Anatomy of Slippery Anne

[Mark Atkinson]

Is the driving position with feet higher than the seat base?  

Am also trying to work out what takes the weight of the passengers.  There's a light looking flat frame just cantilevered?

Hello David,

Yes, the drivers heels are 7" above the seat base, rather like a modern formula one car. Unfortunately, the seat back is not the least bit reclined, I have made the body to be exactly the same as original, but after many contortions trying to make it work and much thought I have concluded that I need to cut it back by 4" so that I can actually get in the car and drive it. I will then have a 'slot in' piece of the cockpit coaming to fit into place so she looks correct and to suit smaller drivers.

Back in the day Slippery Anne had a problem with structural failure of the body, she quite simply broke her back, Waite had to drop out of races because of the issue, they supported the drivers seat from extensions to the spring pocket chassis sections which fitted over the springs, just as Gordon England did with Mrs JoJo, which also has a central mount coming back from the cross members, but, I cannot find any evidence of such a central mounting on Slippery Anne! So the seats where slung like a hammock between the springs, there may have been something in the middle, but I don't know.
Beatrice knew that John Pares had strengthened the car with some sort of frame below the seats and floor, but had no idea what. Certainly, whatever he did it worked as there are no records I have seen about the car having any further structural issues following his rebuild in late 1926/27
For my part, I have fitted the side mounts formed from the spring pockets, but also made a steel frame with stressed T6 alloy skin floor which is triangulated up into the top of the rear cross member. The seats, also made from T6 aluminium, straddle the torque tube and form a torsion box around it, they also tie into the triangulation, This structure also takes the loads from the rear body work, so hopefully she wont break her back. This seat/floor assembly also provides the location and mountings for the suspension fairings. The whole structure has come out very strong and most importantly has not taken away any space from the seats.

So, rather than cantilevering out from the cross member, the floor forms a part of the outer mould line of the body shell and is hung several inches beneath the main  chassis rails and cross members. The chassis is effectively surrounded by the body shell. This is as close as I can get the car to how I understand it to have been back in the  1920's.

Regards, Mark