martin horrocks
A restless family
Ivor Walkett designed prolifically and hastily, reason why sometimes his ideas were correct but the moment to materialize them was not the opportune one. This is what happened with the 10 G1965, arising from the intuition that Ginetta could also build a hybrid with an American V8 engine in the style of the AC Cobra or Sumbeam Tigers.
He was correct: based on the lines of the MGB's doors and front window, he designed a new sports car with a more muscular appearance. He weighed less and handled himself better than his English counterpart; and in his only contested race, he simply swept. However, again little attention had been paid to the homologation rules for international competition which left him out of the American sport scene.
Only three units were made. Trying to get a little return on the investment, Walkett launched the G11, a G10 with an engine and gearbox from the MGB. And since BMC was not very keen on supplying components to produce a car faster than theirs, only 12 copies were assembled until 1966.
However, the Essex company went ahead reaping sporting successes. In 1964 came his first mid-engined creation, the G12. Designed for the category of less than a liter although it usually mounted a mechanical Lotus twin cam, it was again small, beautiful and very fast. And finally it was homologated by the FIA, for which about fifty units were manufactured - later, in the 90s, more would be produced, albeit with modern motorization.
The G12 grew to become the G16, which housed a 2-liter BMW inside the hood and intended to take on Derek Bennett's fantastic Chevron B8s. Ginetta also approved this model, but never fully developed it and, in fact, never got to face it seriously with the Chevrons.
The question will always remain as to what would have happened if the Walkett brothers had wanted to persevere in the attempt. There is a fan in England who has prepared his G16 and who now easily beats others who pilot his alter ego. So perhaps we could say that the potential was there.
The problem was, the Walketts couldn't sit still, with an automobile passion in constant conflict with reason. Always thinking ahead, deciding what to do next. For their next cast, they would choose to face the MG Midget and Triumph Spitfire.
They needed something more comfortable than the G4, so they pulled out the G15, made from the rear of a Hillman Imp - mechanics, gearbox and transaxle- and the nose of a Spitfire connected by a tubular chassis. Of course, the coupe body would be fiberglass and extremely attractive, as well as lower than that of a Ford GT40.
The G15 was brilliant and 750 units were sold in four series between 1967 and 1974. The Imp's engine was a light alloy work of art easily modifiable to give 100 hp; even so, the original version of 50 was not bad at all considering that we are talking about a car of less than 500 kilos. Logically he ran, and logically he won in his class. So much so that the sports authorities decided to remove it from the list of machines eligible to play sports competitions for sale to the public.
The last of the classic Ginettas was the G21. It was a rival for the TVRs of the early 70s, for the Vixen, Tuscan and Taimar, among other models of the Blackpool brand. Only 65 cars were made between 1970 and 1976, most of them with Hillman 1725 mechanics tuned by the preparer Holbay, and a few with a Ford V6 heart used also and precisely by TVR and Marcos.
The G21 was another good idea, but it took too long to go into production. This is something that used to happen in Ginetta, but this time enough time passed for people to lose interest. We will say here that this eventuality was on the verge of collapsing the company, which only recovered once when in the eighties there was a resurgence of the fever for kit cars.
The brothers then produced the G26, a 2 + 2 based on the Ford Sierra that sold well for parts and with which they flew back. In any case, the brand's enthusiasts prefer to forget this stage, even if the later mid-engined G32 was produced within it, another good machine conceived this time to stand up to the Toyota MR2 and which was resold already assembled.
In 1991 they sold Ginetta to Martin Pfaff but, as we have said before, they reserved the production rights of the G4, G12 and G16, which are now marketed with the dropper under the Dare logo.
[su_youtube_advanced https=»yes» url='https://youtube.com/watch?v=3r-PPFSRB2w' ]
Ginetta G33: the first sports car of the Pfaff era; 700 kilos powered by Rover's 8-liter V3.9 (For Jonas tal)
Video credit: Joe Tapner, from Youtube
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Back to the future and renewal
M.Pfaff began by launching the G33, a brilliant debut that dressed in the traditional aesthetics of the Ginetta roadster, looking, yes, even more muscular and fearsome. Inside the engine compartment was the 8-liter V3.9 Rover engine… A monster, a beautiful monster, for which the development - once again - and the company's marketing failed to measure up. Only 99 cars left the factory.
The original concept of the G4 was then reintroduced, with the G27 and later with the G20, and intelligently a single-brand championship was created so that - as Peter Wheeler did with TVR - the company would remain in a stable financial position. In fact, This is what Ginetta mainly lives by today.
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Finally, in 2005 the Essex brand changed hands again, this time falling to Laurence Tomlinson's. This is a successful young businessman who loves motor sports - he has raced TVR's and Panoz GT at Le Mans - and has given the company the leadership and financial health that it has always lacked to some extent.
Currently the G40, G50 and G55 are mainly produced, sports car for various competition categories. On the other hand, an interesting initiative carried out by Tomlinson and that represents a continuity with the management of Pfaff is the creation of the Junior Championship, a championship designed for adolescent pilots between 14 and 16 years of age and that has attracted children Damon Hill, Tom Wilkinshaw, Martin Brundle or John Surtees, among others.
Finally, we will say that the G40 model is available in a street version, and that Ginetta is preparing the G60, a small mid-engine carbon fiber supercar that, in the most established tradition of the house, is taking forever. to reach the market.
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