Rare or Unusual Vehicles




The picture above is a rare B.S.A. 10HP "TB 2/10" Hotchkiss 1075 cc "V" Twin engine from the 2003 show. Unfortunately we have not seen it since then but this year we saw the B.S.A. van pictured below. Some fascinating information on the B.S.A company can be found here


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B.S.A 3 wheeled Commercial Van. Rated at 5 CWT this dates from about 1931 according to the owners information board. The engine is an air-cooled twin V producing 9HP. They appear on the surface to be a good inexpensive delivery vehicle but very few were sold possibly due to the wheel arch taking a large slice of the load space. This example could well be the last remaining. A particularly rare and fascinating vehicle I have never seen before.
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TVR Griffiths 400. One of several cars entered by Greenwood Motorsport of Hare Street. This one dates from 1965 and is a winner of the Spa-Francorchamps six hour endurance race. Interestingly, this model TVR appears to share its rear light cluster with the Mk 1 Ford Cortina.

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	Turner MKII Originally built in 1962 this mkii is still being, extensively rebuilt. Even as I write the car's braking system is undergoing renovation! Most Turner cars produced went to America, this one has a long history of racing and comes from the south of England. I learned today the Turners sister company was "Fairthorpe." Veterans of the Classic Event may remember the odd little yellow Fairthorpe "Tripper" from last years show....
The Turner Sports car company came into being in 1954. It was started by Jack Turner and was based near Wolverhampton. The first cars used Austin A30 engines, transmission and suspension. Other Turner models used Ford and Coventry Climax engines. The company closed in 1966. Here are some interesting links for more Turner information, Classic Kitcars, A very interesting Article from Classic Car Mart magazine dated 2001 and of course the Turners Sports Cars website which has Turner facts galore. Well now, you live and learn.
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	Datsun 240Z Before they became Nissan the cars produced by the company were known as "Datsun" The word "DAT" in Japanese means 'hare' but was also the initials of the three investors who started the company, first producing vehicles in 1914. A smaller car was produced in 1931 and called "Son of DAT" which evolved into "Datsun" This Greenwood car dates from 1970 and the chaps posted this fascinating information sheet for us...
The original low mileage 2394cc straight 6 cylinder engine has been restored to factory specifications but the suspension is designed for rallying with up-rated springs and shocks.

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Ferrari Superleggera Another car from Greenwood Motorsport Superleggera, means "super light" in Italian, and was coined in 1937 by the Italian coachbuilder, Touring. Superleggera cars use a network of thin metal tubes as a full-body frame. These are then covered with metal body panels, often made of exotic lightweight materials like aluminium or magnesium. This construction technique is no longer used in production cars today but is not uncommon hand-built sports models.

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Triumph 1800 Roadster Built in 1947 just after the company was taken over by Standard Car Company The 1800 Roadster was a throwback to 1930's styling. The bodywork was fabricated from 'Birmabright' an aluminium alloy used in World War Two aircraft (although the front wings were steel). Mechanically it was very simple, a leaf sprung chassis with all round drum brakes. With a top speed of 80mph, the 1776cc, 65 bhp engine was not going to break any records. Undeniably it has classical style, elegance and beauty. It also has a very unusual feature behind the back window where there are two small windows fitted to look down into the rear luggage compartment. But wait a minute, I understand the rear luggage compartment is a dicky seat for two extra passengers....

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Austin 7 It may seem strange in retrospect but the Austin 7 was built despite of of the Austin Company's board of directors rather than because of it. The car was conceived by Austin himself at a time the company had gone into receivership and the board of directors was made up of representatives of Midland Bank and the Eagle Star Insurance Company placed there by the receiver. Austin decided to design and finance the project himself and was granted a royalty of two guineas per car sold (£2.10) The first few Austin Sevens had a capacity of 696cc from a little side valve engine. It was considered to be under powered, so the cylinder bores were increased in diameter to 56mm which equated to a capacity of 747cc. This put it in the next tax category but inside the capacity limit for the smallest racing class of 750cc.where it went on to achieve moderate success. The basic design of the Austin Seven changed very little over the years, but as body styles were updated they tended to become longer and heavier, and the chassis was lengthened by 6 inches to 6ft. 9ins. in 1933. To counter this extra weight the 1937 models were fitted with a Ricardo designed cylinder head to increase the power and for the first time semi-Girling brakes The Austin Seven was not just a British phenomenon as it was made under licence in the following countries:- France as the Rosengart from 1928 to 1939 Germany as the Dixi by BMW from 1928 to 1932 America as the Bantam from 1930 to 1941 (American Austin) Japan as the Datsun from 1933 built on imported chassis but shortened to comply with Japanese light car regulations.

Please contact me here if you find one (or more) of the many inaccuracies there are bound to be on these pages. I will endeavour to correct them. I would also be interested in any further information on any of the machines shown on these pages. Keeps me out of trouble.

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