1964 Gordon-Keeble GK1

Lot details
Registration No: EKX771B
Chassis No: C43
Mot Expiry: Nov 2010

Able to seat four in comfort yet sustain dizzying three-figure average speeds for hours at a time, the Gordon-Keeble was launched at the Savoy Hotel in 1964. Far rarer than its Ferrari and Aston Martin contemporaries, just 99 examples were ever built (only the fabulous Maserati 5000GT was scarcer in period). Brainchild of British engineers John Gordon and Jim Keeble, its spaceframe chassis was fabricated from one-inch square tubular steel and featured independent coil-and-wishbone front suspension, a de Dion rear axle and four-wheel disc brakes. Powered by a Chevrolet 5.4-litre V8 rated at 300bhp and 360lbft of torque, the GK1's handsome glassfibre body was styled by the legendary Giorgetto Giugiaro (then at Bertone). Commenting in its February 1966 road test Cars & Car Conversions magazine said: `The acceleration makes most sports cars look pretty silly even when you aren't trying, and when you are trying, there's virtually nothing on the road apart from Cobras and things that will stay in front of you.' The figures were 0-60mph in 6 seconds, 0-100mph in 16.1 seconds and 145mph flat out.
This car is chassis 43, from almost mid way through production. The first owner was a motor trader who kept it as his personal car/demonstrator for 12 months. The next owner kept it until his death in 2004. The vendor bought it directly from his estate, and it was reportedly in daily use until 2009.
Noting that the car could benefit from a respray, the vendor comments that it has the potential to be a reliable daily driver. Describing the coachwork as "good" and the engine and gearbox as "very good", he notes that there is a problem with the right-hand window electrics.
The bumpers are sourced from a Triumph 2000 which was a popular route to take when the original glassfibre parts lost their plating, and the seats are from the same source. The Gordon Keeble Owners' Club has announced that a small production run of new bumpers to match the originals is planned if they can get enough owners to commit.
The car comes complete with a V5C Registration Document, MOT certificate valid until November 2010 and period sunroof.