Dennis Leech Group 2 Mustang
© Craig Olson, Steve Francis, Wolfgang Kohrn - 2007, updated September
24th., 2009
Previous Owner Eric Walker (UK)
Yes I remember another car I once owned - the
Dennis Leech Boss Mustang built as a 302 in 1970 in a light metallic
colour, raced by Jacky Ickx at Spa, run as a 351 in
1971 in white, black and red livery and a full blown Boss 429 in bright
metallic tourquoise blue in '72/73 this
car has been back in the USA since the mid 90's under restoration
- I'm surprised no-one is looking into the history of this one as
it was really spectacular when running the 429.
By the time I got it, it was white with blue
stripe and had last been driven by Roy Pierpoint in an ASCAR club race.
Roy Yates then bought it and swaped all
the suspension onto his later Fastback. I helped locate it for the guy
in the States who had to import
both cars and is still as far as I know rebuilding it.
I sold it as a rolling chassis to a guy
who planned to drop a Chevy in it
but luckily got no further!
Had to sell the ex- Leech Boss 429, Ex Alan
Mann Falcon Sprint, the remains of Martin Birranes '67 Notchback
427 racer which was broken up for parts, the ex Piers Courage 66 Shelby
GT350 (by then a full race quad weber hillclimb car but dismantled when
I sold it) and a 68 GT500.
Eric Walker/April2004
I sold it after a year - no work carried out. I got divorced and moved to the US for a few years. It was not a Boss 429 Mustang, it was a standard 302 Mustang that arrived here with a bunch of HD parts in the trunk. The car was never supported or recognised by Ford as the "real deal" and although very quick in a straight line with Dennis at the wheel, it was overall a complete disaster with probably never a finish to it's name. It provided probably the most spectacular engine failures ever seen in a racing series. I'm curious to see it reappearing. My interest was in Mustangs, I used to own a couple of Shelby's and a Tiger in the '80's, but I also raced Al Unser Snr's 1978 IROC Camaro in the UK for a while seen here at Goodwood on an AMOC Sprint together with my Trans-Am. Keith Hardy (Feb. 2007) |
Dennis Leech Group 2
Mustang
Dennis Leech racing at Silverstone 1971 Picture courtesy Trevor Legate ![]() Dennis Leech chased by Martin Birrane 1971 Picture courtesy Eric Walker Leech was a privateer racer known for racing wild American Ford V8 powered saloon cars and his plaid flannel shirts. The Mustang arrived at Leech's Exeter shop in early 1970 as a Boss 302. While being built to Group 2 Saloon Car spec Leech sent off a race entry for the March 1970 Gaurds Trophy at Brand Hatch, but the car was not ready in time. Two months later they hauled over to Spa-Francorchamps in the Ardennes hills of Belgium for a support race to the 1000KM. This time Leech put Jackie Ickx in the drivers seat and while leading early on a head gasket let go putting the Boss Mustang out of the race. For 1971 Leech acquired sponsorship from
Castrol and there was an engine change from the 302 to a 351 on Webers. Leech
summed up the 1971 season as a "waste of time".
The following pics are from 1992 when the car was
sitting at Roy Yates Derbyshire workshop
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