Ripspeed

Last updated
Ripspeed
Industryautomotive parts
Founded1970s
Headquarters Edmonton, North London
Key people
Keith Ripp

Ripspeed is a sub brand of Halfords, one of the leading automotive parts retailer in the United Kingdom. It began as an independent retailer in the 1970s, two decades later the business changed hands and was purchased in 1999 by Halfords, and operates as one of the five subsections of a store if it is present.

Contents

History

Keith Ripp (1947–2020), the 1981, 82 and 83 hat-trick British Rallycross Champion with Ford Fiesta 1600, started in a small shop in Pinner green before moving to Hertford Road, Enfield Wash specialising in tuning parts and accessories for Minis [1] as Ripspeed International in 1973 [2]

The motorsport and road car tuning and accessories side progressively grew over the years. By the 1990s, Ripspeed's main rivals were Demon Tweeks and Grand Prix Racewear, both owned by racing drivers, Alan Minshaw and Ray Bellm respectively. In 1996, Ripp sold Ripspeed to Tony Joseph. He then relocated the store from its original premises to a large one on Fore Street, Edmonton, London. [2] with a plan for expansion in other areas. In turn Ripspeed relocated for a second time to an industrial estate in Enfield but this plan came to an abrupt end when the company collapsed due to financial problems after two years of ownership.

Ripp with his two sons Adrian and Jason later started up Xtreme Motorsport, based in Harlow, Essex, which in turn was sold off in 2001. The Ripp brothers later founded R-Tec Auto Design, based in St Albans, Hertfordshire.

In early 1999, Halfords took over the brand. One of the biggest changes was discarding the motorsport retail side of its business to concentrate on the lucrative boy racer market.

Ripspeed itself has had only a limited number of demonstration cars out and about at shows and events. It started with a 1999 Vauxhall Corsa C SXI, which was followed in 1999 with a Ford Focus Ripspeed's current project is a 1991 Nissan 200SX turbo which is a drift car project and has been seen in action at Santa Pod raceway in 2007. These cars are used extensively for promoting the Ripspeed brand at car shows across the UK and at store openings or promotion weekends.

Ripspeed itself did sponsor the Doncaster Performance and Custom Car Show, which begins the UK outdoor car show season. The event was renamed Ripspeed Donny.

They have since moved on to sponsor numerous events at Santa Pod raceway which included shows such as "The Jap Show" and "USC" (Ultimate Street Car).

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mopar</span> Parts, service and customer care organization within Stellantis

Mopar is an American car parts, service, and customer care division of the former Chrysler Corporation, now owned by Netherlands-based automobile manufacturer Stellantis. It serves as a primary OEM accessory seller for Stellantis companies under the Mopar brand. "Mopar" is also used as a nickname by enthusiasts of Chrysler-built products to refer to any product built by the company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Santa Pod Raceway</span> Drag racing venue in Bedfordshire, England

Santa Pod Raceway is Europe's first permanent drag racing venue for 14 mile and 18 mile racing. Located in Podington, Bedfordshire, England, the drag strip was built on a disused Second World War Royal Air Force (RAF) airbase, known as RAF Podington; once used by the USAAF's 92nd Bomb Group. The drag racing venue opened at Easter in 1966, and it is now the home of European drag racing and hosts both the first and last round of the FIA and FIM / UEM European Drag Racing Championship, along with the British National Drag Racing Championships. It has also been the venue for the annual Volkswagen Beetle Bug Jam weekend since 1987.

Castrol Limited is a British oil company that markets industrial and automotive lubricants, offering a wide range of oil, greases and similar products for most lubrication applications. The company was originally named CC Wakefield; the name Castrol was originally just the brand name for CC Wakefield's motor oils, but the company eventually changed its name to Castrol when the product name became better-known than the original company name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NAPA Auto Parts</span> American automotive retailers cooperative

The National Automotive Parts Association (NAPA), also known as NAPA Auto Parts, founded in 1925, is an American retailers' cooperative distributing automotive replacement parts, accessories and service items throughout North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Halfords</span> British motoring and cycling products and parts retailer

Halfords Group PLC is a UK retailer of motoring and cycling products and services. Through Halfords Autocentre, they provide vehicle servicing, MOT, maintenance and repairs in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Formula Lightning</span>

Formula Lightning was an electric car open-wheel, open cockpit formula racing series for University engineering programs that ran from 1994 to 2004 in the United States. The series was sponsored by ABB and a number of local and regional electric companies. For much of the duration of the series, the races were organized by Electric Vehicles Technology Competitions (EVTC) and sanctioned by SCCA Pro Racing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ken Schrader Racing</span> American stock car racing team

Ken Schrader Racing was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed part-time in the ARCA Menards Series, fielding the No. 52 for Natalie Decker. The team was owned by longtime NASCAR driver Ken Schrader. Over the years, Schrader has also fielded his team in the NASCAR Cup, Xfinity, and Truck Series in addition to in ARCA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Weslake</span> Engine manufacturer

Weslake & Co also known as Weslake Research and Development was founded by Harry Weslake, described as England's greatest expert on cylinder head design, with premises in Rye, East Sussex, England. Weslake is most famous for its work with Bentley, Austin, Jaguar and the Gulf-Wyer Ford GT40 Mk.I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Russell Ingall</span> Australian racing driver

Russell Peter Ingall is a former full-time Australian V8 Supercar driver. He won his V8 Supercars title in 2005, and finished second in 1998, 1999, 2001 and 2004. Ingall has also won the Bathurst 1000, in 1995 and 1997. His particular driving style earned him the nickname "Enforcer".

Team Dynamics Motorsport was a UK-based motor-racing team based in Droitwich, Worcestershire; best known for their successes in the British Touring Car Championship, including winning the Overall Drivers title in 2005, 2006 and 2011 with Matt Neal and 2012, 2015 and 2016 with Gordon Shedden. The team was founded by Steve Neal and former driver of Vic Lee Motorsport, Ray Bellm when they acquired its assets in 1993. For the following season, Bellm, having bought a majority stake in the Silverstone-based motorsport equipment retailer, Grand Prix Racewear, also acquired a McLaren F1 GTR and went his own way.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Autobacs Seven</span> Japanese automotive retailer

Autobacs Seven Co., Ltd. is a retailer of automotive parts and accessories based in Japan, with branches primarily in Asia and stores also located in France.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 British Touring Car Championship</span> 45th season of the British Touring Car Championship

The 2002 Green Flag MSA British Touring Car Championship season was the 45th British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) season which began at Brands Hatch on 1 April and concluded at Donington Park on 22 September.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dominion Raceway</span> Motorsport venue in the United States

Dominion Raceway is a motorsport complex currently operating in Thornburg, Virginia. The facility includes 0.400 mi (0.644 km) oval track, a 2.000 mi (3.219 km) road course, and a 0.125 mi (0.201 km) drag strip. The track hosts NASCAR, SCCA, and Superkart events along with amateur road course and street racing events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Queensland Raceway</span> Motorsport track in Queensland, Australia

Queensland Raceway nicknamed "the paperclip" is a motor racing circuit located at Willowbank in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia. The circuit hosted Supercars Championship until 2019, drifting as well as club level racing and ride days.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Motorsport in the United Kingdom</span> Overview of motorsport in the United Kingdom

Motorsport is a popular sport in the United Kingdom. The United Kingdom is a key player in the world of motorsport, hosting rounds of Formula One and MotoGP amongst others. It is also the home of many of the current teams in Formula One, such as McLaren, Williams, Aston Martin, Red Bull Racing, Mercedes, Alpine and Haas. There are also a range of popular national series held such as the British Touring Car Championship and the British GT Championship amongst others. Motorsport UK is the official governing body of motorsport in the United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yates Racing</span> NASCAR auto racing company

Yates Racing was an American stock car racing team that competed in NASCAR through the 2009 season, after which it merged into Richard Petty Motorsports. Previously known as Robert Yates Racing, the team was owned by Doug Yates, who has officially owned the team since his father Robert's retirement on December 1, 2007. The Yates family owned the team since purchasing it from Harry Ranier and J. T. Lundy in October 1988.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">AK Racing</span> Auto-racing company

AK Racing was a championship-winning NASCAR Winston Cup Series team. It was originally owned by Bill Terry before he sold it to rookie driver Alan Kulwicki, who controlled and raced for the team until his death in 1993. Kulwicki won five races as an owner-driver. Until Tony Stewart won the championship in 2011, he was the last owner-driver to win a Cup Series championship, which he won in 1992.

Basil Green Motors is a former car manufacturer and racing team which is located in Edenvale, Gauteng near Johannesburg, South Africa. The company has specialised in Ford vehicles, in which the manufacturer's models are recognised by the brand name Perana added to the model name. The name Perana is a deliberate misspelling, as Piranha already had been protected. Currently the company is active as a dealer of Ford and Mazda vehicles.

The Motorsport UK British Rallycross Championship is an auto racing Rallycross series, running in the United Kingdom. From 2020, the championship became known as the Motorsport UK British Rallycross Championship 5 Nations Trophy presented by Cooper Tire.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cycle Republic</span>

Cycle Republic was a British cycle retailer. The first store was opened in London's Euston Tower on 12 December 2014. The company's shop estate included 20 shops and an ecommerce website operation with UK-wide delivery. Late in 2017, the company's flagship store in Canary Wharf was opened by Olympian Victoria Pendleton.

References

  1. Ripspeed head units any good?? - The Mini Forum
  2. 1 2 Ripspeed Plans Ten City Centres

See also