Lot Ended
Description
From a deceased estate; rare Mulliner saloon coachwork, one of only
551 made; older resoration that looks wonderful
Alvis cars have
always had something special about them. The firm’s ability to produce a car far
greater than the sum of its parts started with the immortal 12/50 and carried
through to their final model, the fast and elegant TF21, the last of which left
the Coventry factory in 1967.
The superb 12/50
was tweaked into the 12/60, which in turn was facelifted into the Firefly with
its synchromesh gearbox. A much-needed increase in engine capacity to 1,842cc
increased output to 63.5bhp in the subsequent Firebird model which kept
performance up to scratch, despite ever heavier coachwork taking its toll on the
traditional sprightly Alvis performance.
By
September 1937, George Lanchester had significantly reworked the whole car, the
resultant 12/70 model becoming the last Alvis made before war stopped car
production. A major styling change came in late 1938 when the SB became the SC
13.22, the saloon body being widened at the rear. The spare wheel was also moved
from inside to outside the boot lid where it was given a metal cover, the rear
number plate was moved down from the centre to the bottom of the boot and the
roof line was subtly altered to give more space in the
cabin.
Good for 80mph and 26mpg in normal use,
the charismatic 12/70 was highly prized and 754 were sold before production
ended in 1940, of which 551 carried the Mulliner saloon body and 150 were
Mulliner dropheads, the rest being open Tourers or specials.
This 12/70 SC left the works in March 1939 and retains its original
Mulliner saloon coachwork (body number A43219) which makes it extremely rare as
most have long since either been rebodied as Specials or gone to the great
scrapyard in the sky.
As you can see in the
photos, it has clearly been restored to a high standard at some point and it
looks wonderful with just a couple of minor paintwork blemishes here and there.
A check of the MOT history
online shows that it was last tested in August 2017 at 91,727 miles and failed
on various relatively minor points, the odometer currently showing 92,128 miles.
We have made no attempt to start the car but the engine turns easily.
On offer here from a deceased estate, the family have so far been
unable to find any documents for the car so we can’t tell you much more about it
and the new owner will need to apply for a V5C using the requisite DVLA form. If
the documents do arrive, we will update the website accordingly.
Given
the rarity and the super cosmetic condition of this Alvis, it looks an absolute
steal at the modest guide price suggested. In fact, in almost 20 years of
hosting these sales, this is only the third 12/70 we have offered, and the only
Saloon, so you are unlikely to see another for sale any time soon, let alone as
smart as this one...
Consigned by James
Dennison – 07970 309907 – [email protected]
* All charges are subject to VAT