Repco

Repco is an Australian company, specializing in aftermarket parts and accessories for cars. The name is an abbreviation for REplacement Parts COmpany. It was founded in 1922 in a suburb of Melbourne, and now has close to 400 stores, covering all of Australia and New Zealand. The company also sells rebuilt engines, which led to their involvement in racing.

In 1963, Australian driver Jack Brabham approached Repco with a plan to create an engine for the fledgling Tasman Series, due to start in 1964. Together they decided on a downsized version of the single-overhead-cam 3.5L V8 used in an Oldsmobile Jetfire (the "Cutlass" in the US). With a smaller single plane crankshaft (giving a shorter stroke), and Repco-designed cylinder heads, the new 2.5L engine was ready in 1965.

While this engine was in development, word came of the FIA's decision to change the engine size in Formula One to three liters, starting in 1966. Brabham sold the Repco board on the idea of developing a three liter version of the engine, to be used by his team, and selling a customer version for a profit. The engine manufacturer of choice for most of the grid in the 1.5 liter formula, Coventry Climax, had only a rather elderly 2.75 liter, inline 4-cylinder engine available for the new regs, and no one else had announced an engine program. The Repco Formula One engine, given the designation "620", started development as the 2.5 liter version began actually road testing.

The 620 had several advantages at the start of the 3 liter formula. It was compact, and could bolt onto the back of an existing 1.5 liter car chassis. It was lightweight, which was easier on brake and suspension components developed with 1.5 liters in mind. It was thrifty, requiring less fuel for a race, saving more weight. And it was reliable, based on an established production car engine. The one downside was a lack of power, developing only about 285 bhp (213 kW; 289 PS) when it first appeared in Europe.

In 1966, Brabham won four of the nine races, and took both the drivers and constructors championships. In 1967, with Brabham frequently running experimental parts on his car, teammate Denny Hulme took advantage of the tried-and-true components, and edged Brabham for the title. The team was once again constructors' champion, with a total of four victories and several other podium finishes.

Formula One Record

Full Formula One Summary

Year	Entreats	Cars	Models	Tires	Drivers	Rounds	WCC Points	WCC Pos.	Report
1966	Brabham Racing Organisation	BT19 BT20	Repco 620 V8	G	Jack Brabham	All	42 (49)	1st	Report
					Denny Hulme	3-9
1967	Brabham Racing Organisation	BT19 BT20 BT24	Repco 620 V8 Repco 740 V8	G	Jack Brabham	All	63 (67)	1st	Report
					Denny Hulme	All
	Guy Ligier	BT20	Repco 620 V8	F	Guy Ligier	6-7, 9-11
1968	Brabham Racing Organisation	BT24 BT26	Repco 740 V8 Repco 860 V8	G	Jack Brabham	All	10	8th	Report
					Jochen Rindt	All
					Dan Gurney	5
	Charles Vögele Racing	BT20	Repco 620 V8	G	Silvio Moser	3, 5, 7-9
	Caltex Racing Team	BT24	Repco 740 V8	D	Kurt Ahrens, Jr.	8
	Scuderia Scribante	BT11	Repco 620 V8	F	Dave Charlton	1
	Team Gunston	BT20	Repco 620 V8	F	John Love	1
		Mk3	Repco 620 V8	F	Sam Tingle	1	0	NC
1969	Team Gunston	BT24	Repco 620 V8	F	Sam Tingle	1	0	NC	Report
	Jack Holme	BT20	Repco 620 V8	G	Peter de Klerk	1

List of race wins

Win No.	Event	Driver
1	1966 French Grand Prix	Jack Brabham
2	1966 British Grand Prix	Jack Brabham
3	1966 Dutch Grand Prix	Jack Brabham
4	1966 German Grand Prix	Jack Brabham
5	1967 Monaco Grand Prix	Denny Hulme
6	1967 French Grand Prix	Jack Brabham
7	1967 German Grand Prix	Denny Hulme
8	1967 Canadian Grand Prix	Jack Brabham

Complete Championship Results

Constructors	Drivers	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Points	Pos.
1966
Brabham	J. Brabham	Ret	4th	1st	1st	1st	1st	Ret	Ret	2nd				42 (49)	1st
	Hulme			3rd	2nd	Ret	Ret	3rd	Ret	3rd
1967
Brabham	Hulme	4th	1st	3rd	Ret	2nd	2nd	1st	2nd	Ret	3rd	3rd		63 (67)	1st
	J. Brabham	6th	Ret	2nd	Ret	1st	4th	2nd	1st	2nd	5th	2nd
	G. Ligier						10th	8th		Ret	Ret	11th
1968
Brabham	J. Brabham	Ret	DNS	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	5th	Ret	Ret	Ret	10th	10	8th
	Rindt	3rd	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	3rd	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret
	Moser			DNQ		5th		NC	DNS	DNQ
	Charlton	Ret
	J. Love	9th
	Gurney					Ret
	Ahrens								12th
LDS	Tingle	Ret												0	NC
1969
Brabham	Tingle	8th												0	NC
	Klerk	NC