CHASSIS REGISTER

1969 LOLA T163 SL163/18


pic

SL163/18 out on the track. (Picture courtesy of Daniel Lipitz)

Peter Revson 1969 Can Am Lola T163

In 2015 Michael Moss became the new owner of SL163/18.

This car (Lola chassis SL163/18), known as the Robbins-Jefferies Can Am Special, ran eight of the eleven Can Am races in 1969. Ronnie Bucknum debuted the car at Watkins Glen in low wing configuration. Future Can Am Champion Peter Revson then drove the car for the season’s final seven races in high (strut mounted) wing configuration. Despite running only a partial season, this car was the second highest finishing Lola in the 1969 Can Am Championship and earned Revson an eleventh place in the final points standings. Revson’s best finish was fourth at Elkhart Lake during a season in which every race was won by the McLaren M8B of either Bruce McLaren or Denny Hulme.



1969 Can Am
Race Driver Qualified Finish
Watkins Glen Ronnie Bucknum 14th 22nd
Mid Ohio Peter Revson 8th 7th
Elkhart Lake Peter Revson 4th 4th
Bridgehampton Peter Revson 5th 17th
Michigan Peter Revson 4th 24th
Laguna Seca Peter Revson 3rd 22nd
Riverside Peter Revson 7th 5th
Texas Peter Revson 5th 13th


Veteran road racer Dave Causey purchased the car at the end of 1969 from Robbins & Jefferies. Causey campaigned it in all ten of the 1970 Can Am Races. He consistent finishes, including second place at Road Atlanta and third at Elkhart Lake earned him fourth place overall in the final point standings. Causey nicknamed the car his “money maker” after earning $58,450 in prize money during the 1970 season.


1970 Can Am
Race Driver Qualified Finish
Mosport Dave Causey 14th 7th
St. Jovite Dave Causey 19th 9th
Watkins Glen Dave Causey 26th 13th
Edmonton Dave Causey 12th 5th
Mid Ohio Dave Causey 11th 19th
Elkhart Lake Dave Causey 16th 3rd
Road Atlanta Dave Causey 12th 2nd
Donnybrooke Dave Causey 13th 8th
Laguna Seca Dave Causey 20th 9th
Riverside Dave Causey 16th 8th

At the end of the 1970 Can Am, Causey traded the car to Carl Haas, the U.S. Lola Distributor, as partial payment for a new Lola T222. Can Am racer Bill Overhauser Jr. subsequently purchased the car from Carl Haas. Overhauser never raced the car, but did use some parts from it, including the center lock axles in his own Lola T160.

The car sat in Overhauser’s shop until California racers, Dick Raymond and Pat Semple, purchased it in late 1972. Tony Settember drove the car in the 1973 Laguna Seca Can Am. Raymond extensively raced the car for the 1973-75 seasons as follows:


1973-1975
Race Date Finish
Laguna Seca-National 23/06/73 DNF
Sears Point-Regional 21/07/73 DNF
Sears Point-Regional 19/08/73 1st
Seas Point-National 16/09/73 3rd
Laguna Seca Can Am
Driven by Tony Settember
14/10/73 19th DNF
Laguna Seca-Regional 04/11/73 1st
Sears Point-Regional 07/04/74 1st
Sears Point-National 21/04/74 DNF
Laguna Seca-Regional 02/06/74 4th
Laguna Seca-National 30/06/74 5th
Sears Point-National 08/9/74 2nd
Phoenix-National 22/09/74 1st
Laguna-Regional 29/09/74 1st
Sears Point-Regional 3/11/74 1st
Sears Point-Regional 16/03/75 2nd
Sears Point-National 06/04/75 2nd
Sears Point-Regional 27/04/75 DNF
Riverside-National 04/05/75 4th
Laguna Seca-Regional 01/06/75 3rd
Laguna Seca-National 29/06/75 3rd
Sears Point-Regional 20/07/75 3rd
Sears Point-National 10/08/75 3rd
Riverside-National 24/08/75 DNF
Sears Point-Regional 14/09/75 2nd
Laguna Seca-Invitational 12/10/75 DNF
Sears Point-Regional 26/10/75 1st

Raymond and Semple sold the car in late 1975 to Barry Goldstein of San Rafael, California. Goldstein converted the car for street use by adding a windshield from an E-Type Jaguar to the stock Lola T163 roadster bodywork. Ultimately, Goldstein added Lola coupe body work to the car. Eric Feldman then purchased the car with the coupe body work and also licensed it for street use in 1981. Feldman sold the car to Frank Cooke of Nevada who in turn sold it to Stanley Siegel of California. In early 1990 Siegel sold the car to Japan. In 1992 the car returned to the United States and was purchased by Rick McLean who in turn sold the car in 1993 to vintage racers, Bud Bennett and Joe Wally. Bennett then fully rebuilt and restored the car to its original 1969 Peter Revson high wing roadster configuration.