Lot Ended
Description
The sole surviving example with original coachwork; only 59k miles
from new; in the current ownership for 50 years; only 5,200 miles since full
engine rebuild; one of only 26 made; 70bhp two-litre straight-six OHC
engine; new tyres; original number plate; wonderfully original; unique
opportunity, not to be missed!
Lea-Francis had
such a complex model range by the 1920s that even the great automotive historian
Michael Sedgwick was driven to scribble ‘Oh God!’ across his research notes when
delving into the firm’s history.
Founded in 1895
as a high-quality bicycle manufacturer, they made their first car in 1903 and
went on to produce a string of exquisitely engineered light cars, often fitted
with Meadows engines. The most famous was the legendary S-Type Hyper of 1927,
Britian’s first supercharged production car, with a 1.5-litre Meadows 4ED
engine.
However, come the economic depression of
the 1930s, buyers of expensive, hand-made cars were few and far between and
Lea-Francis were more or less bankrupt by 1931, officially going into
receivership in 1936, although the firm was briefly revived by ex-Riley man Hugh
Rose in the immediate post-war years, and again by Barrie Price in the 1960s.
The memorably named Ace of Spades is something
of a mythical beast in pre-war car circles – everyone has heard of it but it
seems that nobody has actually ever seen one. To complicate matters, after
Barrie Price took over the Lea-Francis name he unveiled another model in the
late-1980s also called the Ace of Spades, a swooping Thirties-style Roadster
with a Jaguar XK twin-cam engine, but fewer than five were made.
Unveiled at the Olympia Motor Show in October
1930, the original Ace of Spades had an advanced 70bhp 2-litre six-cylinder
overhead cam engine (16hp fiscal rating), largely designed by Charles van Eugen
who had previously worked for Daimler and Clyno and went on to design the V8
Autovia for the Riley Motor Company in 1938.
Legend has it that the car gained its name from the shape of the
timing gear cover which, when viewed from the front, looked like an inverted ace
of spades (the engine oil filler cap also hints at that shape). The chassis was
essentially identical to that on the supercharged Hyper and the P-Type, two
versions being offered in short- and long-wheelbase form.
An intriguing feature was the ‘Duo-gearbox’, an engineering
masterpiece with needle roller bearings and constant mesh on 3rd and
4th which made it much smoother and quieter than most cars of the
era. With a top speed of 75mph despite the relatively heavy bodywork, the Ace of
Spades gained a reputation as an excellent fast touring car, being capable of
80mph+ with revised axle ratios.
Georgano was a
fan, his definitive encyclopedia stating: “The Lea-Francis 12/40 was one of the
best assembled cars in Britain… but Lea-Francis also made some more ponderous
cars, without the same degree of success. However, an excellent Lea-Francis six
was at last introduced for 1931: the Ace of Spades, with their own 2-litre
single ohc engine”.
Unfortunately, at £495 the
Ace of Spades was far too expensive for most people: to put it in context, the
similarly powerful Riley 12/6 Mentone cost £348, the Rover Speed 20 cost £438
and the Alvis Speed 20 cost £695. As a result, only 76 Ace of Spades models were
made in total, in four body styles (saloon, coupe, open tourer and shooting
brake), of which only 26 had the short-wheelbase chassis. Today only four are
known to survive with the long chassis and just three with the short chassis.
Factory records held by the LeaF Club confirm
that the short-wheelbase chassis for this Ace of Spades (number 18511) was
erected in December 1931 and was fitted with six-light saloon coachwork by
Carbodies of Coventry, undergoing final testing in February 1932. At this point
Lea-Francis were effectively insolvent with their assets in the hands of the
receiver, so AWA 710 was not actually sold and registered until June
1934.
The LeaF Club have confirmed that the first owner was a Mr R Wass
of Sheffield, a document on file stating that it was put into storage in
1940 with around 16,000 miles on the clock where it remained for the next 30
years.
A green logbook shows that in 1970 it was
acquired by a Mr R Elliot-Pyle of Sussex (who presumably recommissioned the
car), then by a Pamela Glover of Elstree, our vendor acquiring AWA 710 at a WS
Johnson & Co auction in Bletchley in May 1976, the auctioneers stating that
the Ace of Spades had covered some 35,000 miles since being taken out of storage
and was in “exceptional condition” with 51,000 miles on the speedo and a current
MOT. The invoice shows that it cost him £1,350 – a fair chunk of money at a time
when Britain’s best-selling car, the Ford Escort Mk2, cost £1,450 and a
brand-new Mini cost £1,200.
A LeaF Club member, our vendor has looked after the car meticulously ever since, old MOTs
showing the mileage gradually creeping up to today’s total of 58,967 miles which
is assumed to be correct. Invoices show that the engine was fully rebuilt in
January 1985 by Saunders & Ralph Motor Engineers of Bristol with new
pistons, bearings, reground crank etc, and it has only covered 5,200 miles
since.
Other invoices show that it had new
half-shafts in 1976; the front axle was rebuilt in 1987 including new king-pins
and transverse spring, and the magneto was rebuilt in 1997. All this work is also documented in an
album of photos on file, a few of which are reproduced here.
The
original Stromberg downdraught carburettor has been replaced with a later SU
carb, a well-known upgrade which made for more reliable starting and smoother
running. A stainless steel exhaust is also fitted and a note from the
vendor states that a new set of Excelsior tyres were fitted in 2023 and the car
has only covered a handful of miles since,
Other
documentation includes a current V5C; older V5; green logbook; 14 old MOTs from
1980 - 2012; invoices; original handbook; period road test; period advert; and
LeaF Club magazines. The icing on the cake is the original Sheffield-issue
number plate, AWA 710, which is transferable and doubtless has a value of its
own.
As you can see in the photos and the video,
this exceedingly rare and handsome LeaF is in wonderful and highly original
condition throughout. It has been starting promptly and running beautifully as
we have moved it around on site, as you would expect from such a low-mileage
engine [please forgive the fluffed gearchange in the video - Ed].
Of the three short-chassis Aces known to survive, this is the only one
that retains its original bodywork. On offer here at an insultingly low guide
price for such a unique and high-quality car (ChatGTP said it was
worth £75k - £110k which tells you all you need to know about the much-hyped AI
revolution), it is only reluctantly for sale due to the advancing years and
declining health of the long-term owner.
You will
probably never see one of these for sale again, so if an Ace of Spades has ever
been on your shopping list, this is an opportunity not to be
missed!
Consigned by James Dennison – 07970
309907 – [email protected]
We are indebted to Colin Poynter of the
Lea-Francis Owners' Club for his help in compiling this
description