Aren’t two racing cars one too many? It transpires it’s the building rather than the racing that appeals to Chris. Once the first was fully operational he took it to the Llandow circuit, near Cardiff, did a few proving laps, got bored and sold the car. He used the proceeds to buy a second kit.

There are two reasons for this enthusiasm. One was the need to find a less destructive leisuretime pursuit than jetskiing. A horrifying accident which broke his back and left him paralysed for six months pointed to something more tranquil. Especially since he recently became father to baby Anya and his wife, Verity, is keen to have another child soon.

The second is his professional background. Hereford born and bred he did well at school. His father believed he had the ability to take on a comfortable white-collar job such as an accountant. But Chris wanted to work with his hands. He was apprenticed to Bulmer and helped keep their lorry fleet up and running.

Thereafter he serviced Mercedes cars for ten years before joining the RAC eight years ago. But you won’t see Chris in one of the RAC’s orange vans these days. His conveyance is an Audi station wagon carrying the label “Dedicated technician” and he responds only to members who drive Audis, Lamborghinis and Bentleys, three-years’ old or less, and covered by the manufacturer’s warranty. He needs his large station wagon. Although his territory is nominally Hereford, Worcester and Gloucester his call-outs are nearly always to home residences and to the places where the members work. This means he can be working as far away as Paignton in Devon.

Present-day cars with their long warranties and hugely improved reliability have changed the nature of call-outs. Worn mains and blown gaskets tend to be things of the past. About 95% of the problems are electrical, says Chris. Which means that fault diagnosis is also electrical or, to be precise, by computer. You plug in a laptop, stick a sensor at the end of the exhaust and play with the keyboard.

Except it isn’t quite that simple. As a novice with the RAC Chris was allowed to tackle his first call-out near Ross under the eye of a more experienced service engineer. The laptop was deployed and revealed nothing. As his senior colleague pointed out, laptops don’t tell you when a car is out of fuel, which was the problem in this case.

That must have been one of Chris’s rare misjudgements since a few minutes conversation shows him to be a born car technician. And his knowledge is not limited to nut and bolts. He knows the years when car models arrived and when they departed, when the specs changed and all that sort of back-up. It’s clear that while the laptop is a vital tool for him personal knowledge – and the ability to apply it – play an equally important role.

He points out that using computers has divided those who lack this type of background knowledge. There are the old-school, seat-of-the-pants mechanics whose reaction to a problem with a modern car is simply to replace the ECU, the black-box engine management unit which masterminds things. And then there are the fresh-out-school young things whose skills only extend to the computer. Having scanned the screen and seen only green ticks they declare that this car has nothing wrong with it. Despite the fact it is undesirably stationary.

Ironically, there is also a third category – the drivers. Many models these days have onboard computers and the called-out technician can find his judgement disputed on the basis of data the driver has picked up from his dashboard screen.

Not that Chris is complaining. He has a sunny disposition, describes his work in his own garage as a labour of love and will probably go on to build more cars that others will race.

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The techie stuff

Chris’s present project, like the previous one pictured above, belongs to the Lotus, Caterham and Westfield class of racer. Called a Striker, the kit is supplied locally by Raw Engineering, near Aylestone Hill. The engine is a 250 bhp Tomcat based on the Rover K series block.

Fuel intake is through throttle bodies 3D-mapped by Omex of Cheltenham. The four-into-one exhaust will come from Powerflow of Worcester and the finished car will be set up on a rolling road run by MECH Repairs of Cheltenham.

Some components have a long lineage. The steering rack, albeit modified to 2½ turns lock to lock, was specified for the Mark Two Ford Escort, last manufactured in 1981. Front suspension link design dates back to the Ford Capri last sold new in 1984. Gearbox and differential originate from the XR4 Ford Sierra.

The electronics include launch control (which theoretically prevents stalling on the grid) and traction control. With the gearing Chris envisages the Striker should be capable of 0 – 60 mph in 4.5 to 5 seconds. Top speed is about 130 mph, albeit, Chris adds, “three inches from the floor”.