Miura, the original supercar

Note driver side wheels ripped off their suspension geometry, doors torn off and front and rear ends also ripped off - the speed at point of incident must have been significant. A major fire which has consumed the interior trim and part of the engine is in evidence. My factory source is adamant that NOTHING was salvaged, although some say the engine was. Note the red cam covers.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

It is 4948, ex-Max Bobnar, now owned by the Yokohama family in Japan currently sitting at Bobileff Motorcar Co in San Diego. The current owner has asked Bobileff to bestow "the works" upon the car and it arrived unannounced in a box from Japan. When Bobileff pleaded with the owner that he could not begin the restoration for another year-and-a-half being fully booked till then, the owner stated that he did not care, and that it would be worth the wait....owning a Bobileff-restored car myself, Id have to agree.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

Piet,
I have spent quite a bit of effort investigating the fate of the Jota post-accident and my findings concurr with your thoughts as stated above 100%. The reason I bothered to invest the time in the aforementioned discovery is the fact that it is claimed that the Jota's engine survived and was used in another car. According to an ex-factory foreman who as it turns out has both an un-biased and excellent reccollection of the period (dozens of assertions he has put forth have independently borne out to be absolutely correct, unlike the varied recounting of other principals), not a SINGLE scrap of that car was saved, and its charred and mangled remains were tossed onto the junk heap behind the works. He states that in 1972, there were dozens of Miura engine blocks lying around the factory and new 'blocks were often bestowed upon customer's cars (sometimes without even telling the customer!) rather than even bothering to fix the damaged unit. To suggest that an engine block that was subjected to a violent 200kph-plus accident and potentially block-warping fire was saved is the stuff of pure fantasy (....and misguided recollection). Anyway, Im glad to see that Im not the only one who has come to that conclusion
Another point raised by my source is that the accident most definately occured in 1972. I know for a fact per Ian Fraser - who spoke directly to me - that the car was alive and well in the summer of 1971 when he saw it with Doug Blain (who was allowed to drive it around the factory courtyard). I asked my source why then was the surviving driver of the crash asserting that the accident happened in the spring of 1971? He thought for a moment and then he answered: "He probably bumped his head in the accident and its affeced his memory". LOL. Good answer!

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

Youre welcome. We still have lots of time for publication as the date gets pushed ever-backwards, but at some point in time I will have to impose upon you to get the chaps at OCTANE to make up a CD of a few of their best images and send it to me. I know David Lillywhite but not the others so I will leave that to you.
Cam covers were originally silver (in fact plain and un-painted) and I actually think the original car also had the Weber carb bodies in grey too - I have one image that shows them thus - although as we know that car was a work in progressive modification and subtle development from 1970 right till 1972. Original mesh covers for the velocity trumpets were hand-beaten over a wooden dome before they were soldered on to the trumpets themselves.
As far as your getting the car over to Wallace's, you already know that America awaits the second 'British Invasion'...

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

You can check out the new studio images of our million-dollar Miura at www.JoeSackey.com as shot by ace lensman Les Bidrawn and uploaded by whizz-kid Albert Fattal.

Joe
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Thankyou in advance!

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

...and pigs can fly.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

BS.
The Miura is the epitome of 60s & 70s cool, so Mister Cool himself must have owned one right?
Just anothe yarn, like the one my truck driver told me when I purchased the prototype USA Miura SV in Mississippi. Trucker Greg recalled how he picked up Elvis' Miura from Graceland in Memphis after The King filled it with 357 lead-holes (it was a Pantera). I listened to his story and nodded approvingly not wanting to ruin the moment.

BUT, the coolest cat EVER to own a Miura was a certain Miles Davis pictured below. There is not enough space to begin to recount his adventures with his pair of Miuras....

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com
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VERY cool. Yes I have it that Miles crashed the Miura in October 1972...what a guy.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com

 

Walter Wolf gave this car to his wife Barbara as a present and the highlight of its career with her came when she was driving it at well over 120mph on the autobahn. She had forgotton to latch down the rear hood and as the air-pressure built up in the vents it lifted! For a few moments it acted as an air-brake before being ripped completely off its mountings at full speed. The car came to a stop a full 1/2 a mile later....
Restored by the factory in 2000, but sadly not in its original 'Oro Longchamps' - note the upside-down "S" badge. LOL.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com
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LOL. Too true.

Joe
www.JoeSackey.com