What’s Strange about this BRM’s Front Suspension?

Photo by Peter Putterill

You are right, it does indeed include a drive shaft to the front wheel. In 1964 BRM, in partnership with Harry Ferguson Research, built an experimental four wheel-drive racing car using Ferguson’s 4WD System. BRM’s Chief Engineer, Tony Rudd, put his new recruit, Mike Pilbeam, in charge of the project. Tony viewed it all with very little enthusiasm. The car was built to the rules then governing Fl and became the BRM P67.

The first public appearance of the P67 was at the 1964 British Grand Prix held at Brands Hatch. That’s where these photographs were taken. It was not a very successful experiment. Soon 4WD was to be overtaken by improvements in racing tyre technology and indeed it is now banned under the rules governing Fl.

The car was never raced by BRM and was sold by them in 1966. The P67 had success in hill-climbs in the hands of a number of drivers. One of them, Peter Lawson, used it to win the 1968 RAC British Hill-Climb Championship. Very filling for a car from Bourne and indeed one designed by Mike Pilbeam, whose cars later dominated that form of motor sport just as earlier had those driven by Raymond Mays. 

Tony Rolt, a Director of Ferguson and a former racing driver, hears how the P67 is going.

In the late ‘thirties Tony drove an ERA in races and was the youngest driver to do so.

 
If you would like to know more information, visit the Raymond Mays room at Bourne's Baldocks Mill
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The BRM Celebration Day Committee would like to thank the Bourne Civic Society for allowing us to publish this series of articles. 

Baldocks Mill, which is run by the Bourne Civic Society, will be open on the day, where visitors can look at their BRM trophy cabinet, along with other items of BRM memorabilia. For more information, visit the Bourne Civic Society website.


A new article will be added every week, so please keep checking back for more information about BRM. 

Reproduction of this article is strictly prohibited.