Celebrating the Mcrae GM1

To some people the ’70s was the decade that fashion forgot, but for others, it was the dramatic final chapter in the golden age of New Zealand motor sport — an age that saw some of the greatest names in international motor sport competing on New Zealand circuits in current F1, F2 and FA/5000 cars, while New Zealanders competed at the top level all over the world as drivers, mechanics and constructors — including Graham Mcrae and his Mcrae GM1.

The Mcrae GM1, originally marketed as the Leda LT27, was the product of a collaboration between New Zealand driver/ constructor Graham Mcrae and F1 designer, Len Terry, and the latter’s Leda cars outfit. The design owed much to Mcrae’s experiences racing the Crown Lynn–backed Mclaren M10B, which he modified significantly before taking all that hard-won knowledge and including it in the GM1. With this car Mcrae dominated the 1972 Tasman Series, winning both the Lady Wigram Trophy Race and the Australian Grand Prix along the way. In the eight-race series Mcrae started from pole position three times, had four wins, and came fourth in his only other finish. He went on to dominate FA/5000 in the rest of the world, winning the 1972 Formula A L&M Continental Series in the USA with four victories and two third placings, and being the fastest competitor in the Rothmans F5000 European Championship series, winning at Brands Hatch and Silverstone (twice each), Nivelles and Oulton Park, and finishing third in the series — which he would undoubtedly have won if he had not missed races due to commuting from the US. Mcrae brought a GM1 down under again for the 1973 Tasman series and again won the series, this time scoring three wins, a second, third and fourth. He managed pole four times in the eight-race series, and recorded fastest lap once.

Fifteen GM1S were built, and for two years this car, designed and developed by Graham Mcrae, was the class of the field in one of the most competitive and exciting single-seater motorsport series ever designed.

To celebrate this car and its Kiwi constructor, Steve Bullôt has created a 1:43 scale model of the Mcrae GM1 — and it is now available as a limited-edition hand-built model with an RRP of $120 each.

For further information, contact Steve Bullôt at Tohora Enterprises, ph. 021 0226 7176 or via email, Tohora.ent@gmail.com.