LITTLE RED BOOSTER - The return

 

Phil Oram,the Welshman in a hurry,is pulling the covers off his famous Turbocharged Riley Elf and rebuilding it for a new hillclimbing season. 'The fastest road legal Mini in the world' will be shedding up to 200 Ibs during the rebuild,mostly through a new composite floorpan.
Phil may even shed a pound or ten himself,to make the car even more competitive.Major front end work is planned with new coil spring suspension and Mini Spares 4 Pot Calipers. The rear end of the space frame will also be remodelled.
The bulletproof 1300 engine will be gone over with a fine toothcomb by Glyn Swift,and some new head work should allow a further wind up of boost to improve the already outrageous performance to around 240 BHP.
I kid you not.
If new hillclimbing regs are confirmed,Phil is considering a move over to Methanol fuel.
'It's pretty straightforward ' ,says a cherubic Phil,'You just double everything (jet sizes,etc.},and it's half the price of petrol.' Indy cars have been running on the stuff for years,and it does make the engine run much cooler and reduce emissions for the MOT.
The only problem is getting hold of it apparently, although Oram seems well placed in his part of Wales,where there are quite a few chemical factories.
If you see a large jovial Welshman sneaking through the factory gates with a 45 gallon drum under each arm ,you'll know he's racing at the weekend. Graham Austin

Importation rules regarding vehicles are very specific: Only those over 25 years in age may be brought in to the USA without compilance to Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).