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Triumph Mayflower

Triumph Mayflower

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Triumph Mayflower
Lot number 172
Hammer value £1,800
Description Triumph Mayflower
Registration KCJ 919
Year 1953
Colour Black
Engine size 1,247 cc
Chassis No. TT27308DL
Engine No. TT27675
Documents V5C; invoices; workshop manual

Triumph launched its curious Mayflower as Britain was recovering from the material restrictions following the war years, in an ultimately misguided attempt to crack the all-important American market.

Billed as being an upmarket car at an economy price, the coachwork was designed by Leslie Moore, chief body designer at Mulliner. Triumph’s in-house designer Walter Belgrove also had some input, the Mayflower ending up with the then-fashionable ‘razor-edge’ styling employed by Mulliner on some of their contemporary Bentley and Rolls-Royce bodies at that time. The imposing radiator also had upscale pretensions as did the protruding rear luggage compartment. But while these styling cues worked well on big limousines, they looked faintly ridiculous on a compact saloon.

The Mayflower made its debut at the October 1949 London Motor Show. With a body built by Fisher & Ludlow at Castle Bromwich, it was the first car with unitary construction to be manufactured by either Standard or Triumph and used an updated version of the Standard Ten’s 38bhp 1,247cc side-valve engine, mated to a three-speed all-synchro gearbox with column shift which was donated from the Standard Vanguard.

The car had a top speed of almost 63mph, which it reached in just under half a minute. Fuel consumption was around 30mpg. Modern features included hydraulic brakes and independent front suspension and the well-appointed interior relied on traditional materials to continue the upmarket feel.

While we wouldn’t agree with Top Gear’s James May who called the Mayflower “the ugliest car of all time”, it was certainly something of an acquired taste. The Mayflower's ‘upscale small car’ position did not find a ready market and sales did not meet Standard's expectations with only 200 sold in its intended American market, although it did find 35,000 buyers elsewhere before production came to an end in 1953.

First registered in May 1953, this nicely original Mayflower has had just four owners from new and has been a regular show attendee according to a series of brass plaques which date from the mid-1980s and 1990s. In 1999 it was fitted with a stainless steel exhaust custom-made by PD Gough at a cost of £252.

The car retains its original KCJ 919 Hereford registration number which is transferable and comes with a workshop manual, plus service and parts invoices. The odometer indicates a figure of just 11,744 miles, a figure which the vendor believes may well be correct although there is insufficient paperwork to support this.

If one of these quirky little mini-limousines is on your shopping list, look no further, this original and nicely patinated example could be just what you have been waiting for.

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