In 2001, Neil McCrudden of the West Australian Racing Museum acquired the ex Bob Jane Corp. Jane Brabham which was built in 1969, from Dominic Mannello of Perth W.A.

Bob Jane had bought the Jack Brabham BT23E-1 Tasman car complete with Repco V8 engine at the end of the 1968 Tasman season. This is the car that John Harvey had a serious accident in at Bathurst during practice at Easter of 1968
Chassis BT23E-1 was last raced by John Harvey for Jane at the 1970 Gold Star Series round 1 at Symmons Plains in Tasmania on the 2nd March 1970. It was then laid up and parts, including gearbox, engine, uprights and instrument panel etc transferred to the new car.
This new car called the Jane/Repco/Brabham debuted at Gold Star Series round 2 at Lakeside on the 7th June 1970.
This new Jane chassis was constructed by Bob Britton of Rennmax on his jig that he had made with the ex Jochen Rindt Brabham BT23. Whilst similar there are many differences to the original chassis, especially in the engine bay part of the chassis design. Initially the car was called the Jane Repco, and the following year the Jane Brabham, and then over the next few years a variety of names including Brabham BT23E and D and BT36!

In September of 1971 Bob Jane put the car up for sale as a rolling chassis and it was bought by Fred Wheelhouse of Victoria . From here the car was fitted with a Ford twin cam engine and registered with CAMS for a log book as a 1969 Brabham BT23D on the 16th March 1973. In 1974 the car was then sold to Rod Housego who left Victoria & brought the car to Western Australia . From there the car was sold to Dominic Mannello in 1975. Dominic was a motor vehicle dealer in Perth & he fitted a Fiat 1800 twin cam engine which the car still runs currently. Now log booked with CAMS as the Jane Brabham it was restored in 2006 by Neil's friend and the current driver of the vehicle, Lance Carwardine as detailed in the current images on this page.

Major Events
1970 Gold Star Series
Gold Star Round 2 - Lakeside - Entered as Repco Brabham - Finished 2nd
Gold Star Round 3 - Oran Park - Entered as Repco Brabham - Finished 6th
Gold Star Round 4 - Warwick Farm - Entered as Repco Brabham - DNF - Fuel Pump
Gold Star Round 5 - Sandown Park - Entered as Jane/Repco - Finished 1st
Gold Star Round 6 - Mallala - Entered as Jane/Repco - DNF - Suspension

Note: Gold Star round one at Symmons Plains Tasmainia, Harvey was entered using the old car.
This being the ex Jack Brabham BT23E-1 chassis. The new Jane chassis & rebodied car debuted, round two at Lakeside in Queensland.
For some reason the media never picked up on this new chassis & car until Round 5 at Sandown Park.

Additional resources Thanks to Allen Brown, Andrew Fellowes, Bryan Miller, David Shaw & Denis Lupton http://members.optusnet.com.au/dandsshaw/images/results/races70.htm

1975 Bob Jane poster - 497kb

CAMS CoD - 116kb

Image at Lakeside from 1971 Competition Yearbook   Following story as told by John Harvey to Ray Bell (Dec 2007) Those tapered fuel tanks... "The idea was to get the weight down lower," John Harvey told me today. And he told me about the ones with the extreme shape: "This was the cause of a huge dispute between myself and the mechanics, in particular John Sawyer," John said. "We had these huge tanks, and there was also a scuttle tank with plastic lines feeding down into them,the thing must have held 40 gallons, I was driving a potential bomb!" After trying to get them to see reason on it, he was forced to watch as they came out onto the grid after the Oran Park warm-up lap and top it up!"The car was just terrible in that race. I don't remember where I finished, but I know I ran the distance, it was a long race too, it must have been a Gold Star event." he continued. "The thing wouldn't turn, it wouldn't stop, it just wouldn't do anything right because of the weight. So after the race I had them pump out the unused fuel - and there was twenty gallons!" So that's why the tanks were simplified to the triangular shape of the later races. On the subject of it being called a 'Jane-Repco Brabham' he told me that it was supposed to be called that most of the year. Bob was trying to promote the idea but 'the journos took no notice until Sandown.'

They Aim to beat the World - 452kb

Enter the Jane Repco - 154kb

Goldstar event 2- 280kb

Goldstar event 3- 274kb

Goldstar event 4- 286kb

Goldstar event 5- 250kb

Original Jane Corp.
For Sale Add - 41kb

Goldstar event 6 - 250kb

Racing Car News magazine references  
October 1970 - p58, 59 - 1st, Bob Jane Shell Racing : John Harvey, Jane Repco V8,
1 hr. 04m.39.5 [ 68.2] fastest lap.  
October 1970 - P59 - Great debut for the new Jane Repco with John Harvey  
November 1970 – p30 - Grid report from Mallala Oct. 12th 1970 ,  J. Harvey , Jane Repco V8  
November 1970 - p41 - Article by Doug Hicks '' Enter the Jane Repco ''    
September 1971 - page 88 - For sale advert of the Jane Repco

The Jane during Fred Wheelhouse's ownership - pic Denis Lupton


The Jane during Rod Housego's ownership - picTerry Smith
Birrana & Macon in foreground


Collie 2007 - image Motor Sport Media, Shane Cassidy

Lance looking Oh so "Top Gun!"

Image by Barnsiesphotos 2007

Image by Barnsiesphotos 2007

Collie 2007 - image Motor Sport Media, Shane Cassidy