Cars

The MGA Café Racer is currently for sale from the Classic Driver Dealer Cool & Vintage in Lisbon.

A rare encounter

Initially using a 2.0-litre straight-8 engine (first naturally aspirated, then supercharged soon afterwards), the Type 35 took the world of motor racing by storm. The model’s continual development by forward-thinking company founder Ettore ensured it would create a legacy still referenced to this day – its success illustrated by numerous GP wins, a World Championship title and five successive triumphs at the Targa Florio. In its ultimate incarnation, the 35B (or 35TC) used a supercharged 2.3-litre; and the precursor of the 35B is widely thought to be Chassis 4814.

Based on the 503bhp Mercedes-AMG GT S, the Edition 1 – which made its formal debut at the 2014 Paris Motor Show – receives numerous visual tweaks aimed at keen early adopters. Exterior upgrades include carbonfibre addenda all round, a fixed rear wing in place of the retractable contraption from the GT S, and a yet-unseen alloy wheel design.

Weight still a focus

Once a model has reached the hot-weather testing phase (as the new Lagonda did a few weeks ago), it’s fair to say it would take a rather large spanner to be thrown into the Works to halt production. Clearly, the level of interest from its intended Middle Eastern buyers has proved sufficient to cause no such obstacle, as the Lagonda has been officially green-lighted for production by top brass at Gaydon.

Intelligent mobile currency

The Brabham name needs little introduction: among numerous other accolades, Sir Jack remains the only driver to have won a World Championship in a car of his own name and make.