GMP Lola T70 Spyder - Minor Modification

[Oldtimer]

Ever wonder why no one apparently ever tried a high scoop for the induction system on a Lola T70 Spyder?

https://www.google.com/search?sca_esv=5 ... 46&dpr=1.2

The T70 was first introduced in 1965 and competed in multiple series up until the early 70's.

In all my searches, I have only seen one T70 with a high scoop.

Screenshot (38) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Screenshot (37) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Although there certainly were efforts to alter other components of the bodywork.

Screenshot (40) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Screenshot (41) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

This in contrast to the Lola-produced F5000 cars, which were contemporary to the end of the T70 era.

https://www.oldracingcars.com/f5000/lola/

Tomorrow we will visit a fantasy creation of mine that blends elements of both Lola offerings.

[StratosWRC]

did it actually race with the scoop or was it a practice/testing thing strictly

[Oldtimer]

did it actually race with the scoop or was it a practice/testing thing strictly

https://www.racingsportscars.com/chassi ... __126.html

The Lola was a second T70 purchased by Penske to be a Can Am series team car to the original T70 driven by Donohue. George Follmer would be the driver.

Here's some history: http://www.britishracecar.com/BillThumel-Lola-T70.htm

From what it appears, the car did race with the scoop in a couple of Can Am races in 1974.

As a tease to the remainder of this story, Classic Carlectables marketed a variety of Lola T332 models.

They were produced with three distinct rear scoop designs.

Version 1 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Version 2 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Version 3 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

In full disclosure, while having the paint and tampo removed from a donor Boraxo/Redman version, we discovered that the top of the rear bodywork was made of plastic in lieu of diecast (as the bottom is).

IMG_5795 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

The stripper we were using turned the plastic into goo, and at that point, I faced a serious dilemma.

More tomorrow (I hope).

[Oldtimer]

So, I got my good buddy and premier resin-caster Mike Kotwick (@Swede70 on many diecast boards) to help me out.

Initially all I needed was a replacement for the Boraxo, but while we were talking, I went ahead an sent him a sample of each one of the three types that CC used.

Mike is a magician when it comes to resin.

Here are the molds that he built.

Mold by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Test by Jim Forte, on Flickr

He created a perfect match for the Boraxo.

Scoop Replacement by Jim Forte, on Flickr

So, while he was at it, I had him cast up some spares of not only this one, but also the other two.

Test by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Here's a test fit on one of the GMP Lolas.

IMG_0741 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Interestingly, while I was doing research for this thread, I found out that there were at least three different configurations of the Lola T70 model created by GMP.

IMG_E0730 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

And what is more coincidental is that all three are the same Penske chassis, showing refinements throughout their ownership.

https://www.racingsportscars.com/chassi ... 1__32.html

I thought the test fit looked promising, so I advanced it through stages from primer to paint to decals.

IMG_E0726 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

IMG_E0727 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

IMG_E0729 by Jim Forte, on Flickr

If you look at the picture of the three Lolas together, you will notice that two of them have side draft induction versus the original down draft.

My next project will be to create a scoop arrangement to accommodate the side draft configuration.

Penske actually tried one. Not sure I will be able to replicate.

Screenshot (50) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

Screenshot (46) by Jim Forte, on Flickr

According to Donohue in "Unfair Advantage", the scoops were added due to the change to a larger side draft induction system. The system itself was plagued with teething issues, and apparently they were never able to justify the additional drag of the scoops.

[StratosWRC]

Looks like a star trek spaceship. Very cool. I would have touched up those defects before paint though

[Oldtimer]

Looks like a star trek spaceship. Very cool. I would have touched up those defects before paint though

Thanks, it was a fun project.

Actually wasn't expecting it to go as far as it did. Was just fooling around to see if the T332 scoop might match up.

Not going into my displayed collection, the donor GMP Lola T70 spyder is a no-box bargain buy. It already has other paint issues.