SALES AND PROJECTS

HRA - 1 1/2 Litre Brooklands Six Project

A Very Special Car - Riley are only known to have made three, two race versions for the 1932 TT, and one prototype for the 1932 motorshow, but sadly none were sold to the public. The image behind was the marketing advert for the 1932 motorshow.

We are lucky enough to have obtained a chassis, axles, steering column, gearbox, 12/6 block, crank, and head to recreate this great looking car.

The chassis is under slung similar to the MHP/Sprite, but with a longer wheel base of 9 ft.

It's planned to rebuilt the engine with 14/6 pistons, modern Arrow rods with 3mm extra length to increase compression ratio, hot cams and adjustable steel timing gears, fed with triple SU carburettors. A lightweight flywheel and Borg & Beck clutch will transmit drive via a silent 3rd close ratio gearbox with Brooklands remote.

Original cable brakes with bolt on wheels, Rotax lights and Jaeger instruments.

This will be a very special car, competitive in Class 4 1500 - 2000cc, and a good looking car when finished

SOLD Apr 2021

Genuine WHS 1932 Type Chassis

No expenses sparred fully rebuilt engine, gearbox, and fully refurbished chassis and running gear, new ali body over ash, new wiring, complete new build

£55,000 - Ready Spring 2023

Wolseley Hornet Special 12HP

Lovely looking Red Steel Body, very sorted chassis and running gear, fully rebuilt engine by Brooklands Enginecraft - Ready July 2022 - £48,000

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HRA AC Brooklands 2 Litre Six Special

An AC 2 Litre Six powered "Riley Brooklands" with "wide track" 1937 12/4 axles, however, this project is still barely risen from the drawing board.

We have the running gear all as found from a 37 Kestrel, the chassis will be transformed into a lengthened “Brooklands” profile which will add 3 inches in the width of a 9hp to allow the use of the wide track axles and extra in the wheel base to accommodate the six cylinder AC engine, bodied to look like a Brooklands Speed Model.

The engine is an AC, PVT "cats Paw" 2ltr. Six cylinder. The Riley silent 3rd box will have close ratio's and a Borg&Beck lightweight flywheel will be fitted. We have 11”Rotax lights and a Full set of Jaeger instruments.

This will be a quick six cylinder car when finished priced at £105,000.

However, a discount of £15,000 can be obtained by paying a deposit now which will also enable you to specify the build to your exact personal requirements

12/4 2 Seat "Boat Tail" Riley Special

Built on a Narrow Track 22T chassis, which will be fully refurbished, and where required modified to suit a specially made body to create a great looking boat tail 2 seat special.

The powerful 12/4 engine will be completely rebuilt to customers specification depending on planned use. A choice of gearboxes are available either an Armstong pre-selector box, or Riley Silent 3rd.

This will be a very quick 2 seat special when finished priced at £85,000

However, a discount of £15,000 can be obtained by paying a deposit now which will also enable you to specify the build to your exact personal requirements

HRA Riley 9 Brooklands Special

If you want a car you can purchase to drive quickly away, then this could be the answer.

VSCC Buff form "Class 2 Vintage", Class 2 win at Prescott Long Course at the end of 2019. Fresh engine rebuild with 65 BHP Vintage Engine with Arrow crank and rods, high compression pistons, large valve head, steel adjustable timing gears, mounted via lightened flywheel and Borg & Beck clutch to a silent 3rd gearbox with custom ratio's driving through to 5.25:1 diff.

Built on a Riley chassis, re formed to Brooklands profile, new springs, with all original axles and running gear fully refurbished and powder coated, with all bearings being replaced, aluminium body over ash frame by Brooklands Body Craft.

This Brooklands (above and to the right) took 3 years to build, and is a running example of the quality of our work, nothing has been left untouched making this a car which can be enjoyed for years to come on road or track.

As the car is planned to be used in VSCC Race and Hillclimb events this year, and with no replacement yet as the Merlin axle lightweight Brooklands is still being built, the car is currently priced at £85,000

Riley 9 "Oily Rag Special"

Oily Rag two seat 9hp special with aluminium body, pointed tail, twin carbs, and outside exhaust, based on vintage Riley Mk.IV chassis and running gear.

All original lights, full set of instruments, leather seats made from old leather from an RM.

We started with a derelict Mk.IV Vintage Riley that we decided to build up as an “Oily Rag Special”, the Running gear and engine all came as a rolling chassis, long forgotten as last used in the 50’s.

There was no vestige of body or wings. No record or knowledge of what body type was fitted originally.

Its now mechanically sound, with the patina kept intact. The chassis has been left at standard length. The twin staggered seat body is to be left in aluminium with patina still to be added.

£32,000

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HRA Riley 9 Single Seat Racer
"Shoe String Special"

Brooklands Engine Craft - Steve Hughes Special

When I started this next special I decided to try to build it on a shoestring. What do people NOT want??? Well as My mate Kevin Morton gave me a 1933 all helical gearbox removed from his sleek Silver Dream machine that seemed a good place to start.

No one wants a Merlin engine, unless it is to rob the crank. Nor do folk want Merlin axles……plan in place.

Nail together a pair of Merlin axles with the Merlin engine and helical gearbox. No need to carry passengers so one seat, keep costs down even more.

Two bent bits of steel held together with some cross members at 8ft 1in wheel base, under slung, holes everywhere. Less steel, less money?…. Some new springs, of Brooklands pattern. Aluminium back plates and seal carriers, aluminium trunnions on the torque tube Merlin axle. Aluminium torque tube. Merlin drums, many more holes. Aluminium Steering tubes, some bendy joints to get to centre line. Some aluminium dampers and there we go, shorted.

Light weight aluminium body by Brooklands Body Craft, no wood, less money!

18 inch knock on wheels and some free Dunlop race tyres. Add a hand full of odd, really odd, instruments and we are good to go.

Then that all helical gearbox, fitted now with straight cut gears on the constant mesh now giving Brooklands close ratios, reversed the clutch operation and modify for Borg&Beck operation. While I was at it, aluminium ball socket, as silent 3rd but shorter ( so a silent 3rd could replace it if needed) Extend gear change remote a loooong way,

Engine….Old Merlin Block, re-sleeve to + 0.020” as I found some NOS humpty pistons, much higher than Register Omega. Merlin crank, white metal rods. Best laid plans….changed to Free Arrow crank and made some Merlin length rods in tooling grade HT aluminium. Some of Keith Pointing’s Hot hot cams, New aluminium adjustable timing gears, new oil pump. Up rated valve springs, flowed head, all balanced with aluminium flywheel with steel face and Borg&Beck Ford clutch. Lucas Round Magneto. Pair of 1 ¼ SU’s on box aluminium manifold. Sorted!...... No not really, I decided, bit too light on power for a single seat racer, will do for road testing.

Next go…..Brand New Kieth Pointing 7 web block and Arrow Crank and rods, High compression pistons from Keith, and some HOT Hot hot cams and aluminium adjustable timing gears, new Brooklands oil pump. 1 ¼ bronze SU’s, as we are now going methanol and an aluminium manifold for the semi down draft float chamber setup. Head, inclined 14mm plug type, all flowed and up-rated valve springs. Scintilla Magneto. Another aluminium flywheel and Ford clutch, again all balanced with crank etc.

Now….. I have not only lost the plot, but where is that ruddy shoestring!

( No Riley Saloons were harmed in the making of this Special)

HRA Merlin "Light Weight" Brookland's Special

My next build project for the H.R.A. Race team

Hot Merlin engine with Arrow Crank & rods, Oil Filter, twin SU carburettors. Brooklands C/R silent 3rd box. Girling braked axles and lightened brakes with Knock on Wheels on splined hubs.

Chassis build to commence in the spring of 2020, Engine build (first by Brooklands Autocraft) underway now thanks to a Master Class from father!

HRA 1932 Riley 9 "The Wreck" Special

While competing at Prescott Hill climb with our father as "pit crew" my brother David generated a new interest and utterances about collecting some bits were heard. Knowing how younger folk struggle, from his own life alone, with finding any spare cash father decided to surprise him with “something”...

Having asked around, father was given a tip off about a special languishing in a back garden in Sandhurst, he made contact and arranged a visit to look at it. Took the trailer anyway to save any extra diesel.

August Bank holiday Monday was chosen and he duly set off, travelling in hope!

What he found was not a disappointment, he had been emailed pictures before going. A complete wreck was sitting under some plastic sheets. It was a damp drizzly early morning and the seller helped unearth the beast. He was an “old car” enthusiast who was always on the lookout for old cars, and a friend had tipped him off about this one in Wembly. The “Old” guy had said it was a Brooklands, aren't they all?, and that his father had competed in it during the fifties. Luckily the seller now knew it wasn't what he had hoped when he got it....still had high hopes of it's value. Luckily he had been offered a low bid before, still a King's ransom by Riley owner's standards, and I was able to prise it from him for what I could allow myself to pay. (Still way tooooo much.)

Being bank holiday, should have known, the skies decided to do what one would expect and the heavens opened up just as the deal was done. No wet weather gear, so he ended up soaked to skin by the time we managed to persuade the unwilling beast out of hiding.

When he got home he rang David and asked for his help to unload the pile of bits I had just won. He arrived and was duly impressed with the wreckage, a grin from ear to ear appeared when informed it was to be his to race when finished.

There were no documents, and a strange number was on the pressed number plates in the pile. Father had been told the “Old guy” had shown the buyer a room packed to the gunwales with boxes and “that the log book was in there”, whether that will ever surface is to be seen, but a letter has been sent.

Gordon Ager kindly informed father what was known of the car, that number and chassis number were logged in by a one year member a few years back. A 1950's date was also given and Gordon suggested I contact East Sussex records office to see if they could help, a same day reply to my email confirmed they could....The Registration number “was allocated to Thomas Melvyn Jeremiah, 2 Adelaide Mansions, Kingsway, Hove for a Riley ‘built up vehicle’ on 7 Jul 1951” So now for the an attempt to joint the number back on......just need to make the beast look presentable and we can try.

Reg Won Back, now to make New body out of the BSA three wheeler one......watch this space..... Campaign dreams with Beer pockets!

I wonder how long before David's Son Oliver Hughes wants one... or my Son Lewis Hughes!

(No Saloons have been harmed in this special's creation)