Our 1905 Riley 9HP has continued on its way to being restored and rebuilt.
Classic car technician Monty has been working on repairing the exhaust of this prototype car. He was unable to completely finish his work as he is waiting for some extra parts to arrive before he can fully repair and refit the exhaust.
Work continues on restoring this potential 1-of-1 vehicle and we are looking forward to seeing its progress continue.
Since being started for only the second time in several decades, our 1905 Riley 9HP continues to make progress.
With so little information about the vehicle available, our team of classic car technicians are working extremely hard to recreate, rebuild, and bring this rare classic back to life.
Recently, some of the wooden bodywork was re-fitted to our Riley to see what further work needs to be completed on it. The fuel tank was also attached and the holes where the radiator will eventually be attached can be seen in front of this.
Our 1905 Riley 9HP will be restored to as close to original as possible and, with the bodywork starting to come together, it is an exciting time in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.
Classic car technician Dave has been continuing his work on our extremely rare 1905 Riley 9HP.
After recently trial-fitting the wooden bodywork, Dave has, once again, turned his attention to getting our Riley 9HP up and running.
Dave has installed a new (and much improved) ignition coil set up into this very special classic car. With this latest addition, our 1905 Riley 9HP continues to move closer to being started up and ready to drive once more.
Our 1905 Riley 9HP has been going through a big transformation over the last few weeks. A big step towards this ultra-rare car looking more like it should was when the wheels were fitted. This was a great opportunity to see much more clearly how our finished Riley will hopefully look.
However, classic car technician Dave has been taking our 9HP through an even bigger stage of its transformation and restoration by trial-fitting the wooden bodywork.
This was the first time in a very long time that the bodywork and chassis were together in what is likely to be their final configuration.
While it’s still not the right time for everything to be secured into place, this trial-fitting gave everyone here at Bridge Classic Cars a clear view of how special this car truly is.
Even Dave couldn’t help himself and had to take a seat in the car he has been working so hard to bring back to life.
Obviously, there is still a long way to go before our 1905 Riley 9HP is ready to leave us, but it certainly won’t be too much longer before the sound of the engine is heard throughout the workshop.
Starting the engine for the first time in decades will be an extremely special moment and it is one we are very much looking forward to.
The photos below show just how much of an impact having the bodywork on the chassis has on the car. A huge amount of work has gone into the project to get it to this stage and it is always rewarding to see it make big steps towards its finished state.
You can’t get much rarer than our 1905 Riley 9HP. With only 3 believed to be left in existence (including the one in our workshop), we understand how important it is to bring this truly classic car back to life.
Our team of highly skilled classic car technicians have been working hard to rebuild our 9HP and, despite numerous setbacks and challenges, progress is still being made in the restoration of this more-than-a-century-old car.
Classic car technician Dave has been continuing work on our 1905 Riley 9HP.
He has recently added the wheel hub nuts and the nut locking ring. As work continues on this truly classic car, it has already come a long way since it first arrived at the Bridge Classic Cars workshop.
With quite a bit of work still to do though, the whole team here are excited to see this car back in its original state and ready to head outside for its first drive in a long time.
The paint shop at Bridge Classic Cars have prepared and painted the rear axle assembly for our 1905 Riley 9HP restoration project.
Since returning from the blasters, the paint team have been getting all of the bare pieces into the spray booth to be finished in gloss black, the same as the rest of the frame. This will be left to cure properly before being reunited with the rest of the prewar tourer.
August 31, 2022 12:57 pm
The restoration team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working hard on recreating the coolant system on the 1905 Riley 9HP.
Our technician Dave has been busy carefully making up new coolant pipework for the 117-year-old tourer. These are being made from brass and copper, as it would have been originally. For this, Dave removed the water pump from the engine block after taking countless measurements in order to create a jig that meant Dave could more accurately solder the entire piece without worrying about it moving.
After this, everything could be test fit back onto the car. Dave remade the now long-gone gaskets by hand before the pipework was tested and then painted in the glossy black.
August 31, 2022 11:53 am
The chassis and engine from the 1905 Riley 9HP has recently been delivered back to the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ after being blasted by local specialists.
After being brought back, the paint team thoroughly cleaned down every part before taking it into our in-house paint booth. The team then set-up the system to finish the whole unit in a beautiful gloss black as it would have been originally.
We’re excited to see the restoration of the 1905 Riley 9HP progress even further very soon!
August 22, 2022 12:38 pm
The rear axle and differential on the 1905 Riley 9HP is on their way back to the Bridge Classic Cars workshop after being sent away for blasting.
The process that was suggested would preserve some of the 117-year-old Patina and help to show the originality of the car.
August 5, 2022 10:38 am
Friend of Bridge Classic Cars, Carl, has been down to pick up the restored radiator for our 1905 Riley 9HP from Newquay for the project.
The radiator, which was found during a house clearance, was taken to Newquay Radiators to be restored and reworked so it’s as good if not better than new. This is a massive piece of the restoration journey for 117-year-old Riley and we’re excited to start getting everything back together!
July 11, 2022 10:15 am
The paint shop at Bridge Classic Cars have painted the restored fuel tank of the 1905 Riley 9HP as part of its restoration.
The team cleaned down the recently restored and tested fuel tank before painting it satin black to go back on the car.
June 24, 2022 11:38 am
Our 1905 Riley 9HP has had its steering wheel removed by the workshop team here at Bridge Classic Cars to be sent off for a new cleaning process specifically made for delicate or antique parts. The steering well was sent to Re-Go Auto Parts in Kent where the team could carry out the process.
The original steering wheel shows 117 years of ageing across the wooden and metal surfaces of the piece. With a new process of Laser cleaning, the team could be extremely precise with just where and how strong the laser was. They cleaned up the main spokes of the steering wheel with a relative high-powered pass to clean off the steel but made sure that the power was turned down when passing over any softer materials like the aluminium.
The wood wasn’t touched by the laser. This was hand-cleaned by the team at Re-Go to bring it back to as close to the original as possible.
It looks absolutely incredible and we cannot wait to get it back to our Pettistree workshop to have a proper look at it.
June 24, 2022 7:45 am
The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars have been working on preparing the 1905 Riley 9HP for the next stage of its restoration journey.
Our technician Dave has been capping off any openings in the engine block or gearbox case after removing the entire rear axle and differential from the pre-war antique Riley. Then, Dave could move on to removing any small fixings and cappings which are too delicate to withstand the media blasting process.
The choice of blasting shot material is going to be plastic as this has been selected for the nearly 117-year-old metalwork due to not being as extreme or harsh on the material.
We can’t wait to see the frame and all the metal parts return for the car! So, keep an eye out here on the Bridge Classic Cars news page for more updates very soon.
June 24, 2022 7:00 am
The 1905 Riley 9HP has had its rear differential and suspension pulled off the chassis to be moved to the workbench for the Bridge Classic Cars workshop to rebuild/refresh.
After testing last week, the team pulled the pieces from the chassis to pull apart and rebuild. The rear differential has had new ball bearings and races put in and everything cleaned up and regreased. The rear swing arms were also pulled out to be inspected and the mounting holes redrilled and cleaned for the new shackle bolts to slip through with no binding.
Finally, the team have been working on the spark plugs for the car and inspecting the correct gaps and spacing on the new adapter.
June 20, 2022 8:21 am
The workshop team at Bridge Classic Cars have begun the process of test fitting and aligning the original rear axle into the chassis of the 1905 Riley 9HP.
Dave, one of our technicians, has been trying to get the shackles around the axle in order to test fit the mounts to the trailing arms. The shackle bolts which came with the car are believed by dave to be replacement pieces as they are of a different style and size to the single original which came with the hoards of spare parts.
But, the team have managed to get everything into place to test the operation of the chain driven rear differential.
June 16, 2022 1:54 pm
The original radiator for the 1905 Riley 9HP has been with our friends at Newquay Radiators to be completely refurbished and rebuilt for the project.
This is an important part of the restoration project being down by our in-house team at Bridge Classic Cars. It looks absolutely incredible and we love to see the craftsmanship that goes into jobs like this by the best specialists we know.
May 24, 2022 10:15 am
The tank for the 1905 Riley 9HP has been completely refurbished and tested prior to it being painted and reinstalled by Bridge Classic Cars.
Although the original tank was in fairly good condition, it did require a full refurbishment. Old school lead soldering and modern TIG welding in the same piece cause their own unique problems which had to be overcome during the refurbishment.
The tank is actually segregated to hold both petrol and oil in the same unit, so it has to be completely sealed.
The refurbished tank does feature the original brass fittings.
May 10, 2022 8:35 am
The Bridge Classic Cars in-house trim shop has begun the process of carefully taking apart the original interior of the 1905 Riley 9HP in order to recreate and understand the car better.
The original leather was brittle and stiff, so Brian carefully began to remove the trim pieces in order to best remove it from the car as complete as possible to use as a reference when it comes to making the new piece. Each item that has come off the car has been meticulously catalogued and stored for the restoration project even the original springs and hessian backing of the seat and all the hardware.
This is a very exciting part of the project and we’re excited to show you more progress on the 1905 Riley 9HP soon here on the Bridge Classic Cars news page.
March 16, 2022 11:37 am
The lamps from the 1905 Riley 9HP have arrived back at the workshop of the Bridge Classic Cars Suffolk HQ and they look absolutely phenomenal. And, they’re hiding a small surprise.
Along with the lamps being sent off to a specialist to be entirely refurbished and reconditioned, we have taken the decision to have them upgraded to run much newer electric bulbs inside of the classic shells. This upgrade will be a welcome one for if the car is ever used in the darker hours of the day and also for the safety of the car instead of the use of paraffin or other gasses/fuels used to light and run the original lamps over 110 years ago.
With the shells, the finish on the refurbishment is truly incredible. It’s such a joy to see what these would have potentially looked like at the turn of the last century as this Riley left the production workshop.
March 16, 2022 9:05 am
The doors for the 1951 Riley RMB are currently at local joinery specialists Ashbocking Joinery to have the wooden sections of the doors assessed and replaced.
As you can see from the photos, the doors aren’t in the best condition, but Darren and the team at Ashbocking Joinery are working their way through each of them methodically to perfectly recreate the frames.
Darren and the team at Ashbocking Joinery are using what is left of the original wood as templates and then meticulously interpreting any missing pieces into the design.
This is all happening alongside the metalwork which is being down by our own in-house master fabricator, Clinton.
January 19, 2022 8:25 am
Our master fabricator here at Bridge Classic Cars, Clinton, has sent through some close-up and detailed photos of the wings of the 1951 Riley RMB to illustrate the state of the panels before our teams begin working on them.
The level of corrosion and warpage on the original pieces is clear to see in the photos and takes a highly skilled and talented fabrication specialist to get the metal to be in the right shape and fitment. This is a photo of a single piece from the 1951 Riley RMB to highlight just how much work goes into each and every restoration that comes through the Bridge Classic Cars restoration workshop.
January 14, 2022 1:43 pm
The Bridge Classic Cars in-house fabrication shop is working on the wings for the 1951 Riley RMB that we have in for restoration by our amazing teams.
The car is currently with our incredible fabricator Clinton, who has been working on repairing the wings for the classic Riley. He has carefully removed rusty or corroded sections of the wing of the Riley in order to repair them and thanks to his skill and talent, completely disappear into the existing metal.
The new pieces have been entirely hand-formed by Clinton in cour in-house fabrication shop for the Riley RMB using traditional techniques and practices. As you can see, the results are absolutely fantastic.
January 14, 2022 10:58 am
The brass parts of the 1905 Riley 9HP are in need of a clean and refurb. So, these are being carefully catalogued and packaged to be sent off to a specialist to come back as good as new.
These parts are over 100 years old so special care is needed with the refurbishment of them. Bridge Classic Cars works closely with a series of trusted and well-respected specialists for jobs such as this to ensure the best long-lasting results on the parts that are sent away from us here.
January 13, 2022 10:18 am
The Bridge Classic Cars in-house restoration teams have been working on getting the beautiful 1934 Riley 12/4 Lynx running properly.
Our technician Jon, has been heading up the project. After the Riley had been fully serviced, Jonn noted the engine wasn’t running the best it could. With that, he removed the SU Carburettors and began to inspect and assess each and every component. There was quite a build-up of sediment inside the bowls of the carbs so Jon began to clean out both of the carburettors. Still, the car wouldn’t run right.
Our parts department managed to get hold of a set of rebuild kits for the SU’s and Jon began to take them apart in order to fully rebuild the carbs. After rebuilding the units and then getting them adjusted just right, the Riley Lynx ran perfectly!
January 11, 2022 8:32 am
This 1934 Riley Lynx we have in at Bridge Classic Cars has got a few issues. Mainly electrical and involving the lights. So, our restoration technician Jonn has started to dig a bit deeper into it.
Upon inspection, Jonn found that the rear lights in the car had been wired in using what appeared to be an old household cable. Not the correct way of doing things. Jonn inspected all of the wiring for the Riley and found that a lot of it would need to be replaced in order for the car to be safe and to find out why the rear lights had not been working.
Jonn began by replacing the wires individually and testing their continuity as he want. Wire by wire he remade the harness for the rear lights in the proper way and ensured they were all safe and secure, once he began testing the lights he found that the rear lights that were fitted still did not work. Replacement ones were ordered and once they have arrived, Jonn fitted them to the car.
Once he tested the new lights, he found they had a dead short inside and kept blowing fuses in the car. So, Jonn took the new units apart and fixed the problem easily. Then, once they were working we noted they only intermittently worked. Jonn traced the issue back to some wiring issues at the front of the car and a faulty switch.
After the wiring at the front and the switch had been replaced and resolved, everything worked! now, it was time for Jonn to have a look into the leak carburettors.
January 7, 2022 9:17 am
The Bridge Classic Cars in-house trim shop have been working the magic on the 1934 Riley 12/4 Lynx. With the rest of the car in the workshop with our restoration technicians, some of the interior pieces have been handed over to our very own Kath to do what she does best.
First across the trim table is the Tourneau cover. This piece needed a few repairs doing to it which Kath has managed to get done by combining traditional techniques with modern materials and approaches. The edges of the pieces had become heavily frayed so Kath created all new edging to surround the deep back cover. Also, several small leather pieces inside the cover had deteriorated, which Kath managed to create a template for and replace with new material.
Kath also replaced several of the tin snaps which fix the cover to the body when the soft top is folded down and stowed. So, with that completed and pressed. It was time to get it back into the car and on to the next job for this beautiful 4 door tourer.
December 20, 2021 2:14 pm
The 1934 Riley Lynx is in the Bridge Classic Cars workshop today to begin work on the list of jobs that need doing on this amazing classic tourer.
First off for the Riley, is a full service and set up to make sure it’s running in perfect condition. For this, our in-house restoration technician Jonn has begun to inspect and replace the serviceable items on the car. Many will purely need cleaning up as they are in amazing condition but it will still be thoroughly gone over and serviced by Jonn.
There will be more updates very soon on the Bridge Classic Cars news page.
December 14, 2021 11:16 am
Bridge Classic Cars have today welcomed its latest guest to the Pettistree workshop. This 1934 Riley 12/4 Lynx has come to us all the way from South Africa where it has spent parts of its long life.
The car will be going in to be assessed by our in-house restoration teams to determine what jobs will need to be done to this classic tourer to get it into a useable and safe condition. The Riley is finished in an incredible French blue with a black interior. The 4 door tourer is a wonderful example of pre-war open-top travel in both style and comfort by a long-gone marque.
The car was cherished and used in South Africa being part of the local enthusiast groups and taking part in several classic car rallies. For now, the Bridge Classic Cars technicians will begin to reassemble the car to be able to check and confirm all parts and pieces for the 1930s tourer are there and in good order.
Expect to see more on this amazing 1934 Riley 12/4 Lynx on the Bridge Classic Cars news page.
December 8, 2021 2:03 pm
The frame for the 1951 Riley RMB that is being restored at Bridge Classic Cars has just arrived back from its appointment with an acid bath.
The chassis had been stripped back in-house but was recommended to be chemically treated by a specialist so that our in-house fabrication team could look into the true condition of the chassis. Overall the frame isn’t in too bad of a condition. Areas of it though will definitely need attention before it is to be used again for the car.
James and Clinton, our in-house metal fabrication experts, will be assessing the frame and coming up with a plan.
October 28, 2021 10:24 am
