The Graham Hill Trophy brings together some of the most powerful cars we see racing here at Goodwood, from brutish Cobras and Corvettes to spritely Elans and 250 GTOs, but in amongst those big-name machines is an altogether less well-known car: the Elva-BMW GT 160.
Only three of these BMW-engined cars were ever built in 1964, and it has no real motorsport history to speak of – it raced a handful of times in 1965 with zero success – yet its status these days as a lone wolf among a field of legendary and hugely popular racing legends has given it a whole new lease of life.
Even the engine, a 2.0-litre four-cylinder BMW engine that produced 182PS (134kW) when it was built, is nothing particularly exciting, but it still spins to over 7,000rpm and gives the Elva a good turn of pace down the Lavant Straight.
Jockeying with Elans, E-Types and more, the Elva holds its own and then some during this brilliantly exciting Graham Hill Trophy from the 79th Members’ Meeting presented by Audrain Motorsport.
Welcome to Goodwood Elevenses, a mid-morning helping of motoring-related amusement to help break up your day. Watch the last video: Watch a very sideways Frazer Nash hillclimb run
Photography by Pete Summers.
Elevenses
Video
Onboard
Elva
GT 160
Graham Hill Trophy
Members Meeting
79MM