IL Racing was started as a BOF (bird-of-a-feather) idea during Chinese Lunar New Year in 2004.
My name is Ingemar Lampa and I am a devoted MG enthusiast, born in Sweden, living in Hong Kong.
The 50th Macau GP 2003. Ten minutes before the race. Displaying the Scooby t-shirt. Scooby Doo resembles one of my dogs, Scott, my 75 pound mutt. I wont race without this garment (living in Asia, you get influenced with time by "Asian superstition" and start collecting "good luck tokens". That is why all my race cars carry number 8, for instance). I once did. Got T-boned and had to abandon when running second and just about to catch number one.
I came second in class at the Macau GP.
I got involved with MG cars back in 1978 for the first time, when I hitched a
ride in a friends MGB GTV8. I never looked back. It was perhaps not the finest
car I had been in, then or since, but it has something special to it.
When moving to Hong Kong in 1997, I immediately purchased a 1972 MGB Roadster, which after an extensive re-build as the result of a quite bad accident in November 97, became known as "The Silver Reindeer". This I still use as my daily transport - well, in fact, my wife does. She drove the car and guess what? I have to grovel for the keys each time!
Charter Road Classic Car Show, November 2000
Therefore, I bought a 1966 MGB roadster racecar (I was really wanting to get back in to Motorcycle racing, but my wife convinced me that I was a bit "stiffer" and older than 20 years ago!). Like that I can keep it for myself on the tracks around Asia!
The ex. John Peacock/Nigel Kat 1966 Roadster (3-synchro, short wheel-base) racing MGB in its original Scottish livery at Johor Circuit, 2001.
Basically, addressing the problem of bringing our beloved MGB
sports cars up to a a standard, on and off the race-track, which will make us
proud of its performance, handling and good looks (well, the third part we don't
have to do anything about - you all agree already!).
Sepang International F1 Circuit, August 2001, Merdeka weekend. The 1966 Roadster in its orange livery & form. At this time, it was still using the Peter Burgess 1800cc B-series engine.
I drove it to become both Club and Class Champion in 2002.
So, the obvious question becomes: What makes IL Racing different
to the hundreds, if not thousands, of after-market parts suppliers for MGB's?
Basically, this can be summarised under the following short points:
Experience - I only sell what I have tried out myself. Many suppliers get too involved in their business (which is good) and forget where they came from - drivers and enthusiasts of MG cars (which is bad). I do this as an addition to my "daytime job", which is IT Systems Architect. My second "daytime job" is being an MG race car driver (wishful thinking!). Seriously. I do race what I sell, like eating your own dog-food, so to speak. Also, this means that if I am not replying to your questions, I am probably busy on a race-tour somewhere on the Asia-Pacific rim. I will get back to you ASAP, I promise.
Focus - I only deal with MG cars & parts. Having said that, I can find classic parts for other cars as well (as there are many British cars in Hong Kong, the legacy remains), but I will "delegate" those requests to my partner, Kerry Anderson.
Dedication - If a product or component doesn't perform as expected, I will carry on developing it. Hey, my results on the track depend on it!
Network - I participate in the Internet MG community, if there is such a thing. Seriously, we can all keep in touch and learn from each others experiences. I will answer any (well, almost) questions you may have concerning not only my products, but MGs in general. Regardless if you will buy anything from me or not.
Continuation - My racing MGB (as well as my road one) are constantly being developed and improved. For example, the plan is to drop in a Rover V8 for the 2004 season. I am looking at a 5 litre stroked engine mated to an MG RV8 driveline. You will benefit from this development, as it will result in even more products, as a spin-off effect. More on that in the next few weeks/months.
If you want to contact me, just click this link.