Fanie Viljoen, whose motorsport career in southern Africa lasted for 60 years, has died at his home in Pretoria. He was 76.
Viljoen started his career as a teenager in the late 1940's as navigator in an MG P-Type in rallies and trials for his long-time mentor and friend John Linley.
In his early he met three Pretoria motorsport enthusiasts, Neville Austin, Louis Jacobsz and Tony Maggs, who would remain lifelong friends. Inspired by their racing achievements, Viljoen started racing in an ungainly Austin A70 before spending his life savings on an 1100cc Coventry-Climax powered Fairthorpe Electron which he campaigned throughout South Africa, Rhodesia and Mozambique.
In 1959 he was invited by Louis Jacobsz to share a Maserati A6GCS in the second 9-Hour endurance race at Grand Central. Viljoen's smooth and sympathetic driving attracted the attention of Gigi Lupini, patron of the Scuderia Lupini racing team, who subsequently invited Viljoen to race his Ferrari at the season-ending Grands Prix in East London and Cape Town.
The big two seater was no match for the new generation of rear-engined GP single-seaters but Viljoen's smooth driving attracted the attention of wealthy Johannesburg stockbroker George Mennie who offered Viljoen a new Cooper Climax for the 1960 season.
Third in the Rhodesian GP was followed by other good results but in the middle of the season Viljoen and rival Doug Serrurier tangled wheels at Grand Central, resulting in a massive smash which kept Viljoen in hospital for weeks. On his return to racing he drove the Pieterse brothers' beautiful Alfa Romeo Sprint Speciale in the 1960 Grand Central 9-Hour before ending the season racing Jack Nucci's Maserati 200SI in the South African GP in East London.
In the interim Doug Serrurier had rebuilt the wrecked Cooper into an LDS Climax and Viljoen carried on racing the car until the end of 1962 when sponsor Mennie retired from motorsport.
In 1963 Viljoen decided to follow his friends Maggs and Jacobsz to Europe. Unfortunately he wasn't able to attract a sponsor and returned to South Africa where he picked up a ride in the new Formula Vee category.
In 1970, driving a self-prepared Mini, Viljoen became The Star newspaper-sponsored Star Saloon Car champion, at the time the National saloon-car championship. By this time, however, growing family commitments curtailed his racing, but he kept his hand in with drives in regularity rallies, economy runs and endurance races. He also took part in many DJ and Magnum Rallies.
LAST INVITATION
In the mid-1980s he renewed his friendship with Neville Austin, driving the latter's Jaguar XJ6 in the Ultimoil Silvercup series at Zwartkop.
When Austin relocated to Hermanus, however, it seemed Viljoen's racing career had run its course but then came an invitation from Jacques Debeil, an MG enthusiast who had rebuilt the ex-Harry Pierce mid-1950s MG single-seater, famously known as Flo.
Viljoen and Flo raced in many historic events before illness set in and brought Viljoen's remarkable career to an end.
Fanie Viljoen, "The Flying Dutchman", is survived by his wife Marge and sons Marck and Grant, both of whom are now active in motorsport. - INL Motoring