GT6 Le Mans replica Recreating a sporting Triumph with a modern sting under the bonnet.
Willie Platt’s T6 Le Mans replica is a stunningly uprated GT6 with a hint of modern mechanicals, including a 143bhp twin-cam and five-speed box.
Recreating the fastback Spitfires that successfully raced at Le Mans in 1964 and 1965 is straightforward in some ways and impractical in others. The bodywork is the easy part, thanks to Graham Pearce of T6 Motorsport, who has created a complete GRP bodyshell that can sit on top of a Spitfire or GT6 chassis. As for the engine, well the 1.1-litre OHV engine that was fitted to the first race cars was tuned to produce an impressive 100bhp at the flywheel. Later engines had an aluminium cylinder head, a little more bhp and recorded a top speed of a staggering 140mph.
Reproducing such engines would only be of benefit on the race track and the cost involved would be better spent on a more modern engine, which would offer greater reliability and driveability. Fortunately, there are a number of transplant options for the Spitfire/GT6 chassis, including Ford Zetec and Rover K-series twin cams mated to the Ford Type 9 five-speed manual gearbox from the rear wheel drive Sierra (more traditional alternatives include a Triumph straight six or Rover V8).
Production of the T6 Le Mans replica continues today in Lincoln under S&M T6 Triumph Spitfire Le Mans Limited (see www.triumphspitfirelemans.com), but the car seen here was bought by its current owner, Willie Platt, as a 95 per cent completed project back in May 2012. Two previous owners had already made progress with it.
Aimed at being more of a track car, the T6 had a basic interior, but also had a few issues concerning the wiring, cooling system, suspension, drivetrain and brakes. Willie sent the car to Crofton Motors near Berwick On Tweed, who know how to strip and restore classics such as Spitfires. First, Stewart Herringshaw at Crofton sorted out the feed to the standard MEMS ECU, which was causing problems with starting the engine.
“The ECU was originally wired direct from the ignition switch,” explains Willie. “The fitment of a relay to feed the ECU resolved the difficult starting.”
Aside from changing the feed to the ECU, Stewart also re-positioned the ECU, moving it from inside the engine bay to a drier place behind a panel in the passenger footwell.
He then went through the suspension, brakes and transmission, replacing the universal joints on the rear driveshafts and most of the wearable items on the front suspension (ball joints, trunnions) along with overhauling the brakes and refreshing the brake fluid. At the same time, the suspension components and exposed parts of the chassis were painted.
Willie’s T6 had been built between 2004 and 2005, starting with a 1500 Spitfire chassis and incorporating a smaller 1.6 K-series engine and Ford Type 9 five speed gearbox. In 2010, the current 143bhp 1.8-litre VVC engine was fitted. Fitting a K-series into a Spitfire chassis doesn’t require any modifications to the framework, but the bulkhead is altered to allow the engine and gearbox to sit further back.
Mating the K-series to the Ford gearbox requires a special adaptor plate, which is available from specialists such as Frontline Developments. A mechanical clutch is used and the Triumph’s propshaft needs to be adapted to bolt onto the back of the Ford gearbox.
The T6’s GRP bodywork consists of a traditional hinged front end for generous engine bay access and a body tub with doors. There’s no rear tailgate, just a fixed rear glass screen, which Willie suspects is from an MGB on his car, fitted in a different way as the heater elements are vertical. Most T6s uses the rear screen from a GT6. Authentic features include a lack of rear seams, which was a feature on the original Le Mans race cars in a bid to improve aerodynamics along with Jaguar E-Type headlight covers.
The T6 body tub is secured to the Spitfire/GT6 chassis with eight bolts using the original bodywork mounting points. The tub isn’t solely made from GRP; there is a steel subframe running from the front to the rear, which is used to mount the roll cage and rear tie bars, along with the handbrake linkage. The doors are made from GRP with core mat reinforcements for the hinges and catches.
When Willie took on this project, it was road legal, but lacking refinement in the cockpit, in need of a better finish under
the bonnet and it had a belt and braces appearance on the exterior, especially the doors and bonnet, which were duly refreshed with new locks, seals and a windscreen.
Inside, the seats that were originally fitted were recliners from a 1500 Spitfire, so they were stripped down to their bare frames and recovered.
The dashboard was made by the previous owner using plywood. Willie decided to strip it back, then cover it in leatherette and refit the current bank of Smiths gauges along with some additional heater controls from Car Builder Solutions for a plumbed in front heater matrix and a 12-volt ceramic blower at the rear for the rear screen.
Under the bonnet, the cooling system was removed and new pipework was installed along with stainless steel ducting to direct air to the front-mounted radiator, which was equipped with an aftermarket electric fan and water temperature controlled thermostat.
A custom mild steel exhaust manifold was fabricated and mated to the existing stainless steel system. More recently, a stainless steel manifold has been made and fitted.
Sitting inside the T6, you instantly realise it’s a tight fit for a car that has a spacious fastback interior. There’s plenty of space behind the front seats, but the seating position is close to the dashboard and windscreen, and legroom is also tight. Willie admits he’s fitted the seats to the style of his desired driving position, but appreciates there’s not exactly masses of space, even with the seats pushed back on their runners.
What the T6 lacks on interior space, it makes up for it on performance. With 143bhp from a car that weighs 780kg, acceleration is exhilarating and this is thankfully matched by a competent brake and suspension setup.
“Performance is just about as much as this particular package is comfortable with, the rear diff being the limiting factor,” explains Willie whose first taste of Triumphs began at the age of 17 when he bought a Herald 13/60, followed by a convertible two years later. “It doesn’t half surprise the local boy racers at times.”
Willie’s clearly pleased with his T6 and how it has been transformed with modern components to be a match for many an MGF or MX-5. So where do you go next with such a theme? He already has the answer having bought an abandoned MGB with a Ford Zetec motor under the bonnet.