Images via William i’Anson
This mighty 1965 Lola T70 Spyder Mk1 won its debut race, the 1965 Monterey Grand Prix at Laguna Seca, has found great success in historics and is up for sale.
SL70/13 was supplied new to John Mecom Racing in Texas early in 1965 for use as a spare chassis. It was completed in October for the US Professional Fall Series, in which it would be driven by Walt Hansgen.
The team used it as a development car and it featured a shorter wheelbase, anti-dive rear suspension and long nose frame designed by Mecom to fit a longer and flatter nose instead of the standard split scuttle under the windscreen. Under the hood was a 4.7-litre Ford V8.
The car debuted in the Monterey Grand Prix in October, 1965. Walt Hansgen drove it to victory in both heats and on aggregate in the Laguna Seca 200 Miles.
Its next outing, the Riverside 200 Miles at the LA Times Grand Prix, would be less successful. A strong qualifying performance and early lead turned into a premature exit when water found in the engine oil led to technical troubles. The Stardust Grand Prix in Las Vegas was even more trouble, with Hansgen having an off and crashing the car.
Following that stack, the engine from SL70/13 was put in one of the team’s spare cars, SL70/1A, in which Jackie Stewart had blown a motor back at Riverside. Hansgen would drive that combination to a win in qualifying and 2nd in the Grand Prix.
Sl70/13 was then put into storage without a motor, and that’s where it stayed until 1966, when Mecom Racing was shut down. The car was sold to Chuck Haines, whose race shop rebuilt and restored it. It would then be sold to Ian Webb in the UK, moving to Nigel Hulme in 1980.
Hulme sold it to Colin Parry Williams, who kept it for over two decades, racing in International Supersports throughout his ownership. In 1997 he had the car restored by Clive Robinson Engineering, fitting it with a Chevrolet V8.
2003 saw the car go to Rick Lloyd, who began looking into its back story, even reaching out to John Mecom Jr. to confirm its authenticity. Finally, in 2006, it made its way to its current owner who treated it to another full rebuild in order to take it racing.
The rebuild was completed in 2008, and the car was accepted into the Goodwood Revival’s Whitsun Trophy. Simon Hadfield was given the honour of driving, and he did the car proud, claiming pole position and going on to take the race win.
SL70/13 has been raced throughout Europe, with significant effort made to ensure that it’s maintained in tip top racing condition. Commensurate with this ethos, it was entrusted to Simon Hadfield Motorsport in 2015 for another rebuild, which included new lightweight body work, a full rebuild of the monocoque and gearbox, crack testing and engine check up.
It returned to the track at the 75th Goodwood Members’ Meeting early this year, this time with Simon Hadfield driving in the Surtees Trophy. Hadfield drove it to pole position, and went on to add another win to its resume.
This hard working race car is in competitive racing condition and will be sold with a comprehensive history file, 2015 FIA HTPs and spares package. It’s up for sale at William i’Anson and you can enjoy its full story and find all the details at their official website here.
Images via William i’Anson
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