Making friends and enjoying good times with like-minded enthusiasts is a crucial element of classic car ownership for so many, and this super-adorable Isetta is the perfect vehicle in which to do that. Technically a tricycle rather than a car, this is an incredibly fun and eye-catching machine that feels gloriously incongruous to drive through modern traffic – and it’s no exaggeration to say that, of all the cars we’ve photographed in recent times, we’ve never had such a massive reaction from passers-by as we have with this one. Every single person who strolled by our shoot stopped to ask questions about it and say how cute or pretty or interesting they thought it was. This is the perfect machine with which to make friends.

So what is it? Well, the Isetta was an Italian-designed microcar, the original version launching in 1953. The simple and intriguing formula was licensed for manufacture to a variety of companies across the globe, perhaps most significantly BMW who, in 1955, radically overhauled the running gear using a single-cylinder motor of their own design. The launch version was the BMW Isetta 250, but the car we have here is a further evolution of the breed – the BMW Isetta 300 – with a larger and more powerful engine. The 298cc single-cylinder 4-stroke motor puts out 13bhp, and can carry you up to 53mph if you’re feeling adventurous.

This particular example, a 1960 model, is very sweet indeed: it was subject to a full restoration in 2018, with the interior retrimmed, the engine and transmission rebuilt, and the carburettor replaced by a BMW dealership – who then put it on display in the showroom for a couple of months alongside a new i8!

A characterful, quirky car that’s impossible not to love, we expect the bidding to be keen with this one. Because wherever you go, everyone wants a piece of this special little Isetta.

The Isetta’s diminutive cabin is compact and uncluttered, and actually more accommodating than you might think. There’s easily room for two adults in here, perched atop a comfy bench that’s been tastefully retrimmed in Poole navy tweed and cream vinyl. There’s a Jaguar blue carpet beneath your feet, new interior panels either side, and a neatly trimmed rear shelf behind.

The pedal box is tidy, the steering column tilts correctly when the front door is opened, and the screenwash bag is in situ. There’s only one dial, a speedo – because that’s honestly all you need, isn’t it? A beautifully presented interior with superlative visibility.

The bodywork is very tidy throughout, and the two-tone paintwork almost makes it look like a VW splitscreen campervan shrunk down to Hot Wheels dimensions. Well, if you squint.

A huge amount of effort went into tracking down the correct parts during the restoration, with marque specialist Bromley Bubble providing such pieces as the rear bumper and overriders, polished fuel cap and correct badges, along with all the new window rubbers and fittings, engine cover knob, all of the lights including the number plate light, the two hubcaps, and all of the chrome.

So everything’s present and correct, and it really is a joyful little thing to behold. Just ask the many, many people who came over to gaze at it while we were taking the photos!

The engine and transmission have been fully rebuilt, and interestingly this was carried out by Malcolm Wilson Motorsport (and if you don’t know the name – they’ve been campaigning the World Rally Championship since 1997 in partnership with Ford). So you can be sure that this work has been carried out to a high level by some of Britain’s most accomplished engineers.

The invoice in the file shows the cost of this to be just £396, but this was part of a series of back and forth professional favours and the true cost to a regular customer would have been substantially more – particularly as Malcolm Wilson Motorsport also resprayed the body as part of the deal. And as a finishing touch, a new carburettor was installed and tuned by the BMW main dealer Lloyd Carlisle.

As you’d imagine, then, the car is running in very fine fettle. Indeed, it’s almost unbelievable how quickly the engine fires into life when you turn the key, and it settles into a high buzzy idle which calms itself down as the fluids warm through. The transmission selects cleanly, the steering and brakes are operating correctly, it all drives just as a well sorted Isetta should.

This is an extremely desirable car, principally for the fact that it’s such a cute and lovable little creation. But don’t go thinking this is just a fun ornament – this painstakingly restored example presents so pleasingly that it’d be a shoo-in at your local village fete’s car show, and it’s also been fastidiously engineered to be the very best that it can be in terms of usability. 

How many bubble cars can boast having had their running gear rebuilt by a top-flight WRC team? That most likely makes this car unique – and with all the new friends you’re guaranteed to make with the Isetta, that’ll be a real talking point.

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