Vehicle Description
Richard Lea and Graham Francis began their partnership by making
high end bicycles in Coventry, England in 1895. Moving into the car
and motorcycling manufacturing business in the early 1900s but
remaining unsuccessful and unpopular with their designs. Things
started to look up for the Lea-Francis group around 1925 when
incorporating a new sporting design brought them some relief with
Britain's first supercharged production car, the Lea-Francis Hyper,
which went on to win the Ulster TT, a 30-lap race in Northern
Ireland in the hands of the famous driver Kaye Don. Joining with
some top talent of the British car and cycle makers, Riley, also
proved to be quite the turning point for Lea-Francis, who carried
on successfully until changing roles to support the war effort in
1939. Post-war production started back up in 1946 with the older
designs being updated and catching on with popularity even if they
were rather expensive. Introduced on a newly improved chassis to
include independent front suspension with hydraulic brakes, and
equipped with the 2� liter engine, the Lea-Francis Sports Roadster
was born and began production in 1949 and continuing until
1953.
Manufacturing in 1950 created less than 85 Lea-Francis 2� Sports
roadsters, with surviving examples today believed to be
approximately half making this a rare sight to see, especially in
the USA with its right-hand drive setup. This lightweight roadster
really perfected the sportscar look and feel featuring an
all-aluminum body with a 4-speed manual transmission mated to a
152ci (2.5L) Inline 4-cylinder engine with twin overhead camshafts
and dual SU carburetors producing over 100hp. Sporting new
technology of the time by utilizing 4-wheel drum brakes with the
fronts having hydraulic assistance, and independent front
suspension by use of torsion bars with semi-elliptic leaf spring
rear suspension proved for a fast and great handling machine.
In 2005, after 55 years off surviving in original form, this
roadster underwent a complete frame-off restoration. The aluminum
body was repainted Seminal Brown with black fenders and the
interior was redone with green leather and a new black top by Hoyts
Upholstery to match the fenders. The components of the chassis were
rebuilt along with the engine by replacing the two camshafts along
with new pistons. New valves and an overhauled cylinder head
assembly were installed. Bringing some modern technology to this
rare classic car with the addition of a high-capacity alloy
radiator and electric cooling fan were added along with a 12-volt,
negative ground conversion, alternator charging, and upgraded LED
instrumentation lighting. A USB flash drive full of pictures and a
folder with many receipts document the parts and labor in received
during the complete restoration.
Starting life with a London dealer in May 1950 and still wearing
its British (LGU) license plate, this Lea-Francis changed owners a
few times in England before being imported to the United States in
1972 by a car collector in Michigan. In need of a restoration and
having too many projects of his own he sold the now 25-year-old car
to another collector in Michigan in 1975. After having the roadster
for many years, he generously donated the car in 2002 to the
Gilmore Museum in Hickory Corner, MI where it stayed for a few
years before being sold to a Florida resident in 2005 who completed
the frame-off restoration.
After being completely rebuilt, this Lea-Francis Sports was shown
at the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance in 2011 where it was
parked among some of the sharpest classics around. It would catch
the eye of a new owner in Canada where it remains for 7 years
before once again being imported back into the States. Now being
offered by the St. Louis Car Museum is a chance for a savvy
collector to own a truly rare automobile that has been
professionally restored with the aid of the Lea-Francis Owner's
Club community and is now ready to tour and attract all the
attention it deserves. Please contact our sales team for more
information and to review it in person. Finding such a road-worthy
Lea-Francis will not likely come about again soon, so don't miss
your chance to add such a wonderful piece of history to your
English car collection! Thanks for looking!
