WSM Cars History Part 2

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The History - Part 2

For Sale	Cars, motorhomes, wheels, windscreens and more . .
Home Page	Website front page . .
Race News	Updates on WSM's in competition in the current year plus archives . .
Past Events	Pictorial file of events, shows and gatherings with WSM's involved . .
The History	The story from conception of WSM in 1961 to present day . .
In Competition	Pictorial file in two parts of WSM's in action from 1962 to 2008 . .
News	New contacts, forthcoming events plus archives . .
Bentley to Sprite	Pictorial file on almost everything bar WSM's that DW-S drove . .
The People A - L	WSM family, racers, mechanics, painters, owners, salesmen A - L . .
The People M - Z	WSM family, racers, mechanics, painters, owners, salesmen M - Z . .

The Quest Begins . .

In 1982, AW-S was in touch with Rod Brisby in Scotland who owned WSM 202 and intended full restoration. The standard Sprite was first registered to Alexander Engineering in 1961 and was bought by Mike Lewis in 1962, and when the WSM designs were revealed, Mike asked Douglas to apply the treatment to his own car. After Mike raced the car successfully through 1963, WSM 202 passed to Robin Pinkerton and Robbie Gordon before surfacing again when an appeal for information concerning the car in

'Practical & Classic', edited by Rod's brother Michael Brisby, was answered by AW-S. WSM 301 also needed a new front, and Rod sent his bonnet over on a fishing boat to the Isle of Man so that a new mould could be taken. As a deep sea diver, Rods circumstances changed

often and he realised in November 2000 that he could not dedicate the time to the WSM and as had been previously agreed, offered the car to AW-S. It was clear that as Mike Lewis had run so successfully in 1963 with WSM 202, he should be afforded the chance to re-acquire the car, but he turned down the opportunity. Rod then came into contact with Paul Woolmer in December through his connection with brother Michael and by June 2001 Paul had completed a sympathetic restoration which proved to be a highlight of subsequent events, and included an invitation to the Goodwood Revival in 2003. Peter Jackson, who owned and raced WSM's and was the Delta Garages manager in the early 1960's, said

while viewing the car in 2001

that he last saw in 1963 . . "Paint technology etc has moved on and what you see here is probably better than the finished article in 1963 . . " and proof is in the pictures of the 88 car (left) at Thruxton in 2002. In 2004 the car changed hands and Jim Lowry, organiser of the Equipe GTS race series, campaigned WSM 202 in historic events, pictured right at Donington, and Brands Hatch and Zandvoort in 2005, and in the Goodwood Revival Fordwater Trophy. In March 2007, WSM 202 passed to MGB racer John Pearson who took delivery of his first WSM after having admired the design for some time.

The Quarry (1) - A Survivor . .

The WSM MG1100 was intended to equip four adults with 30mpg economy and 100mph performance. Retaining the complete MG interior and

completed in 1965 by Peels Coachworks, the advent of the 70mph speed limit discouraged Douglas from making further examples. The car proved a capable family runabout and tow car for other WSM's, and even competed at Silverstone and Woburn in Mike Lewis's hands in 1966. It was not a favourite with all the family however, as the hydrolastic suspension turned some back seat passengers green. Pictured left with Alec and Fred at Peel Coachworks in 1965 with WSM 301 on the trailer, nothing further was heard of the car, although reportedly seen on a scrap heap in the 1980's - until

2001 when Trevor Jones, who drove the WSM MGB while in Lenham hands in the 1970's, confirmed the MG1100 was in original condition at a Devon address.

The Quarry (2) and Recovery . .

The WSM MGB was originally Peter Pollard's 1963 roadster registered 113 DJB which was raced in marque sportscar events. Subsequent owner Robbie Gordon had Newtune of Cambridge prepare the car with a Don Moore cylinder head, and Peter Jackson, Roddy Harvey-Bailey and David Wainsborough raced it extensively until David rolled at the 1966 Mallory Boxing Day meeting. Robbie completed a deal with Mike Lewis for the car, and Mike handed it over to Douglas for a WSM design. The resultant aluminium hatchback went on to many class and race awards in Mike's hands. 'Safety Fast' magazine described a 1967 race at Silverstone as ". . the MGB race of the year .. ." when an epic battle with Bill Nicholson's MGB saw the class lap record lowered twice and the WSM returned to the pits with back brakes virtually on fire. Reckoned to have 15bhp less, the lightweight and aerodynamic WSM design made up for the lack of grunt, and Bill admitted that with equal horsepower the car would be unbeatable. Used as family transport at the time, it was in most cases driven to and from the circuits with spares and tyres filling the hatchback.

The car was sold to Ben Grubb in 1968, and forthcoming marriage persuaded him to part-exchange it back to Delta Garage in 1969 for a BMW2002Ti. Delta Sales manager Robin Pinkerton used the WSM mainly as a road car, and averaged nearly 40mpg on a holiday to Spain. In 1972, Peter Filby ran the car briefly, then Chris Jenkins in 1973. By 1975 Barry Sidery-Smith had put his Le Mans engine in for the Brighton Speed Trials with wife Pam, and shared the car with friend Denis Whistlecroft, who had an unfortunate scrap with the Silverstone armco in November 1976. The well known Lenham Motor Company advertised the car for sale, and subsequent owner Tony Bianchi changed the colour from white to red and the registration to 270 RBM. He used the car in sprints and races before Josie Tolhurst raced the car at Brands in 1981, and Amanda Langton raced under the HSCC banner from 1983 until 1985, when the Langton family completed a deal with the Autotron museum in Holland to display the car. When it returned to the UK in 1996, AW-S went to the South of England to see the car " just for old times sake . ." and came away with his second WSM. The subsequent strip down and restoration took away forty plus pounds of filler, and the decision was taken to retain the colour as the car had been red for almost 20 years, although the darker 'Tartan' shade as on WSM 202. The car has since appeared at WSM gatherings at Rockingham and Wyboston, and raced with the 'Equipe' GTS series at Snetterton, Montlhery, Silverstone, Oulton Park, Donington, Dijon and Brands Hatch. Road registered, it is occasionally driven to and from events as in the 1960's, and featured at the Goodwood Revival in 2003 when invited with four WSM's to race in the Fordwater Trophy race. At Mallory on October 2nd 2005, the WSM MGB was alongside the MGB of Tony and Pia Bianchi in the Top Hat series season finale, and in 2006, a second Revival entry saw the car with five other WSM's on the grid in a fitting tribute to the spectating designer. The car made a second appearance at the MGCC Silverstone meeting in June 2007, in company with WSM 301, and remains in family ownership.

The Quarry (3) and Find . .

Malcolm Bridgeland was a customer of the Healey Centre in 1965 and knew Jim McManus from previous visits. Malcolm raced a Healey 3000 but had a

major shunt into the Silverstone pit lane wall during a race. Unharmed but unpopular at having caused wife Bennie to come to grief in her rush to make sure Malcolm was unhurt, he brought the car to Douglas with a view to applying a WSM design. The resulting car is considered by many to be the ultimate WSM and certainly had performance to match. The lightweight and aerodynamic aluminium body,

coupled with taller tyre profiles allowed by the new bodyshell, gave the car 140mph capability and excellent handling due to the perfect

50/50 weight distribution. Malcolm recalled that the nose of the car was repainted often as other drivers seemed unable to gauge the length of the WSM bonnet. The car disappeared off the radar after Malcolms ownership, but in 1998, while AW-S sat in line for the Manx Classic promenade sprint in September, spectator John Maye enquired if he would like to know where the WSM 3000 was ? It transpired that John had indeed seen the car about four years earlier and a date was set to revisit

the area and pinpoint the location. Unfortunately, although John remembered it was West Gloucestershire, there was not a sniff of a WSM after a Sunday's meandering. Newspaper advertisements and postmen bribes brought no luck for years but the worldwide web did - Healey enthusiast David Moore had seen WSM pictures on the www and contacted AW-S in August 2003 with details that with help from Steve Suckling led directly to the car - and in October 2003 Douglas stood by the WSM 3000 for the first time in over 37 years. The current owner bought the car in the late 1960's and

competed in stage rallying before changing circumstances caused the car to be laid up. As other projects took precedence, the WSM remains stored in shelter amongst more planned restorations.

The Quarry (4) and Restoration . .

This 1959 Jaguar XK150S belonged to Douglas Hull, a friend and fellow motor trader in 1967. Douglas needed a car capable of carrying car panels and the everyday paraphanalia associated with running the business, and to act as tow car for his vintage ERA racer. Douglas so enjoyed his XK150S that he asked Douglas W-S to pen an estate design for the car that Peels could fashion. The end product more than earned its keep, and on a trip to the Isle of Man in 1969 towing Patrick Lindsay's ERA for the Tholt Y Will hill climb event, managed a faster time in the wet than the racing car it had trailered to the Island. Peter Hull, younger brother to Douglas, also raced the car in VSCC events at Silverstone, but after Douglas Hull's death in 1977, subsequent owners Bernard Harding, Rodney Tolhurst (who later owned the WSM MGB with wife Josie), and Graham Radcliffe used it infrequently. AW-S went to London to see the car, but could not persuade Graham to sell at that time. Martin Staverman of M Restorations rescued the car in 1996 and sold it to Peter Janssen in 1997, who with friend Jacco Mol finished an extensive restoration in 2003. The car was then sold to Dealer Aaldering in Brummen (Netherlands), and sold again the same year to a Chinese lady - Judy A. Reyes - who lived in Singapore and worked in Hong Kong. The car was stationed in Germany and Judy took part in some European meetings. Eugen W Schmid bought the car in 2005, pictured below, and restored the tow bracket to its rightful place. It is in regular use around his home near Zurich, Switzerland and at many historic gatherings.

A detailed history from shooting-brake.com.

The Quarry (5) and Recovery . .

In 1998, information that a WSM in Connecticut, USA was being raced in Sports Car Club of America events prompted further investigation, and AW-S was put in touch with Walter Donaghy and Kent Bain who owned and raced WSM 207 which had been exported to New York in May 1963. When a re-union was suggested to celebrate the designers 80th birthday in 2001, Walter immediately voiced their approval and intent for the car to join 46 BXN, WSM MGB, WSM 301 and WSM 202 in England for the event. That the car did not leave dockside New York is a long story but was perhaps a factor in Walter later offering the car for sale. AW-S knew that Rae Davis of Motobuild in London would be interested in a WSM through his preparation of Leo Kusters' WSM 210 in 1995, so helped broker a deal that saw 677 EGJ driven off a container in the UK in May 2003. A week later, Rae raced the car at Donington and in September 2003 the car was on the Fordwater grid at the Goodwood Revival event with three more WSM entries. Rae is quoted as saying that he likes the WSM so much that it will stay with him for good - quite an admission from a man with as much experience as Rae in racing and trading sports cars. Picture left middle shows DW-S with Rae Davis (left) and James Crook (right) in June 2003 with WSM 207 in London, and bottom left, Top Hat regular Ivor Miller ready for his first race in a WSM at the 2006 Goodwood Revival.

WSM 203 . .

This WSM was exported to San Francisco in 1963 for Dr Clinton Chichester, and came to our attention again in 1997 when a request for information regarding WSM 203 was printed in Classic & Sportscar on behalf of Hayes Harris in the USA, to whom the late Dr Chichester's son had entrusted the sale. The car was then sold to Takayuki Hata and Ecosse Cars of Tokyo who restored the car before selling to Masakazu Yahagi, also of Tokyo. He races the WSM in historic events and hopes to visit the UK with the car.

A Birthday Surprise . .

The extraordinary revival of interest in WSM's continued and at Rockingham in 2001, an 80th birthday surprise for Douglas saw the Sebring Sprite 46 BXN, WSM MGB, WSM 202 and WSM 301 compete in the MGCC event and establish a record number of cars on the same grid - a record which was not to last very long. There were thirty five guests who were connected with WSM at Delta Garage or owned WSM's in the 1960's, some of whom Douglas had not seen for thirty years or more. The guests included - Malcolm Bridgeland, Roy Fuertado, Owen Gough, Ben Grubb, Ivor Gurney, Mick Hancock, Geoff Hill, Peter Jackson , Josie Jefferson, Jim and Peggy McManus, Robin and Mardi Pinkerton , Barry Sidery-Smith and Eddie Wright. A suite in the brand new Rockingham grandstand facility was the venue for lunch and interviews, and the event was captured with a video production, 'Designs On 80', which recorded the people and cars throughout the week-end. Isle of Man resident and reknowned commentator Neville Hay kindly contributed his time and unmistakeable voice to the video.

A Gathering . .

The Healey 50th celebrations in 2002 at Thruxton saw WSM 202 and WSM 301 displayed in the marquee for special cars, and both contested the Healey 50th celebration race. As at Rockingham the year before, Douglas had the opportunity to meet friends and colleagues from yesteryear, and Healey exponents Paddy Hopkirk, Peter Riley, Clive Baker, Willie Cave, Jim McManus and Marcus Chambers were present. The publication of Bill Emerson's fabulous and comprehensive 'Healey' book was well received, and featured several pages on WSM's. Alongside cars brought from all over the world for the event, AW-S and Paul Woolmer raced WSM 301 and WSM 202 in the Sprite race, and shared WSM 301 in the last race of the day, a two-driver enduro flagged away in a torrential downpour.

Another Recovery . .

WSM 210 was built in 1963 and exported to Florida in September 1964. It returned to Europe in the 1980's and Leo Kusters from Holland acquired the car in 1993. His involvement in historic racing lead him to bring the car to the Motobuild team in London who restored the car in readiness for entry in the Coys Historic Festival at Silverstone in 1995, and hence the telephone call from Tom Coulthard to the Isle of Man. In summer 2003, Leo contacted AW-S to say that his car was for sale. Leo's young son was heavily involved in karting, Leo himself had some American horsepower to play with that was taking all of his time, and he could not justify the WSM inactive in the garage. Interest from a Dutch museum prompted AW-S and Paul Woolmer to bring the car back to England in November 2003 to be garaged alongside WSM 202 and WSM 301 at Paul's Bedfordshire address. A friend of Paul's, Clive Cocks, had given much of his time in helping prepare WSM 202 and when he viewed WSM 210 in December 2003, it soon joined Clive's garage of Healeys and was prepared ahead of his introduction to historic racing at Mallory in October 2004. Subsequent appearances at Snetterton, Silverstone, Brands Hatch, Castle Combe and Knockhill in company with the WSM MGB and WSM 202 created great interest, and a 2006 Goodwood Revival invitation to join three Spridget-based WSM's rewarded Clive's evident enthusiasm for the marque.

A Revival . .

In 2003, four WSM's and BXN were invited to the Goodwood Revival meeting where WSM 202, WSM 207, WSM 301 and the WSM MGB were entered in the Fordwater Trophy race alongside some truly exotic cars in front of 90,000 spectators. Acquainting themselves with the Goodwood layout in Friday's free practice, Paul Woolmer drove his immaculate WSM 202, the WSM 207 of Rae Davis was driven by Ian Guest, stepping up from E -Types for his first WSM drive while Rae drove his very quick Mini Marcos, and AW-S pedalled the WSM MGB to enable David Gathercole his first WSM drive in WSM 301. David fitted his own engine after WSM 301 had been delivered to Whittlesey in August 2003, and the Saturday morning timed practice revealed David to be a real contender at the business end of the grid, while Ian, Paul and AW-S were comfortably midfield in amongst an eclectic mix of machinery. The fabulous Goodwood Ball on Saturday night set remarkably high standards in terms of presentation and spectacle, and it was with mixed feelings that Sunday arrived as the day of the race but the end of the dinner occasion.

click here for Goodwood report from MG Cars

Willie Green and Irvine Laidlaw set the pace in Alfa TZ and Porsche, but WSM interest centred on a remarkable drive by David Gathercole as the unfortunate Paul Woolmer fell by the wayside in WSM 202 with water pump gasket failure. David had much experience in FISC events, a Sprite based series centred in Holland and run by the effervescent Pieter Bakker, so was not unused to his surroundings. A blistering start put him up to fourth place after a battle with old adversary Rae Davis in the Mini Marcos. Gathercole's WSM had a gap to make up on third but the issue never arose as the WSM arrived in the pits with a misfire, quickly diagnosed as a disconnected plug lead. Although back out again, David's only consolation was to record fourth fastest lap of the race. Meanwhile Ian Guest headed the WSM contingent home in WSM 207 after a race long dice with James Willis's Jacobs Midget. In his capacity as Team Manager for the week-end, Douglas was impressed with the WSM drivers, especially David Gathercole, and Lord March referred to the WSM's in his closing address with a tribute to their appearance in numbers.

click here for Goodwood report

A Photoshoot . .

In March 2004, quality monthly Octane magazine prompted a get-together of WSM's and personnel at the Wing, Bedfordshire address that was the conceptual birthplace of the car design. Four cars and members of the original Delta Garage team re-produced the 1963 scene of four WSM's for the October edition article - see 'Sixties Survivors' by Andrew Roberts at 'WSM In Print' below.

Re-Revival 2006 . .

News came in May 2006 that the WSM MGB, WSM 207 and Sebring BXN were on the Fordwater grid for the second time in the September classic - and in July came further invitations for WSM 202, WSM 210 and WSM 301 - see 'Race News 2006' for details.

Aviation . .

When motorsport bit the dust in 1967 caused by disc problems in his back, Douglas reverted to his first love, aviation. Gaining a pilots licence in 1967, his first aircraft, a tail wheeled Auster registered Romeo Charlie, cruised at less mph/knots than many of the cars he raced over the years. The Auster was once described as an aerial version of the Penny Farthing, except not as fast, and Douglas moved on to a French 'Rally Club' aeroplane which had excellent short field capability, and completed trips with Laurette to France, Ireland and to Malta in the Mediterranean where they had a home until the 1980's. In league with old friends such as Ken Gomm, Lionel Mayall and Barry Greenwood, Douglas had many opportunities to try his hand at various aircraft and has racked up over 30 types, with the log book now exceeding 3000 hours.

His next aircraft was a Bolkow Junior registered Zulu Delta, a two seater design that fitted like a hand in a glove and was the aerial equivalent of the Austin Healey Sprite. He then found the appeal of the French Jodel aircraft irresistible and with a Jodel Ambassadeur he began an association that lead to annual visits to the Jodel gathering in Bernay, France. A Rollason Condor was the next 'love' but the purchase of a Jodel Mascaret D150 for restoration cemented a passion for the gull-winged design.

The loss of wife Laurette in 1995 was a devastating time, and he concentrated on several long term projects to cushion the blow. He maintains an active role in the twenty plus year restoration of a Percival Q6, a very rare aircraft previously owned by Ken Gomm, latterly by Barry Greenwood, and hopes to see the restoration completed in England soon. In 2002 he achieved a long held ambition to cross the Atlantic in a single engined monoplane - with German ferry pilot Margit Waltz, they flew from Scranton airfield in Pennsylvania to Newcastle, England in what has to be the ultimate plan to avoid airline food. Douglas maintains his UK PPL (Private Pilots Licence) and during a checkout in Florida, was amused to find he was accompanied by an instructor only one year his junior.

Douglas continues to accompany his son during the motor racing season, and has supported WSM's in competition throught the UK and Europe since 1996. He has revisited many old racing haunts, and was at the Montlhery-Linas circuit in France to supervise the WSM MGB at the Grand Prix De L'Age D'Or in June 2004. He has seen grids at Snetterton, Croft, Pembrey, Cadwell, Oulton, Goodwood, Donington, Mallory, Silverstone and Brands Hatch, some with multiple WSM entries (see 'WSM events'). He will soon air-test his restored Jodel and will complete what he says is the final WSM Sprite in 2008. Despite a brief spell of ill health, Douglas was a guest at the Sprite 50th celebrations at Goodwood on May 17th 2008, where several WSM's were on display in the Historic Car marquee. This 87 year old great-grandfather has yet more developments to add to an already interesting career with wheels and wings . . .