Description
Coming to auction at the Castle Combe Autumn Classic on Saturday 12th September, full catalogue now online, search Dore & Rees Motoring for further info.
1958 Ray-Ford ‘Ratel’ Mk1 Special
Registration Number: 559 YUX
Chassis Number: 50TTA41315
Recorded Mileage: N/ A
- The ex-Peter Ray, Gord Henderson car
- 2. 6 litre Ford Zephyr engine with triple SU carburettors
- Extensive period North American racing history
A unique and fascinating survivor from the golden age of Northwest American and Canadian sports-car racing, the Ratel is a remarkable and highly individual sports-racing car with a compelling history rooted in the vibrant club-racing scene of the Pacific Northwest and Canada during the 1950s and 1960s.
Conceived by Peter Ray, a successful Formula Junior constructor and racer, the Ratel was subsequently acquired and developed by Gord Henderson, under whose ownership it became a familiar and competitive entrant at circuits throughout the region. Henderson raced the car extensively during the golden age of North American sports-car racing, campaigning it at venues including Westwood, Portland International and Riverside.
Power comes from a 2. 6-litre Ford straight-six, breathing through a trio of SU carburettors mounted on bespoke tubular manifolds. The engine was developed and tuned by the legendary Bud Child, and although the car's early competition career involved the inevitable process of development and refinement, Henderson's efforts resulted in markedly improved performance and reliability. Such was the car's competitive nature that consumables, including clutch and brake linings, became almost as much a consideration as the opposition.
The Ratel's construction is equally intriguing. Beneath its purposeful all-aluminium bodywork lies a well-engineered multi-tube spaceframe chassis, incorporating torsion-bar front suspension and a live rear axle located by transverse leaf springs in the manner pioneered by Cooper. Telescopic dampers are fitted all round, while rack-and-pinion steering and front disc brakes provide the necessary control. A number of the suspension and transmission components are sourced from contemporary BMC and MG models, reflecting the ingenuity and pragmatism characteristic of the period's independent racing constructors.
From behind the wheel, the Ratel provides an unusually direct connection with its mechanicals. The driver sits low within the compact cockpit, with the side exhaust immediately to the left and a pannier-style fuel tank alongside on the right. It is an environment that leaves little doubt as to the car's original purpose. The engine starts readily and, although now equipped with road-legal silencing, retains more than enough character and mechanical noise to convey the unmistakable impression of a competition car.
Henderson's racing career with the Ratel extended into the Can-Am era of the mid-1960s and was accompanied by the sort of exploits that characterised racing in the period. Following his retirement from competition, he embarked upon a successful career as an aerial photographer, flying helicopters extensively throughout Canada. In 1969, the Ratel was put into storage, where it remained for approximately three decades. This lengthy period of inactivity ultimately proved to be something of a blessing, preserving the car in an unusually original and remarkably authentic state. Its survival in substantially unaltered condition provides a rare glimpse into the construction and evolution of an independent sports-racing car of the period.
Following its subsequent return to active life, the Ratel has been correctly registered for road use in the United Kingdom. It can therefore be driven to historic and vintage events, although its natural home remains the circuit. With appropriate preparation, it should provide an exciting candidate for a number of historic racing categories and events, including the Griffith Haig, Stirling Moss Trophy and Equipe Series, as well as historic hillclimbing in the UK and Europe.
Accompanying the car is a particularly interesting collection of spares and historical material. These include the original engine bottom end, retained following the installation of a fresher unit, together with the original wide rear wheels specially banded for Henderson to provide additional grip. These are fitted with period Firestone Green Spot tyres, now understandably showing their age.
The history file is of particular significance and includes a current UK V5c registration document, a 1999 letter of authenticity from Peter Ray, the car's original builder, correspondence from Gord Henderson, period photographs depicting the Ratel in competition, two original race-entry plaques dating from the 1960s, and various documents relating to the car's subsequent importation and registration for road use in the UK.
Rarely does a car of such an individual nature retain such a compelling combination of period competition history, originality and surviving documentation. The Ratel is not simply an interesting historic racing car; it is a tangible survivor from a formative period of North American motor racing, when talented constructors and enthusiastic drivers could create, develop and race their own machines against some of the most celebrated sports cars of the era.
Today, the Ratel offers an unusually evocative opportunity to acquire a genuine piece of that history, equally suited to sympathetic preservation, historic competition or simply being enjoyed on the road and at the many events that celebrate the remarkable racing cars of this era.
