Ikara number 11 is almost complete, just needs to be measured up for front shocks and a new windscreen put in...the original one from 30 years ago has started to de-laminate. The car has been painted bright orange. I'll post some photos when they arrive.

I came across some photos that my friend Dave took on a trip out to Henley Beach in Adelaide in late 2004. The pictures are at the end of the gallery on THIS PAGE, or else click on "Car #8" and then click on "....Adelaide 2004"

A new Car Magazine called "Ikara" has been launched in South Africa.

This email came from Phuti Mpyane...

We started this publication last year in December, with the first issue going out in early January. We are currently readying our second issue for distribution. Interestingly our tabloid size newspaper is called IKARA and it’s published monthly.
 
The inspiration for the name is borne out of where it’s targeted for readership-which is Johannesburg’s main Black Townships such as Soweto. All our lives we’ve lived with the name IKARA which translates to CAR in various indigenous languages of RSA.
 
So when we sat down at thought of a name, IKARA sprang up and has now been put to print.

I have just added some great footage of Peter Wherrett driving the Bolwell Ikara Prototype.
Click on Car # 1

I came across these images on the Scratch Made Cars website...a forum for people making computer rendered versions of cars. These were an exercise Marvin made.    

I saw this on John Low's Bolly Blog

From the Adelaide Advertiser, Saturday, 20th Sept. 2008 comes this little article on the Jetstream, made in the UK.

Some more information is emerging regarding the yellow Ikara that was in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong authorities say the car has definately left Hong Kong and at this stage it looks like it has gone to England....

The owners of Ikara # 4 have decided to modify the car for Hill Climbs and Sprint meetings, they plan to install a Honda engine and gearbox, either the B or K series.

I have just put the April 2008 Wheels magazine article about the 2008 Nagari on this site. Within the article it mentions the Ikara....


"The true underwriter of Bolwell's success today, however, is the ugly-ducking Ikara. A car that was born and built literally among kids' playground equipment, sailboat hulls and Hamburglars.

The Ikara was built to showcase our expertise in resin transfer moulding [RTM], which was a new system of moulding compsites, Campbell Bolwell explains. It was pretty basic sort of styling, but it won us so many contracts. It got the Bolwell group off to a pretty big start in supplying industry"


Click on Ikara in Print and then click on ....Wheels

I have just added links to You Tube to view the Honk Hong Ikara.  Go to  Car #5 & # 10

I have also changed slightly the Car # 9 page.

Well it nearly happened! Last week I received an email from James Smith via this site. Seems James had a ride in the Black Ikara Prototype and was interested in selling/building the cars in Scotland.

“When I came back to Scotland interest in the Ikara was amazing I was promoting not just on the styling (which I think stands up very well) but on the composites technology, and in particular the injection moulded windscreen surround which was very innovative, twenty five years ago. I set up a company and pushed the Ikara project, and was granted financial assistance from the Scottish Development Agency for the project.

I setup a factory in Stevenston in Ayrshire Fibre-teknic to produce the FRP components and an engineering company for the space frame and mechanics, pretty much by the time this was in place the project was sold on.  I had already begun to have a lot of interest in the car and contacted Bolwell direct and was given the same story that it went to Greece. I tried without success to find the new owners and even went to Greece, but found no trace of the car but ironically was asked if I could supply six cars!!!

I returned home and we began to build a new car based around the Ikara concept, while developing the plugs for the body, we were contracted by AC cars in Hillington to make the the FRP bodies for the ME 3000, we then worked on the plugs for their new model, but they moved back to England and we returned to our project now named the Icarus, originally intended to have the same mid engine golf set up time and cost meant we went for the simple beetle chassis and engine, we built six which went to Greece and another eight were built before we returned to the mid engine setup, however the project was shelved as we took on more contract work and for about ten years we were involved with VW tuning and body kits for the street and track, we also produced a variety of kit cars like the Kubel wagen, beach buggies a Porsche replicas, I still work in the composites industry in F1 and aerospace components”

I have added some more...in focus... photos of the Hong Kong Ikara.


I have also added a small article from "The Pictorial History of Australian Automobiles" which can be found under  Ikara in Print

    Click on Ikara 5/10  to see some photos of the Hong Kong Ikara