Historic race car driver Cole Spender of Port Phillip gave his father, Phil, the surprise of his life when he presented him with his long-lost pride and joy, the Spender Lynx Formula Ford, which Phil made himself in the early 1970s.
The car has been brought back to its former glory and only recently returned to the racetrack and will race again on 18th and 19th May at Historic Winton.
“The car was built entirely in Dad’s back yard in Wellington (NZ) in 1971 using a nearly destroyed Australian Brabham chassis and the remnants of a destroyed NZ Rorston Porsche,” Cole said.
Coles said that in July 2017 he decided that he needed a new race car project, so he set out to find Dad’s original car.
The process took five months until he found the possible owner of the car. A visit to Auckland sealed the deal and the car arrived in Melbourne in June 2018.
“Dad was understandably blown away by it. He never expected to see the car again, let alone its ownership being back in the family,” Cole said.
“We aimed to restore the car for Formula Ford’s 50th Anniversary this year, so was finished one week before the Phillip Island Classic in March.
Historic Winton – Australia largest all-historic race and display event will be held at Winton Motor Raceway.
Discounted online tickets are now available online until midnight, Thursday, 16 May. Tickets are then available at the gate from 8am on Saturday 18th and Sunday 19th May.