Palliser WD3 car-by-car histories
Derek Lawrence in his Palliser WD32 at Brands Hatch in May 1971. Copyright Ted Walker 2020. Used with permission.
Palliser produced two designs for Formula 3, the WD31 for 1970 and the WD32 for 1971. However, the inconsistencies of the company's naming convention have meant that these cars are often confused.
1970 was the final season of the 1-litre Formula 3, and Palliser Racing produced a Formula 3 car for Roger Keele to drive, following the outline of the WDB2 Formula B car. It was usually described as a WD3, where 'W' and 'D' were for designer Len Wimhurst and team principal Hugh Dibley as usual, and '3' denoted F3. However, press reports and entry lists sometimes got this wrong, and the designation 'WDF3' was often used. As this was the correct name of the 1971 Formula Ford design, it led to significant confusion. As this 1970 F3 Palliser was the first 'series' for F3, it should really have been designated the WD31, but never was.
In 1971, Palliser produced a new F3 design along the lines of the new WDB4 Formula Atlantic car. This had the same top trailing arm on the front suspension and the same baggy sidepods inspired by the BRM P153. This design should logically have been called the WD32, but never was. The chassis plate of the first cars was reported to have said "WD3-3".
If you own one of these Palliser-Winkelmanns, or have photographs that we can use, or can add to our understanding of the marque, please email Allen at allen@oldracingcars.com.
Roger Keele in his Palliser WD31 at Brands Hatch in October 1970. Copyright Ted Walker 2020. Used with permission.
New for Roger Keele (Daventry, Northamptonshire) to race in British F3 in 1970, entered by Paul Watson Racing Organisation, and using Broadspeed and later Ehrlich engines. He finished second in an MCD Lombank championship round at Castle Combe in May, when most of the leading runners were at Monaco. His only other result of note was fourth at a non-championship F3 race at the Oulton Park Gold Cup meeting in August, when he qualified an excellent seventh in the rain, then excelled in the dry race to run in third place in the early stages, eventually finishing fourth.
Keele moved back to Formula Ford in 1971 with a Crosslé, and the Palliser returned to the factory. It was fitted with a Formula Atlantic Ford twin cam engine so that it could be on display at a Formula Atlantic demonstration day in December 1970. Palliser then completed the first WDB4 in time for the Racing Car Show in January 1971, and the WD31 was not seen again. There is no sign of it being advertised over the winter of 1970/71, and no unidentified F3 or Formula Atlantic Palliser in 1971 that might explain it. Had it remained in 1-litre specification, it could have gone to hillclimbs or even to the US for SCCA Formula C, but there is no sign of such a car. So it is possible it was rebuilt as a Formula Ford.
Subsequent history unknown.
Driven by: Roger Keele. First race: Silverstone, 26 Apr 1970. Total of 11 recorded races.
New to Derek Lawrence for British F3 in 1971, fitted with a BRM-tuned Ford twin cam engine. Lawrence went well on his debut at Cadwell Park on Good Friday, finishing fourth, but crashed at Brands Hatch on 2 May, missing several races. On his return, his BRM engines were proving problematic, and results were poor. The car was sold to Jac Nellemann (Denmark) for 1972, and fitted with Vegantune engines. Results were again disappointing, and Nellemann failed to qualify for three early-season races. He was last seen in the car when he went off at Brands Hatch's bottom bend before the start of the final on 22 October. According to later owner Henrik Pedersen (Aalborg, Denmark), it spent a couple of seasons in Danish Formula Ford, and then went into storage until he bought it in 1992. Restored and used in Historic F3 by Pedersen. Pedersen sold it to Lars Bøjvad (Denmark) in 2024. The car was being restored in March 2025, but using Alan Mann colours of dark red and gold instead of its original orange.
Driven by: Derek Lawrence and Jac Nellemann. First race: Cadwell Park, 9 Apr 1971. Total of 18 recorded races.
New to Peter Lamplough for British F3 in 1971, fitted with a BRM-tuned Ford twin cam engine and entered by Alan McKechnie Racing. On his debut at Mallory Park on Easter Monday he was up to fourth place in his heat before experiencing gear selection problems. In the second heat the car turned left abruptly at the Esses and went up the bank, but the driver was unhurt. He returned for the Silverstone race in early May, but had engine problems. After swapping to Holbay engines, he had a better run of results, finishing fourth a couple of times in September, and taking third place at Brands Hatch on 24 October. The car was refurbished for Damien Magee to drive in 1972, entered by Palliser Racing Design Ltd and using Rowland and Novamotor engines. He finished second at two races that season. Magee ordered a new Brabham BT41 for 1973, but raced the Palliser until it was delivered. He finished second again at Brands Hatch in March, but then suffered a massive accident at Thruxton three weeks later, where the car rolled three times and was effectively destroyed.
Driven by: Peter Lamplough and Damien Magee. First race: Mallory Park, 12 Apr 1971. Total of 28 recorded races.
Later Formula 3 Pallisers
Two Formula 3 Pallisers have appeared in historic racing but it has not yet been possible to connect them directly to the original 1970/71 entities. Research continues to establish their provenance.
Tony Keele on the back wheel of his Palliser Thruxton in March 2013. Copyright Keith Lewcock 2013. Used with permission.
Keith Norman (Windsor, Berkshire) drove an orange Palliser in an HSCC Historic Formula Ford race at Silverstone in October 2000. An attending Ian Hebblethwaite noted that its frame number was "WD3 01 AM70". It was entered as a "1971 WD3" and was in Formula Ford specification. Norman told Hebblethwaite that he had bought it from a hillclimber, but believed it to be the ex-Roger Keele 1970 Palliser F3 car. Norman wrote to Robb Pierson of the Winkelmann Registry in March 2002 saying that he owned the ex-Keele 1970 car, identified in his letter as "AM 70 WD/3 01". He said that the car had been identified by its frame ("a WDF3 style frame but constructed with WDF2 size tubes") and a unique feature at the rear mounting point of the lower front wishbone. However, Norman was under the impression that it had been Vern Schuppan's Formula Atlantic car after it was an F3.
In 2005, Tony Keele owned what was believed to be his elder brother Roger Keele's F3 car, but he also believed it had been Schuppan's Formula Atlantic car in 1971. This car, painted orange with a white stripe and with "Roger Keele 1970" on the cockpit, but with 1971 sidepods and 1971 front suspension, was driven by Tony Keele as a "WDB3" in 1600cc Formula Atlantic specification from 2004 to 2013. It was later driven by John Huntley (Duns Tew, Oxfordshire) as a "WDB3" at Prescott in April 2015, and at Prescott again in June 2015, September 2015, June 2016, July 2016, October 2016 and May 2017. It was offered for sale at Race Retro in 2019.
Gareth Walters in his F3 Palliser at Silverstone in October 2009. Copyright Keith Lewcock 2014. Used with permission.
Barrie Maskell raced a Palliser in the Historic F3 series in the 1990s. He won the title in 1991, 1992 and 1993. By March 2005, Gareth Walters owned this car, which he described as "the ex-Lamplough/Magee Palliser WDF3 (confirmed in FIA papers)". Walters won the 1600cc class of the HSCC's Classic F3 championship in 2005. Raced by Walters in Classic F3 in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2014. Raced by Walters at HSCC Cadwell Park in April 2013.
Acknowledgements
Renny Watt (Canby, OR) and Robb Pierson (West Linn, OR) founded what was then called the Winkelmann Registry in the 1990s. Andy Antipas took over the registry from Renny Watt in February 2006 and renamed it the Palliser/Winkelmann Registry. Andy inherited all Watt and Pierson's files and used those as the basis for his pallisercars.com website launched a few months later. Locke de Bretteville then took over from Andy in 2012 and has continued the work of his predecessors. My thanks to all these gentlemen for keeping this flame alive, but particular thanks to Locke for all his help as I constructed OldRacingCars.com's pages on this marque.
If you own one of these Palliser-Winkelmanns, or have photographs that we can use, or can add to our understanding of the marque, please email Allen at allen@oldracingcars.com.
These histories were last updated on .