HOME | DD

Description
This information & photo is from: Ultimatecarpage.com

Country of origin:Great Britain

Produced from:1982 - 1984

Numbers built:4

Author:Wouter Melissen

Last updated:August 05, 2019
Strictly speaking not an Aston Martin, the Nimrod sports racer was the brainchild of British car dealer and gentleman racer Robin Hamilton. He had raced a V8 Vantage based Group 5 car during the late 1970s and was interested in stepping up to the prototype ranks with a bespoke, Aston Martin powered machine. He commissioned Lola's Eric Broadley to design the car and established Nimrod Racing Automobiles to build it.

Broadley was not immediately sold on the idea as his previous experience with the Aston Martin V8, in the back of the 1967 Lola T70, was a bitterly disappointing one. Hamilton did manage to persuade the Lola founder, who set about create an aluminium monocoque that, even though only a handful of parts were interchangeable, was an evolution of the T70 raced a decade earlier. During the early testing a T70 derived body was used and the final design did feature an identical windscreen.

Known internally as the T385, the rolling chassis created by Broadley and Lola combined a sheet aluminium monocoque with a tubular spaceframe to house the mid-mounted engine and rear suspension. The V8 used was based on the Aston Martin production engine, which was developed for racing by longtime partner Tickford. The all-aluminium and fuel-injected unit produced around 520 bhp. This was mated to Hewland's very sturdy VG five-speed gearbox.

Initially developed for use in the GTP class in North America, the Nimrod featured a flat bottom design. The curvaceous bodywork used showed similarities to the open Lola sports racers built during the previous years. The long tail featured a full width rear wing. Built and tested during the 1981 season, the first GTP-specification Nimrod was ultimately not raced. Instead, Hamilton focused his attention on the new-for-1982 Group C class.

Among the backers of the project were Victor Gauntlett, who was the chairman of Pace Petroleum and owned 50% of the Aston Martin shares, and American enthusiast Peter Livanos. In Aston Martin enthusiast and president of the owners club, Viscount Downe, Hamilton also found a customer for at least one Nimrod. Run with Pace Petroleum backing, Hamilton intended to field a two-car team in 1982, although the second car was not run until the start of 1983 season. Viscount Downe, with the help of Ray Mallock, fielded an additional car in Bovis colours.

The two Nimrods debuted at the Silverstone 6 Hours, where they proved considerably overweight. A sixth place finish for the Downe car disguised the inherent issues with the car. Both cars then lined up for Le Mans, where Ray Mallock, Mike Salmon and Simon Phillips placed seventh after starting 23rd. The Nimrods made further appearances during the 1982 season at Spa Francorchamps and Silverstone where the Downe car finished eleventh and ninth respectively. In three outings, the 'works' car never reached the finish.

For the 1983 season, the two Nimrod Racing cars were shipped to North America in search of dollars in the lucrative IMSA championship. A fifth place finish in the Sebring 12 Hours was the best result of the two-car effort. Hamilton eventually ran out of money and both cars were sold to privateers and remained in North America. Nimrod's honours were defended in Europe by the Viscount Downe car, which had been developed considerably over the winter by Mallock. The best World Championship result was a seventh at Silverstone, while an engine issue ended the charge early at Le Mans.

A fifth car appeared in 1984, and this was shortly thereafter added to the Viscount Downe stable for a two-car effort. This had a disastrous end at Le Mans where one car crashed heavily, and the second could not avoid the debris and also crashed. In the massive crash driver John Sheldon was injured while one marshal was killed and a second seriously injured. In private hands, one of the two two ex-Nimrod Racing cars continued to be campaigned in North America.

Before the Nimrod operation folded, five complete cars had been built; the prototype and the four cars that were actually raced. One of the Viscount Downe cars was completely destroyed at Le Mans in 1984 but was rebuilt with a spare chassis and now resides in the Aston Martin Heritage museum. A sixth, all carbon-fibre chassis was also built but this was never turned into a complete car.

Description
This information & photo is from: Ultimatecarpage.com

Country of origin:Great Britain

Produced from:1982 - 1984

Numbers built:4

Author:Wouter Melissen

Last updated:August 05, 2019
Strictly speaking not an Aston Martin, the Nimrod sports racer was the brainchild of British car dealer and gentleman racer Robin Hamilton. He had raced a V8 Vantage based Group 5 car during the late 1970s and was interested in stepping up to the prototype ranks with a bespoke, Aston Martin powered machine. He commissioned Lola's Eric Broadley to design the car and established Nimrod Racing Automobiles to build it.

Broadley was not immediately sold on the idea as his previous experience with the Aston Martin V8, in the back of the 1967 Lola T70, was a bitterly disappointing one. Hamilton did manage to persuade the Lola founder, who set about create an aluminium monocoque that, even though only a handful of parts were interchangeable, was an evolution of the T70 raced a decade earlier. During the early testing a T70 derived body was used and the final design did feature an identical windscreen.

Known internally as the T385, the rolling chassis created by Broadley and Lola combined a sheet aluminium monocoque with a tubular spaceframe to house the mid-mounted engine and rear suspension. The V8 used was based on the Aston Martin production engine, which was developed for racing by longtime partner Tickford. The all-aluminium and fuel-injected unit produced around 520 bhp. This was mated to Hewland's very sturdy VG five-speed gearbox.

Initially developed for use in the GTP class in North America, the Nimrod featured a flat bottom design. The curvaceous bodywork used showed similarities to the open Lola sports racers built during the previous years. The long tail featured a full width rear wing. Built and tested during the 1981 season, the first GTP-specification Nimrod was ultimately not raced. Instead, Hamilton focused his attention on the new-for-1982 Group C class.

Among the backers of the project were Victor Gauntlett, who was the chairman of Pace Petroleum and owned 50% of the Aston Martin shares, and American enthusiast Peter Livanos. In Aston Martin enthusiast and president of the owners club, Viscount Downe, Hamilton also found a customer for at least one Nimrod. Run with Pace Petroleum backing, Hamilton intended to field a two-car team in 1982, although the second car was not run until the start of 1983 season. Viscount Downe, with the help of Ray Mallock, fielded an additional car in Bovis colours.

The two Nimrods debuted at the Silverstone 6 Hours, where they proved considerably overweight. A sixth place finish for the Downe car disguised the inherent issues with the car. Both cars then lined up for Le Mans, where Ray Mallock, Mike Salmon and Simon Phillips placed seventh after starting 23rd. The Nimrods made further appearances during the 1982 season at Spa Francorchamps and Silverstone where the Downe car finished eleventh and ninth respectively. In three outings, the 'works' car never reached the finish.

For the 1983 season, the two Nimrod Racing cars were shipped to North America in search of dollars in the lucrative IMSA championship. A fifth place finish in the Sebring 12 Hours was the best result of the two-car effort. Hamilton eventually ran out of money and both cars were sold to privateers and remained in North America. Nimrod's honours were defended in Europe by the Viscount Downe car, which had been developed considerably over the winter by Mallock. The best World Championship result was a seventh at Silverstone, while an engine issue ended the charge early at Le Mans.

A fifth car appeared in 1984, and this was shortly thereafter added to the Viscount Downe stable for a two-car effort. This had a disastrous end at Le Mans where one car crashed heavily, and the second could not avoid the debris and also crashed. In the massive crash driver John Sheldon was injured while one marshal was killed and a second seriously injured. In private hands, one of the two two ex-Nimrod Racing cars continued to be campaigned in North America.

Before the Nimrod operation folded, five complete cars had been built; the prototype and the four cars that were actually raced. One of the Viscount Downe cars was completely destroyed at Le Mans in 1984 but was rebuilt with a spare chassis and now resides in the Aston Martin Heritage museum. A sixth, all carbon-fibre chassis was also built but this was never turned into a complete car.