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Thread: 904-025, borneo green, S.M.A.R.T 1964

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    904-025, borneo green, S.M.A.R.T 1964

    904-025, Borneo Green, S.M.A.R.T 1964

    In November 1963 André Loubser, VIP coordinator of Porsche Stuttgart, received a telegram by Sir Stirling Moss, containing an order for a 904.

    Mr. Loubser remembered on October 30, 2014:
    "In 1962, aged 22, I left Cape Town to join the export/sales division of the Porsche factory. A year later, much to my surprise, I was asked to head up the VIP direct factory sales department. In November 1963 I received an order from Stirling Moss for a Porsche 904 for his racing team, the Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team (S.M.A.R.T) that he founded after his near fatal accident at Goodwood the year before. I spent Christmas of that year in Hendon with an English colleague and took the opportunity to meet up with Stirling to finalize the deal. The last time I called on him was in February 2012 – same house, same desk! He told me that his three mechanics were South Africans, brothers Ed and Bud Rossler and Piet van Asperen. From the beginning of 1964 I monitored the build of the 904 on a daily basis until I delivered it to Ed and Piet in February 1964." (https://mycarquest.com/2014/10/rando...th-africa.html)

    S.M.A.R.T. was formed by Stirling Moss in March 1963 with the help of Richard Wilkins, the financial backer to Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team. Richard, “Dick” Wilkins, who was a very successful stockbroker for many years, was also a partner of Rob Walker, R. Walker & Wilkins, when Walker started running cars for Stirling Moss in the 1950's. Dick Wilkins ran a company called Wedd Durlacher, which eventually became Barclays de Zoete Wedd, which still remains now as Barclay's main investment bank.

    Stirling Moss acquired a Lotus Elan road car for SMART and had it modified by leading aerodynamist Frank Costin with a low-drag nose and elongated hardtop to improve airflow. Due his racing injuries at the Goodwood Easter Monday meeting in 1962, where he crashed his Lotus, Moss was unable to race the modified SMART Elan, so Sir John Whitmore campaigned the light green car for the 1963 season, towing it to race meetings with a Ford Cortina Estate, painted in matching livery. The car participated in various GT events and driven successfully by Sir John Whitmore throughout that season. It won every event it entered except two, when it shed a wheel on both occasions. Here is a partial quote from Whitmore in reference to Stirling Moss : "As a way of staying involved in the sport, he bought a Lotus Elan, formed the Stirling Moss Automobile Racing Team and, to my great surprise, chose me as his number one driver. I drove the car in eight races in 1962, winning four of them; in the other four, a rear wheel fell off while I was in the lead."

    The Elan was sold after Valerie Pirie had driven it in club events during the early part of 1964, with some success. At the same time S.M.A.R.T. acquired a Cortina GT which was entered in several rallies and driven by Valerie Pirie, usually with Daphne Freeman and Sue Knights.

    For the 1964 season a Porsche 904 GTS should bring the team further race wins.

    The 904 order was officially signed during the visit of Stirling Moss at the factory together with Valerie Pirie on 7th January 1964, commission number 4.100.003, priced at 29.700.- DM, with a built date for the 1st half of February 1964. Color as per sample “Boneo green”. A deposit of one third of the total price had been taken, 10,000.- DM. Balance price was due on date of delivery. https://www.handh.co.uk/auction/lot/...lot=14949&sd=1

    The team trademark special color “Borneo Grün” was brought into market by Renault for the MY 60/63. The Renault Color Code is 911, or color code 173-26006 / ICI - Imperial Chemical Industries - paint reference P031-4390 / “S.M.A.R.T green”, "Kotzgrün", “vomit green”, as a british journalist wrote in an article. The rims had to be painted in a Jaguar dark green (BRG?). The color had been supplied by Valentine Varnish & Lacquer Company, UK. The upholstery of the 904 was the standard blue fabric.

    Mr. Loubser was monitoring the built for his client, he wrote me about it in June 2020:
    “As an aside, something that puzzled me was that the Fuhrmann designed, very complex 2-litre twin-cam engines, built on the same day by the same assemblers with exactly the same components, would give readings from 173 to 179 bhp on the dynamometer, with 180 bhp listed in the homologation papers.

    Herr von Hanstein told me, that if I ever allocated an engine to any of my customers without discussing it with him, I could consider myself as good as dead. “Jawohl, Herr von Hanstein!”

    After all these years I’m sure that I could tell a story ‘out of school.’
    I was told, that we should allocate the top reading engines to the professional drivers and teams and the lower horsepowers to the playboy drivers, who stood little or no chance of winning. Made sense to me.

    One day when the dynamometer read 181 I rushed to Herr von Hanstein’s office and gave him the news. I asked if I could have it for Stirling. After a dramatic pause he said, “Ah, yes, Stirling is a good friend of the factory . . . . and. er, yes, you can let him have it.” I was off to my office like an Olympic sprinter to phone Stirling with the news. He was of course delighted…”

    So engine 587/3, # 99024 went along with chassis 904-025. According to the Kardex, the 904 had been delivered on 19.02.1964:
    “I delivered the car to SMART's chief mechanic, fellow South African, Ed Rossler. Stirling gave Ed an envelope with two Union Jack transfers and insisted that they be stuck on both front fenders before the car left the factory. Ed was accompanied by fellow South African mechanic, Piet van Asperen. The car was towed on a large trailer behind Hugh Dibley’s orange Mini van and taken to Stuttgart Airport from where it was flown to Stanstead Airport.”

    On 26th February 1964 Douglas Miller had made the picture of the 904-025 (see #29) with Sir John Whitmore in the car and Valerie Pirie standing at the side. The union jack transfer is clearly visable on the front fender towards the door. The race number markings are still missing.

    Valerie Pirie wrote on this as following:
    “First of all, HM Customs and Excise were going to tax the car at it the full rate for an imported road car, which was approximately double the cost of the actual car itself in Germany. I had the devil´s own job trying to persuade the authorities that this car was only going to be trailered on the back of our tow vehicle; that it would only be raced and run under its own steam on racing circuits and that it would never be used on the open roads in the UK, or anywhere else for that matter. After many weeks of wrangling, we were given the all-clear but, in order to move matters forward to our entire satisfaction, I´d also had to tip off the press, and they splashed the story across the nationals.”



    The first start for the 904-025 had been at 30.03.1964, starting number 42, at the Goodwood International Motor Racing, Lavant Cup on easter Monday, for the “Guards Sportscar Championship” theater. The organizer had been the British Automobile Racing Club. The race started at 17:10 for 50 miles. 27 cars had entered the race, the practising session attended 20 cars. From the starting grid of 20 cars, 18 cars did finished and 17 cars had been classified. The driver had been Sir John Whitmore, finishing 6th overall and 3rd in class. The 904 made 20 laps in 31:23.00. Winner had been John Coundley in a Lotus 19 Climax, finishing 21 laps in 31:05.600, covered a distance of 81.111 kms with an average of 156.525 km/h
    (images > #36).

    „The Sterling Moss Team ran their Porsche 904 in the sports car race, driven by Whitmore, but it did not seem outstanding; perhaps the colour had to do something with it. Yet another shade of British Vomit Green”
    May 1964, Motor Sport Magazine, page 350

    During test drives in Silverstone, Hugh Dibley crashed with the 904-025 - the vehicle overturned. The exact date of the accident, assumend to have taken place the following week after the Goodwood race, in which the vehicle was seriously damaged, is not secured.

    Hugh Dibley, driver for S.M.A.R.T. , on his accident with 904-025:
    “While I was at Silverstone I had a go in Stirling’s Porsche 904. Wish I hadn’t: I put a wheel on the grass at Stowe and flew off into the bank and wrote the thing off….."
    https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...ch-hugh-dibley

    Valerie Pirie wrote on this:
    “Once again, Hugh would be sharing the drives with John Whitmore, but his first outing in the car was to test it at Silverstone. Unfortunately, this turned into a complete and utter disaster. I took the call in the office from Ed who told me that Hugh had had a shunt in the Porsche and that the car was more or less a write-off. I very quickly put him through to Stirling, who took the news as if it was the most natural thing in the world. That which was left of the car was despatched back to Germany….”

    Mr.Loubser commented as following:
    “….Given the fact that Stirling phoned me late on the Monday morning the testing session could have taken place earlier that morning. Whatever the date or time I suggested to Stirling that the car be brought back to the factory immediately for a rebuild……”

    The condition of the left overs of 904-025 on arrival at the factory can be seen in some pictures > #7. The roof is torn off, the front window missing, the left fender broken, doors broken and ripped off, all loose parts towed together on the trailer.
    But as an important issue, the race number decals from the 30th March Goodwood race event are still attached and clearly visable: front bonnet, middle position, towards front, side decal starting at the A-pillar.
    (compare images > #36)

    Due to the tight race schedule for the 1964 season, it was decided, not to repair the car, but to “hot swap” the remaining and usable parts of 025 and install these in an available free, non finished chassis, taken off the production line. Production papers do classify this cassis as 904-088, despite it was never really finished, but built with, and it is said, about 70% of the parts of 904-025.

    Andre Loubser on this:
    “….there was a car, partly built for an American client, chassis number 904.088. This car was grabbed and the best parts of 025 were built into it, ie engine, gearbox, etc. I was told at the time and always believed that 904.088 was retained as the new chassis number. This made sense as the car was two thirds complete. There would have been no point in transferring 025 to the new car besides which the chassis numbers were not relevant or of any consequence at the time.…during the rebuild I made absolutely sure that the engine was transferred to 904.088!.. to speed matters up, Ed and Piet, both competent race mechanics, arrived back at the factory the 20th to assist the Porsche technicians.”

    „…With the rebuild complete and the SMART 904 looking all smart with its new identity the damaged pieces lay in a corner and looked ready for the scrap heap. As far as I was concerned chassis number 904.025 had been removed from the record books and ceased to exist..“

    The restored 904-025-1, registered engine 587/3, #99024, with starting number 26 was seen next in the competitors paddock at Silverstone Circuit on Friday, 1st may 1964, practise day for the “British Racing Drivers' Club” BRDC event the following day.

    The race number decal on the front bonnet has now moved to the left side, ending clearly above the lights, the decal on the door has also moved toward the rear and is now cut by the vertical window line.

    The “16th Annual International Trophy”- Grand Touring took place the 2nd of may 1964, starting time 10.15 am, in rain, for a distance of 25 laps. 36 cars had entered the race, the practising session attended 36 cars. From the starting grid of 36 cars, 31 cars had been classified. Innes Ireland finished in 49:04.800, 9th overall and made a class win in the GT2.5.

    In the same race chassis 904-045, registered engine 587/3 # 99034, license plate YOU 4, had starting number 27, driven by Dickie Stoop, entrant J. R. Stoop, finished 16th overall and 2nd in class behind 904-025-1.

    Already two weeks later, there was a start for 904-025-1 in S.M.A.R.T liveries, again in “Borneo Grün”, on Monday, 18.05.1964, at the non championship Whitsun Goodwood race. The organizer had been the British Automobile Racing Club. Hugh Dibley did start in the SMART Brabham BT8, starting number 7. Innes Ireland had been pre-listed on the 904-025-1, starting number 23. 34 cars entered the 50 miles race. In the lists of the race results, Trevor Taylor is listed as the driver, and recorded to have finished 7th overall, 2nd in class. Innes Ireland could not sit behind the wheel in this race, as he had been participating on 17th of May at the 500km of Spa, racing a Shelby Cobra for the Shelby American Inc, finishing 15th overall.
    https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...-race-meetings


    On 31st May 1964, chassis 904-025-1, registered in the papers with engine 587/3, # 99 024, starting number 50, participated in the “ADAC 1000 km Rennen Nürburgring”. Organizer had been the "Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobilclub" (ADAC). The race started at 09:00 with a LeMans type start. The race had been entered by 119 cars, practicing session was down already to 96 cars. The race did start with 81 cars and only 46 had been classified. Number 50 finished in 7:13:55.100, 9th overall, and 4th in class, driven by Lloyd Casner and David Hobbs.

    With some hurry, chassis 904-025-1 was airlifted to Canada in order to participate on 06.06.1964 with starting number 3 at the Player's 200 for the Player's Cup in Mosport Park. The event had been organized by the Canadian Racing Drivers' Association. Hugh Dibley again was the driver. The two race set up started at 14:00 and 16:00. The distance had been 2 x 100 miles. Attendees is said to be 52.200. The field had been with 35 starters and 24 to be classified. A high profiled race with the race driving elite participating at this event. Bruce McLaren had been the overall winner in a Zerex Special Oldsmobile, finished the 80 laps of the two races in a total time of 2:07:46.700, covering 324.637 kms with an average speed of 148.880. Hugh Dibley in the S.M.A.R.T 904-025-1 qualified as 23rd with a time of 1:48.300 and finished the Race 1 as 16th , with 35 laps, in 1:03:39.900, being 3rd in class GT. The Race 2 he finished as 18th , with 36 laps, in 1:05:58.800, being 4th in class GT. In overall he finished in 2:09:38.700, 15th, with 71 laps, and 4th in class GT.

    For the 21./ 22.06.1964 the participation at Le Mans 24 hours was on the list of races. The S.M.A.R.T. team is said to have been registered with a 904 and Whitmore / Dibley / Casner as drivers, but they did not attend. But already in March 1964 the german news magazine “Der Spiegel” reported about the rejected entry, due to missing and necessary informations. > #33.

    There must have been some sort of disappointment from the SMART team with the 904, as it was neither raced the following month, nor else infos on entries or repairs are available.
    Also an engine change must have taken place, as the next known “event” is the official registration of 904-025 on 1st November 1964, license plate 7777 K, metallic silver blue, engine P99073, instead of 99024. The handwritten date, 30.11.64, lists Richard Wilkins as the legal owner for this salon body type private car. Richard Wilkins passed away on 10th February 1989 - https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/.../3739/data.pdf.

    Andre Loubser on this:
    “The car was sold to his old friend stock broker, Dick Wilkins, who collected racing sports cars and housed them in a centrally heated garage at his magnificent home in Bishop’s Stortford in Hertfordshire. Dick was a charming and generous man who co-sponsored cars with Rob Walker. He was also a great friend of the Queen Mother. The car was resprayed navy blue and the wheels silver. If I recall correctly it was in August that Ed, accompanied by a South African friend, drove the 904 to Dick’s house. I followed in Stirling’s Morris Mini Cooper, SM 773, with Downton conversion and lowered roof. It was quite a bomb! The three of us wheeled the 904 into the garage and at that point I waved goodbye to the car. I witnessed its birth, the rebuild and delivery to its new owner.”
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    In the AUTOSPORT Magazine from May 17th, 1968 there is in the adverts section, page 47, listed under "racing cars" the following ad for the 904.

    "EX-MOSS PORSCHE 904 STS.
    Approx 600 miles since rebuilt at Stuttgart.
    Certain club winner or fabulous road car.
    BP 1980 . Tel: Ripley (Surrey) 3123"

    The telephone number belongs to Connaugth, Continental Cars Ltd in Send, which is just around the corner of, strangly, quite a lot of important UK dealerships.

    Brian Long, “The book of Porsche 356" on “The British market”:
    “…….At the 1951 Earls Court Show, a green Porsche 356 coupé and a white cabriolet, were put on display via Karl Georg (Charles) Meisl of Connaught Cars shown alongside three French Salmsons.
    MotorSport noted: "The two Porsches on view, by the foresight of Connaught Engineering, have a high performance for their modest engine size, because of the very clean lines of the bodywork, in which the 'hotted-up' version of the 1.2-litre, flat-four Volkswagen engines lives in the boot.”

    Connaught later passed on the Porsche agency to Volkswagen dealer John Colborne-Baber, as the former's interest in racing cars took hold. The first car ordered by Colborne-Baber nearly didn't make it, as the ferry it was travelling on was involved in a mid-Channel accident. Before long, though, AFN Limited of Isleworth (the company behind Frazer-Nash) became the Porsche agent, with imports starting seriously in 1954. This is not to say that before 1954 Porsches were not sold in the UK; indeed, in mid-1953, Colborne Garage of Ripley was quoting £1971 for the one-litre coupé (including tax and duty), £2200 for the convertible with the same engine, £1842 for the 1.3-litre closed car, and £2070 for the 1.3-litre drophead; the one-litre Super was listed at 22147 with the equivalent convertible at £2378. These were high prices, considering that an XK120 retailed at around £1600 at this time, and the choice of even cheaper British sports cars was almost endless. It would explain why on two coupés and a cabriolet were sold in the UK in 1953 all with right-hand drive as it happens. When the Aldington brothers of AFN became involved, the first car was delivered to them late in 1953 and their first sale (a cabriolet) took place the following January. They then had to wait until May 1954 for the second sale. Fortunately, the press liked the Porsche and tended to judge it on merit rather than price.”

    The 904 went down the road from Send some 6 miles, as the next entry on the official registration papers are from 14.06.1968, new owner had been “Coombs&Sons Ltd”, Portsmouth Road, Guildford, Surrey. John Coomps was a former racing driver, head of a racing team, team owner and owner of a jaguar dealership.
    https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/a...ch-john-coombs

    Already a month later, the ownership was handed over to “The L.R. Supply Company Ltd”, Balcombe Sussex., Denis Reginald Barthel. It is said he exchanged the 904 quite fast for an E-Type from Mr.Coombs.

    The license plates changed from 7777K to FPE 5971 on 22.07.1968 and to SLR1 already on 24.July 1968.

    The next entry would be the Volkswagen & Porsche dealership “Parker&Parker Ltd”, Lonspool Stockbeck, Kendal - https://www.parkerandparkerlimited.co.uk/about, some 250 miles off from London. It received the license plate CPN 401B and started off for a second racing career. Up to now, the 904 chassis had raced three times, and engine had been swapped already in 1964 and thus unraced and sure with low milage.

    J.L. (Jim) Parker senior and his son C.J. (Colin) Parker did share the 904 in some regional hill climbs. Mr. Parker senior had participated before already in 1968 with a 911L in Class 6 - “Marque Y” Sports Cars 1,301 to 2,200 c.c - and did receive some price money with it. The sums at these days had been modest, 1st in class 10 BP, 2nd in Class 5 BP and 3rd in Class 3BP.

    20th April 1969, Spring National Harewood Hill climb,
    Class Ten - Grand Touring Cars l,501c.c. and over
    Start Number #71 C.J. Parker, finishing 1st run in 51.79, 2nd run in 56.78, overall in 9th position
    Start Number #78 J.L. Parker, finishing 1st run in 48.36, 2nd run in 48.99, overall in 4th position
    https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...g-National.pdf

    20th July 1969, Vintage and Novices, Harewood Hill climb,
    Class Ten - Grand Touring Cars l,501c.c. and over
    Start Number #81, J.L. Parker, 1st run in ?, 2nd run in ?, overall in ? position
    https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...nd-Novices.pdf

    10th August 1969, Harewood Hill climb,
    Class Ten - Grand Touring Cars l,501c.c. and over
    Start Number #97 C.J. Parker, finishing 1st run in 49.93, 2nd run in 49.10, overall in 7th position
    Start Number #106, J.L. Parker, finishing 1st run in 49.75, 2nd run in 48.38, overall in 6th position
    https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...-Hillclimb.pdf

    “One interesting family struggle today will be in the G.T. class where Jim Parker and his son Chris will be sharing the driving of father’s mouth-watering 904 Porsche. Jim has been taking part in our hill climbs for some time, always in a Porsche (which is not surprising as he sells the things in Kendal) and this year he graduated to the 904. At the beginning of the season Chris was allowed to drive and showed a proper sense of parental authority by being just that bit slower than father. However, at the recent “ Novices’ " event where daddy could not take part, son celebrated by going faster and faster until he notched up f.t.d. so this afternoon battle should really be joined.“ https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...-Midsummer.pdf

    28th September 1969, Scarborough Hill climb
    Class Ten - Grand Touring Cars l,301c.c. and over
    Start Number #74 C.J. Parker, finishing 1st run in 52.34, 2nd run in 52.14, overall in 9th position
    Start Number #75, J.L. Parker, finishing 1st run in 50.42, 2nd run in 50.11, overall in 4th position
    https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...-Hillclimb.pdf

    17th May 1970
    Class 15. — Sports/Racing Cars 1,601 c.c. and over
    Start Number #116, Jim. Parker, 1st run in ?, 2nd run in ?, overall in ? position
    https://harewoodhillhistory.co.uk/wp...-Hillclimb.pdf

    There are further race entries, to which unfortunately up to now are no proofs available:

    - 6th Januay1969: Leighton Hall Hill climb; #? (Jim Parker) no results known
    - 31st May 1969, Barbon Manor Hill climb, Start Number #32 (Jim Parker) no results known
    - 30th May 1970, Barbon Manor Hill climb, #? (Jim Parker), no results known


    Ian Parker, the 2nd son of Mr. J.L. Parker, now principal of the oldest surviving UK Porsche dealer, Porsche Center South Lakes, remembers the car very well, as he wrote on 1st April 2022:
    „My dad bought the car from Malaya Garage of Billingshurst, who are no longer in business. The car was painted in the dark blue colour of the Rob Walker team and he had the car painted in a silver blue metallic colour. The car had a set of Minilite wheels and I think we also had the original factory wheels. It also had the large single pipe competition exhaust, as well as the road exhaust. My dad entered the car in various hill climbs around the North of England and my older brother Colin also drove the car in some of those climbs. I was too young to drive the car, but covered many happy miles in the passenger seat.

    He put the car on the market in the early 70’s and I remember, that there was no interest at all from the UK market at the time. The car was sold to someone in Holland but I have no idea of their name or address.”

    Malaya Garage was a Porsche dealer up to 1992, when they lost the Porsche franchise to Rivervale in Brighton. The site in Billingshurst is now a supermarket. It is said, that Derek Bell and John Watson used to get their road Porsches serviced there.

    In the german magazine Auto, Motor & Sport magazine #2 from 16th January 1971 the above mentioned advert for the 904 was published:
    “Porsche 904 in excellent condition, low mileage, no races since 1964. more information and photos from parker and parker ltd. Porsche dealer, Longpool, Kendal, Westmoreland, UK Tel Nr. Kendal 243 31”

    Wolter Gratama, who had an official Porsche dealership in Haarlem, Overveen, Zijlweg, Netherlands, in the time from 1968 to 1975 had been the next custodian for 904-025 for further adventures on the continent.
    “"By the way, do you know that as a Porsche dealer I bought the 904 from Stirling Moss? The one with the four-cylinder with king axles, that cost something like 22.000 guilders. Old racing cars were worth little then, now that car would yield at least a hundred times more...." http://autosport.nl/klasse/nieuws/34...wolter-gratama.

    22K guilders from 1971 equal today approximately 44k €.

    Mr. Gratama sold the car to Mr. Schneider in Koblenz. Mr Schneider sold the 904 to Mr. Armin Hardy, who had been an excecutive employee at the Porsche Dealer Löhr&Becker in Koblenz. https://loehrgruppe.de/unternehmen/historie, bought he 904 from him. This took place in the 80ies.

    KW (Klassische Automobile GmbH & Co. KG) founded by Klaus Werner more than 40 years ago in Wuppertal, specialized in dealing with old racing cars, appears in the list and is said to have then sold the car to Mr. Dieter Streve-Mülhens in Mühlheim. The Mülhens family had been producing "eau de cologne" in Cologne since the beginning of the 19th century. Some remained parts are now owned by Procter&Gamble. The 904 changed hands again, as it is assumed that Mr. Feustel from Raceline had done some work on the 904. 904-025-1 is at the present time at an Austrian collector family and regularly race across the European theater.


    But what happened with the damaged body and parts of the 904-025, that had remained at the factory?

    According to the given informations, the parts had been sold by the SMART chief mechanic Ed Rossler to the Porsche engineer Theo Geiger, who was working also on the 904 project. A “short sales agreement”, being dated 21.04.1964, between Ed Rossler and Mr Geiger is said to be existing. Mr. Loubser had seen this in person first only in 2016.

    „In January 2016, German journalist an Auto Union and Porsche expert, Martin Schröder, visited Cape Town in search of a C-Type Auto Union that he claimed was left behind in January 1937 after the South African Grand Prix at East London and the Grosvenor Grand Prix in Cape Town. The cars were driven by Bernd Rosemeyer and Ernst von Delius. I said impossible, but that I would do research. That’s a story in itself that I’ll forward you. In the end it proved that the idea was completely incorrect, but over dinner one night we got talking about Porsche and the SMART 904 was mentioned. Back home in Germany Martin forwarded me a copy of the short sales agreement between Ed Rossler and Theo Geiger. It was agreed that the sale price was DM250. I was amazed that Martin was in possession of the document but he had met Theo Geiger who gave it to him“

    Mr. Geiger wanted to restore the 904 for himself. Remaining had been the original, damaged frame and the original damaged body, all in first paint. From 1965 onwards, the former Porsche technician began to buy original "old parts" for the 904, either from the factory repair department, or replacement parts department and thus acquired an impressive parts collection.

    Since such projects seemed no longer possible without financial and special technical sup-port, Mr. Geiger sold the remains and parts in 2010 to Freisinger Motorsport, who did an amazing job with a complete reconstruction and restoration.

    The video of the „garage find“ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyjXjYiUVQw does show the condition of the car as by 2010, with all the parts, Mr. Freisinger himself and Mr. Geiger.

    904-025 now owned by a German enthusiast and is driven regularly at Oldtimer race events through out the European continent. It is meticulously prepared for the races by Mario Linke and the Methusalem team located on Cologne.

    Marco Marinello wrote in January 2011 In the Octane magazine:
    “But one important fact is not mentioned: after 904-025 was crashed and returned to the factory, all mechanical components were removed and installed in another 904 that was still under construction. This car was chassis number - or, more precisely, production number - 088. The stamped steel chassis number plate and the manufacturer ID plate were removed from 025 and reinstalled onto production number 088. Production number 088 thus became 904-025 and 'lived happily ever after', SO to speak. So what is the status today of the crashed 025 ? Well, it is a factory built 904, no question, but in my opinion it lost its legitimate status as 025, when the factory removed the welded-in chassis plate and the riveted-on ID tag. The car became a nameless orphan.”


    more infos and reediting arriving with new infos
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    now all new and raced again
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    63 650 gray silver bikinitub triumph thunderbird
    70 650 astralred silver triumph bonneville
    65 912 slate gray "erwin"
    73 914 ravennagreen "ferdl"
    erwin_loves_polo

  4. #4
    A very nice restoration.

    ---Adam
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  5. #5
    Senior Member haul's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
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    bavaria
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    59 750 pre unit triton
    63 650 gray silver bikinitub triumph thunderbird
    70 650 astralred silver triumph bonneville
    65 912 slate gray "erwin"
    73 914 ravennagreen "ferdl"
    erwin_loves_polo

  6. #6
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    West Sussex and The Scottish Borders
    Posts
    298
    Nice thread

  7. #7
    Senior Member haul's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jul 2014
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    bavaria
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    video of the "garage find"
    and additional pictures of 904-025 after the accident and delivery and else..

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyjXjYiUVQw

    enjoy
    Last edited by haul; 12-07-2019 at 12:01 PM.
    59 750 pre unit triton
    63 650 gray silver bikinitub triumph thunderbird
    70 650 astralred silver triumph bonneville
    65 912 slate gray "erwin"
    73 914 ravennagreen "ferdl"
    erwin_loves_polo

  8. #8
    Senior Member
    Join Date
    Jan 2003
    Location
    West Sussex and The Scottish Borders
    Posts
    298
    I assume the handshake pic is at the Werks? Have they really gone over to collect it wth what looks like a Mini Countryman? Wow!

  9. #9
    Very nice, thank you Haul!

    Erich
    Early 911S Registry #263

  10. #10
    Looks like a Renault color. Sometimes substituted for Moto Guzzi Legano Verde.
    Early S Registry #235
    rgruppe #111

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