Lot Ended
Description
A charmingly
mellowed Monaco in regular light use; just two owners for many decades;
sympathetically restored about 35 years ago; nice period literature;
transferable KO number plate; lots to like about this one
Dubbed
‘The Wonder Car’, the Riley Nine was the lightest, fastest sports car in its
class in the late-1920s and was produced in a bewildering number of varieties
until production came to an end in 1937.
The vast majority were sold with
attractive saloon bodywork, although the Nine also cemented its sporting
credentials through some giant-killing performances put up by the low-slung
Brooklands and Imp sports models also supplied from the factory.
The
mainstream models were named after exotic French holiday destinations such as
Biarritz, San Remo and Mentone. The popular Monaco saloon model was sold from
1926 until 1932 with a fabric covered body, changing to a more conventional
aluminium skin from 1933. Light, stylish and comfortable, these small
saloons remain ever-popular as they combine sprightly performance with good
handling and a ready supply of affordable spare parts.
First registered
in Kent in May 1928, this charming fabric-bodied Monaco sadly comes with very
little history but a plaque on the dash suggests that it was supplied new via
Boom & Porter Ltd of Castelnau, an upmarket dealership in Barnes,
London SW13, well-known in the inter-war years as agents for the likes
of Riley and Armstrong Siddeley.
Old registration documents imply that
it was owned for decades by a Mr AJ Woolnough of Kings Lynn who finally sold it
to a Mr T Cook of the same town in April 2001 who was to keep it for the next 24
years.
An old tax disc shows that it was on the road in 1976 and an old
MOT indicates a mileage of 58,375 in July 2001 while an online check shows it
was regularly tested from 2006 – 2012. The odometer currently shows 61,667 miles
so it has clearly been in light regular use.
Our vendor acquired the car in
exchange for another vintage car in his collection about six months ago but does
not have space to store them all, hence its appearance in this sale. A VSCC
member with much experience of pre-war cars, he describes it as
follows:
“This Riley has been subject to much careful preservation
over the years and was sympathetically restored in the late-1980s/early 1990s.
The fabric body has been renewed with the correct materials and the interior
trim is sound with a pleasant original feel to it. Modern indicators have been
fitted as a necessary safety feature for modern driving. The car gallops along
nicely for a machine of this age and has good oil pressure and sound tyres. The
wings and bonnet have been repainted at some stage and still present well. What
it lacks in history it makes up for in character and is a nice thing to drive or
just to sit in and enjoy its ambience.”
There are a couple of
invoices for routine service items over the last 20 years or so but nothing of
any significance. However it does have a nice assortment of technical
literature, period parts brochures, an original lubrication chart and some Riley
Register magazines, some of which are pictured here.
There’s even a
September 1967 issue of the Peterborough Evening Telegraph for some reason –
anyone fancy a detached 3-bedroom house with a separate garage and a garden for
£3,950? How about a 1962 Hillman Husky for £270 or a 1957 Ford Zephyr MkII for
£45? Or a job as a groundsman for a large country estate at £12 14s 8d for a
40-hour week?
Retaining its original
(transferable) Kent-issue registration number, KO 9870 (ideal for any boxers out
there), this nicely mellowed Monaco has been running and driving nicely on site
and is on offer here at an enticing guide price.
Consigned by James Dennison – 07970 309907
– james.dennison@brightwells.com