KITS AND PIECES
1955 FERRARI MONZA REPLICA
For most of us, the closest we will ever get to our ultimate dream machine will be to buy a picture of it. However, Dave Lochead is not like most of us. He has built many scratch-built motorbikes and even a World War I aeroplane — we kid you not. The Omaka Aviation Heritage Centre in Blenheim had heard of his skills and contracted him to build 1914 Morane-saulnier Type G monoplane, and it is now on display at the incredible museum. Although Dave built the aeroplane to be flightworthy, the only flying it has done is via the suspension wires that hold it aloft, along with the many other World War I aeroplanes on display as part of the impressive Weta Workshop–produced full-scale dioramas.
Anyway, back to the car story. Dave decided to build the Ferrari Monza, as it was the first four-cylinder race car that Ferrari developed. Another point in its favour was that all Monzas were right-hand drive. He investigated a British kit car called the ‘Kougar Monza’ but was put off by the fibreglass body and the fact that it was a modern interpretation using Jaguar running gear. The only option left was for Dave to build one from scratch.
Car number 0576M
When Dave started this project during 2003, he knew that he had the skills to build it but lacked the details. He learned that Southward Car Museum had recently restored a Monza, so he approached it with a request for more information. Southward’s John Bellamore was very impressed when he heard of Dave’s desire to build an accurate Monza replica, but he knew that this would be a tricky task, as no two Monzas were built the same, with alterations being made to most cars during production, depending on buyer preferences.
While the general body shape was the same for the 31 Ferraris built, something as simple as the number of doors varied from car to car. Some had no doors, others had a driver’s door only, and a few were fitted with a second door — such luxury! Some examples had square intakes while others had round, and, typically for Ferrari, halfway through production, two inches were chopped from the height of the body to make it lower to the ground. Many were altered during their racing career, and not always by a telephone pole. For example, the Monza that the Southward Car Museum owns was fitted with a Corvette motor to make it more competitive after its Ferrari motor blew up in 1959. Given these options, Dave decided to replicate car number 0576M, which has been widely reported as being a Mondial, but its build sheets show it to have been a Monza.
John graciously sent Dave copies of all the drawings that Southward had used to restore its Monza. These drawings were worth their weight in gold. Using them, Dave was able to fabricate a chassis nearly identical to that used on the original, with only subtle changes made — for example, to allow fitment of the engine.
He did all the welding himself but wisely had it checked over by a certified welder, who then re-welded any welds that might have been suspect.
FOR ALONG TIME NOW, DAVE LO C HEAD HAS DREAMED OF OWNING A CLASSIC FERRARI
Historical connection
Len Southward purchased his Monza in 1960 when it was only a few years old. The first thing Len did was to remove the Chevy V8, after which the car was parked up for the next 47 years, waiting for the acquisition of the correct Ferrari engine and its turn on the restoration schedule. Sadly, Sir Len did not live to see his prized car in its restored state.
Dave did not want to spend 47 years on this Ferrari project, and he didn’t have a Ferrari engine, nor was he prepared to sell his wife and house to acquire one, so he made his first compromise. This was the purchase of a 2.0-litre Alfa Romeo engine and a five-speed rear transaxle out of a late ’ 70s Alfetta, justified on the grounds that there is a historical connection between Enzo Ferrari and Alfa. Giuseppe Busso, a legendary engine designer for Alfa Romeo, took a two-year hiatus from Alfa to help out another former Alfa Romeo employee, Enzo Ferrari, with an engine that Ferrari was having trouble with. He became Ferrari’s first technical director before returning to Alfa Romeo in 1948. If had not been for Giuseppe, there might have never been a Ferrari V12, but that is another story. On his return to Alfa Romeo, and before his retirement in 1977, Giuseppe oversaw the development of the Alfetta engine, which sits in Dave’s car. While it is no Ferrari engine, it is nice to have that historic link.
Another concession that Dave made was switching from drum brakes to disc brakes. This was an easier concession to make, as disc brakes were fitted to the last Monza. The added advantage of disc brakes meant that stopping the car was no longer merely a fervent hope but an actual event.
Major changes were made to the Alfetta rear transaxle, as it had to be narrowed and fabricated to match the original Ferrari track and de Dion set-up. The twin Alfetta carburettors were retained as being visually near enough to the originals. The exhaust
system is an exact copy and will probably require more silencing before it is road legal. The wire wheels are Jaguar knockoffs bought via Trade Me, which will, at some stage, be upgraded to Borrani wheels. The steering column is Alfetta mated to a Triumph Herald lower column and rack.
With the rolling chassis complete and driveable, Dave now turned his attention to the panel work. The Ferraris were all sold with hand-formed aluminium bodies, and Dave’s would be no different. As the interior panel work was easier, he opted to do this first. However, it was while he was doing the interior that he became aware of the enormity of the task ahead. People who built handmade aluminium car bodies knew what they were doing because they had spent many years as apprentices, learning the trade from skilled craftsmen. The body was going to be a problem.
Attention to detail
Fortuitously, at this time, Robin Officer happened to come strolling down Dave’s driveway. Robin had heard of Dave’s project and was keen to see it. Straight away, he was impressed by the accuracy of the project and Dave’s attention to detail. Next, it was Dave’s turn to be impressed, as Robin showed Dave a photo album that showcased the many cars Robin had built and worked on. New Zealand born, Robin had completed a coach-building apprenticeship and then headed to the US to hone his skills in restoring old and rare cars. While there, he had met other experts who were keen to share their skills, and it was not long before Robin was rolling panels for cars such as a Ferrari 250 GTO and a genuine Monza, and he even helped make some replicas. His last job before retiring and heading back to New Zealand to settle in Picton had been working for Jay Leno in his garage. Robin has clearly had a wide and varied career in the carrestoration trade.
He offered to help Dave build his body,
While the general body shape was the same for the 31 Ferraris built, something as simple as the number of doors varied from car to car. Some had no doors, others had a driver’s door only, and a few were fitted with a second door — such luxury!
and Dave knew that it would be silly to pass such an offer up. For the next 18 months, the two of them worked on the body for four or five hours each morning. Dave concentrated on building wooden bucks, while Robin got busy beating, rolling, and welding the panels. The first panel completed was the right front wing. When he saw it, Dave knew that he had made the right decision — Robin was an artisan.
It is not easy to make an aluminium body from scratch, working only from a set of drawings and a lot of photographs. There were some wins, such as the bonnet, which Robin had allocated two or three weeks to working on, but it was completed in two days. Other panels had to be thrown away and restarted. The nice shut lines around the panels were preceded by a lot of muttering and mumbling and the occasional expletive. At least the single door was quite straightforward to build.
Fortunately, because the Monza is a racing car of the ’50s, most parts had been handmade, and what can be made once can be made again. Thus, it was very easy for Dave to replicate such things as the pedal box, handbrake lever, and dash panel. The instruments are as close to being period correct as Dave’s budget would allow. His Nardi steering wheel popped up on Trade Me one day; it was so cheap and close to the original steering wheel that Dave pressed the Buy Now button immediately. The seats were hand-fabricated and are exact copies of the original Ferrari items. Nestled in the passenger footwell is a period-correct fuse box, placed there to enable the co-driver to change a blown fuse during a race.
End in sight
Although it has been a long build, with Dave occasionally feeling disillusioned with the steepness of the climb, the end is in sight. This is the year that he intends to drive it down to the pub or to the local store to get some groceries. The last job, besides a bit of tidying up on the mechanical side of things, is the wiring, after which point the Monza replica will be presented for its final certification.
These days, a cheap Ferrari Monza will sell for at least $4M. Although this is small change compared with what a Ferrari 250 GTO might go for, it is still a lot more money than what Dave has in his back pocket. Comparatively, this is a very cheap car, costing only tens of thousands of dollars to build. Once it is on the road, the principle difference between it and an original Ferrari, besides the engine, will be the backstory. The driving experience will be, Dave assumes, identical — although he is prepared to reassess this after he has driven a real one, but doubts that he will ever have that opportunity. In the meantime, we are confident that Dave’s car will soon be a common sight on sunny Blenheim days.
Fortunately, because the Monza is a racing car of the ’50s, most parts had been handmade, and what can be made once can be made again. Thus, it was very easy for Dave to replicate such things as the pedal box, handbrake lever, and dash panel