Top Car

94 TOPCAR.CO.ZA|January 2016refurbished the Caracal but withoutaffecting its original ity, especially thedistinctive body colour.The car’s looks have not really dated andthe build integrity is strong. It would nothave taken much to turn Caracal into apukka production vehicle, but at the timeVW was launching the first Golf convertibleso its fate was already sealed. A case of whatmight have been ...Final car of this foursome is the one-offDuphet, an elegant sports car built by``````DUPie du Plooy and SA racing and rallyinglegend Jan HETtema. Determined to put anend to Dawie Gouws’ domination of thelocal sports car racing scene in hi s Porsch eSpyder, the ambitious pair decided to designand build their own challenger. The chassiswas a simple but strong cross-bracedspac eframe with suspension built aroundTriumph uprights up front and a fabricatedsteel plate layout at the rear. Rack-and-pinion steering was fitted and the wheelscame from a Cooper. An Alfa Romeo 1300cc``````motor bored out to 1500cc was mountedamidships and mated with a VW gearbox.The mould for the bodywork was made upfrom the tried and trusted chicken wire andplaster of Paris method and the end resultwas an attractive, low-slung outline typicalof many such sports race rs of the time butthe shape was neverthele ss distinctive. Itsdebut entry was the 1965 SA GP racemeeting at Kyalami but the Duphet did notstart after He ttema cras hed at Sunset Bendin practice when the brakes failed. The next``````Dartbodyworkfeatures neatdetailing. Basicswitchgearmountedinmirror-matchingpanel. Familiarwheel/tyre/hubcapcombinationfillsthe wheelarchesFeature: SASpecialsJust aninkling of theenterprisethatexistedin SA