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Daimler Dart SP250

Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250
Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250Daimler Dart SP250
Lot number 160
Hammer value £16,600
Description Daimler Dart SP250
Registration WCA 273
Year 1960
Colour British Racing Green
Engine size 2,548 cc
Chassis No. 101346
Engine No. 89752

Aimed squarely at the American market, the Daimler Dart was launched at the 1959 New York Motor Show but was soon renamed the SP250 after Chrysler asserted that they had already trademarked the Dart name for a forthcoming Dodge. 

It featured a truly wacky glassfibre body that combined a bewildering assortment of curves, bulges and fins with a face like a grouper fish. Love it or hate it, you certainly can’t ignore it. Built on a traditional cruciform-braced ladder-frame chassis equipped with independent coil-and-wishbone front suspension and a leaf-sprung 'live' rear axle, it had modern disc brakes all round and a four-speed manual gearbox with synchromesh on the top three speeds.

But what really grabbed the attention of anyone who drove it was the magnificent V8 engine. Designed by Edward Turner, this 2.5-litre ‘hemi’ is one of the most charismatic engines ever made, a lightweight marvel of unparalleled refinement and flexibility that also emits a fabulously fruity exhaust note.

Producing 140bhp and 155lb/ft of torque, it could throw the Dart to 60 in 8.2 seconds on its way to a top speed of 125mph, but was flexible enough to burble around town in top – performance that no Triumph, MG or Healey could match. No wonder it proved an immediate hit with the police who ordered a small fleet as high-speed pursuit vehicles, all painted black. Drag racers also loved the engine and it became a favourite on the strip where the top fuel boys ultimately managed to extract well over 1,000bhp from this heroic V8.

Production finally came to an end in 1964 by which time just 2,645 examples had been sold, the vast majority in America. Survivors are now surprisingly rare and good ones have shot up in value recently – a 1961 example made over £50,000 at auction last year.

As the accompanying Heritage Certificate confirms, this particular Dart was made in June 1960 and supplied through Tristams of Chester. The current vendor acquired the car in 1999 from a deceased estate and the early history is uncertain, although the V5 records just two previous owners and it seems that the car has been in the Black Country for most of its life. The odometer shows 69,870 miles which is thought to be genuine but cannot be guaranteed.

In his 14 years’ ownership the vendor has steadily improved the car which has included rust-proofing the chassis, servicing the brakes, rechroming the brightwork and having the interior retrimmed in red leather by a well-known ex-Jaguar trimmer. New carpets have also been fitted along with a new hood and new tyres all round. The only remaining job was to get the car repainted but loss of storage now forces a reluctant sale instead.

Apart from servicing the engine has not been restored since, like all the Turner designed Daimler V8 engines, it still performs well (much to Sir William Lyons discomfort!) and sounds great. The car also features an original factory hardtop which makes it eminently suited to year-round use. Said to drive beautifully, it has a current tax disc, is MOT’d until August and needs nothing but a proud new owner behind the wheel. It looks terrific value at the guide price suggested today.


 

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