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RESTORATION job: Nigel Bancroft with the 1960s Cooper TS1
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Labour of love revives '60s car
Sue Carr25/ 4/2007
JUST for a moment Tony Brooks may have thought he was back in the 1960s.
For alongside the fans waiting for him on his return to Dukinfield was a classic car almost identical to one he had driven in his racing days.
The beautifully-restored racer is a 1960s Cooper TS1 which until last year was just "boxes of bits".
Seven months on and the labour of love has finally been completed by friends Nigel Bancroft and Ron Sigley.
Nigel, who owns Bancroft Motor Services in Stalybridge, said: "I've been repairing cars since I was 16 and I've always been interested in sports cars.
"It was very, very daunting at the start. It was literally a bag of bits in the back of a van, it was in a hell of a state.
"We did burn the midnight oil - three nights a week until midnight and weekends as well - but it was worth it when it was all together.
"We were so excited that you kind of forget what was involved."
The car, which was once owned and raced by another Formula One legend John Surtees, belongs to Nigel's friend Greg Corley.
In return for restoring it, Nigel gets to race the classic Cooper, which is worth an estimated £150,000.
The 53 year old said: "You put something together like this and it's an unknown quantity until you try it, but we tested it at Silverstone and it was very quick.
"I drive historic Formula Fords and it has got double the power - 240 bhp - and a top speed of 160 mph which for a 1960s car is very quick."
The restored Cooper will be put to the test next month when Nigel races at Le Grande Passione - a massive meeting at Donington Park which showcases 240 of the greatest racing cars ever made.
He will also be reunited with Tony Brooks and Stirling Moss who are due to appear at the event.
"I knew Tony was from Dukinfield and when I heard he was coming back, it seemed only right we take the car. I think it really made the day," he added.
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8/05/2007 at 17:17