Help identifying this 1950s car...

[Spingo]

... it appeared on one of my FB groups leaving RAF Greenham Common in 1961 and it caught my eye. Have tried identifying it, but not entirely sure what it is. My Dad (& others) think it could be a Lea Francis of sorts, but a Google image search doesn't confirm that.

The closest I've got is a Sunbeam Talbot 80, but other suggestions are Lanchester, Armstrong Siddeley or Alvis.

So any ideas? Thanks

[niva441]

Lea Francis?

[ndtman]

Arnolt-MG?

[Spingo]

Lea Francis comes up a lot, but... I cannot find an image online that really matches the Greenham Common car when you look closely.

Note the very low, unusual position of the headlights and position of spotlights.

Would love to be able to prove what type of car it is!

[wibble cb]

Daimler of some sort?

[RDMcG]

I believe it is a Lanchester.

[eldar]

RDMcG said:

I believe it is a Lanchester.

Yup. Lanchester Leda.

[blueg33]

eldar said:

RDMcG said:

I believe it is a Lanchester.

Yup. Lanchester Leda.

Disagree - the headlights are too low and the spotlights too high.

This is a Leda

[Spingo]

I'd already looked at a Lanchester and it doesn't quite match - close but no cigar I think.

The trouble is, some cars of that era look so much alike, which is funny when so many people today say that modern cars all look the same!!

[Spingo]

Oh the other thing I wanted to say was - note the car appears to be two-tone (does that help), but also in the picture the bonnet opening at the front appears to start quite a way back from the top of the radiator grill. I say appear because the picture isn't of the greatest quality, but in many (all?) other cars of the era I can find online, the bonnet opening starts adjacent to the top of the rad grill.

[nicanary]

Coachbuilt I'd say, so that's why we can't identify.

[OldAndrewE]

Does that bonnet hinge down the middle and open from the side?

[silverfoxcc]

The Daimler and Lanchester DHC can be discounted

Here is the Lanchester version

[silverfoxcc]

And the Daimler

[hiccy18]

Does look coachbuilt when looking at the side profile, identify the grill identify the car I think.

[littleredrooster]

It looks vaguely Bristol 401/BMW 328/Frazer Nash/Pininfarina but I can't quite find a matching image.

[Spingo]

I've posed the question on L7C Blatchat too - the general feeling is it is a 'coach-built' body and very possibly a 50's Lea Francis which makes a lot of sense.

Somebody has posed the question to the Lea Francis Owners Club and is awaiting a reply...

I wonder if it was made/modified for a serving member of the USAF for them to take back to States at tourex maybe?

[Allan L]

I agree it's probably a coachbuilder's body on something of that era but not Lea-Francis. Here's a couple of Westland-bodied L-Fs and you'll see that either the radiator is still there or the air intake is not even radiator-shaped.


other coachbuilders are available, of course. . .

[TarquinMX5]

The regn no. looks like DGX to me, although it could be OGX, but I think the former. However, that doesn't fit well with the below:


DGX was a London number, issued Oct 1936 --July 1937, so too early, and again June 1962 - March 1963 but, presumably xxxDGX in the latter case

OGX was Oct 1953 - July 1954.

Lea Francis ceased trading in 1953? It does look very LF'ish and some of them had the bonnet forward edge back from the grille but I can't find anything that really matches.

Jowett; some had lights low down on the edges but the grille doesn't match

[67Dino]

Think it might be a modified/coachbuilt Sunbeam Talbot 80 of 1948-54. The main lamps are characteristically low and think can see a light patch where the name lettering goes along the side of the bonnet (ringed).

Of course, the secondary lamps are higher, but apart from that lines up quite well.

Edited by 67Dino on Tuesday 6th October 15:42