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“A Spin and a Win – OUMF Takes P1 at the Donington Historic Festival!” May 3rd / 4th 2025

3/5/2025

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In true OUMF last-minute fashion, the weekend kicked off with an email sent out at 10:39, requesting the team to gather for an 11:00 start at the barn. As cars rolled down the drive and students poured out, a warm blanket of sun saw the team don sunglasses, hats, and suncream – a welcome change from the dark, wet evenings we had all grown used to while working on the projects over winter. As the first race of the season – and the first ever race for some of the lucky freshers to make the team (myself included) – a buzz of excitement filled the barn and yard during the final preparations before departure. We secured the race cars onto the trailers, shut the van doors for the last time, and all piled into the convoy vehicles (smallest person goes in the middle seat!), stopping briefly before the circuit for a Sainsbury’s pit stop for some student essentials – beer, energy drinks and sweets.


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OUMF’s adventure at the 2025 Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show

23/3/2025

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​The Classic Car and Restoration Show, annually hosted at the National Exhibition Centre by the Practical Classics magazine, has become one of the most looked forward to events for OUMF members over the past few years. It’s an opportunity for members to demonstrate their level of technical and practical experience and know-how that is gained during the countless hours spent working on the club’s projects in the OUMF shed. This show is an excellent way for teamwork to develop and thrive under public scrutiny, which is especially beneficial for our newer members with our race season beginning in just a few weeks.

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TVR 350i engine rebuild and installation

20/3/2025

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Thanks to Chris Smith at Devon Racing, we were very kindly given some new engine mounts from another TVR, and the engine, with the gearbox, was finally mated with the chassis. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the end of the problems for Gerald. A lot of hard work allowed the engine to be plumbed in and started, after which we quickly realised oil was leaking out the back of the engine through an oil gallery bung that wasn’t properly sealed. We also found the coil would get extremely hot even when the engine wasn’t running, so that needed to be replaced too. The engine had to come out again.
However, every cloud has a silver lining!

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OUMF Rally Riley 1.5 on display at the British Motor Museum!

24/1/2025

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our Rally Riley is now on display at the The British Motor Museum in Gaydon until May!

So if you’re in the area, or fancy a day out, make sure to swing by and check out one of OUMF’s most successful cars, and learn about its rich history rallying across the world!

A huge thanks to Jeff Coope and all his team for making this happen!
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OUMF ‘Action Week’ report January 4th - 11th 2025

4/1/2025

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Saturday January 4th had been a long and cold day of engine prep, and the OUMF team that had gathered for the start of our annual Action Week decided that to lift our spirits and give a boost to the start of the year, this was the moment that we should attempt to start the engine of the TVR 350i project. Its mighty Rover V8 motor had been meticulously rebuilt by our engine team, spearheaded by Tom Reid and James Biley, over many months - and we all really wanted to hear it rumble! So the last coolant lines were connected, the oil sump pan was sealed, and the distributor was connected. The engine was turned over to get oil pressure, the spark plugs were refitted, and the key was finally turned… and as it fired up on all 8 cylinders, a great roar of triumph and jubilation also rang from within the barn in celebration as the V8 lived once more for the first time in over 20 years! Alongside progress on the V8, Luke Crutchley had been hard at work removing, cleaning and preparing parts from various projects like our Elva and Toyo Golf for our upcoming visit to Mr Aston Martin and his Procoat business later in Action Week. However, as our hopes and spirits rose within the barn, the weather and temperature outside deteriorated. It grew colder and colder and then snow started to fall. The forecast promised much more, including freezing rain overnight, and so the team made the decision to cancel the upcoming visit to the Bicester Scramble the following morning with our Riley 1.5 rally car. As work was finished in the barn for the night, the OUMF team celebrated by making the most of the weather with an epic snowball fight and some last minute snow drifting as we headed home in preparation for the following day, before we set off for Devon.

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TVR 350i Project Milestone: Engine Installed at Last

10/12/2024

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In every project, there are certain moments that stand out, and we have just hit one of those milestones: the engine is finally installed in the TVR! This marks a pivotal step in bringing our vision for this restored classic to life.

The journey to this point was not without its challenges, as we spent months sourcing the right parts, restoring or modifying every single part, ensuring every detail met our standards for performance and compatibility. The freshly built engine was finally ready to go in, but after careful preparation of the engine bay, our first go at the installation uncovered that the engine mounting brackets were the wrong fit—a frustrating setback.

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HRDC Finale Silverstone Race Report 2024

20/10/2024

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The 20th of October marked the final round in OUMF’s 14th year racing in the HRDC. Our Riley One Point Five competing in the ‘Jack Sears Trophy’ and the Austin Healey Seabring Sprite in the ‘Dunlop Allstars’. This event would be impossible without the support of the HRDC’s Race Director, Julius Thurgood; him being a key player into letting us race at some of the UK’s finest circuits. This weekend to many of the new freshers, including myself would be their debut race weekend, meaning Ding had his work cut out to pick out a team with the 92+ different members who had joined the club the month prior. The week of Silverstone a list was organized, being a team of 9 previous members to be supported by 10 freshers to ensure the weekend would run as smooth as possible, along with giving the opportunity to see how the freshers would fit in the team and compare to many professional race teams there that weekend.
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The Team and cars in the Silverstone pits

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Oxford Universities Motorsport Foundation … gets soaked at the HRDC ‘Allstars’ and ‘Jack Sears Trophy’ at the Castle Combe Autumn Classic Festival - September 2024 Race Report

22/9/2024

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Riley 1.5 leaves the flooded pit lane
​Following OUMF’s historic return with their Elva Courier Mk 2 to a remarkably wet but enjoyable Goodwood Revival 2024, the team came back to dry off their pants and take a small breather before their next event just a fortnight afterwards, as the HRDC family reassembled themselves at Castle Combe for the “Autumn Historic Festival”. This entailed the team getting both the Elva and the Riley 1.5 into a fresh race-ready state, while also handling Oxford Brookes University’s “Freshers Week” which culminated as always in our annual Open Day BBQ for the new members. However this year great logistical skills were required as it fell on the same day that we had to pack the van, load the cars, and make our way to the circuit in time for food at the pub!

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OUMF Triumph at Brands Hatch 'Festival Italia' – 11th August 2024

11/8/2024

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The OUMF team continues to ride high this season, maintaining our flawless record with yet another victory at the iconic Brands Hatch circuit during the 'Festival Italia.' It was a weekend packed with excitement, challenges, and ultimately, triumph as we brought home another class win in the HRDC's 'Jack Sears Trophy.
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Riley 1.5 battles the Austin A40
​The preparations for me began on Thursday evening when I arrived having been away from OUMF due to the start of my placement. It was good to be back at the barn and part of the team again. The team gathered to give our trusty Riley a final once-over before the big weekend. Everything was looking good and by Saturday morning, the Riley was primed and ready to go. We packed up the van, loaded the Riley, and hit the road at 4 PM, bound for Brands Hatch with excitement and optimism.

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OUMF Race Report Donington Masters Historic Festival, August 3rd 2024 - One Month to Build a Race Car

3/8/2024

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On June 24th the OUMF student team returned victorious from a week of serious stage rallying in Belgium with their Riley 1.5 after scoring yet another Class win on their 10th Ypres Rally. Hardly had the DFDS ‘floating palace’ of a ferry disgorged the team at Dover before our attention turned back to competition on track - and the mammoth task of getting the 1959 Elva Courier Mk 2 back to race fettle for what would be its first race in 15 years. We knew the format for the Goodwood Revival’s ‘Fordwater Trophy’ had reverted to ‘production-based sports cars up to 1960’, and that as the Elva is an original ‘Goodwood’ car that raced there in period (and in 4 Revivals too) it might be in with a chance of being invited again. However, as no invitation had arrived, we reckoned that getting it out on track at this big meeting at Donington, and trying to catch the eye of the Goodwood scouts, represented the best, and possibly only chance of getting the car invited back.

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Oxford Universities Motorsport Foundation takes on the ‘Giro  Panoramico’ - 14th July 2024

14/7/2024

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On Sunday 14th of July, OUMF were lucky enough to be invited by the Alfa Romeo Owners Club to take part in their annual ‘Giro Panoramico’, a tour through the finest Cotswold countryside, culminating in a ‘cars and coffee’ style event at the Classic Motor Hub just outside Bibury in Gloucestershire.

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Oxford Universities Motorsport Foundation race in the HRDC ‘Allstars’ and ‘Jack Sears Trophy’ at the inaugural Snetterton Historic Festival Sunday 30th June 2024

30/6/2024

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A trailer wheel rolling past the van while leaving the HQ was not the best  omen with which to start a race weekend - but luckily the OUMF race team is not  superstitious! Attempt 2 to leave went much more smoothly, and the team made  their way north-east to the very technical Snetterton 300 race circuit in Norfolk.  The team had just returned from Belgium the previous weekend, where we had  scored a notable success with a Class win with our rally Riley 1.5 in the FIA  Ardeca Ypres Rally. Almost as soon as we got off the DFDS ferry, we had  continued the race prep our 1959 Elva Courier, in the hope of running it at  Snetterton 5 days later. While it was quite the valiant effort to try and get the ol’  girl ‘good to race’, it was eventually decided to put a much less time-constrained  effort in on the car after Snetterton. This meant the team fully committed to taking  our Sebring Sprite and Riley 1.5 racers, our tried and tested machines which only  required a quick refresh instead of a full buildup!
On reaching the circuit near Norwich, we set up our pit at the track and  then made our way to the pub for some grub. However, after previous all-nighter  of race prep took its toll on many of the team, and upon our return to the track, a  rare occurrence took place…the exhausted OUMF’s were all in bed by 22:00! 

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The OUMF Riley contests the ABINGDON CAR-nival Stages & FIA YPRES Rally – June 2024

17/6/2024

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The Abingdon CAR-nival Stage Rally is a major annual
event involving 6 different UK rally championships
and we decided this would be a suitable ‘shakedown’
for both the OUMF Riley 1.5 and the new OUMF
student team before the really testing Ypres Rally in
Belgium, two weeks later. Being the first serious rally
for the new team, it would provide important
familiarisation with the Riley, and with how top stage
rallies are run. So the weeks before involved plenty
of preparation work, many test drives and late nights,
with inevitable all-nighters as the day grew closer.
The two events threw up tons of issues– with
helmets, kit, insurance, trailer, van, recce car,
accommodation in Belgium, ferries, spare engine, etc., but with fantastic support from Phillips
Tyres, TOYO Tires, EnginePartsUK, and so many
others, organisation and prep continued regardless
and the Riley was finally ready to meet the challenge
of the Abingdon CAR-nival stages.
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OUMF’s HRDC ‘Season Opener’ at Donington Historic Festival, May 5th 2024 - RaceReport

5/5/2024

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The OUMF Austin Healey Sebring Sprite had been lucky enough to spend a few months on sabbatical leave at the British Motor Museum in Gaydon – and some readers may have seen it on its own display in the entrance foyer. For us at OUMF this was an opportunity we could not miss; a chance to exhibit the 6 year practical project representing the engineering efforts of 100’s of students. At Gaydon – away from the racetrack - the public could get up close and personal with the car and admire all its beautiful details. 

Upon collecting our ‘Little BeWT’, a week before it was to be on track at Donington, Jeff Coope (the museum’s MD) kindly took Ding and I for some lunch, over which he described the huge public interest there had been in not only the Sprite, but the overall concept of OUMF and the incredible opportunities it gives us as students. Once we were full of sandwiches and cake, the Sprite was loaded onto the trailer in no time with the help of some visitors, and we set off down the M40, Oxford bound!
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OUMF seeks a definitive solution to generic TVR heat management issues on a 1990 350i using Zircotec Thermohold and ZircoFlex Gold

19/4/2024

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​Who are Zircotec?
Zircotec Ltd is a world leader in heat management, specialising in high temperature coatings and heat barrier solutions. Originally part of the UK Atomic Energy Authority, Zircotec’s expertise lies in thermal barrier technologies initially developed for the nuclear industry. Zircotec is known for its plasma-sprayed ceramic coating materials that provide thermal and ​abrasive resistance. Their core products, such as...

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