Abbott still not ailing
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Sir,
I should like to follow up on the brief history of the Abbott-Nash recounted by Bill Boddy in the September 2001 issue.
From Michael Christie the car passed to Jack Williamson who raced it during 1949. He suffered a major crash at Prescott and the car next surfaced in 1953 when it was sold to David Allen and Monty Vaughan. They rebuilt it as a two-seater and competed with it quite successfully in VSCC and other events during 1957/58. It then sat idle until 1961 when I acquired it from them.
At that time, the car was running but not race-worthy and would clearly need a major rebuild to get it back on track. I was unable to devote the necessary time and resources until late 1997, by which time I had moved to California. Early in 2000, the rebuild was finished and the car competed in April.
It has since raced in seven events, though its success so far is measurable only in fun rather than trophies won. In August of this year, it was accepted for the Monterey Historics, running flawlessly throughout the weekend and giving a Type 35C Bugatti a highly enjoyable run for its money.
A few footnotes to Mr Boddy’s account: somewhere along the way, the car also acquired the name Acedes-Nash, to add to its previous three names! The AC engine apparently sported three SU carburettors from the start; Neale at one point replaced them but did not change the number. And even though the car was the first one hit at Stanmer Park, its damage could not have been that great because photographs from shortly afterwards reveal no obvious scars.
I am, Yours etc,
John Icerridge, Del Mar, California