was a little badge/sticker on the windshield. Automobile club of Argentina. It’s the little details like this that make Goodwood so great and fun. Notice the ‘pass inspection’ sticker from the Goodwood authorities.
The IWC limousines were always waiting for us – and it was time to go.
Not only do the Swiss have the art of watchmaking down to perfection but they also know how to organize a weekend to perfection in terms of logistics and timing. IWC did a perfect job of putting together a very memorable weekend. Everything was perfect from the food to the service in the VIP area to the guided private paddock tour with car historian Doug Nye. Thank you IWC for creating an exceptional weekend.
For those interested in learning more about the history of IWC please see here.
