1st Oct, 2010 14:20
The Pavilion Gardens
1937 Riley 12/4 Adelphi 6-Light Saloon
Estimated at £9,000 - £11,000
Lot details
Registration No: CTD 925
Chassis No: 28A7430
Mot Expiry: Aug 2011
Once that of a proud UK manufacturer, the Riley trademark is these days owned by BMW and may or may not ever grace a motorcar again. The amazing Riley story, however, dates back to 1890, when the Bonnick Cycle Company of Coventry was taken over by William Riley Junior and renamed the Riley Cycle Company in 1896. The company's first internal combustion-engined vehicles - a tricycle and a quadricycle - saw the light of day in 1899. However, it took until 1907 for the first proper four-wheeled Rileys to reach production. Light, two-seaters, they were powered by 1034cc V-twin engines. Significant changes occurred in 1913, with the Riley Motor Manufacturing Company taking over car production in a new factory adjacent to the Riley Engine Company and the Riley Cycle Company changing its name to Riley (Coventry) Ltd and concentrating on manufacturing the detachable wheels it was already supplying to almost 200 car producers. It was the Riley 9 of 1926 that really put the company on the map. With its highly-tunable, pushrod-operated, 1100cc twin-camshaft engine, it soon found success in competition, further boosting the order book. New for 1935 was the 12/4 engine. Though it bore many resemblances to existing Riley engines, it was an all new design of 1.5-litres and could be specified in the Merlin, Kestrel, Falcon, Lynx and new Adelphi models. With a power output of 51bhp, one could expect to reach 50mph in some 23 seconds and manage a terminal velocity of around 73mph. Including the 'special series' vehicles, the derivatives of the 9hp, 12/4, 15/6 and 8/90 model ranges had now expanded to 23, prompting the prophetic advertising slogan, "..we make far too many models of course. But then we have a pretty fertile design department, and we like making nice, interesting cars." Rumours of financial trouble began circulating in 1937 and by February 1938 the receivers had been called in. Later the same year the company was taken over by Lord Nuffield. The rest, as they say, is history.
The period Riley offered is a right-hand drive 1937 12/4 Adelphi 6-Light Saloon. Its 1496cc engine is mated to a 4-speed preselector gearbox. It sports Maroon over Light Grey bodywork and a Grey leather interior. The vendor says the Riley has no special history, but volunteers that it has been regularly used for trips around England and Holland. He tells us that the coachwork, paintwork, engine, transmission and interior are in "good" condition and that the venerable six-light saloon is taxed and MOT'd into August 2011.
Registration No: CTD 925
Chassis No: 28A7430
Mot Expiry: Aug 2011
Once that of a proud UK manufacturer, the Riley trademark is these days owned by BMW and may or may not ever grace a motorcar again. The amazing Riley story, however, dates back to 1890, when the Bonnick Cycle Company of Coventry was taken over by William Riley Junior and renamed the Riley Cycle Company in 1896. The company's first internal combustion-engined vehicles - a tricycle and a quadricycle - saw the light of day in 1899. However, it took until 1907 for the first proper four-wheeled Rileys to reach production. Light, two-seaters, they were powered by 1034cc V-twin engines. Significant changes occurred in 1913, with the Riley Motor Manufacturing Company taking over car production in a new factory adjacent to the Riley Engine Company and the Riley Cycle Company changing its name to Riley (Coventry) Ltd and concentrating on manufacturing the detachable wheels it was already supplying to almost 200 car producers. It was the Riley 9 of 1926 that really put the company on the map. With its highly-tunable, pushrod-operated, 1100cc twin-camshaft engine, it soon found success in competition, further boosting the order book. New for 1935 was the 12/4 engine. Though it bore many resemblances to existing Riley engines, it was an all new design of 1.5-litres and could be specified in the Merlin, Kestrel, Falcon, Lynx and new Adelphi models. With a power output of 51bhp, one could expect to reach 50mph in some 23 seconds and manage a terminal velocity of around 73mph. Including the 'special series' vehicles, the derivatives of the 9hp, 12/4, 15/6 and 8/90 model ranges had now expanded to 23, prompting the prophetic advertising slogan, "..we make far too many models of course. But then we have a pretty fertile design department, and we like making nice, interesting cars." Rumours of financial trouble began circulating in 1937 and by February 1938 the receivers had been called in. Later the same year the company was taken over by Lord Nuffield. The rest, as they say, is history.
The period Riley offered is a right-hand drive 1937 12/4 Adelphi 6-Light Saloon. Its 1496cc engine is mated to a 4-speed preselector gearbox. It sports Maroon over Light Grey bodywork and a Grey leather interior. The vendor says the Riley has no special history, but volunteers that it has been regularly used for trips around England and Holland. He tells us that the coachwork, paintwork, engine, transmission and interior are in "good" condition and that the venerable six-light saloon is taxed and MOT'd into August 2011.
Auction: The Pavilion Gardens, 1st Oct, 2010
All successful bids must be paid in full by midday the day after the auction at the latest.
You can collect your new pride and joy from our venue until 1pm the day following the sale or our partners are on hand to help arrange safe transportation:
Do you have an item to sell?
If so, contact one of our friendly specialists for your free valuation by completing the form below and someone will get back to you as quickly as possible.
If you prefer to speak to humans, don't hesitate to call our office on +44 (0)1925 210035
