Author: Paul Hardiman

Paul Hardiman has written for a variety of British car magazines since 1983. His motorsport career includes racing in the Goodwood Revival and navigating everything from an A35 to a 300SLR. He has been SCM’s English-car specialist since 2007.

1950 Aston Martin 2 Litre Sports Drophead Coupe (DB1)

This 2 Litre Sports is a fine example of the model that ushered in the David Brown era at Aston Martin. Successful industrialist Brown had bought the struggling Aston Martin concern in 1946, and the following year added Lagonda to his expanding motor-manufacturing empire. When Brown bought Aston Martin he […]

1904 Swift 7HP 2-Seater

This early single-cylinder Swift was purchased by the vendor’s grandfather in 1931 from a farmer in Eversley, Berkshire. Since then, the car has completed no fewer than 57 London to Brighton Runs plus numerous other events and rallies. It has only failed to finish on four occasions, and in 1968 […]

1953 Bentley R-Type Continental

After creating some lightweight bodies on the Bentley Mark VI chassis, coachbuilding firm H.J. Mulliner was contracted to design and construct the R-type Continental prototype, affectionately named “Olga.” Exhaustive road testing resulted in modification of the gearbox to a direct-ratio top gear and a lowered rear-axle ratio for enhanced performance. […]

1969 Monteverdi 375S Coupe

During the 1960s, American V8 power was seen by independent European manufacturers as a means of creating a luxury Grand Tourer to compete with the more exotic offerings of long-established firms like Ferrari, Maserati and Aston Martin. AC, Jensen, Facel and Iso, among others, all went down this route, as […]

1938 Alvis 4.3-Litre Short-Chassis Drophead Coupe

Pre-war development of the 6-cylinder Alvis culminated in the announcement in August 1936 of the 4.3-Litre, designed by the company’s distinguished Chief Engineer, Captain George Smith-Clarke. The 4.3-Litre was based on the 3½-liter Speed 25 introduced the previous year, powered by an enlarged version of Alvis’ new seven-bearing, overhead-valve engine […]

1991 Ford RS200

As the copy of a letter from Ford Motorsport, signed by Bob Howe [Ford’s RS200 program sales chief] and dated October 15, 1991, indicates, this RS200 was sold new to a Swedish enthusiast for £57,498. It was one of the few RS200s to have been finished in dark red when […]

1937 Jaguar SS 100 Roadster

Launched for 1936, the SS100 was the first real high-performance model produced by SS Cars Limited and used a new Weslake-developed overhead-valve engine in a shortened SS1 chassis. The introduction of the OHV unit was considered to justify the adoption of a new name for the series, SS Cars boss […]

2017 Aston Martin Vanquish Zagato

Aston Martin and Zagato have enjoyed a long but fitful association. They first collaborated in 1960, when the British carmaker asked the Italian coachbuilder to reinvent its DB4GT competition model for the following season. Despite its success, but no doubt on account of the small number of cars built, it […]

1960 Bristol 406 Zagato Coupe

“The Bristol Zagato Grand Touring model is designed to cater for those who desire an even faster car than the standard type 406 saloon. The Bristol Zagato is lighter and smaller, with a tuned version of the 406 Bristol engine. The lightweight 2-door coachwork has been built to the requirements […]

1970 Aston Martin DB6 Mk II

With the DB6 Mk II’s introduction in June 1969, the final incarnation of the original DB Series, begun in 1958 by the DB4, had arrived. The option of AE Brico fuel injection was the most significant mechanical development, while flared wheelarches, necessitated by the adoption of the wider DBS wheels, […]