11.9hp Lagonda nearly ready

A while ago I mentioned that J P Oates was building not so much a replica as a near-original copy — using the correct parts where possible — of the 11.9hp Lagonda which Major W H Oates raced successfully at Brooklands in 1921, finishing 13th in the JCC 200 Mile and raising the 1.5-litre hour record to 79.17mph.

The project is nearly complete, the car appearing at a Lagonda CC Rally this year, a reminder of how racing light-cars looked in those early years.

Upholstery and instruments are still to be added, but otherwise the little Lagonda is almost finished, with the ioe engine having the inlet-valve pushrod rockers in line with the crankshaft

The original car lapped Brooklands at 88.62mph.