1930 Ford Model A ‘Ballard Special’ Speedster

Amid rumours that several States were preparing to ban his Model T due to its 'unsafe' hand-operated braking system, Henry Ford begrudgingly succumbed to pressure and authorised the development of a successor. Introduced in December 1927, the Model A was greeted with unprecedented demand. Longer and lower-slung than the Model T, it retained transverse-leaf suspension but proved significantly more refined. Designed by Howard Hicks, its 3285cc, L-Head four-cylinder engine developed 40bhp (twice the Model T's output) boasting niceties like coil ignition and integral water pump. Mated to a three-speed manual gearbox, it gave a top speed of 65mph necessitating the fitment of four-wheel braking.

In the early years of the automobile, the founding fathers of American motor racing in all forms (including the bootlegging of illegal liquor across State lines) were forever looking for ways to get more power from their relatively basic Model A. It is in this spirit that the Model A Revival Company operates, securing themselves an international reputation for creating impressive looking ‘Speedsters’ using hand finished Aluminium bodies for lightness and uprating the standard mechanical format by tuning the already well-regarded four-cylinder Model A engine to achieve more power.

It is with these standards that this example was created and utilising a chassis from a 1930-built example acquired on one of his many trips to the USA, Mr Ballard set out to create an authentic looking aluminium bodied speedster that harked back to the prohibition era. Utilising a 3.3 Litre Model A engine that was subject to a complete mechanical overhaul in-house, the car was built up from the bare chassis and a one-off body was built for the car that was designed with a striking long tail and enclosed radiator cowl. During the process, the front and back axles were also subject to a complete overhaul, and new spoked wheels were fitted shod with Blockley tyres.

Offered complete with UK registration documents effectively as a newly built machine, this is a fantastic opportunity to own a pre-war vehicle that is truly unique and would look very at home at events such as the Normandy beach race.