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+--- Thread: Scruffy specials - where have they all gone? (/showthread.php?tid=7124)
RE: Scruffy specials - where have they all gone? - Nick Mayne - 16-02-2022
Herewith an offbeat response: I have been working on a presentation for the Centenary event and my task is to cover Germany. Many of you will know that Sir Austin agreed a manufacturing contract with Germany in about 1927 and many A7s were built and called Dixies. They were A7 except for the radiator and badge and a change to LHD. The company became BMW!
I have been given a huge amount of information by their Archivist but have also been told by another contact, Gottfried Muller, about the IHLE cars which were special bodies fitted to old Dixies; you could have it all done for you or buy the bodies and do it yourself with of course other go-faster mods.
Here is a copy of an email I recently received from Gottfried:
"Two young brothers founded the little company in 1930 . Rudolf and Friedrich Ihle . They called it " Gebrüder IHLE "
in Bruchsal , South west of Germany. One of the young owners died during war in 1945 , the other started after war again and produced kidcars , small ones, and elektric ones for holiday parks. In 1985 the company gave up . Nothing is left about the prewar history. I know today the very old widow IHLE and have bought the last prewar IHLE 600 which was during war outside Bruchsal. .
The company itself had to produce military things after 1939 .. 1945 the town Bruchsal was bombed down in one single night - and the IHLE factory was completly destroyed , 6000 people died in one night . Bruchsal burned down completly . Archivs of Bruchsal , the Barock castle and all central buildings were lost , not a single paper about the prewar Ihle and/ or their business history was left. Nobody knows numbers about production . Probably less than 700 cars were produced . Less than 100 are left and probably less than 30 are running. 21 cars will join each other in 29th of Mai 2022 in Bruchsal for the first time ever. I do the organisation work. It will be interesting all the best Gottfried Muller."
So if you want to go to that unique 'special' gathering on 29th May I am sure they would welcome guests and you will see some unusual 'specials'. I have attached a copy of Gottfried's car, the last IHLE. It is somewhat over 500 miles to drive.
RE: Scruffy specials - where have they all gone? - Mike Wood - 19-02-2022
Thanks to Alan and Steve for identifying my pictures, I have now updated my blog page:
http://austinhealeyspritemk2.blogspot.com/2013/09/austin-7-special-pictures.html
I wonder if anyone has more recently built a replica of one Arthur Mallock’s Austin Seven Specials ‘Bomsk’ WJ1515 in its 1948 Prescott form (rather than its trials incarnations, JAP engined racing car or as a parts donor for the first U2 space-framed racer):
https://www.arthurmallock.com/about &
https://www.arthurmallock.com/arthurs-cars
Or anyone built a replica of Simplicity?
I wonder how many specials inspired by these cars, and writing in the 750 Motor Club ‘Bulletin’ and the various editions
of ‘Special Builder’s Guide’ at the time still exist, and are still racing. There must have been a big gap when innovation in what is a superb formula moved on just keeping the basic chassis A7 frame, then 2inch chassis rails, with spaceframe around it plus wings and Reliant engines before the 750 Trophy and historic 750 Formula? I can imagine Ulsters and Ulster replicas surviving, perhaps more homebrewed designed specials using A7 engines, chassis and upright bodywork disappearing into sheds/broken up.
Bomsk as well as Simplicity were built by Jack French and were influential cars with strong innovation in design/modification, for example in suspension, taking special building into the realm of racing car construction for the ‘impecunious enthusiast’ and encouraging and inspiring others.
I note Bruce Mclaren’s Seven special is now restored in McLaren HQ: https://www.mclaren.com/racing/inside-the-mtc/the-cars-bruce-mclarens-austin-7/
I know the idea of building a replica of Bomsk is really daft as it seems the car was always changing.
Cheers
Mike
RE: Scruffy specials - where have they all gone? - Mike Costigan - 20-02-2022
A few years ago Andy Storer built a copy of John Willment's trials special 'Press on Regardless' for the Willment family:
RE: Scruffy specials - where have they all gone? - Rogerfrench - 20-02-2022
Mike,
Bombsk was never lightened to the extent of eliminating the second B in the name! And building a replica isn't so daft, just choose the year. I'd suggest the 1172 version, roughly 1956 or 57, since it was in that form for a while.
There was a replica of Simplicity, whose name has been shortened, being originally Simplicity Itself and occasionally entered as such. My cousin Ray Taylor built a very close copy, albeit on a 6.9" Ruby frame rather than a short chassis. For a while the 2 cars were almost indistinguishable, but then Simplicity was lowered and widened, and Ray's car was bought by David Allen, father of Nick with the truly imaginative specials.
Somewhere on this site is a photo of the 2 cars, taken in 1957, looking very alike.
In my view, if anyone were to build a replica nowadays, it should not be of the car as it is today, but as it was in 1962 when it was still a reasonably quick 750F car, not a gruyere beam-axled vintage special.