SWIFT AND NEW

Press, 17 February 1978, Page 6

SWIFT AND NEW

The latest addition to the modest fleet of midgets in Christchurch, raced with some success at Templeton a couple of meetings ago, has the capacity to surprise tomorrow night. Arthur Matthews has spent the last season-and-a-half in a self-imposed exile from the track, getting his Mazda-powered racer from the drawing board to the starting line. A fortnight ago the sleek sliver machine was unveiled for the first time, and Matthews drove it to a pair of third placings on his first outing.

The car has been built from “the wheels up” by Matthews, Robin Wilson and Ron Collett, a name more commonly associated with the Ruapuna drag

strip. Among the three of them, the chassis, bodywork and all the competitive paraphernalia that goes into a racing midget has been put together. . The body design was taken from the lines of an American Sesco, but the plans were drawn up by Matthews and his team. The chassis was constructed from lengths of tubular steel and welded into shape, body-panels cut and shaped and fitted to the frame.

The power comes by courtesy of a Mazda RX3 rotary engine. A Triumph 2000 motor previously raced by Matthews was forsaken for the Mazda mainly for reliability. “The Mazda has proven itself in rallies in the past, and Max Butterworth has run one for several seasons in Auckland with success. I also think it to be very suitable for a speedway midget,” he said.

Arthur Matthews hopes to get the gremlins associated with every new car sorted out as quickly as possible.

“We’re still sorting out the handling, and mucking about with different tyre sizes and weights. By the end of the season we should be running at full performance. At the moment she’s only running at half power. The engine red-lines at 9000 rpm’s, but we’re only pulling six at the present time,” he' said.

So tomorrow night a pair of Mazda-powered midgets will line up to contest the national championships; Max Butterworth’s machine is coming down from Auckland with a glowing reputation, and it will be a very interesting side-duel between these two.