Category: News

During round 7 of the FASSI Classic Speed Championship in July Scuderia FASSI finally ran out of talent & put our Fiat Abarth into the Armco barrier.

The good news is that thanks to the skill & dedication of DTR European Sportscars & Middle Barton Garage we are back in the race after missing rounds 8 & 9. The DTR European Sportscars guys pulled the body straight on their jig, rebuilt & painted the bodyshell before MBG replaced the steering & suspension.

We will be competing in the final round of the FASSI Classic Speed Championship at Prescott Speed Hill Climb this Saturday 7th October. With our new spotlights courtesy of Middle Barton Garage we are also running in Rallye Prescott on Saturday 4th November, with both daylight and early evening darkness runs in a tribute to the wonderful sport of rallying.

Scuderia FASSI would like to thank DTR’s Paul & MBG’s Tony & their teams of specialists for pulling out all the stops to get us back in the race in time for the season finale.

A final thanks goes to the Prescott volunteer marshalling & medical teams for their fast & professional response to our mishap.
Grazie mille!

It was a tough competition this month and a hard decision for the judges but September’s worthy winner is Lee Haze of David Stanley Transport with ‘Optical illusion’.

Lee’s perfectly executed shot of his FASSI F545RA.2 wins him a FASSI X LAS Helmet; NEW FASSI back-pack; a Gilet and merchandise pack with FASSI hoodie, T-shirt, insulated bottle and retro chamois leather and a brand new pair of FASSI x Gala Gloves luxury leather work gloves.

For a full list of winners go to www.facebook.com/fassiuk

Thank you to Ian Pull for sending these photos of a recent job carried out by MRA Transport and their FASSI F820RA crane.

The company was tasked with moving a pair of fantastical sea creatures from Norfolk to the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, London.  The large Shark and the Kraken (legendary and terrifying sea monster if you didn’t know!) are to become part of a brand new play area for children visiting the museum.  The play equipment was designed and built by Norwich based CAP.Co, a regular customer of MRA Transport.

The FASSI F820RA is flexible and compact which contributes to the vehicle’s overall manoeuvrability – key factors for lifting equipment such as this into small spaces.  Combine that with the skills of the FASSI operator for a ‘Kraken’ job well done.

I

Italian classic Abarths vintage & new gathered at Middle Barton Garage on Saturday 1st July.

FASSI UK were pleased to be in attendance with both our 595 & 695 Fiat Abath’s. Our favourites from the day had to be the Ferrari race team mini-bus & the Auto Bianchi Abarth.

Middle Barton Garage has specialised in Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Fiat and Lancia cars for 35 years & built & maintain both the FASSI Fiat Abarths.

FASSI UK are a proud sponsor of Alex Richardson and his cycling crew who are set to embark on an incredible 960-mile bike ride from John O’Groats to Lands End. Alex is a FASSI operator for David Watson Transport, one of our longest standing customers. Sadly, a colleague of Alex’s took his own life and Alex and friends are completing this ride in memory of him. Alex has previously struggled with his mental health and is raising awareness for people who are also struggling.

Along with 6 friends and colleagues, Alex is personally raising money for a charity called the Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM). The charity is leading a movement against suicide, the biggest killer of men aged under 45 in the UK.

The bike ride will start on the 3^rd  June and end on the 12^th  June.  Alex will be wearing cycling gear part-sponsored by FASSI UK and will have a support van alongside him for the whole journey provided by David Watson Transport.

The dates and locations are as follows:

03/06/2023 Dunnet to John O’Groats

04/06/2023 John O’Groats to Dingwall

05/06/2023 Dingwall to Glencoe

06/06/2023 Glencoe to Larkhall

07/06/2023 Larkhall to Penrith

08/06/2023 Penrith to Warrington

09/06/2023 Warrington to Shrewsbury

10/06/2023 Shrewsbury to Portbury

11/06/2023 Portbury to Oakhampton

12/06/2023 Oakhampton to Lands End

Make sure to give them a wave or beep your horn if you see them on your travels.

Alex’s goal is to reach £2000. Donations would be much appreciated, and they can be submitted by following this link:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/alex-richardson22

Round 4 of the Bugatti Owners Club FASSI Classic Speed Championship took place at Loton Speed Hillclimb on Saturday 13th May.

The Loton Park Speed Hillclimb course is extremely challenging for competitors with a wide variety of corners and a changing character as the ascent progresses. We were blessed with perfect conditions & a dry surface but put a wheel on the grass or enter a bend at excessive speed & this hill bites hard.

Scuderia FASSI found this out during first practice when Dave Fripp lost traction pushing hard through Loggerheads and span across the grass at 50mph before re-joining the track with no harm done. Later that day Martin Saunders in the Ford Escort Mk1 also took a trip over the grass, this time through Keepers, but again re-joined the track with no damage & ooh’s & aah’s from the crowd.

We were all pleased to welcome Tim & Ben Cross back to the sports car class after missing the last round while rebuilding their gearbox. The MG Midget was back with more power & tweaked suspension & stormed the hill over 3 seconds quicker than handicap. Tim edged his son Ben into second place with Gary Cox in the Scimitar Coupe in third.

The saloon car class was hotly contested with six drivers in the mix for the top three places as we entered the second timed run. Alistair Clark came out on top in the Triumph Vitesse Mk2 from John Louch in the Austin A40 Farina & Stephen Akers in the Mini Cooper S, all with times well under handicap.

Two cars ran in the racing car class with Ben Fisher taking the class honours as well as fastest ascent of the hill in the Mallock Mk2. Martin Jones bought the Elva Mk7 home in second place.

Many thanks as always to Stuart Wing for his photography & also Steve Louch who managed to take some good shots despite also competing himself! Many thanks to all the staff & marshals at Loton for a well-run event.

For the overall championship points table follow this link.

Click here to go to the championship photo gallery.

Round 3 of the Bugatti Owners Club FASSI Classic Speed Championship took place at a very wet Shelsley Walsh Hill Climb on Saturday 6th May.

Shelsley Walsh is the oldest motorsport venue in the world still to run events on the original course and is older than Indianapolis, Le Mans or Monza. The hill is a steep 100m climb over its 914m length & a favourite venue for high powered cars.

The constant rain made for a very wet hill & challenging driving conditions for the 20-car field. As is often the case in motorsport the rain disrupts the usual order of things & this was to the advantage of Scuderia FASSI on the day.

While the more powerful saloons had to moderate their speeds & feather the throttle through the bends, the FASSI Fiat Abarth 695 was able to maintain foot to the floor with only a slight lift off into bottom ‘S’. This allowed both drivers to come in under their handicap times to take first place (Leigh Carter) & second place (Dave Fripp) in the saloon class. Alistair Clark bought the Triumph Vitesse home in third with a quick but controlled drive to come closest to his handicap time.

One of the great things about hill climbing is the camaraderie & friendliness that permeates the paddock. This was illustrated when Scuderia FASSI had a technical problem right before first practice. Without the intervention of Martin Saunders, who gave us a spare part from his Ford Escort, the Scuderia FASSI day would have been over before it began. We can’t thank Martin enough for his help.

The sports car class featured no less than three Reliant Scimitars with Ian Stainburn taking the class win in his Scimitar Coupe. Ian Beattie piloted his Jaguar XK120 to second place despite having only a half-moon windscreen to shield him from the rain. Third place went to Steve Phennah in the MG B Roadster.

The racing car class featured two lovely looking machines. Ian Baxter’s Brabham BT 16 was the fastest car up the hill on the day at 37.08 seconds & took the class honours from Briony Serrell’s Elva Mk7 in second.

Many thanks to Stuart Wing, Steve Shelley & Max Hawkes for the excellent photography & to all the staff & marshals at Shelsley Walsh for a well-run event.

Click here to go to the championship photo gallery.