Motorsport Ireland has expressed their sympathy on the recent passing of David Sheane, one of Irish motorsport’s most significant and influential figures.

David passed away peacefully on Sunday April 3 in the care of St Vincent’s University Hospital surrounded by his loving family. From Blainroe, Co. Wicklow, David was the beloved husband of Evelyn and father to Gillian, Alida and Glenda.


David Sheane built his first car, a midget car in the late 60s before moving on to the construction of Sporting Trial cars. Looking to make a move to circuit racing in the mid-70s, David introduced the Formula Vee series to Ireland in an attempt to provide cost-effective, single seater racing for amateur drivers. Formula Vee is now the longest running race series in Ireland, regularly boasting large grids with many still being in Sheane chassis cars.


At the turn of millennium, David introduced a new class, Formula Sheane. These cars were designed to cater for Formula Vee drivers who wanted to move up the ladder, while once again keeping costs under control. Over 20 years later, Formula Sheane remains a hugely popular class. Sheane Cars built in excess of 350 cars and brought hundreds of drivers to the sport. The Sheane Cars mantra, proudly emblazoned on their race trucks stated they were “the people who put the sport in motorsport”. There can be no doubt that that’s what David Sheane did.