Congratulations to Tom Higgins, winner with ticket number 1904.
The humble Austin 7 – The car which played a pivotal role in getting Britain on the move would form the basis of some of the earliest homegrown racing efforts across this green and pleasant isle.
In the early decades of motor racing, the only way to be competitive was to pay your way to the top. Granted, there were notable exceptions, but the pre-war years were dominated by the likes of Bugatti, Mercedes, Auto-Union, Alfa Romeo and Bentley. These were the playthings of the ultra-rich and the elite, seen to be out of the grasp of mere mortals. However, smaller firms who built ‘standard’ saloon cars decided to get involved in the blossoming sports of club-racing and hillclimbing. One of those, was Austin.
In 1929/1930, Austin would field a group of cars in the Tourist Trophy at the Ards Circuit in Northern Ireland. After their success, the Austin 7 Sports Special would gain their infamous name and inspire countless homages – the ‘Ulster’.
This beautiful example of an ‘Ulster’, with bodywork by Rod Yates Coachbuilders, is finished with the elegant and traditional boattail rear end and presented in its stunning combination of deep green with a saddle brown bench seat. Originally built as a box saloon in 1932, its conversion to an ‘Ulster’ was carried out in the late 2000’s along with its introduction to the fabled VSCC (Vintage Sports-Car Club). With the car being awarded its eligibility to compete, after a thorough and detailed inspection by the club in April of 2009.
In 2011, the 4-cylinder 747cc engine was sent to Vince Leek Specialised A7 Engineering for rebuild and upgrades which included a new Phoenix crankshaft along with upgraded Honda pistons (to which the block was rebored) and the cars connecting rods ‘remetalled’ and machined to fit the new crankshaft. Along with the internal work, the block was resurfaced and new guides, new seats cut and fit with new valves.
The car features an extensive history file including multiple receipts for work undertaken on the car over the last nearly 20 years, as well as handbooks for the Austin 7, conversion manuals for the ‘Ulster’ specification racer, along with period promotion and maintenance materials.
All of this specialist and skilled work, combines to make one of the most charming and elegantly simple pre-war sportscars out there. And now, Bridge Classic Cars Competitions wants to give you the chance of experiencing what so many pioneers of motorsport lived with our 1932 Austin 7 ‘Ulster’.
Enter now and win this nostalgic bite-sized racer!
