1926 Morris Cowley 'Bullnose' Tourer
No Reserve

Registration No: SV 5776
Chassis No: AV4188799
MOT: Exempt

• Current (late) ownership for 19 years
• Subject to a comprehensive restoration while with the vendor and still presents very well
• Used extensively since the completion of the restoration
• Offered with a history file

Introduced in 1913, the basic Morris ‘Bullnose’ design lasted until 1926 by which time its variants accounted for an impressive forty-five per cent of new sales in the UK. Compared to domestic and foreign rivals in the 12hp-14hp market, the model offered notably good performance courtesy of its torquey, four-cylinder engines and light yet robust leaf-sprung chassis. Having originally sourced powerplants from the English White & Poppe outfit, William Morris switched to the cheaper American Continental Motor Manufacturing Corporation and then the French Hotchkiss & Cie firm. The latter’s Coventry factory proved so successful at producing a reworked version of the Continental Red Seal 1.5-litre unit that it was bought by its biggest customer becoming Morris Engines Ltd during 1923. That year also saw production split between the Basic 1548cc ‘Cowley’ (three lamp set, minimal instrumentation) and Deluxe 1802cc ‘Oxford’ (five lamp set, leather upholstery, Dynamotor). Approximately, 150,000 Bullnoses were made from 1919-1926 and they remained a familiar sight on British roads until well into the 1960s.

Supplied new by The Valliant Works of Riverhead and first registered in 1926, the Morris offered was originally a resident of Sevenoaks, Kent. Fitted with Two-Seater Tourer coachwork with Dickey seat, the Morris experienced a rather jet-setting life thereafter. Exported to South Africa and then Mozambique, where it spent most of its life, chassis 'AV4188799' also spent some time in The Netherlands before returning to South Africa. Purchased by the late owner in 2004, being affectionately named ‘Daisy Mae’, the Bullnose was subject to a comprehensive restoration after the purchase, with the works completed including a bodywork respray for some £9,250, a re-upholstered interior for some £2,000 and a radiator re-core for some £2,042, with much further expenditure too. Presenting well in Dark Blue paintwork with a Black interior upholstery and a Black hood, the 'SV 5776' was used and enjoyed by the owner regularly subsequently, covering c.3,000 miles per year for events and rallies. In storage since January 2023 following the vendor's passing, the Morris has been running since consignment but will require recommissioning. Included with the car is ‘A Guide to the Maintenance of the Bullnose & Flatnose Morris’ by Peter J. Seymour, various previous V5 documents, vehicle information, information on the car from the late owner, photographs taken during restoration works, and a current V5C which displays 3 former keepers since its registration in the UK, back in 1994.

For more information, please contact:
Paul Cheetham
paul.cheetham@handh.co.uk
07538 667452