Speed king Andy Frost has set his sights on reclaiming the world record for the quickest and fastest street-legal car over a quarter-mile distance … and aims to bring his mean machine and team of mechanics to the kingdom later this year to attempt to break it.
The 55-year-old, from Wolverhampton, England, is currently preparing his mighty Red Victor 3 for its Bahrain debut. The car is a Vauxhall VX4/90 FD (a sports model of the Vauxhall Victor), which he first started building in 1982 after he bought it for just £60.
Now in its third major guise, the car is almost unidentifiable from the original, with only the glove box badge left from the very first car. Its top speed is above 250mph, and it weighs 2,907lbs (or 1,321kg).
Andy said: “I have driven the car myself since I started the Red Victor 1 Racing team in 1988. I built the two previous cars (Red Victor 1 and Red Victor 2) in a very small lock-up garage which could only fit one car in it.
“The current version was professionally-built, although our team and I do all the work to maintain it. Red Victor 1 Racing is the team name and a worldwide-recognised brand. We have worked tirelessly since 1988 building it to what it is today.
“There are a huge amount of people who have helped us throughout the years, be that sponsors or individuals. They have all played their part in our success, and hopefully in Bahrain we can start a new chapter.”
Andy decided to bring the Red Victor 3 to Bahrain to compete in the Bahrain Drag Racing Championship, with the first meeting at the Bahrain International Circuit scheduled for November 8-11. However, his primary focus is on the world record.
The current benchmark stands at 5.88 seconds @ 244mph, set by arch-rival American Larry Larson who has exchanged the record to-and-fro with Andy for a number of years.
Andy previously held it between May 2012 and September 2014, and has been planning on reclaiming the honour ever since. The team want to lower the time as much as possible, but will be content with 5.82 and tagging 250mph.
The reasons for attempting the record in Bahrain are numerous. Andy explained: “First and foremost, the track is one of the best in the world. We really believe it to be one of the globe’s premium tracks, hence us travelling a long way to be there with all the costs and logistics that go with it.
“Secondly, the weather in the Middle East is very good for our type of racing. In the UK, it’s is a bit of a lottery, with weather and track conditions that ‘might’ be OK if the stars align. That’s in the summer, never mind the winter when it’s the off-season anyway!
“Finally, our head tuner Shane Tecklenburg will be there at the same time as he works with the E Kanoo Racing team in the winter, so it works out perfectly.”
One of the most interesting facets of the record is that it is set in a street-legal car. For this, it has to pass a UK Individual Vehicle Approval Test, which is a special government assessment that is much stricter than a normal MOT.
The Red Victor has all the items necessary for a street vehicle to be counted as such, including windscreen wipers, indicators, hazard warning lights, reverse and fog lights and a demister system.
It also has electric windows, cup holders and more. According to Andy, it’s ‘primarily a race car specifically made to drive on the street’.
A lot of planning has gone into this attempt. Andy has been fundraising since October 2014, with the first goal being to raise £35,000 to upgrade the whole drivetrain of the Red Victor 3. This was done with a crowd-funding page on social media and establishing a member club, the Red Victor 5 Second Club.
Now, he has raised £27,000 of the £64,000 needed to bring the car to Bahrain and has set up a public crowd funding page to get the rest needed.
In the meantime, he balances his work on the car, which he calls his ‘expensive hobby’, with his occupation of owning and running an automatic transmission shop, and spending time with his wife Debbie and three sons, Damien, 33, Craig, 30, and Gary, 24.
He’s also a keen racer, having won numerous street legal races. This includes the Street Eliminator UK title in 1996, in which he also came second in 2007. He also finished in the top three in 1997, 2003, 2004, 2005, and 2008.
Since then, his focus has shifted to wanting to set records and has left class racing behind for the time being.
Andy added: “I would like to thank the E Kanoo racing team for their help and hospitality, Shane Tecklenburg for his help, and the Red Victor 5 Second Club for all their support.
“Hopefully we’ll be successful and bring the record back to Bahrain and Britain!”
Those interested in supporting Andy’s bid can keep up to date with his progress by visiting https://www.redvictor1racing.co.uk/ or can even fund the project themselves by visiting https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/let-s-make-the-world-s-fastest-street-car-british--2#/
