Pete Lovely Cooper/Ferrari Info?

From the report on the 1960 US Grand Prix at Riverside, in "Sports Cars Illustrated", March 1961:

"Backed by Fred Armbruster, Pete Lovely's private Cooper-Ferrari project finally bore fruit at Riverside, a year later than had been hoped and in time to catch only one race of he Formula for which it was intended. In june of 1960 Cooper finished a brand new GP chassis to the 1959 design for Lovely, who had it in July. To power it Pete already had a Type 625LM Ferrari engine out of Johnny von Neumann's 1957 2 1/2 liter Testa Rossa. This four-cylinder 94 x 90 mm powerplant is identical to the ones in the 1956 Le Mans team cars, and is actually an expansion of the two-liter Testa Rossa of that time. Fitted with 45mm Webers, as in Pete's car, and running on gas, it should deliver 225 bhp at 7000 rpm."

I worked at Pete's VW dealership for many years, and at his race shop for a short while. Great guy. I also met Fred a few times through the Lancia club, he was quite a character.

 

Can't help with info regarding the Cooper-Ferrari, however your statement about Fred "Team Empire" Armbruster was spot on, he was quite a character.

In the mid to early 80's I assisted Tom Meehan with attempting to maintan Fred's fleet of
cars; he has two Aurelia B20 Coupes, an Appia Zagato, a Fulvia Zapato, a Fiat-Abarth Zagato, a Cisitalia, an Avanti and a nice unrestored 275 GTB/4.

On of my "duties" as assigned by Fred was to apply fish oil based paint to the rocker panels of the 275 GTB/4, with a cut down mop no less! I have often wondered what the restoration shop thought when that car was restored in the late 80's during the Ferrari frenzy...

I had an interest in trying vintage racing, Fred told me if I bought "the helmet" I could run one of Aurelia's at Portland when Steve Earle was running the show in Portland. Something happened on the way to Portland from Seattle with the Aurelia, Fred then told me in a matter of fact manner that I could use the Ferrari for my novice vintage race....The 275 would not pass tech inspection (fortunatlely!), in those days tech inspection was basically checking that the car was not leaking oil too badly...

Fred was a fairly senior engineer with Dow Chemical and loved spending his money on cars and racing in the 50's and 60's....RIP Fred.

 

Here's Fred with "Gina", his Series I Aurelia B20. Is that Carlo next to him? I've forgotten.
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Back to the Cooper-Ferrari. These pictures are from "Northwest Sports Car News", April 1961, and their report on the season opener at Westwood, British Columbia. Pete's car was not eligible for points in the Modified race, he ran it "purely for the sport". To quote the report:

"In the Senior Le Mans the three cars of Pigott, Florence, and Lovely were spotted at the rear of the grid. Pete's Formula car, of course, needed to be push-started, but he found that Florence was keeping him company as his mount failled to start. When the starters flag dropped Lovely dashed across the track in an attempt to be first off the line, but forgot that the open-wheeled car was a bit narrower than the accustomed Lotus XI. The result was humerous as he sailed over the top of the car and landed on the terra firma flat on the seat of the pants which he drives by. By the time he was finally in the Cooper and started, Florence was already enjoying a healthy lead on the back stretch. However, Pete was still in there trying, and in a six laps he was snapping at Lew's heels. But since it was only a seven lap race he had to make it quick. When he finally got his chance there just wasn't room and he was able to get by Florence only after the flag had fallen......a few of (the other drivers) are still talking to themselves after the traumatic experience of being passed, while flat out, by a blue and white streak which still had two gears in hand."
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That's not Carlo though I recognize the man, regrettably I cannot remember his name.

Trivia-Gina caught fire while idling in line for the Monteray historics, carb fire - it had a Nardi conversion. I believe Jesse Alexander later owned that car.

 

Was the 275 GTB Fred Armbruster owned painted in a silver color?

 

Yes, it was silver. IIRC, it was personally imported from Italy. It was NOT the silver GTB that was shown at the Seattle Auto Show via Grand Prix motors. I remember when it was sold at auction, it was on the 6:00 news, it had sold for the outlandish sum of something like $600,000. Might have been the first Ferrari I ever sat in.

 

You are correct, the 275 was silver / black and imported from Roma. Fred was quite liberal with me using the car, I remember picking up my Italian Tudor (whom I was deep in lust with) in downtown Seatlle with the 275. Driving north on I5 my Italian friend asked me to "put my foot down", the koni's were seized and I can recall skipping across the joints in the Express lanes on the Ship Canel bridge ...this must have been 82 or 83....happy days!

 

I had asked about the 275 color, as I had recalled a conversation with him at Portland. He had driven the car down, mentioning his concerns about his vision going bad. The thing I remember him mentioning was that he had ordered a model of the car made at the same time he purchased the car. Do you remember seeing the model, or any details? I remember thinking at the time it could have been done by Michele Conti or Carlo Brianza, as he mentioned this was all done while he was working for an oil company overseas...Very colorful and interesting guy......

 

As I recall he ordered a Conti model, though I cannot recall ever seeing it....

Fred was very colorfull, and a patron of racing in the Northwest.

Cheers