Puzzle #314 - Solved! 1955 Lester-Riley

Otto Puzzell · May 19, 2007, 04:30:23 AM

Know what it is?

Please, respond below and let us know the make and model designation of the car posted here.

If you haven't registered yet, you need to do so in order to reply with your answer. You can do so by clicking here.

Also, please be sure to check out our other puzzles, and, please post a puzzle of your own if you'd like - the more, the merrier.

Thanks!

Allan L · May 19, 2007, 04:52:20 AM

RGS Atalanta

Otto Puzzell · May 19, 2007, 06:37:00 AM

Not one of those.

grobmotorix · May 19, 2007, 09:09:33 AM

Fairthorpe meets Ferrari 166 barchetta - no idea... $:-\$

Allan L · May 19, 2007, 09:56:13 AM

OK so it looks as if it's on Italian (Modena) plates: is it Italian?

grobmotorix · May 19, 2007, 05:48:32 PM

Is it a british Kieft Barchetta?

Otto Puzzell · May 20, 2007, 02:40:18 AM

Quote from: Allan L on May 19, 2007, 09:56:13 AM
OK so it looks as if it's on Italian (Modena) plates: is it Italian?

No.

Otto Puzzell · May 20, 2007, 02:40:39 AM

Quote from: grobmotorix on May 19, 2007, 05:48:32 PM
Is it a british Kieft Barchetta?

Not one of those.

Allan L · May 22, 2007, 06:38:22 PM

British?
I still think it looks like an RGS body

Otto Puzzell · May 23, 2007, 03:50:05 AM

Every R.G.S body I've spied features a rear fender line that tapers toward the rear, versus the winglets on this car. The radiator inlet on this car also protrudes forward quite a bit more than one of those. Finally, the bodywork on the rear deck of R.G.S. cars is typically below the height of the rear fenders, whereas this car's is higher than the rear fender line.

Allan L · May 24, 2007, 01:51:32 PM

This is the RGS Atalanta I was thinking of, but I agree it's not that.

Otto Puzzell · May 24, 2007, 02:02:49 PM

Those wings do look similar. I don't think I've seen that car before.

D-type · May 24, 2007, 02:37:20 PM

I think that's the one where RGS took a mould off another car (Cooper-Jaguar?) and used the same fibreglass shell for both ends. They added the fins so that people would know which end was which.

But I can't answer the question though.

A stab in the dark - Tojeiro?

Otto Puzzell · May 25, 2007, 04:51:29 AM

No sir.

Otto Puzzell · June 01, 2007, 01:14:27 PM

Built by the constructor of one of our other some-what aged puzzles...

(By that, I mean anything our august body of car-identifying experts doesn't ID in 24 hours or less! )

Otto Puzzell · October 19, 2007, 06:53:16 AM

D-type · November 24, 2007, 06:50:50 PM

Lester - MG

Otto Puzzell · November 26, 2007, 03:31:08 AM

Lester it is - the mechanicals seem to be from other than MG

D-type · November 26, 2007, 04:28:45 AM

A stab in the dark. As most special builders graduated from MG to Coventry Climax and other engines is it a Lester-Climax?

Allan L · November 26, 2007, 05:56:21 AM

Quote from: D-type on November 26, 2007, 04:28:45 AM
A stab in the dark. As most special builders graduated from MG to Coventry Climax and other engines is it a Lester-Climax?

The last Lester cars made for the Monkey Stable seem to have had Coventry Climax engines, but there was also at least one Lester-Riley.
There was a coupé registered 5 EME that had a very similar front to this one

@re · November 26, 2007, 08:47:10 AM

I can't believe it could be that easy. Try searching "lester cars" on Google, select 'images' and you'll get it: The 1954 Lester Riley...

Here's another image:

D-type · November 26, 2007, 11:13:18 AM

But the text you find accompanying this photo says

"Photo received from Alessandro Lama (Italy) of his car which he believes is a 1954 Lester Riley. Our Riley experts are not aware of Harry Lester having built Riley Based Specials because he is famous for the Lester MGs such as those supplied to the Monkey Stable and raced by Polaroid heir Jim Mayer and his team. Possibly a Riley engine, but our Riley chaps think the Riley chassis would have been bit heavy for completion. This is a bit too specialised for us. "

The body looks like one of the last of the Lester cars - the earlier ones were cycle winged. By 1954 the Riley engine was even less competitive than the MG so it is extremely unlikely that it was installed for racing. In 1955 two of the four Monkey Stable Lesters apparently had Climax engines as i suspected.

The only possibility I can think of is that a Riley engine was later installed in one of the 1955 cars for road use. The 2.5 litre Riley engine would give it a useful performance but the 1.5 litre Riley wouldn't have pulled the skin off a rice pudding in that car.

Allan L · November 26, 2007, 01:01:44 PM

This was covered in another forum (TNF) a few months ago and it was suggested that it could have been the B series BMC Riley engine, fitted later to a car that originally had an MG engine.
2½ litre Riley engine is a heavy old lump for its 100 b.h.p. - had one in a Pathfinder - and the B series could be nearly as powerful with the right mods.

D-type · November 26, 2007, 04:00:23 PM

I found the TNF thread after making the above posting.

The body is either one of the two 1955 Lester-MG coupes with the roof cut off or one of the two 1955 Lester-Climax spiders. The chassis is either one of the above or possibly from a 1953 Lester MG. The car was later fitted with a 1953 1500cc Riley engine.

So, regardless of its provenance the car is a 1955 Lester-Riley

woodinsight · October 11, 2011, 11:10:27 AM

Period photo of the Lester-MG Coupe registered 5 EME -

News:

Puzzle #314 - Solved! 1955 Lester-Riley