Solved NIC#1404 - 1932 (?) Hudlass Riley/JAP special

[sichel]

BSA?

[nicanary]

Motorcycle engine?

Yes. Originally intended for motorcycles but often fitted to cars.

[marmer]

JAP engine?

[nicanary]

Yes a JAP engine.

[nicanary]

Pros?

[nicanary]

Masters ?

[Oguerrerob]

Riley Special 1100 cc JAP 1939 UK

[nicanary]

Riley Special 1100 cc JAP 1939 UK

That's good enough for a LOCK. Who built it ?

[Oguerrerob]

Leonard Hudlass

[nicanary]

Leonard Hudlass

Correct. He was the son of Felix Hudlass who built cars at the start of the 20th century (one has been a puzzle). Apparently he built this car and a 3-wheeler.

I can't remember where I found this puzzle and know no more about the car. There are definitely some Riley 9 parts in the chassis and suspension, plus the JAP engine.

I have the car as 1932.

[Oguerrerob]

This car appears in some Autopuzzles member page, including the threewheeler.

Thank you for the point!

[barrett]

I've been doing a bit of reading on this car and the other built by Hudlass and I can confirm this one was indeed built in 1932. It is a home-made chassis with a vee-twin JAP engine, and later it was fitted with a Riley engine and Lanchester gearbox, and turned into a four-seater. The car as shown in the picture isn't the 'Riley' special yet – I think the conversion happened in 1939. Even more interestingly, there is a chance the remains of this car survive somewhere...

[nicanary]

Thank you for the additional input. I obtained the photo and what information I could provide from a well-known website which relies on members' recollections, rather than hard facts. Thus the idea that the chassis was a Riley.

The car is mentioned in the Beaulieu Encyclopedia very briefly in the section for the original Hudlass cars built by his father.