Lindner Nocker Ferrari 250GT SWB

[Steve Holmes]

About ten years ago I met and got to know a nice fellow called Richard Grant, who runs an automotive aftermarket company in Leighton Buzzard, Bedfordshire. Richard has been a car enthusiast all his life, and told me that in the early 1970s, he bought an ex-competition lightweight Ferrari 250GT SWB, which he said was once raced by the well known Lindner-Nocker team who were better known for their low-drag E Type Jaguars in the early/mid 60s.

Richard used the Ferrari as his everyday transport, until eventually either the clutch started to give out, or the gearbox was failing (I can't quite recall which now), and so he sold the car, for, wait for it, 5,000 pounds! At the time he was quite pleased to get as much as he did for the Ferrari, given it was an old car with a failing clutch or gearbox, but of course, over the next 15 years, the value of the car would sky-rocket, and it apparently sold for an exorbitant amount at auction in the '80s. Remember, people told Nick Mason he was nuts for buying his Ferrari 250GTO in the early '70s for, I believe, 38,000 pounds. Now of course, he looks like a genius!

But I've never been able to find any information on this car. Does anyone know of a Ferrari 250GT SWB raced by the Lindner-Nocker team? I'd love to find out more about it.

[David McKinney]

Nocker, but not Lindner/Nocker...

It was owned from new in 1960 by H Plaut, whose usual driver was Helmuth Felder. Nocker was Felder's co-driver in the 1961 Nürburg 1000km, in which they finished 12th overall, and then won his class in the same year's Ebberbach hillclimb. Nocker drove it again in the 1962 1000km, this time with sometime F1 driver Seidel, and finished fifth overall, and on his own took wins at Schelssheim, Hockenheim, Achum and Norisring. Plaut continued to run it in German national events with other drivers (including himelf) up to 1964.

Yer man Grant had the car in 1966, though only briefly. It then passed through a number of other British owners before returning to Germany, where Sigi Brun had it from 1977 to 1980. It then passed to Ernst Schuster in 1981, after which I lost track of it

[Steve Holmes]

Amazing! Well done David. I'm sure Richard said the car sold at auction in the '80s, but this was at least ten years ago, so i could have that wrong. But I'm so pleased you've been able to fill in the details for me. Many thanks.

[carmagreviews]

If you can give me a chassis number I might be able to see where it last went for sale (UK & US dealers since 70s were one first when selling exotic machinery included this in their advertising) I might have documented it

[Steve Holmes]

Oh boy, I wouldn't have a clue. David probably has a better idea than me.