Mar
12
Before the war, Syd Allard built about a dozen Allard Specials. He understood the value of big American engines in small European bodies. Syd used flathead Fords primarily and was also known to use a Lincoln V12 for his creations. During the war, Allard built Ford-based trucks for the war effort. At the conclusion of the war he wound up with a bunch Ford motors looking for a chassis. Read More
Mar
11
This isn’t the first 3.8 MK II we have posted but it might be the best. If it sells it will certainly be the best. We are suckers for these cars but we keep the automatic versions at arms length. Not that there is anything wrong with them. It’s just the 4-speed is more Jaguar-like. Read More
Mar
11
The MG Magnette was the original mid-fifties sports sedan from the British Motor Corp. The drivetrain of the Magnette was lifted from the MGA, though it debuted in the Magnette two model years before the MGA came to market. Read More
Mar
9
None of the MG product line could be considered luxurious, the PB Midgets were the most spartan of them all. The sales literature of the time advertised “Over one hundred new and improved features” over the preceding J-Type, but few of those features had anything to do with comfort. The idea was to build the minimum sporting car that was affordable. And they were cute, but with 36 horsepower and a crash 4-speed, they were anything but fast. The PBs were tiny little things. They were designed for a much smaller person than is normal today. This wonderful PB, VIN # PB0260, was made into a fantastic road car. Read More
Feb
26
The sports car craze in the US started after WW II when the GIs in post-war Europe fell in love with the light, low slung European marques. When the GIs returned from their tour they brought home a sports car. Eventually a distribution and dealer network became firmly established and the rest is history. One of the most popular cars of the era was certainly the MG. It is a traditional sports car that evokes the romantic days of wicker picnic hampers and bucolic country roads. You remember Oliver Barrett IV falling in love with Jennifer Cavilleri and cavorting around in a MG TC, don’t you (Love Story, the movie)? 
What we have here today is an MG TD and one of the last few hundred before they ended production at Abingdon in favor of the TF. Anyone know why there wasn’t a TE? Since it is a later TD, it has a newer design XPAG Motor. It is an older restoration of good quality so it has softened with age and not fallen apart. In other words, it has patina and that is okay for a nice driver. The finish is said to be smooth and there are no known rust issues. The nice part about this offering is that it comes form one our favorite dealers. They find good cars and present them well. It is on eBay and you can get there by clicking here.
Feb
26
These are a rare sight here in the US but every once in a while, a nice one pops up. What’s so special about this old English sedan? In its day, it was a seriously advanced car bristling with interesting details. It had a sophisticated de Dion Tube rear suspension and 4-wheel disc brakes, the rear mounted inboard. It was marketed as a safe car too winning recognition for safety innovations and having seat belts for all 4 passengers. Ironically, Princess Grace of Monaco was a loyal Rover devotee. We believe she was driving a 3500 model that fateful day. Read More
Feb
25
When we stumbled upon this offering the car jumped out at us. In Hollywood they would say, “You had me at hello.” It was commissioned by a British gent by the name of Cliff Davies. The builder was none other than John Tojeiro. He was the go to guy when you wanted a 1-off special to compete with the big boys. John was a chassis engineer and his racing cars had engines sourced by various suppliers like Bristol, Jaguar, Buick and like this car – MG. 
Tojeiro was working for Buckland Bodyworks when he submitted a design to AC Cars – they were looking to fill a spot at the Earl’s Court Motor Show. John brought a version of the car offered here. It was modified to fit an AC engine, re-registered and named the AC Ace. And that readers became the genesis of the Shelby Cobra. Boom! So any Tojeiro is an interesting car that will command big numbers. This car, registered as LOW 77, passed from Cliff to a guy named Reggie who sold it to Ormsby then to Alan. Sounds like the characters in a Jane Austen novel. Now a US resident, LOW 77 has competed in the Colorado Grand, Copperstate 1000 and even Augie Pabst has taken the wheel on occasion. It has volumes of provenance and ready to continue to please a new owner. More at the eBay auction by clicking here.
Feb
25
The folks at Standard Triumph had one mission for the engineers embarking on designing the replacement for the TR-3 – maintain the “hairy chested” image of the TR-3. The project code-name was Zest. Why car companies need code names I’ll never know. Perhaps a carry over from the war? They asked Italian design house, Michelotti, to come up with a handsome new body and they did a fine job. Read More
Feb
24
We know the E-Type is perhaps the most beautiful sports car ever made. Probably because Enzo Ferrari said so when it was first introduced to the public in March, 1961. If you prefer the much coveted early Series I cars, you have to put up with some primitive bits– namely the Moss gearbox. Later cars were more civilized and had better cooling and electrics while preserving the original look of the E-Type. And that is what we found this morning on eBay. 
Today was to be a tribute to NASCAR-Day but how could we not be first with this one! Here goes the original car mantra you heard so many times before – it’s only original once. Read More
Feb
22
When you hear Lotus, you think of all of the innovation Colin Chapman brought to the art of sports car manufacturing. It became the essential British Sports Car of the ’60s. Light weight, a reasonably stiff backbone chassis, a willing twin-cam engine and a perfectly tuned suspension translated into loads of fun…if you were under 6 feet tall. Elans are pretty small. At 1420 pounds it could sprint to 60 mph in 7.1 seconds. Not too shabby. Read More
Feb
20
We know and love Austin-Healeys. They are a handful of British sports car. When you drive a good one, they feel unbreakable and you feel invincible. The trouble is, many big Healeys have fallen into the wrong hands. So, like any other collectible car, knowledge and a PPI is power. Most folks know Austin-Healey (or more accurately BMC) made great Works rally and race cars. So it in not unimaginable that a MK I Healey would look like this offering. Read More
Feb
13
Mint featured a Morgan Plus 4 not too long ago in the 4-seater version. Plus 4 refers to the Triumph engine and not the number of seats. Usually we wouldn’t go Morgan again so quickly but this is a 2-seater from one of our favorite sellers. We wanted you to see this one because it is truly special. Everything about it appears to be correct and restrained. Read More
Feb
11
We never owned an MGB. Our friend, Mike M. has one in his eclectic collection and he just enjoys the heck out of it. And that is why the MGB is a great car. An enthusiast can really enjoy it with abandon and the novice can learn the virtues of a traditional sports car without getting too hurt. The B is a stout car with a monocoque structure unlike its peer over at Triumph that had a body-on-frame construction. Most people in the know believe the B is a better handling car with a more forgiving ride than the Triumph. We agree.
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Feb
9
We haven’t owned an Austin-Healey in years and we miss the excitement of driving this quintessential British sports car. What we do know is there are many wrong ways to buy and/or restore one of these. There is a trend to over-restore these cars. Some of the specialists do a great job and we wouldn’t argue that but they never left the factory as nice as they do now. That is the fate of many restored cars and the reason we lean toward survivors or cars that haven’t been apart. And then there are the folks who get their hands on one of these and completely ruin them. Read More
Feb
7
Bugeye/Frogeye Sprites get all the love. Yes, they have a face a mother can love. But the MK II is a really fun little car. This Iris Blue Beauty probably was built in early ’62 because in October that year, engine size ballooned to 1098 cc engine. So this one has a 948 cc motor that has recently been breathed upon in a sporting way. Read More
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