1967 Chaparral 2F Pilots: P. Hill, M. Spence Team: Chaparral Cars Inc Race: DNF (P +5.0 class) at Le Mans in 1967 Minichamps - 430671407 (diecast)
Published 08/17/17
Hap Sharp and Jim Hall founded Chaparral Cars in 1962 in the state of Texas, USA. The company was a racing team and race car developer that engineered, built, and raced cars from 1963 through 1970. The company got its name from the chaparral, Spanish for roadrunner, a common bird (and fast runner!) in the area. With the design by Jim Hall, Chaparral cars became synonymous with the innovative use of spoilers, wings and ground effect. At the time such concepts were totally innovative in motor racing, however his ideas were considered extravagances.
The 2F was introduced in 1967, and it had a movable aerofoil wing mounted on struts. The pilot controlled it’s angle from the cockpit, generating more or less downforce. Additionally, it also had a spring loaded trap door in the nose, that would open at speeds over 220 km/h to aid in high speed stability. Jim Hall had a very close relationship with General Motors, consequently they provided him with the engines for his cars. The 2F used a big block Chevy V8 with 6997 cm³ of displacement and 16 valves, that produced 525 hp.
At La Sarthe in 1967 the Chaparral team had two 2Fs in the race, but neither were able to cross the finish line. This 2F #7 (chassis #2F001) lasted longer, but had to abandon the race in the 225th lap with a leaky transmission. In 1:43, the model is pretty simple, as is the real car, and Minichamps captured it well. Above all, what really caught my eye was the size of the thing – it looks huge (as it should). Compared to the “mighty mouse” that I got recently it looks almost out of scale . I also loved to see the Texas license plates on the 2F #7, a trademark of Hall’s when racing his cars abroad. So a pretty nifty model of an important car.