Tiff Needell's First Racing Car - Fifth Gear
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- Опубліковано 16 жов 2024
- 45 years ago Lotus launched a competition to win a Lotus 69F, and the winner was none other than Tiff Needell! This helped kick-start his career in motorsport, and after being sold through many dealers the car is now returned to it's first owner.
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So Tiff didn't become a racing driver because his rich daddy helped him out? That's not how it usually works. He could only do it because he won this car? Awesome, I've always had time for Tiff, he seems like a really decent bloke, but he just went up in my estimation - what a bloody hero.
he has a proper day-job and that really isn't related to cars at all
@@volante8657 really? What is it? As a Tiff fan, I'm eager to know
@@mrh1096 look up the wiki page, he is a structural engineer and did work for a company
@@volante8657 now he isn't working that job right?
@truthpig He grew up in Hampshire and had a public school education so his parents certainly weren't 'poor'. Yes it was a stroke of luck winning the car as that changed his life.....forever. He's a couple of years younger than me so i can relate back to that period and i struggled to afford to run an old Moggie 1000 i had at his age! Racing cars were posters we stuck on our bedroom wall!!
When he said he won the car 45 Years ago, I was like did he win it when he was 10 ? Then when he said he was in university at the time I had to check how old he is. Turns out he is 67. If I am honest he doesn't look a day older than 55.
#69, 420 kilos. the memes are too dank with this one, lads
Drive it thinking like that and you end up in the bushes.
lmao
NICE.
I'm not moving that 69 like mark, buddy :D
Tiff is a good guy in person aswell, Met him a few years ago.
That prize, all those years ago, could not have been won by a better person. It sparked Tiffs successful racing career, allowed all of us to enjoy his TV presenting and left a slot open for another civil engineer. Things could not have worked out better if they were planned by a strategist.
Now I want to know about the gorgeous VBH and her start in racing
Very cool and inspiring story.
Wow, it's so amazing that Lotus used to give a full blown racing car as a prize!!
Tiff is the man.
If they remake top gear he should be on it
Matt D He used be, before The trio we know today it was just Needell and Clarkson.
+Matt D well, Tiff IS the stig, cue the atom v8
Matt D ppq
Who’s here after enjoying Tiff’s Morris Traveller video?
Me:-)
Absolutely.
Me too
I like the idea of mixed model racing, based around power-to-weight ratios. Aussie ran a 'Nations cup' without the power-to-weight matchup a few seasons back and it was very interesting to see how a whole bunch of fast and exotic cars dealt with their own strengths and weaknesses throughout a lap. One make races are like watching paint dry, by comparison to endless lead swaps.
Tiff studied civil engineering just like me!!!! Now i like him even more :D. VIVA TIFF
That Lotus looks incredible... the engine sounds sweet and revvy, the handling looks alive! Wow. Really, really wow.
I loved this video, thanks so much!
Always love Tiff. Anytime he’s in a car your in for a treat.
Mario Andretti rove a Lotus 69 Ford F5000 at Sebring, December,1969.
A DNF
Gearbox.
He pulled over just after The Hairpin, messing about with the gear change lever.
Got out and came thru a gap in the snow fence, where we usually camped, after 1967.
I handed him a glass of cold German white wine... offered up some beef stroganoff..
I was the cook for our entourage
He admired our Ducati 250 Diana on the trailer, with a NSU 501 rat bike we had built
out of a Mustang scooter..
and then headed off to the pits..
Via the new bridge..
We would see him win there in March SEFAC 512S
Then in 1972, SEFAC 312PB...
HERO!
Gus Hutchinson Brabham BT-26 Cosworth shared the two heat race
with David Hobbs, Surtees TS something...
Friend Tony a2z would also DNF but was crowned Champion
in his Eagle 500 F5000...
An ill advised switch from Chevy to Ford..
Swede Savage would lead the races, but ran out of gas!
Eagle-Plymouth...
Those were the days..
J.C.
Tiff is one of the baddest EVER.
Tiff Needle is a dorky gramps
@@mdlatham7 yeah, and he'd ruin you on a track
@@Flowermouth of course he would. What a dumb comment.
These cars are beyond fun, I setup a 1989 Reynard for some historic racing guys, awesome fun and probably the best racing out...
Legendary story!
Legendary story and great video 👍
My 1st car and one of the best that Britain has produced! Slept in the back when rock climbing in North Wales. Great days.
Tiff is a lucky man. I would love to hear what it was like to race back then and what safety improvements were made to the cars to improve survivability. During the 60's, drivers were considered expendable and not long for this world.
Tiff you say you won But we also all won, for without you winning the competition we may have never had our favourite driver of all times, me personally I'd rather watch you putting a Dell boy's 3 wheeler through its paces than all drivers of the top gear team, driving their super cars you drive with your heart mate full of enthusiasm n passion cause you love what your doing n it really shows, If only things where different n Senna was with us retired from F1 you 2 would have made the greatest car show on earth by far keep safe mate, n keep driving ops n many thanks for all the pleasures you gave us
Them cars back then weren't much bigger than a go cart. But had tons of power. That had to be fun.
Mark Goodlin it only had 107 horsepower.
My 250cc motorcycle has more power than that.
Clint Tapper
Yeah and Go Karts only tend to have 15-30 horsepower, but they weigh less than 200 kilos with a driver in them and have four wheels and so can probably corner faster than a motorbike.
You should see how small a Swift Db-1 looks.
As old as this video is, I doubt you'll read this. I raced a Lotus 61 FF for a decade in west coast USA historic races. I ALWAYS wanted to get my hands on a Lotus 69. It seems they never performed to their potential against the Mk6 Titans. I always wondered... WHY?! The '61' was the final evolution of the Lotus 20 formula Junior, whereas the '69 was designed from a clean sheet of paper. So why wouldn't it perform??? I can't say, I never got my hands on one. Such is fate, hey? OH, did I fail to mention, I won seven consecutive championships in my age old Lotus 61, between 2003 and 2009.
Of interest, my car changed hands twice, and then ended up in Belgium. That latest owner tracked me down and asked for setup data. I told him the car had been restored to original 1969 specs, and nothing I could tell him would work. The car was 61/FF/79....
Thanks for sharing Carl, my Grandad had a Ralt RT4 here in Australia, sold it to someone who took it overseas and it's lost to time. Probably in a shed somewhere. I drove it once in 2006 when I was 17 and racing in the B Class of Lotus Challange (Elise). The thing was just a big crazy kart! I did a couple of days in Formula Vee and once in Formula Ford so I image that was like the 61! Did some random drives here and there then had to get a real job when a full season in anything on the pro ladder was of the table financially....such is life. In my 30s now and I'd just love a full season of fun in Formula Vee, not for anything else but enjoyment. Sadly now its cheque book racing.
Great person.
My granddad an nanna met each other doing Formula Ford in Australia. She was a beauty model and he was an apprentice mechanic. And they went hammer and tong together around the race tracks, and when she met an English man who had a new engine she decided to have a go in it. She may of crashed it on her second lap, but the guy was only interested if she was alright which she was.
I wish company's still did competitions like these :(
Nicolas Cage is God GT Academy
***** wut?
This proves a point that is very valid to modern day road cars, get rid of all the superfluous weight such as airbags, impact beams, electric windows, Traction control, power steering etc etc and you could easily see a 1 litre petrol engine developing 75bhp do 70,80,90 even 100mpg on a motorway run.
my old Astra MKII was 880kg and its 1300cc carburettor engine managed 55mpg and this was back in the early 90s.
this is your best video
So amazing!
I love the story...love the car as well. brilliant!
Tiff is the Stig
I'm surprised how Uncle Tiff aging body and brain is not lagging at all.
Here is another vid of the car: " HOW THIS CAR CHANGED MY LIFE - TIFF NEEDELL. Morris 1000 Traveller full story. " On the channel " Lovecars " Newer car but still in the spirit " On track with a Formula Ford 1600 | How to Drive - Episode 5 " on the channel " Motor Sport "
great video
I really loved it 😍💕
Fifth Gear do you give permission for other UA-cam channels to use your content? There seem to be alot of your videos appearing on other channels.
Great comment on lightness winnng the day Tiff... ACBC would have liked that
I absolutely love lotus
Yestercars..When I was a young man ..I ever had 1969 the Cortina 1600E /GT OHV - KENT CROSSFLOW the engine with WEBBER Twin downdraught !?!
Wonder what time Tiff could have done in the Elise?
Keep it simple and then add lightness
I would love to own one, or a similar vehicle, does anyone know where I might be able to find one in the US?
Robert Deford build one. believe me, it'll be a lot of fun
I would love to, but the reason I want to find one is to see if I'd even fit, lol
uk.caterhamcars.com/cars/seven-620r
Wow, What a beautiful Formula 1, I want one - just one :)
על גלגלים On Wheels Formula "FORD", not F1.
Formula Ford.
על גלגלים On Wheels this is about as far away from Formula 1 as you could possibly get in real terms.
Formula Vee is even farther. Ive raced FF1600 and F-Mazda in the US.
What were the lap times when you swapped cars Tiff!😎 You did swapped cars?🧐
I have switched to fifth gear instead of giving any interest to top gear
Shayan Sen Gupta I wonder why LMAO
Because topgear is no more
Shayan Sen Gupta hence the LMAO there
+Shayan Sen Gupta Me too :)
I watch both and i prefer fifth gear
Making me want to get a crossflow cup Formula ford even more.
For more of the driving experience ( in a newer version but still a similar effect ) watch the vid On track with a Formula Ford 1600 How to Drive - Episode 5 on the channel Motor Sport
Not really a surprising outcome. Even the slowest of the formula cars (Vee, F500, Ford, Atlantic, Star Mazda, F2000) will still run circles around the todays' gathering of fast fendered production sports cars, especially at a twisty track.
As would these: ua-cam.com/video/jMG4henrC9U/v-deo.html
We miss tiff on 5th gear
he sounds like kermit the frog when he wears a helmet
He was behind after half a lap compared to the lotus, then somehow pulled back over a second and a half in the latter stages of the lap! That's interesting and very impressive
Maybe the track started with wide open, straight sections and got tighter turns towards the end? that's what i'm guessing...
I want to own Vintage F1s😍
What did he have to do to win it ???
"to add speed, add lightness"
Tiff now owns his old car
what i nice story.
I didn't win this car but did enter the competition.
It had to be car #69 hadn't it...
Nicktrance1 pretty sure that was the car's original number as part of the promotional give-away.
+Nicktrance1 ayyyyy lmao
69 @ 420 kg
1337 bhp/tonne
If Tiff Needell was in his prime..... then that gap might have been bigger. Unless that Elise driver also became younger.
so the 69F weighs 420 kilos. interesting
Weight and poise win every time. Power is for the stupid.
Clarksooon!
heheh car #69
First comment goes to me 3 rd view..ahahaa
1000 pounds in 1967 is equal to 25,000 in 2015...not hardly. Stick to engineering not economics.
You're a bit aggressive.
He's not far off.. £1000 in 1967 is about £18,000 today.
@@stevejones1318 I guess it's all about what inflation factor you want to use. Today £22,000 is about right assuming you take into account the big devaluation of the pound at the end of '67, £18,000 is about right for 2015 when he did this video, by my inflation calculator. Others may differ. 🤔
ETA: I'm also pretty sure that exact model with the chisel nose was not available in 1967.
Smells fishy
The "Aleez"? Can you not pronounce a basic name?
Relax yankee boy. I'm sure the are plenty of words that you Michiganders pronounce wrongly to Tiff's ear. I know whose pronounciation I prefer.
You're a lucky man Tiff. Charmed life.
I want to own Vintage F1s😍