Jonathan Whitehouse-Bird recently introduced me to Karsten Stelk from Germany who has amassed an amazing archive of racing Sprite photos from the past. He has very generously sent me over 125 of them most of which are shown below. Karsten is quite a BMC enthusiast having owned a Morris Minor Traveller, a 1980 998 Mini, – then a 1966 Austin Mini Countryman before moving on to a Volvo P220, all of these his everyday cars. Between 1986 and 1990 he restored an Austin Healey 100, which he now uses regularly on the road.
1958
The new Sprite is announced, PBL 75 being the car BMC used for much of their publicity material, and (right) John Anstice-Brown’s Frogeye in which he achieved the Sprite’s first race win, the Leinster Trophy, at Dunboyne, Ireland in 1958.
1959
Tommy Gold chasing Lotus 6
7080 AC on the Targa in 1959 (Wisdom/Cahier) finished 18th, and 3rd in class.
The Sprite record breaker, Tommy Wisdom in centre
The Sprite Record Breaker
1960
1961
1962
(Left) Stirling Moss and Steve McQueen, who both drove Works Mark 2 Sebring Sprites at Sebring in the Spring of 1962
(Right)The Ecurie Ecosse Sprite 1413 WD before the Le Mans race (& on the startline) – it sadly crashed
1963
58 FAC – 1963 Le Mans – Whitmore/Olthoff (crashed)
Scrutineering at Le Mans
Chasing a Ferrari!
1964
Baker and Bradley drove 770 KNX at Le Mans (to 24th place overall)
Hopkirk and Wisdom on the 1964 Targa Florio
Tommy Wisdom
‘Jenks’ & Wisdom
1965
The first of the new wind-tunnel cars, as built for 1965.
On the Cooper transporter
’65 Sebring in Flying ‘A’ magazine (I’m afraid it’s in German)
19th June 1965 – the day before the race, by which time this car was re-painted dark green
Pictured right is one of the ’65 LM cars at the Nurburgring 500, 3 months later, now back in lime green (Baker and Greene), & Richard Groves’ ex-works Targa car with extended roof (Moore/Harris)
EAC 90C – the 1965 Targa car
The Aaltonen/Baker Sprite
at the start of the
1965 Targa Florio.
Nurburgring 500 – 1965
1966
Peter Smith – Harewood Hill Climb, 1966
The late Gabriel Konig in her Sebring Sprite, E 700
The Le Mans Sprites HNX 455D & HNX 456D, lined up before the 1966 Le Mans race
The start
Red colour for ’66
EAC 90C Targa Florio, 1966
1967
Before Le Mans 1967 (HNX 456D)
An Ex ’65 works car (Richard Groves) at the Nurburgring
LWD 959E on the Targa Florio, 1967
Wheeler/Davidson on the Targa Florio, 1967
1968
HAN9-R-237 – testing
237 alongside the Healey SR
Le Mans
The fuel-injected engine
Another paddock shot
1969
Caption left reads: “Sebring, Florida – March 20th. DISTAFF RACING TEAM: This trio of girls await… practice for the Florida International 12 Hour endurance race..on Mar 22, etc, etc”.
L to R: Jane Guthrie, Donna Mae Mims & Liane Engeman (Netherlands)
1970 & later
RTL 304 at Zolder in 1980
…. and at Zandvoort in 1981
A Monza-bonneted Sprite racing at the Nurburgring