Standard Flying 12 Roadster

It is always interesting when a model that I have not encountered before turns up in my email inbox. Today is such a day.

The car is a Flying 12, about late 1937 or 1938 and clothed in a 2 seater Roadster body by James Flood of Melbourne, Australia.

Andrew Hephner, the owner, thinks that only 4 such cars were produced and believes that 3 of them survive. It is especially interesting therefore that this is the first that I have seen.

This car makes an interesting comparison with my own UK built Flying 12 Drophead Coupé on the same chassis

The doors are considerably narrower and less deep than the  Drophead and appear to have no windup windows, but sidescreens instead. There is a two-seater dickey seat in the volumous rear end. The waterfall grille makes the car a little later than my own, but the car still has a beam front axle with cart springs. Later Flying 12 chassis had independent front suspension. 

The bodywork as far back as the screen appears to be factory built but, if I am not mistaken, the screen is slightly more raked. The bodytub from and including the doors backwards all seems to be "Floods" work as does both the front and rear bumpers. The rear wings are factory. There is no provision for trafficators, but flashing indicators are evident at the rear. The smaller front lights look to be spotlights. Strangely, there appears to be two fuel filler caps, one on the nearside wing and the other behind it on the rear quarter panel. I don't yet know where the spare is housed. There is provision only for a single wiper above the windscreen, but then maybe it never rains in Melbourne, judging by these photos.!

A "Standard" script on the grille and another winged emblem on the rear panel complete the conversion.

Thank you Andrew for sending these photos of your delightful car and I hope that the club's Spares Scheme is able to help you with the parts that you need.

 

This is the first I have seen of this coachbuilders work, so if anyone has any more information about them I would be pleased to publish it. Please send any material please to the webmaster.