The birth of the Beetle V8 SuperSaloon
Mick Hill had previously racked up an impressive number of race and title wins, particularly in his 2 self-built Capri V8s culminating with the inaurgural `Super Saloon` title in 1974. Hill raced a March in F5000 in 1975 as his Tricentrol sponsorship had ended and his plans of converting the single seater into a supersaloon was shelved. This left the season open for rival Gerry Marshall in the new `Baby Bertha`Vauxhall to take the Supersaloon title and set the benchmark for the whole genre of modified saloon racing which was at its most popular during the mid-70s. Hill sold the March and bought the Ian Ward Racing Trojan f5000 car as the doner vehicle for his next exciting project. Hill announced his new creation just before the opening round of the 1976 BRSCC Super Saloon Championship opener in May.
It was a genuine VW Beetle body on a Trojan T102 semi-monocoque spaceframe with petrol tanks in the aluminium side pods. Power came from an Alan Smith-built F5000 Chevy 5-litre V8 producing 530 bhp located about where the rear seats would be in a normal Beetle. The Trojan`s suspension was used and the tires were an impressive 17inch at the rear and 15 front. A Hewland gearbox was used and weighed only 800 kgs, so the recipe had all the right ingredients.
The scene outside the Hill estate January 7th 1976 with the 2 doner cars lined up to be spliced together ! Photos shows it was a real Beetle shell used not a replica and the chassis and mechanicals were from the Trojan F5000 single seater.
With the floorpan added and electrics, oh and doors , the Beetle nears completion here. Mick`s disire to keep the Beetle`s pure looks would cause problems with over heating. Scoops and vents would be added as the car evolved. The one piece removable rear section aided quick access to the engine.