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I found my old race car!
I have raced 3 different cars. My first was a 1980 Ford Fiesta preped for ITC in 1988. I raced that until 1995. That year I bought a 1993 Mustang Cobra "R" and raced that until 2003. And even now that I have the Scriocco I still wondered what happened to my Fiesta. Now last weekend I found out what happened to the car, where it was raced and who owns it! How this came to happen is the strange part.
I am a Ford/Mercury Capri car enthusiast going all the way back to 1974 when I bought a Capri new. I have owned 4 total and 1 other in partnership, the last one sold in 2006. I have made many friends within the Capri community and they have 2-3 get togethers every year. This year I decided to attend the "Capri Swarm" this year over Labor Day held near Columbus, OH. I last attended in 2008.
At Friday's meet & greet at the host hotel I happened to sit down at the same table with a man & his son. We got to talking about Capris, then about other cars we owned. We then both learned that we both road race. Then we both learned that we both have or still race Fiesta's!. I said that I got started in racing with a Fiesta and he said that he raced one from around 2002-2009 in both SCCA Prod, GTL, and GT4. He also said that he has gone to the June Sprints & the Run Off with this car and won his share of races. I was impressed! When I mentioned that I still wonder where my Fiesta was he asked to who did I sell it to. I couldn't remember the name but told him that is was sold in late 1995 to a father & son team from upper NY state and that a few years later I heard from the son that he was moving up to Prod and later saw it for sale in Sports Car. After that I heard nothing about the car. With that information he then told me that he owned my old race car! It was my car that he took to the Sprints and won, to the Run Offs! Now I can't take any credit for any of this but I still fell good about this and glad that the car is in a good home. As soon as the son is old enough and ready (He 15 and cart racing now.) the father will put him in the Fiesta and let him get his SCCA license.
I mean what are the chances of what happened!
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As a Fiesta racer since 1979, my question is "what's his name?" by the way, my HP Fiesta would like to go to a new home.
Russ
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His name is William Davidson and he's originally from England. I gave him my name and email address so that he could send me some pictures of the car but he hasn't done so as of yet. His best finish at the Run Off was in 2005 with a 4th. He did win the Sprints at least once but not sure which year?
He lives near Detroit, MI.
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Jim,
Hi, this is Joe Zingaro...I bought that Fiesta from you !! and I sold it to Bill Davidson. It probably can be said that it is certainly one of the most winning Fiestas in the U.S. ever. After we bought it, in the first we ran it as bought, but then began upgrading shocks etc. We won many races, and won the NYSRRC ITC championship in it in 1997 and was always in the top 3 at any track in NE, and near track records at Glen and Lime Rock. Some of the oldtimer ITC Nediv guys may remember it?? (Joe G. , Jack Hannifan, Travis Washay, Steve Coletti, the Balcezack brothers)
With that success and wanting run nationals, we completed reconstructed the entire cage, suspension(rear wedge bolts to raise and lower rather than coilover due to the spring and shock being in different locations), rear discs, extreme lightening, different 3rd and 4th gear, fiberglass flares and hood, lexan, and a fairly good motor complete with weber 40's...to compete in F Production...and that year was mostly development.
Then for the 1999 season we had MWE - Marcovicci & Wenz build us a very top notch, dry sumped, dynoed motor to try to compete with the MG's of the day and for the better part we did...with the exception of Harold Flescher in NEDIV who beat us every time, but I belive we finished secong in NEDIV points? We won the Pocono National(maybe the first SCCA National win in FP for a Fiesta) We went to the runoffs in 99 and were the top finishing tin-top in FP in 12th position, and at that time the MG's had quite an advantage. The tin tops today that are able to beat them in FP are doing so with alot more power than the 1.6 pushrod Kent, and the 28mm chokes the Fiesta was allowed. The car also changed from the white it had been...to Dodge Viper Blue and some of that remained on it when Bill bought it.
The car was then reclassified to where it should have been in GP with the 510's and Rabbit, unfortunately...the crb added 300lbs. taking it from 1790 to 2090 !!!! yes a 2100 lb Fiesta ??!! I still ran three races in 2000, qualified 2nd at Summit..axle snapped right off(weight?)...finished 2nd at Lime Rock behind eventual Runoffs Champ, and then at nelson the rear wheel came off due to cracked hub.
Wilson Wright then offered me his GT4 tub civic car to run as he had his new tubeframe GT4 Nissan and I qualified that same 2000 season for the runoffs..but in GT4.
I then decided to sell the car, and Bill and his great engineering skills turned it into a very fast GT4 car !! and he did get 4th at the Runoffs in 2004!!
So there's the story...after running a tubeframe GTL nissan in 2006, including a trip to the Topeka runoffs...I retired....and then just starting lurking on this site when I bought an ITA about 10 months ago, and we are still working on it.
Joe Zingaro
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My Dad raced a Capri for years in ITA here in the NorthEast. He had owned it since it was new in 73 and built it as an IT car in 84. Back when IT cars still drove on the street! I loved that car as a kid. He stopped racing it back in the early 90's and finally sold it about 5 years ago. I think he lurkes here at times so maybe he will see this post!
Stephen
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Remember Joe's car well--GO FORD!!
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