Topless Brit bruisers | Six of the Best
It's the first weekend of June already - time for a barrel chested convertible to do it justice
Aston Martin V8 Volante X Pack, 1989, 27k, £350,000
We’ve been here before. Three years ago, we saluted the hairy-chested concept of the Brit bruiser; now, in the aftermath of a record-breaking May (temperature-wise), we’re back at the altar, this time with cabrios in mind. Granted, historically speaking, it is flyweight roadsters that best describe the average Briton's relationship with open-top motoring - but we’re also very good at installing giant engines in things, then removing the roof for all to bask in the sonic glory. Case in point: the Volante version of the V8 Vantage we started with last time. This is an X-pack car, too, albeit with its engine upgraded to 5.7-litre status for additional awesomeness. The suspension has been overhauled, which ought to make for 21st-century-grade handling. Best of both worlds, then, and a snip at £350k.
Jaguar Project 7, 2015, 373 miles, £157,450
If you do prefer your convertible with a bit more verve, how about spending half as much on a Jaguar Project 7? Too shapely for bruiser status? Not a bit of it. The flagship F-Type was, of course, powered by JLR’s 5.0-litre supercharged V8, which means it sounds like an artillery barrage at distance and an exploding fireworks factory from within the cabin. It might also be getting better looking with the passage of time, now Jaguar isn’t building any more (or indeed anything like it). Granted, the cloth top is a bit fiddly, but the best solution for that conundrum is the oldest in the roadster book - wait for sunshine. This one looks lovely with its racing stripe and has barely moved since it rolled off the production line in 2015. Let’s change that, eh?
Bentley Azure, 2010, 24k, £150,000
If you want a bruiser for all seasons, you could hardly do better than buying the acre of Bentley that is the Azure. We featured the Brooklands last time, and briefly considered bringing you a Rolls-Royce Dawn as an alternative. But that would be like removing Richard Burton and replacing him with Richard Dawkins. The Azure was as hard-drinking and flagrantly showboaty as Pontrhydyfen’s finest, and sounded just as smooth when roused. This one is a Final Series T, which means it’ll ultimately rouse itself to develop 500hp - plenty enough to whisk four down the M4 in palatial comfort. Ghost White Pearl is arguably not the ideal shade of paint, but what a way to get noticed.
TVR Tuscan Speed 6, 2000, 43k, PH Auctions
Of course, we had to include a TVR here; all six could have been, in truth. Nothing quite encapsulates the Brit bruiser mentality - unmatched style and swagger, towering performance, alluring value - quite like a TVR. Every last one of ‘em. The difficulty, of course, was choosing one. Should it be Rover V8-engined? Should it be TVR V80-engined? Cheap, expensive, somewhere in the middle? In the end, this Tuscan took it; even more than a quarter of a century later, the design is stunning, especially in this colour scheme. Speed is a given (it’s in the name, after all), as is a sense of occasion that few can match at any price. This one benefits from long-term ownership, plenty of history and low mileage - one incredible way to brighten up the summer.
Jensen Interceptor Convertible, 1974, 55k, £60,000
Now here’s a really rare one. Picture a Jensen Interceptor and it invariably has a roof; whether painstakingly original or restomodded to within an inch of its life, it’s a two-door coupe. Clearly this isn’t either, but one of just 86 UK-supplied Interceptor Convertibles. So that means the steering wheel on the right-hand side, the unmistakable looks (complete with a very old school roof arrangement!), plus the monstrous charm of the Chrysler V8 - all 7.2 litres of it. While more than half a century old now, this Interceptor benefits from £45,000 of expenditure in recent years, including a fuel injection conversion, better braking, improved cooling, new electrics and so on. ‘Developed for usability rather than preservation’, says the ad - best get out there and enjoy, then. There’s not going to be another one at the pub, put it that way.
Marcos Mantara LM400, 1995, 42k, £49,995
We’re making a special exception for the Marcos, on account of its awesomeness. Because while very obviously hardtopped now, this Mantara began life as a soft-top - as they all did. That’s enough for us, given it fulfils the Brit bruiser requirement as emphatically as anything else. Look at it! Apparently just four ‘LM400s’ were ever made, and this isn’t just rare: with ported heads, a racier cam and a supercharger installed a few years ago, it’s now almost 400hp strong. With a plethora of motorsport-grade hardware - Gaz coilovers, AP brakes, plated diff - to take full advantage. B-road blasts will never be the same again. Cheapest car from the classifieds here, too…
Mad that they cost getting on for double what a Continental GTC cost in 2010, even madder that you could buy six GTCs From the period for 150k now.
Do Astons like that actually change hands for that much still or is that dealer pricing, seems a hell of about of money relative to what other, similar cars sell for.
Swedish sluggers, perhaps?
French fireballs?
One of my clients moaned about my lovely (community funded) village shop flying union jack buntung. I just kept schtum - its a British shop, flying British flags, in Britain. This is an article about British cars.
Tuscan for me, the others are mostly a bit old man/ or "Elton John" as hillariously posted above.
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