T163 SL163/19 is currently owned by Greg Mitchell who hails from Watsonville in California.
This car was built to T163 spec and delivered to US Lola Importer, Carl Haas Auto Imports, in the summer of 1969. It was then sold to sportscar racer, Gary Wilson of Kansas. Over the next two seasons Gary would compete in seventeen Can-Am races with SL163/19. He finished 10th in his first race with the car, at Mid-Ohio in August ’69, but his next three events ended in retirement. At Road America the gearbox broke after only five laps, whilst at Michigan the engine sprung an oil leak after 22 laps. Leak fixed, the engine then blew up after only five laps at Laguna Seca. A sixth at Riverside followed by a 12th at Las Vegas finished off Gary’s Can-Am season well in the money. Gary then did the first Japan Can-Am at Fuji, and just failed to make the podium with an excellent fourth place.
Gary retained the car for 1970, at a time when most Lola drivers were switching to McLarens. His faith in the car though was rewarded with the several top ten placings during the season. Gary finished 12th at the season opener at Mosport, then driving the car for one race only, Chuck Parsons finished 8th at St Jovite. Gary then placed 15th at Watkins Glen then followed this with a strong run of three finishes which netted him 6th at Edmonton, 5th at Mid-Ohio, and 4th at Road America. An accident and at Road Atlanta was followed by another retirement, this time at Donnybrooke where Gary crashed after picking up a puncture on the second lap. Another top ten finish followed with an 8th at Laguna Seca, but during practice at Riverside, the last race of the season, a half shaft broke and Gary crashed.
At the end of the year Gary bought a McLaren M8C, and sold the damaged SL163/19 to Jim Butcher, who repaired and rebuilt the car in time for the 1971 Can-Am. He also repainted the car green. After failing to qualify for his first race in the car, at Watkins Glen, Jim finished 10th at Mid-Ohio and then 11th at Road America. Jim’s only other finish of the season was at Edmonton, in 14th place. Despite showing its age, Jim raced the car again in 1972, which was now painted orange. The season was one of mostly retirements, but Jim did place 12th at Mosport, 15th at Mid-Ohio and 14th at Edmonton. St the end of the year Jim sold the car to SCCA club racer Bob Klempel who bought the car to replace his old McLaren M1C. After a couple of years club racing, he sold the car to Skip Purina of Illinois.
Skip raced the car in club meetings then used it as a promotional display for the bar he owned. In 1980 Skip sold the car to Alex Stummer, who basically stored it until selling it in 1992 in unrestored, and very much original condition, to Grant Beath of Ontario Canada. The car was restored, cosmetically more than anything else, as a lot of the originality of the car had been well preserved. Grant raced the car periodically in historics until selling it to the current owner, Greg Mitchell in 2004.
Greg has continued to race and maintain the car in its very original condition, and today SL163/19 is one of the very few Lola Can-Am cars of any type to still retain the original chassis it was built on.
01/06/69: Mosport Can-Am #19 G.Wilson DNA did not arrive - no car
17/08/69: Mid-Ohio Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 10th 72 laps
31/08/69: Road America Can-Am #19 G.Wilson Rtd 5 laps - gearbox
28/09/69: Michigan Can-Am #19 G.Wilson Rtd 22 laps - oil leak
12/10/69: Monterey GP, Laguna Seca Can-Am #19 G.Wilson Rtd 5 laps - blown engine
26/10/69: LA Times GP, Riverside Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 6th 57 laps
09/11/69: Texas Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 12th 60 laps
23/11/69: Japan Can-Am, Fuji #19 G.Wilson 4th 71 laps
14/06/70: Mosport Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 12th 56 laps
28/06/70: St Jovite Can-Am #19 C.Parsons 8th 68 laps
12/07/70: Watkins Glen Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 15th 76 laps
26/07/70: Edmonton Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 6th 76 laps
23/08/70: Mid-Ohio Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 5th 76 laps
30/08/70: Road America Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 4th 48 laps
13/09/70: Road Atlanta Can-Am #19 G.Wilson Rtd 9 laps - accident
27/09/70: Donnybrooke Can-Am #19 G.Wilson Rtd 2 laps - puncture
18/10/70: Monterey GP, Laguna Seca Can-Am #19 G.Wilson 8th 77 laps
01/11/70: LA Times GP, Riverside Can-Am #19 G.Wilson DNS crashed in practice
25/07/71: Watkins Glen Can-Am #41 J.Butcher DNQ did not qualify
22/08/71: Mid-Ohio Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 10th 69 laps
29/08/71: Road America Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 11th 41 laps
12/09/71: Donnybrooke Can-Am #41 J.Butcher Rtd 48 laps - oil leak
26/09/71: Edmonton Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 14th 58 laps
17/10/71: Monterey GP, Laguna Seca Can-Am #41 J.Butcher DNP did not practice
31/10/71: LA Times GP, Riverside Can-Am #41 J.Butcher Rtd 8 laps - rear end
11/06/72: Mosport Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 12th 65 laps
09/07/72: Road Atlanta Can-Am #41 J.Butcher DNS did not start
23/07/72: Watkins Glen Can-Am #41 J.Butcher DNA did not arrive
06/08/72: Mid-Ohio Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 15th 68 laps
27/08/72: Road America Can-Am #41 J.Butcher Rtd 16 laps - gear linkage
17/09/72: Donnybrooke Can-Am #41 J.Butcher Rtd 21 laps - oil Leak
01/10/72: Edmonton Can-Am #41 J.Butcher 14th 41 laps
10/06/73: Mosport Can-Am #77 B.Klempel DNS did not start
16/06/74: Mosport Can-Am #77 B.Klempel 13th 35 laps
07/07/74: Road Atlanta Can-Am #77 B.Klempel Rtd 6 laps - gear linkage
25/08/74: Road America Can-Am #77 B.Klempel 12th 21 laps
