George Abecassis

George Edgar Abecassis Template:Post-nominals<ref name=DFC/> (21 March 1913 – 18 December 1991) was a British racing driver, and co-founder of the HWM Formula One team.

Pre-1946 career

Born in Oatlands, Surrey, Abecassis was educated at Clifton College.<ref>"Clifton College Register" Muirhead, J.A.O. p434: Bristol; J.W Arrowsmith for Old Cliftonian Society; April, 1948</ref> He began circuit racing in 1935 in a modified Austin Seven which became known as The Einsitzer. After taking 1937 as a year away from the track, he acquired an Alta and made a name for himself in English national racing during the 1938 and 1939 seasons. In 1939, he won the Imperial Trophy Formula Libre race at Crystal Palace, driving his Alta, defeating Prince Bira, in the E.R.A. known as Romulus, in a wet race,<ref>Motor Sport, November 1938, Page 388.</ref> "that being the only time it was beaten by a Template:Cvt car in the British Isles."<ref>Motor Sport, November 1940, Page 202.</ref>

At one point, Abecassis held the Campbell circuit lap record at Brooklands at Template:Convert<ref>Motor Sport, May 1939, Page 135.</ref> On 3 July 1938 Abecassis broke the Prescott Hill Climb record with a climb of 47.85 seconds in his supercharged 1½-litre Alta.<ref>Motor Sport, July 1938, Page 246.</ref>

When World War II broke out he joined the Royal Air Force, as a member of the Volunteer Reserves, and became an experienced pilot, ultimately becoming a member of the secret "Moon Squadrons",<ref name=gp>Template:Cite web</ref> ferrying secret agents in and out of occupied countries in Europe with specially-modified Halifax and Stirling aircraft. During the course of his wartime service Abecassis was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross<ref name=DFC/><ref name=watn>Template:Cite web</ref> and was mentioned in dispatches<ref name=MID/> with the following citation:<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Template:Block quote

Abecassis achieved the rank of squadron leader,<ref name=rank/> and, following the war, continued as a member of the RAF Volunteer Reserves prior to his discharge in 1953.<ref name=discharge/>

Post-1946 career

Template:See also After World War II Abecassis went back to racing, initially with pre-war machinery. He won a race at Gransden Lodge in a road-going 3.3-litre Bugatti on 15 June 1946.<ref>Motor Sport, July 1946, Page 143.</ref> In 1947, Abecassis finished second in the Swedish Grand Prix, held on a frozen lake at Vallentuna, driving an E.R.A.<ref>Motor Sport, April 1947, Page 98.</ref> In 1948, he finished second to Bob Gerard in the Jersey International Road Race.<ref>Motor Sport, June 1948, cover.</ref> He became a partner, with John Heath, in Hersham and Walton Motors Ltd., a motor dealership and garage in Walton-on-Thames. Building on his pre-war association with the Alta marque, Abecassis and HWM assisted in the development of the Alta GP car,<ref name=watn/> designed to comply with the recently introduced Formula One regulations.

After the failure of this enterprise, Abecassis and Heath decided to construct their own cars under the HWM banner, but retaining Alta engines. Initially the HWM cars were designed to compete in the Formula Two class, but when the World Championship switched to Formula Two regulations in Template:F1 HWM cars became eligible to compete in the Grand Prix events. During their prime, HWM employed such future stars as Stirling Moss and Peter Collins, and the Belgian Johnny Claes scored their first victory, in the Grand Prix des Frontières at a street circuit in Chimay, Belgium.<ref name=gp/> Abecassis's HWM team also took a notable victory in the International Trophy race at Silverstone in 1952, this time with Lance Macklin at the wheel. With the reintroduction of Formula One cars to the World Championship in Template:F1, Abecassis and Heath attempted to produce a competitive car using the 2.5-litre version of the Alta engine but it was not a success;<ref name=gp/> HWM cars only contested two further Grand Prix events after 1953.

It was with his own HWM cars that Abecassis raced in his only two Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, at the Bremgarten circuit, in the 1951 and 1952 Swiss Grand Prix. He was more successful as a sports car driver with Aston Martin and won his class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in Template:24hLM, sharing his DB2 with Macklin. He also finished second in the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1953, partnered by Reg Parnell. In 1953, Abecassis constructed an HWM sports car for his own personal use, powered by a Jaguar straight-6 engine, with which he successfully contested many national British races until 1956.<ref name=autocourse>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 1955 Mille Miglia he drove a red Austin Healey 100S (AHS3804) very fast in the last "Rome section" to an outstanding position close to the speeds of Stirling Moss with the Mercedes SLR and finished 11th overall.

In 1956, Heath was killed in an accident in the Mille Miglia and Abecassis retired from racing, turning his attention to running the HWM operations. He was the Facel Vega importer for Britain, while his motor industry connections were aided by the fact that he was married to Angela, the daughter of Aston Martin chairman Sir David Brown. He died aged 78, in Ibstone, near High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire.

In September 2010 his son David Abecassis published a comprehensive biography of his father under the title A Passion for Speed.

His grandson, Jonathan Abecassis, has an active interest in vintage sports car racing. He competes in the Fifties Sports Car Racing Club ("FISCAR") series, driving an Austin Healey 100/4.

Racing record

Career highlights

Season	Series	Position	Team	Car
1935	Aston Clinton Speed Trails <ref name="georgeabecassis.com">Template:Cite web</ref>	1st		Austin 7 "Einsitzer"
1936	Lands End Trial<ref name="motorsportmagazine.com">Template:Cite web</ref>	Premier Award		1934 Wolseley Hornet Special AXK 777
1938	Easter Road Race <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	1st		Alta 2.0 s/c
	Lewes Speed Trials <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	1st		Alta S
	British Trophy <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	1st		Alta S
	Crystal Palace Cup <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	1st		Alta S
	Crystal Palace Grand Prix<ref name="racingsportscars.com">Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd		Alta 12/50
	Crystal Palace Plate <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	2nd		Alta 2.0 s/c
	Imperial Trophy <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	2nd		Alta 12/50
	Imperial Plate <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	2nd		Alta 2.0 s/c
1939	Imperial Trophy <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	1st		Alta 12/50
	Imperial Plate <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st	George Abecassis	Alta 2.0 s/c
	Crystal Palace Plate <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	3rd	G. E. Abecassis	Alta 2.0 s/c
1946	MAC International Hill Climb <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	2nd		Alta S
	Gransden Lodge Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd		Alta
1947	Bo'ness Hill Climb <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st		Bugatti Type 59
	British Hill Climb Championship <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd		Bugatti Type 59
	SAK Stockholm Grand Prix <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd		ERA A-Type
	Prix de Rome <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd		Cisitalia-Fiat D46
	Gransden Trophy <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	2nd		Bugatti Type 59
	JMC & LCC Hill Climb <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	2nd		Bugatti Type 59
	KAK Winter Grand Prix <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3rd		ERA A-Type
	Ulster Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3rd		ERA A-Type
	Craigantlet Hillclimb <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	3rd		Bugatti Type 59
1948	Jersey International Road Race <ref>http://www.chicanef1.com/r=race.pl?year=1948&gp=Jersey%20Road%20Race&r=18&type=resTemplate:Dead link</ref>	2nd		Maserati 6CM
1951	Winfield Formula 2 Cup <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd	H. W. Motors Ltd.	HWM-Alta 51
	Madgwick Cup <ref name="georgeabecassis.com"/>	3rd	H. W. Motors Ltd.	HWM
	Hastings Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	3rd	H. W. Motors Ltd.	HWM
1952	Ibsley Grand Prix <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd	H. W. Motors Ltd.	HWM-Alta 52
	Silverstone International <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	3rd	David Brown	Aston Martin DB3
	Jersey International Road Race <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	3rd	David Brown	Aston Martin DB3
1953	Goodwood International <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	Grand Prix, 12 Hours of Sebring <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd	Aston Martin Ltd.	Aston Martin DB3
1954	Silverstone International <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	2nd	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	Hedemoraloppet <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	2nd	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	Goodwood International <ref name="racingsportscars.com"/>	3rd	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
1955	AMOC USAF Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	BM Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	RedeX Trophy <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	1st	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar
	Mille Miglia	11th	Donald Healey Motor Company	Austin Healey 100S
	Brighton Speed Trials <ref>Template:Cite web</ref>	2nd	H. W. Motors	HWM-Jaguar

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	WDC	Points
1951	HW Motors Ltd	HWM	Alta Straight-4	SUI Template:Small	500	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	ITA	ESP	NC	0
1952	HW Motors Ltd	HWM	Alta Straight-4	SUI Template:Small	500	BEL	FRA	GBR	GER	NED	ITA	NC	0
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Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1950	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin Ltd.	Template:Flagicon Lance Macklin	Aston Martin DB2	S3.0	249	5th	1st
1951	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin Ltd.	Template:Flagicon Brian Shawe-Taylor	Aston Martin DB2	S3.0		5th	2nd
1953	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin Ltd.	Template:Flagicon Roy Salvadori	Aston Martin DB3S	S3.0	74	DNF (Clutch)

Complete 12 Hours of Sebring results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1953	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin, Ltd.	Template:Flagicon Reg Parnell	Aston Martin DB3	S3.0	172	2nd	1st

Complete Mille Miglia results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1952	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin Ltd.	Template:Flagicon Pat Griffith	Aston Martin DB2	GT+2.0	DNF (Clutch)
1953	Template:Flagicon Aston Martin Lagonda	Template:Flagicon Pat Griffith	Aston Martin DB3	S+2.0	DNF (Steering, accident)
1954	Template:Flagicon H.W. Motors	Template:Flagicon Denis Jenkinson	HWM-Jaguar	S+2.0	DNF (Shock absorber)
1955	Template:Flagicon Donald Healey Motor Company		Austin-Healey 100S	S+2.0	11th	5th

Complete 24 Hours of Spa results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1948		Template:Flagicon John Heath	Alta	S2.0	172	DNF (Accident)

Complete 12 Hours of Reims results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1953	Template:Flagicon H.W. Motors	Template:Flagicon Paul Frère	HWM-Jaguar	S+2.0		DNF (Suspension)
1954	Template:Flagicon H.W. Motors	Template:Flagicon Lance Macklin	HWM-Jaguar	S+2.0		DNF (Engine)

Complete 12 Hours of Hyères results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Template:Tooltip	Template:Tooltip
1954	Template:Flagicon H.W. Motors	Template:Flagicon Tony Gaze	HWM-Jaguar			DISQ (Disqualified)

Further reading

• Template:Cite book

External links

• George Abecassis Racing Driver with a Passion for Speed (georgeabecassis.com), 2010.
• Our History, HWM of Walton on Thames, West London.
• Fast motoring in a Facel Vega,, Motor Sport Magazine, August 1958.
• Template:Cite web