TOPIC:

Hi all,

Last week, I have visited my dad. While I helped him with the computer, he just came around with this wonderful, orginally sealed kit:














I guess, a B2B Racing Sidecar (58017), ORIGINALLY SEALED, is probably pretty rare. On one side, it would be very intersting and exceting to look inside the box... but on the otherside, it would loose value for a collector, who knows to rate it....

Sometimes, I am not sure who had more vintage cars... my dad or Tamiya itself

🤤🤤🤤

As additional information: The real drivers of these sidecar have been Rolf Biland and Kurt Waltisperg, two Swiss. They have been very successfull for many years.
If I have combined everything correct, this has been their winning-car of 1979.
Sorry, this wasn't correct.
The driver was Rolf Biland (a Swiss) and his teammate was Kenny Williams (a Britain). The sidecar has won world championship in 1978.

There is also a short documentation of Rolf Biland on Swiss TV: www.srf.ch/spor...u-weltruhm
Unfortunately, it is only in Swiss German.

 

German:Erster WM-Titel mit Ken Williams

1978 sollte nun aber endlich Rolf Bilands großes Jahr werden. Wiederum mit Kenny Williams an seiner Seite, gewann er die ersten drei der acht Grand Prix und fuhr drei weitere Male aufs Podest. Damit hatte sich sein Traum vom Weltmeistertitel ein erstes Mal erfüllt.Interessant ist diese Saison auch insofern, weil Rolf Biland das noch ziemlich löchrige Reglement gnadenlos ausnutzte und abwechselnd, je nach Streckencharakteristik, seine herkömmliche TTM-Yamaha oder seine revolutionäre BEO-Yamaha einsetzte. Bei der BEO handelte es sich um ein dreirädriges Fahrzeug, bei dem der Motor weit hinten in der Mitte platziert war und der Versatz des mit angetriebenen Seitenwagenrades zum eigentlichen Hinterrad nur marginal war. Durch die so erreichte autoähnliche Straßenlage war der Beifahrer nebendran sitzend nur noch untätiger Passagier. Das rief natürlich die Verfechter der konventionellen Gespanne auf den Plan. Geläutert bezeichnete Rolf Biland die BEO und später rückblickend betrachtet als "... Fehler, weil Gespannsport Teamsport bleiben sollte."Nach vielen Diskussionen wurde daraufhin die WM 1979 in den zwei Klassen "B2A" der herkömmlichen Gespanne mit einer Gabel vorn und einer Schwinge hinten sowie "B2B" der extrem innovativen Gespanne bzw. allen, die nicht in die "B2A" gepasst haben, ausgeschrieben.Die BEO war dabei weiter am Start, doch die schnellsten Gespanne trugen nun den Namen LCR - Louis Christen Racing. Der Ex-Autorennfahrer Louis Christen baute seit 1971 Rennwagen für die Formel V mit Monocoque-Chassis mit genietetem Alu-Blech. Mit der gleichen Bauweise stieg der Schweizer 1976 in den Gespannsport ein. Louis Christen verfolgte in Anlehnung an den Formel-Rennsport jedoch weitergehende Ziele. So entwickelte er die Querlenkeraufhängung und Spurstangenlenkung für seinen ersten Seitenwagen. 1977 führte er das mitlenkende Seitenwagenrad ein. 1978 errangen seine Landsleute Bruno Holzer/Karl Meierhans im belgischen Spa-Francorchamps den ersten Grand-Prix-Sieg mit einem LCR-Gespann.



English
First world championship title with Ken Williams

1978 was finally to be Rolf Biland's big year. Again with Kenny Williams at his side, he won the first three of the eight Grand Prix and finished on the podium three more times. His dream of becoming world champion had thus come true for the first time.

This season is also interesting in that Rolf Biland mercilessly exploited the still rather loophole-ridden regulations and alternated between his conventional TTM Yamaha and his revolutionary BEO Yamaha, depending on the track characteristics. The BEO was a three-wheeled vehicle in which the engine was positioned far back in the middle and the offset of the sidecar wheel, which was driven by the engine, to the actual rear wheel was only marginal. As a result of the car-like road holding achieved, the passenger sitting next to it was merely an inactive passenger. This, of course, called the advocates of conventional sidecars into action. In retrospect, Rolf Biland described the BEO as a "... A mistake, because team driving should remain a team sport."

After much discussion, the 1979 World Championship was then divided into two classes: "B2A" for conventional sidecars with a fork at the front and a swing arm at the rear, and "B2B" for extremely innovative sidecars or those that did not fit into "B2A".

The BEO was still at the start, but the fastest sidecars now bore the name LCR - Louis Christen Racing. Ex-car racing driver Louis Christen had been building racing cars for Formula Vee with monocoque chassis with riveted aluminum sheet metal since 1971. In 1976, the Swiss entered the world of sidecar racing with the same design. However, Louis Christen pursued more far-reaching goals based on formula racing. He developed the wishbone suspension and track rod steering for his first sidecar. In 1977, he introduced the steering sidecar wheel. In 1978, his compatriots Bruno Holzer/Karl Meierhans won the first Grand Prix victory with an LCR sidecar at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.

Translated with DeepL.com (free version)


Source: www.blick.de/sa...el11425030

Darn it, that’s one kit I’d love to own.
Your dad was a true collector and had an amazing stash !!!! 
 

+1 Al. If I could it would be already on the road to France.  But the original wraping would be into the empty box with treesand manual.... It's a rc ufo I would like build for fun. And maybe have a little run  in the living room to see how it run.