ONE OF A KIND - editorialproductions.com

ONE
OF A KIND
Allard J2X Competition 1952
FROM MY
SCRAPBOOK
The English make Allard, so very
successful in the fifties in its native
UK and in the US, still has a loyal
following. Martin van der Zeeuw
drove an Allard J2X in one of
London’s most upmarket residential
areas, and in Brighton he went in
search of a memory from the past.
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WORDS MARTIN
VAN DER ZEEUW PHOTOGRAPHY NICK DIMBLEBY
3/2010
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S
heila Tiller. Some names of people you have
never known and may never meet, always
stay with you. Or, in the case of car-mad little boys, the names of certain car makes. As
a teenager in the early seventies I devoured
English car magazines such as ‘Autocar’ and
‘Motor’. From these I cut out pictures of cars
which looked even remotely old or classic; modern stuff such as the Rover P5B or the Jaguar XJ6 went
straight into the bin.
An Allard was one of the chosen few that made it into my scrapbook. An as yet unknown make for me, but the car looked ‘old’.
The caption noted the name of a female racing driver, Sheila
Tiller. So, were women now also into racing?
TANK GRENADE
All hell breaks loose in the oh-so posh London district of
Kensington. For want of anything better, we created our own
racing circuit along the beautiful, colonnaded mansions, probably the most expensive in London. Sorry folks, but this has to
be done. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, in the street looks
round at this mobile tank grenade which is emitting gun-fire
blasts from the two gigantic exhaust pipes of its 5.4 litre Cadillac
THE J2X IS THE LAST
CLASSICALLY DESIGNED ALLARD
V8, the sound reverberating off the walls. Allard J2X is the name
of this dark green monster. The cylindrical design, the unique
grille, the cycle wings, the portholes in the bonnet and the two
exhaust pipes on either side, contribute to this spectacular sight.
A typical English car, this J2X. From London in fact, and so
very much at home here. The factory which was established
by Sydney Allard in the mid-thirties was initially located in the
Greater London suburbs of Putney, and later Clapham. Sydney
Allard was a Ford dealer and mud-trial racer who based his first
‘special’ on the 1934 Ford V8. Parts of the bodywork he used
were from a Bugatti. Such was its performance that there was an
instant demand for ‘replicas’. At the time these were not copies
of classic cars but street versions of racing cars. Approximately
ten of these were built.
After the war Allard continued producing cars. The J2, an attractive two-seater with an aluminium body, a De Dion rear axle and
Lockheed hydraulic drum brakes, was introduced in 1950. That
same year, driving a J2 with a 5.4 litre Cadillac engine, Sydney
Allard together with Tom Cole came third at Le Mans. A year
later the J2X was launched, the X denoting an eXtended chassis
lengthening the nose section ahead of the front wheels allowing
the axle radius rods to be carried forward of the beams. The J2X
is the last classically designed Allard. Its successor was given a
far more conventional bodywork.
However British his cars may have looked, Sydney Allard equipped his light racers with large American engines in order to
create an almost extreme hp/weight ratio. Allards were available
little street. This sound can only be described by elimination:
not rumbling or roaring, not a muffled bang – it’s an absolute
inferno.
ANTICIPATION
with Lincoln, Mercury (both Ford), Chrysler and Cadillac engines. Allard was one of the first marques to export cars to the US
without engines or transmissions; the new owners – famous
Allard racing drivers including Carroll Shelby, Masten Gregory
and Steve McQueen – could determine their own choice of technology. The cars manufactured for the home market tended to
have the lighter Mercury engines, with a special Ardun cylinder
head.
But not this one. ‘Our’ J2X, one of 83 produced, was delivered in
England and fitted with a 5.4 litre Cadillac V8, similar to the J2
with which Sydney Allard won Le Mans in 1950. In other words,
a serious piece of artillery.
DEAFENING
The ‘mews’ are former coach houses and stables, located at the
rear of stately mansions. They are often slightly sunken, below
street level. The servants literally lived on a different level to the
owners themselves. Those of us who can remember the English
television series ‘Upstairs, Downstairs’ which was filmed in this
area, know exactly what we’re talking about.
How times have changed. These days, an upstairs-apartment in
a London mews can set you back millions. The former stables
now house high-end Mercedes’, BMWs or extremely expensive
classic cars. In some cases upmarket classic car dealers have
taken up residence there, such as Gregor Fisken, who has long
been established in Queen’s Gate Place Mews.
The dark green Allard J2X, on display next to an Aston Martin
DB6 Volante, a BMW 328 and a Ferrari F40, attracts its fair share
of attention in the showroom. That ‘share of attention’ soon
becomes an ‘omnipresence’ when we roll the J2X out onto the
street, engage the petrol pump, turn on the ignition and press
the start button. The vibrations caused by the deafening explosion of sound are enough to dislodge the cobbles in the age-old
The clutch is not overly heavy. We roll slowly out of the mews
through an attractive old arch and onto the street. The Allard
isn’t really enjoying this snail’s pace; it is clearly a racer so it has
to be kept at a high rev. The car reacts immediately when I floor
the throttle. I have to keep both hands on the wheel to control it.
You could compare it to a Lotus Seven or a Caterham, although
the Allard is a much more substantial car. At least you don’t feel
intimidated by a large lorry. The torque is huge; pulling away
in second gear is not a problem. I have to press heavily on the
pedal to brake, but the car stays on track. And then the steering.
So direct, yet so unexpectedly light, that you can be forgiven for
thinking it is power assisted.
Equally unexpected is the fact that it only takes minutes to get
used to the car – nevertheless, you need to have at least some
idea of what you’re driving. However, when you’re able to anticipate any drifting as well as the rocket-like acceleration, the fun
soon kicks in.
And not just for us. No need even to apologise to the people
living in the neighbourhood, as we first thought we might.
Everyone is enjoying the spectacle; even the traffic wardens look
on with admiration. “You’d have to be pretty sad not to enjoy
this” commented our photographer Nick Dimbleby a little later.
Then, a colleague of his working in fashion happens to pass by
THE CAR HAS UNDERGONE
MANY CHANGES, YET IT IS ONE
OF THE MOST AUTHENTIC J2XS
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“I REALLY MISSED THE ENGINE
SOUND IN WINTER WHEN IT WAS
IN FOR MAINTENANCE”
On the left the clipping from the boy’s scrapbook,
on the right Sheila Tiller next to the Allard L7, 2010
may sound bizarre logic, it could well be for that very reason that
it is one of the most authentic J2Xs. An important criterion is the
fact that its provenance is known from day one. Besides, relatively few racing cars remained completely original, especially if
they were used extensively. However, an even more important
point is that the car conforms to regulations of classic events
such as Goodwood, Le Mans Classic and the historic Monaco
Grand Prix. In this day and age that pushes up the price.
The J2X with chassis number J 3053 is well known in Allard circles. When we mentioned the registration, ORL 320, Sheila Tiller
immediately knew which car we were talking about. “Drive it
carefully, it can be rather unpredictable” she warned me.
ALLARD J2X COMPETITION 1952
Motor
Weight in kgs
Dimensions (l x w x h) in cm
0-100 km/h in sec.
Top speed in km/h
Price in GBP
5,4-litre Cadillac V8, circa 400 bhp
Back to a few days before the drive. I googled ‘Sheila Tiller’ and
found a site for a cattery in the small town of Ringmer, near
Brighton. When I phoned, I got the racing driver herself on the
line. The now 74 years-old Sheila and her husband are still mad
about Allards. I was invited to tea and took my scrapbook – now
almost forty years old – with me.
394 x 173 x 113
Circa 7
Circa 280
425.000
and asks if his anorexic model could pose next to the car. No
one batted an eyelid; after all, this was clearly a British car. And
besides, it is one with a history. Hence the not-to-be-sniffed-at
price tag on this Allard: 425,000 pounds. This gives us moneyconscious Dutch people a better indication of the exclusivity of
this J2X.
AUTHENTIC
In 1952 English Allard racing driver Ken Watkins became the first
owner of this car, one of only eight J2X’s delivered in England
and therefore right-hand drive. The remaining 75 were exported
Ken Watkins in the J2X at Goodwood
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‘FASTEST LADY’
1.100
in June 1952
LARGE AMERICAN ENGINES
GAVE THE ALLARD AN ALMOST
EXTREME HP/WEIGHT RATIO
due to great foreign (i.e. American) demand and the fact that it
was difficult to import American V8 engines. However, Watkins
did manage to get a 5.4 litre Cadillac V8 for his J2X. He also fitted
an Allard/Ford four-speed gearbox. For two years Watkins raced
the Allard on the circuits of Silverstone, Boreham, Goodwood
and Snetterton. In May 1952 he came first at Boreham during a
handicap race, but a month later he crashed on the same circuit.
Fortunately, Watkins sustained only minor injuries; the left front
wheel of the car broke off. It was repaired and fitted with spoked
wheels instead of the original steel wheels.
In 1955 Watkins sold the car to a Dr Pinkerton, who transferred
the Cadillac engine to his boat and equipped the car with a Ford
Ardun engine. Pinkerton used the car for hillclimbs at Prescott
and Shelsley Walsh, which the third owner, John Williams, continued to do. The latter wrecked the gearbox and then fitted an
Alvis ‘box, followed a little later by a Chrysler Firepower engine.
In 1961 he sold the car for 320 pounds to club racer ‘Red’ Fred
Damodaran, who owned the Allard until 1989. In the early
seventies Damodaran replaced the Chrysler block with a 1957
second generation Cadillac engine and fitted a four-speed Jaguar
gearbox. Two further owners followed, who raced the car mainly
in classic car events.
The car has undergone many changes over time; although this
The Allard J2X has become such an iconic car, that the Canadian-based Allard Motor Works
Inc. started manufacturing replicas in 2006. The car, which is quite accurately resembling
the original, is called J2X MkI and is being made with approval of the Allard Registry and
the Allard Owners Club. The standard-fitted engine is a GM 350 Ramjet PFI, optional engines are Chrysler’s 5.7 and 6.1 Hemis and Cadillac’s Northstar. A MkII is now also available.
The company’s founder is Roger Allard, who is not related to… (website: allardj2x.com)
“It was a sprint in Brighton” said Sheila as soon as she saw the
picture. “In the early seventies. Yes, the orange J2. That’s still here
in the garage; we’ve had it since 1958. At the moment it’s completely dismantled, and there are not many original parts left. It’s
got a Chevrolet engine and disc brakes. That’s why we can’t race
it at Goodwood; but we did race it at many other events. In 2000
we travelled to the Bonneville Salt Flats in America because Jim
wanted to break the 200 mph barrier. He managed 197.3 - no
one argued the difference. I also had a go but could only do one
run and managed 152.”
“My father took me to Goodwood as a very young child. When I
met Jim in 1956 he was already a racing enthusiast. Six months
after our wedding in 1958 we bought an Allard. It had a broken
gearbox and we had to tow it from London to Southampton. In
those days you had to make a choice: children or a hobby car.
After much deliberation we chose the latter, without a moment’s
regret. I started racing in the sixties when a friend of mine set up
a female racing club. Lots of hillclimbs and sprints. I often won
the award for ‘Fastest Lady’. These days, however, the ladies don’t
appreciate a special Ladies’ Award – they want to be treated as
equals to men.”
JAGUAR
Sheila continued: “Of course Jim and I are very involved in the
Allard Owners Club. I was responsible for the club magazine
since 1974; I stopped recently – I’m getting too old for all that
now, ha, ha. Apart from the J2 we also have a 1947 L7 with which
we take part in many classic rallies in England and France.
Sometimes I take the Allard and go off for a week with some
other ladies. Jim stays behind to look after the cats.”
“When we had just the J2, I really missed the engine sound in
winter when it was in for maintenance. Now that we have the L7
I can hear the sound all year long.”
While Sheila and I were talking, Jim brought the Allard L7 round
the back to allow us to take some photographs next to a 1962
Jaguar E-type cabriolet which they also own. This was rather
ironic because the strong Jaguar competition in the early fifties,
particularly in export, spelt the beginning of the end for the
Allard marque. Even Sydney’s success in the 1952 Monte Carlo
Rally didn’t help. At the end of the fifties Allard launched a GT
but with little success, and in the early sixties Sydney began to
focus on drag racing. He died in 1966. The Tillers actually knew
Sydney. “A dynamic man and a fantastic racing driver”, Sheila
said.
Of course I had a peek at the J2 in the garage, its parts strewn
over the floor. Funny to realise that this is the same car as in the
picture I cut out of an English car magazine in the early seventies. Still with the same owner, and bought by him the year I was
born. Jim Tiller: “It’s a bloody passion – the damn thing.”
Thanks to Gregor Fiskens Fine Historic Automobiles (fiskens.com)
and SeaFrance (seafrance.com)
This article was published in CARROS Magazine 3/2010
3/2010
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