Beschrijving
H&H Classic Auction @ The Imperial War Museum, Duxford/ Cambridgeshire
13th March, 2024 13:00
1951 A. L. E. Motor Special
Entered from the Aberaeron Collection
Estimate £11, 000 - £13, 000
Registration No: NKT 483
Chassis No: 295379
MOT: Exempt
Built by Adrian Lewis-Evans whose younger brother was the F1 driver Stuart
Powered by a Vauxhall six-cylinder engine mated to a 3-speed gearbox
Subject of a bodywork restoration and repaint plus interior re-trim in current ownership
“My idea of a perfect car. It’s ancestry included the Jaguar SS100, Vauxhall 30/ 98, MG TA, Citroen, the Frazer Nash ’Chain Gang’ and many others” Adrian Lewis-Evans.
Having served as Earl Howe’s racing mechanic during the 1930s, Lewis ‘Pop’ Lewis-Evans established his own garage business in Kent after WW2. Luton-born, he ensured both his sons, Adrian and Stuart, served apprenticeships at Vauxhall Motors as well as encouraging the latter’s racing career. Although, Stuart Lewis-Evans proved fast enough to mix it with (Sir) Stirling Moss and Mike Hawthorn in F1, his older brother Adrian was not bitten by the motorsport bug. Instead, the senior sibling set about designing and building his own car. Christened the A. L. E. Special (Adrian Lewis-Evans), it featured a bespoke chassis and was stylistically indebted to the contemporary Morgan 4/ 4 and MG T-Series. Initially Willys-powered (after Stuart had inverted a Jeep), the four-seater was subsequently fitted with a 2. 6-litre straight-six Vauxhall OHV engine allied to manual transmission. Road registered as ‘NKT 483’ on 6th June 1951, the A. L. E. Special was reputedly put through its paces at Brands Hatch by Stuart Lewis-Evans. Self-evidently the subject of much past restoration work, the sports car has been inactive of late and as such will require recommissioning prior to road use. Nicely detailed, it sports a well-stocked, dual cowl wooden dashboard, hood frame and bespoke ‘A. L. E.’ badging. A handsome and well-executed 1950s Special with a fascinating pedigree.
