Rapport Forte

[mark387mw]

I had to google this car and found some good info on aronline website.
Will the restoration be starting soon and be updated on this thread?
Looking forward to learning more. Cheers

[lowdrag]

A very brave man, but more power to your elbow. I'd never heard of the car either, but it is instantly recognizable as of the wedge period of the 1970s, the front looking very like a TR7. Bookmarked.

[alfaspecial]

Best of luck with the restoration. You must have balls the size of space hoppers!

Still, not quite as far gone as this one.
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&... (looking at the pictures, love the headlamp mechanism)

[The Surveyor]

That's brilliant, well done and good luck with the rebuild

[RicksAlfas]

Brave than a brave person from Braveland.
Good luck!

[Yertis]

Spare parts will be pretty easy – you can just fit whatever you want

[restoman]

Fiat X1/9 on steroids?

[Johnnytheboy]

I know exactly who you are then.

Best of luck with the resto...

[alfaspecial]

[quote=Sorted]

Not sure if before or afterwards, but Chris Humberstone who designed the Forte, worked on narrowing the TR7 so it could be used in Bahamas.

One for PH sleuths. Apparently the car was displayed during the period of the 1980 British GP at Brands Hatch outside the Grovewood Suite and driven on a parade lap on GP day by Mark Thatcher. Cannot find any evidence this actually happened.




Brightwells http://classiccars.brightwells.com/viewdetails.php...

honest john (your car?) https://classics.honestjohn.co.uk/features/curiosi...

autoste https://autoste.com/topic/8208-rapport/

[Chad speed]

Welcome to the Crazy Restoration Club _Sorted_
Please keep the posts coming, its a fabulous find and many on here, myself included will be watching with enthusiasm, envy and encouragement

[TCEvo]

That's quite a car - looking forward to progress & good luck.

[classicaholic]

Thats a big brave pill! don't suppose you can pop to Eurocrapparts for a few spares though!
Good luck and I look forward to seeing your progress.

[jaisharma]

Great!

[Bobo W]

You sir, are an absolute star. I remember those back in the day, fabulous things. Seeing one at Brands in 1980 also rings a bell.

[sim16v]

That is fantastic!

Good luck with the restoration!

[Voxy]

Congratulations! I once visited the Rapport showroom on Park Lane and have had a fascination with the Forte and crazy Range-Rover conversions ever since. I have an original brochure which I will dig out...

[Equus]

This was one of my favourite cars in the 'concept cars' section of my book 'World Cars 1981', back when I first became interested in cars.

The one they pictured was brown, so almost certainly the car you now have?

5.3 litre Jaguar V12 if I remember correctly?

[Johnnytheboy]

I think it's an XJ or an XJS underneath.

[sim16v]

Reading other bits and pieces on the internet, it says they favoured the XJ to give more room for passengers.

It looks like Alexander Patrick of The Patrick Group bought the remains of the fledgling business and commissioned an Estate car conversion from one of the convertibles due to it being too complicated to get right.

I think that one is in a collection somewhere as it was at auction a few years ago.

Another estate was lost at a banger race, but it looks like it could have been one of the unfinished spare shells, as it was bought without running gear and had a different front end,

Here are some of the photos from previous links.

[Norfolkandchance]

Excellent project OP. Keep us posted.