Lot 538: 1934 Lagonda Rapier 1,100cc Four Seat Tourer
Coachwork by E D Abbott Ltd., of Farnham

Lagonda returned, briefly, to the manufacture of light cars in 1934 with the introduction of the Rapier, which was heralded by The Autocar as ‘a thoroughly worthwhile newcomer among small sports-type cars’. Tim Ashcroft’s design had been on the drawing board for almost a year before it appeared in prototype form at the 1933 Olympia Motor Exhibition. In production from the late Spring of 1934, the Rapier was reminiscent of a baby 2-Litre in appearance and was most often seen with four-seat tourer coachwork by Abbott. The car’s most notable feature was its gem of an engine: a four-cylinder, twin-overhead-camshaft unit displacing 1,104cc and producing 45bhp on twin SUs. A sturdy chassis frame, ENV four-speed pre-selector transmission and 13” diameter Girling brakes completed the mechanical picture. For its engine size the Rapier was in a class of its own, revving comfortably to 5,500rpm, turning in impressive acceleration figures and a top speed of around 75mph. With such a specification the model was necessarily expensive to produce; sales were disappointing and in 1935 manufacturing rights passed to Rapier Cars Limited, of Hammersmith, where production continued for a few more years.
‘BLK 476’ was supplied by London main agents, Messrs Warwick-Wright, and first registered in London in December 1934. Known to the Rapier Register in the 1950s and 1960s, it went to the USA in 1970, returning to the UK in 1990. Its new owner embarked upon a chassis-up restoration of both mechanical components and coachwork, presenting the car in British Racing Green livery with tan leather upholstery and full black weather equipment including side screens.
Offered for sale by a life-long Lagonda enthusiast family, the car was bought by the immediately preceding owner at Bonhams’ Beaulieu sale in 1998. His own demanding standards resulted in Lagonda specialists, I & J MacDonald Ltd, carrying out significant further refurbishment of the engine and mechanicals including fitting new pistons, valves and camshafts, overhauling the magneto and extensive other detail work, the significant invoices for which are on file. The underside of the car has been conserved by Waxoyl treatment and ‘BLK 476’ has had only limited use since completion of this work, but continued to be serviced and maintained by MacDonald’s as required.
The current owner purchased the car at Bonhams’ sale at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 7th July 2006 (Lot 525) and advises us that the bodywork has undergone considerable improvement since then. Fewer than 150 miles have been covered since July 2006 and the car remains in excellent condition throughout. This beautifully presented thoroughbred sports car comes with a Swansea registration document, current road fund licence, MoT to April 2009, photographs recording restoration with supporting invoices and copy of Rapier Technical Notes and Handbook.