Lot Ended
Description
Rare survivor dating from the second year of production; always
in regular use and a veteran of many VSCC events; wonderful 'oily rag' patina;
lusty 3-litre engine; driven to the sale from Ludlow
Founded in 1918,
Essex was a strategic ‘budget brand’ created by the Hudson Motor Car Company of
Detroit to steal sales from the likes of Henry Ford. Legend has it that Hudson
executives chose the brand name by looking at a map of Britain in search of
somewhere that sounded sophisticated and English to attract
middle-class Americans who wanted something more upscale than a Ford but
cheaper than a Cadillac. A far cry from the (mainly derogatory)
connotations that the E-word conjures up today!
The Model A was the first vehicle produced by Essex and proved
surprisingly fast and rugged for its price point. It was powered by a 2,928cc
F-head 4-cylinder engine mated to 3-speed manual transmission with rear-wheel
mechanical drum brakes. In an era when the Ford Model T produced about 20hp, the
Essex put out a punchy 55hp.
The name soon
became synonymous with both high performance and reliability when an Essex
averaged over 60mph for 50 hours in December 1919, a stunt which was followed up
by a transcontinental trek in 1920 when four Model A’s drove from San Francisco
to New York City, the fastest completing the 3,000 mile drive in 4 days, 14
hours and 43 minutes. In 1923 a modified Model A won the famous Pikes Peak Hill
Climb.
This all worked a treat and by 1929, the
combined sales of Hudson and Essex made them the third-largest automaker in the
world, trailing only Ford and Chevrolet.
Dating
from the second year of production, this fabulous ‘oily rag’ Model A Tourer
comes with no early history but must have come to the UK very early in its life
(if not from new) judging by an old black-and-white photo of SX 801 which looks
like it was taken in the 1920s.
The trail then
goes cold until 2002 when it was acquired by a Mr F Moore of Builth Wells with
48,383 miles on the clock. He was to own it for the next 12 years,
keeping a detailed log of all work carried out to the car during his
ownership and seemingly spending the first couple of years going right through
the car to get it running and driving well with work to the engine, carburettor,
brakes, exhaust etc. He also repainted the wings and affectionately dubbed the
car ‘Mable’.
He then competed in many VSCC
events (Prescott, Loton Park, Shelsley Walsh etc), keeping notes of lap times
and any tuning or servicing carried out, adding some 3,000 miles to the
odometer.
In 2014 he sold Mable to a fellow VSCC
member, Mr J Godfrey of Presteigne, who was to keep her for the next 10 years.
He too used the car on many VSCC events, adding another 4,000 miles to the
speedo, including a 1,000 mile jaunt around the Cambrian Mountains of Wales in
April 2024. He also continued to keep up the detailed maintenance and usage log
started by Mr Moore. We are told that Mable was voted the overall concours
winner at the Monmouthshire Classic & Vintage Show in July
2023.
Aside from all the routine servicing
carried out by the owners (both clearly competent mechanics), there are also
plenty of invoices for work carried out and parts fitted. Highlights include:
2024 – new stainless steel exhaust manifold and
front pipe
2022 – clutch rebuilt
2020 – new head gasket
2018 – new core plugs
2017 – new
radiator core and coolant hoses; four new tyres; front seat retrimmed in black
leather; wire wheels powder coated; new battery; headlight glasses
replaced
2016 – dynamo
rebuilt
2007 – new rear brake
drums
2002 – wire wheels
rebuilt
Our vendor, a professional mechanic who
runs his own Vintage vehicle restoration business, acquired Mable late last year
and tells us that she is a sturdy old beast in good working order with bags of
grunt from the 3-litre engine.
Mable comes with
sundry useful spares and a large amount of useful technical literature relating
to the model, including handbooks, parts catalogue, period road tests and
marketing material etc. There are also lots of historic photos of her out and
about at various events over the years.
As you
can see in the photos, Mable is in great shape for a 106-year-old with bags of
‘oily rag’ patina. Driven to the sale from Ludlow, she is on offer here at a
very modest guide price and now needs a caring new custodian who can continue to
preserve her for future generations to enjoy.
Consigned by James Dennison – 07970 309907 – [email protected]