Another Sleuthing Score: This Castrol Perkins Commodore has led quite an interesting life ...
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6:00 AM Sat 25 February, 2012
Source: BigPond Sport
TODAY in our latest Saturday Sleuthing story we’re responding to an email from Robert Barnett, who asked about Russell Ingall’s 1998 Castrol Commodore from the Gold Coast Indy race.
Robert remembers that it was heavily damaged in a crash that weekend.
“I was there and remember after having a run-in with Paul Romano on the main straight he (Russell) wiped out at the first chicane and the race red flagged,” he wrote.
“Russell walked off after and left the car sitting on the track and that was the last time I saw it. I’d love to know what happened to it.”
Certainly that Gold Coast accident was a big hit, but this car has plenty of other claims to fame in V8 Supercar history, so it’s best to rewind to the start of the chassis’ life.
This car - PE 029 - was built new as a VR Commodore in 1996 by Perkins Engineering and was debuted by Larry Perkins in the opening round at Eastern Creek under lights on the short circuit.
He drove it for the Australian Touring Car Championship portion of the season and then at the Sandown 500 with Russell Ingall.
But frustrated at a parity change to the front spoiler of the VR Commodore in the wake of the HRT domination of the season to that point, Perkins went ‘back to the future’ and re-skinned this car as a VP for Bathurst.
Ingall spun the car and left it bunkered at Hell Corner, but the duo still finished in the top 10 before Perkins drove the car in the end of year races in New Zealand.
It was converted back to VS specification for 1997 and driven by Perkins early in the year at Albert Park, Calder and Phillip Island before he ran a new car at Sandown.
Ingall then took this car over and drove it for the remainder of the ATCC, finishing third to Glenn Seton and John Bowe.
It became #11 again for the Sandown 500 and Perkins/Ingall finished second in it.
Ingall retained it for the early part of 1998 and drove it for the majority of the ATCC before stepping into the new VT for the final two rounds. So this car reverted to Perkins for the last few events.
It was used by Dugal McDougall and Jason Wylie at the Sandown 500 - run by Perkins - and we seem to remember that McDougall had bought this car to be run from the Perkins workshop in 1999.
But those plans went out the window and an alternative chassis was required (but that is another story for another day …) after the Gold Coast event in 1998 – the same event Robert emailed us about – when Ingall was involved in a multi-car accident at a chicane that severely damaged the car.
The team was using the older VS at Indy to protect its newer VT for Bathurst – a smart move in the end!
The shell was eventually repaired and purchased by Development Series driver Tim Rowse, who put running gear from his ex-Pro Duct VN/VP into it and raced it in what was then known as the Konica Series between 2001 and 2003.
He sold it around the 2007/2008 mark to Melbourne-based David Seckold, who the V8 Sleuth caught up with this week.
He retains the car – and it’s for sale too!
“I bought it from Tim in 2007, or maybe 2008 perhaps it was,” he says.
“Thinking about it now makes you realise how time flies because I haven’t drive it for two years.
“Since I’ve had it I’ve changed it back to Harrop VS brakes – the six-pot calipers on the front. It had the smaller four spot that the VL and VPs ran. It’s got all new Harrop brakes, rotors and hats. They were one of the main things missing from the car.
“It’s got a Larry air box, front scoop and I changed the exhaust from the mock up one it had. It’s all back to as close as I can to original. Neil Burns rebuilt the motor, Andrew Newton rebuilt the diff and gearbox. Les Small did all the shocks.
“I haven’t painted the car yet, it’s still in the blue and white that Tim raced it in. But everything has been done to the car except paint it and do some minor panel work.
“I’ve done club days with the HSV Owners Club at Phillip Island, Winton, Sandown and Calder and quite a few drive days too.”
Seckold says he’s open to selling the car too – and is keen to revert the car to the #8 Ingall Castrol livery it carried when the Enforcer was busy fighting for the title in 1997 and 1998.
“I’m still keen to move it on. I’ve got too many other things going on so it’s probably better for someone else to get some use out of it.”
If you like the Saturday Sleuthing columns, then you are going to love our V8 Sleuth’s new website totally dedicated to V8 Supercar chassis history.
It goes live this Wednesday to coincide with the Clipsal 500 race week – www.v8sleuth.com.au - you can subscribe and click like crazy as it is updated as the year goes on.
And if you have some cars you’d like us to feature here on Saturday Sleuthing, email ask@v8supercars.com.au
