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The latest issue of practical Classics, sept. 2013, pages 52-53, shows a 1939 coupe with Barker / Hooper bodywork. The car is located on a Shropshire farm….
No registration number visible what a pity or chassis number details.
According to the magazine it is not for sale, what a waste of such a fine car…
Yet more proof that the independent coachbuilders were generally incapable of matching Frank Feeley’s designs for the factory bodied cars. Perhaps this is unkind; perhaps their market was the old fogeys that amazingly wanted to pay extra for something less attractive but unique?
It’s not terrible, and a well chosen paint scheme could work wonders. An early car, but agreed, would be interesting to see the chassis number.This car has reg. number FLD 1 and chassis No 14083.
That car (FLD 1 and chassis 14083) was sold as part of the Ellard collection in 1984, described as Hooper body and specially built for the wife of a director of Hooper. Its condition in 1984 was “very good” despite being in store for the previous 20 years – prior to that it was one of Ellard’s own favourites in which he drove 20,000 miles.
Hard to compare the magazine pic with the Ellard catalogue – photographs are poor – so not sure if it is the same car – Ellard swapped bodies and engines among his big collection.
I would expect that the registration has been transferred by now, as it would be very valuable to those who care about vanity plates.
Just looking at it again, the car in the barn is the car on the front of the Ellard auction catalogue – an absolute beauty. see the attached picture – the coachlines and body seem to match. This car needs to be bought and restored!
If it is FLD1, yes, I recall the car at the Ellard sale….I think it had a 4-carb engine, furthermore I believe the first owner was a Lagonda director, Gordon Watney?
After the first few sales, prices went fairly silly at that sale, so someone paid over the odds for a perfectly good car, to just leave it to decay? Mind you, people buy puppies which go on to a life of abuse, so perhaps there is some parallel universe where this sort of thing makes sense.
Laurence
Thanks for all the comments about this car, what a shame that the current owner prefers to remain anonymous and let this car rot away from the bottom upwards.
Perhaps a phone call to the publishers of PC, might be a way forward, to gain further details for those interested in taking this further ?
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