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Williams F1 team sues Telford garage owner for £1m after historic Grand Prix car vanishes on loan

From the Newshound archive · first published 7 October 2026.

Williams F1 team sues Telford garage owner for £1m after historic Grand Prix car vanishes on loan
The Williams FW23 — one of only nine ever built — which Williams loaned to a Telford garage as a showpiece in 2015 and has not recovered despite demanding its return in 2021.
The Williams FW23 — one of only nine ever built — which Williams loaned to a Telford garage as a showpiece in 2015 and has not recovered despite demanding its return in 2021.

Williams F1 is fighting a High Court battle worth more than £1 million after a rare £750,000 race car lent to a Shropshire garage disappeared without trace. The FW23 — one of only nine ever built — was driven by Ralf Schumacher and Juan Pablo Montoya during the 2001 World Championship season before joining Williams's prized heritage collection. Williams loaned it to Autotech Performance Ltd in Telford in 2015 as a showpiece, but when it demanded the car back in 2021, it received no reply.

Peter Thorpe, 58, the former Autotech director being sued, says he has no idea where the car is and blames memory loss following a stroke.

Williams lawyers allege Thorpe had the car removed and wrongly told liquidators he personally owned it — a claim Thorpe flatly denies, saying he knew it was 'untrue'.

Autotech has since been dissolved, leaving Williams demanding Thorpe either hand the car back or pay over £1 million in damages.

MoreMetroVintage Williams F1 car 'vanishes after being loaned to garage owner in Telford'Daily MailF1 team sues garage owner after Grand Prix car vanished while on loanThe IndependentF1 team Williams in £1m High Court battle after historic Grand Prix car vanishesDaily Mail on MSNF1 team Williams sues garage owner for £1m over Grand Prix car which vanished being loaned to him
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