1950 Jowett Jupiter

Lot details
Registration No: JGA 123
Chassis No: E0SA41R
Mot Expiry: Exempt

- Period 1950s documented race history with supporting photographs at Dundrod, Silverstone and Isle of Man British Empire Trophy

- 1951 Monte Carlo rally entrant

- In storage from 1969 until 2015

- Full comprehensive, correctly detailed and photographic restoration to the very highest standard over a 2-year period

Encouraged by the Javelin's success in motorsport, Jowett's prime motivation for the Jupiter was to gain an increase in its steel allocation by exporting a Sports Car version to the USA. The chassis was penned by former Auto Union engineer Eberan von Eberhorst, and the initial intention was for Jowett to supply production examples of it for independent coachbuilders to add their own design of body, and 75 frames were duly supplied to names such as Stablilimenti Farina, Ghia Suisse, Gebruder Beutler, Richard Mead and Abbotts of Farnham for this purpose. However the costs involved proved hard to justify for a car of such relatively modest power, and the factory was ultimately obliged to pen and create its own bodies. Crafted in aluminium, they featured two doors leading to a single bench seat. Luggage space was gained from inside, while the whole of the front hinged upwards from the scuttle to give optimum access to the engine and transmission. Power was provided by a high compression version of the Javelin's 1486cc flat-four OHV engine mounted well forward in the chassis.

What it lacked it outright power, the Jupiter made up for in handling and roadholding, which resulted in an impressive level of international motorsport success, including class wins at Le Mans in 1950, 1951 and 1952; 1950 Monte Carlo Rally; 1951 Dundrod TT; and outright victory in the 1951 Lisbon Rally. Many private owners employed the model for racing, rallying, sprinting and hillclimbing. Production ran from 1950 to 1954, during which around 900 examples were manufactured. A promising-looking composite-bodied successor, the R4, never progressed beyond the prototype stage and the company closed its doors in 1955.

The totally immaculate 1950 Jupiter now offered was shipped by the factory to Strobcross Engineering Works of Glasgow on December 19, 1950. Its first keeper was K B Miller who contested the 1951 Monte Carlo Rally with the car, but failed to progress beyond Preston following a second blown head gasket. He also tackled the Rest and be Thankful hillclimb with 'JGA 123', but in August 1951, having reputedly 'gone through so many head gaskets he wanted to drive the Jowett into the Clyde', he sold the car to Bill Skelly, the son of a Motherwell garage man. Skelly entered it for the Dundrod TT the following month, a move that required him to give the Jupiter a temporary coat of dull green distemper, as all cars were required run in their national colours. Despite failing oil pressure, he finished 8th in class and 24th overall and then had the task of replacing the big-end bearings in order to drive home. Skelly and 'JGA 123' also entered the following:

- October 1951, Winfield - 13th in 5 lap Saloon event
- April 1952, RAC Rally - did not start
- May 1952, Silverstone - 7th in Sports Car race
- May 1952, Isle of Man - British Empire Trophy, retired a few laps from the finish with valve trouble

In 1953 the Jupiter passed into the hands of John Tyrer (brother of well-known racer Gillie Tyrer), a Liverpool motorcycle dealer, but by the early '60s the car, now White, was the property of another Liverpool resident, Paul Pinkman, who used it until c.1969 before laying it up following a gearbox malady. The Jowett remained in storage until his death in 2014, 10 months following which it was acquired by the vendor, who promptly entrusted it to M.B. Restorations of Queensbury for a two year nut and bolt restoration of the very highest standard.

Now resplendent in its original livery of Red bodywork and Brown upholstery, 'JGA 123' it is understandably considered by the vendor to have 'excellent' bodywork, paintwork, interior trim, engine and transmission, and he is now offering this historic Jupiter complete with an extensive history file that includes period competition images as well as a photographic record of the restoration. A unique and exciting opportunity for Jowett aficionados everywhere.