Allard Motor Company

Allard Motor Company Limited was a London-based low-volume car manufacturer founded in 1945 by Sydney Allard in small premises in Clapham, south-west London. Car manufacture almost ceased within a decade. It produced approximately 1900 cars before it became insolvent and ceased trading in 1958. Before the war, Allard supplied some replicas of a Bugatti-tailed special of his own design from Adlards Motors in Putney.

Pre-war Allard Specials

The first Allard cars were built to compete in "trials" events – timed rally-like events on terrain almost impassable by wheeled vehicles. Built in under three weeks, the first Allard was powered by a Ford flathead V8 in a body mainly pirated from a Bugatti. It debuted at the Gloucester Cup Trials, and later won the event at Southport Sands.

thumb|Ballamy front swing axle conversion

After a time  the front beam axle was converted to independent front suspension. Leslie Ballamy's rather crude method was to cut the beam in half and mount the halves as swing axles and these swing axles were used on nearly all later Allard specials. By the outbreak of war in 1939, twelve Allard Specials had been built. Sydney Allard's planned volume production was pre-empted by work on Ford-based trucks during the conflict. By the war's end, Allard had built up a substantial inventory of Ford parts.

Post-war models

thumb|right|M-Type Drophead Coupé 1948

The Allard Motor Company was founded in 1945, setting up in Clapham High Street, London. Copies driven by Allard himself, Maurice Wick, and others, and was a successful racer. was a potent combination of a lightweight, hand-formed aluminium body fitted with new coil spring and de Dion-type rear axle,

Available both in street trim and stripped down for racing, the J2 proved successful in competition on both sides of the Atlantic, including a third place overall at Le Mans in 1950 (co-driven by Tom Cole and Allard himself They had no more success in 1952, both cars failing to finish. Both Zora Duntov and Carroll Shelby raced J2s in the early 1950s. Ninety J2s were produced between 1950 and 1952.

J2X

thumb|Allard J2X as seen in 1952 at [[Le Mans, 2015]]

In an effort to extend a line growing obsolete in the face of advances in sports car design, Allard introduced an 'improved' model in late 1951, the J2X (extended). The chassis remained unchanged from the previous J2, but in an attempt to improve handling, the front suspension's rear attaching radius rods were redesigned with forward ones, which required a forward cross member and extending the nose past the front wheels. This, in turn, allowed the engine to be moved forward ,

Arriving later, during a time when sports racing car design was developing rapidly, the J2X was not as successful in international racing as the J2, as it was not as competitive compared to more advanced C- and D-type Jaguars, alongside Mercedes, Ferrari, and Maserati works entries. Thus, it headlined less often in major international races and of 199 documented major race starts in the 9 years between 1952 and 1960, J2X's garnered 12 first-place finishes; 11 seconds; 17 thirds; 14 fourths; and 10 fifths.

One J2X chassis was given custom magnesium-alloy bodywork by Essex Aero.

JR

thumb|Allard JR

This 1953 car was a lightweight specialist racer, powered by a Cadillac engine claimed to produce . Entered at Le Mans that year, the Allard/Fotheringham-Parker car suffered a broken rear suspension, while the Duntov/Merrick car also retired. Essentially an up-enginged, rebodied Palm Beach, it failed to find a niche in either market in spite of its performance. Today the exceptionally rare automobile can fetch the better part of US$250,000 at auction. It was on a wheelbase and available with a choice of Ford V8 or Mercury engines. The top speed is estimated to be . Priced at a little more than £1000, 191 were produced.

M

right|thumb|1949 M Drophead Coupé

The M appeared in 1948, remaining in production until 1950.

Decline

Insufficient research and development meant that Allard failed to keep up with cheaper and more technically advanced cars. The Palm Beach was essentially a year behind its competitors, the K3 failed to live up to expectations, and the Safari Estate could not find a market.

By the mid-1950s Allard was struggling to remain solvent, and with the market weak due to a late-1950s US recession, the company went into administration in 1957, when manufacture of cars came to an end.

The company also offered disc brake conversions for the Ford Anglia. This company has produced a period correct continuation chassis 3408 of the JR, and announced the development of a new J8 model in 2017. The company officially reopened its business and began production in September 2018.

References

Bibliography

External links

Comprehensive Allard racing record
Allard Register – Preserving and sharing the history of the Allard Motor Company
Allard J2X Group C race car from early '90s
One of the two Allard J2Xs that ran in Le Mans in 1952