c.1954 Peel P1000

Registration No: Un-Reg
Chassis No: HDC26/1235
MOT: Exempt

• MG TF 1250cc chassis, engine and gearbox
• A rare survivor and potentially a rewarding winter project
• Matching chassis and engine numbers
• Previously dry stored for over 40 years

Based in the town of the same name on the Isle of Man’s west coast, the Peel Engineering Company established itself as a manufacturer of fibreglass boats and motorcycle fairings before branching out into sports car bodies during the early 1950s. The company’s first foray was commendably lightweight (c.56lbs) but not self-supporting. The P1000 which followed was altogether more sophisticated. A bolt-on entity, it featured integral wheelarches, instrument panel, door pillars and double-moulded doors etc. Priced at £75 ex works, the roadster body was designed to sit atop a 7ft 6in wheelbase chassis and thus offered customers the opportunity to transform a tired pre-WW2 Morris or Ford saloon into a handsome sports car (although, some are known to have used a MG A as a donor). The P1000 was so accomplished that Ford approached Peel to supply them with fibreglass bodies for a proposed sports car project; a sort of Dagenham-made, scaled down Chevrolet Corvette if you will. However, the Isle of Man government put pay to the idea by refusing Peel planning permission to enlarge its production facilities. Peel subsequently became a manufacturer in its own right, the P50 achieving fame as the world’s smallest production car. However, the P1000 remains arguably its most attractive creation.

Recently emerged from long-term storage, this Peel P1000 sports body sits atop a MG TF chassis that pleasingly retains its original 1250cc XPAG engine (and thus has the potential to be a better performer than many Ford sidevalve-engined Specials). Although, not currently registered with the DVLA, the two-seater sports a ‘WTA 220’ front number plate which would have been first issued in Devon. A potentially rewarding winter project, this handsome Peel P1000-bodied Special comes with a quantity of paperwork relating to its MG donor chassis.

For more information, please contact:
James McWilliam
james.mcwilliam@handh.co.uk
07943 584760