Allard Motor Company Returns with the New JR Continuation Series

 After lying low for 60 years, Allard Motor Company is creating a new chapter of history by introducing the Allard Sports Cars JR continuation series.  

The Allard Motor Company first made its name in the 1930s due to its love for racing, coachbuilding, and pre-war ‘hot-rodding.’ The Allard family themselves built the JR continuation, and they are offering the first chassis of the JR continuation series for sale at the upcoming London auction with RM Sotheby’s on 31^st October 2020. 

Part of the London sale, the Allard family has decided to offer the first of its JR continuation series, chassis eight (3408) and it is estimated to fetch around £180,000-240,000. 

Allard Motor Company is one of the very few family-owned car companies that are currently remaining, and the JR continuation series has been a collective family project. With the JR continuation series, they plan to bring back the prominence of the Allard name and to continue the legacy of their (founding) father, Sydney Allard.  

The JR continuation series was hand built by Alan, Lloyd, and Gavin; Allard’s son and grandsons, respectively. Gavin is the archivist of The Allard Owners Club and they used the original drawings and parts, design bucks, and even traditional materials to create the JR continuation series.  

The new model is based on the original 1953 JR competition specification, and Lloyd Allard created it to be a toolroom copy of the original 1953 JR Le Mans entrant. The JR followed the J2, its predecessor, in its third-place success at Le Mans in 1950. There were only seven JRs made in the years 1953 to 1955, and with racing as its legacy, the Allard family wished to revive the rarest and most prominent of Sydney Allard’s cars.  

“Watching my father build these cars in period is a memory that will always stay with me. The skills he’s passed on to me are now with my son, Lloyd, who has engineered and built the continuation you see today. Over 84 years on since the first Allard car was built, car number eight [after seven original JRs] continues my father’s legacy (Sydney Allard) and if he saw what we were doing today as a family, I know he’d be proud – and desperate to see how it performs on track,” 

Alan Allard  

In its time, Allard Motor Company was a distinguished specialist in low-volume motor vehicle maker based in London, UK. The JR model followed the J2 and J2X models which were used considerably in races in the USA, fetching road racing victories over the Ferraris and Jaguars driven by legends such as Erwin Goldschmidt, Tom Cole, and Fred Wacker.  

A large part of the company’s legacy and passion was born on the track, so it is not surprising that the family has decided to create the JR continuation series not only to be competitive but also to offer customers the option of having HTP papers and accreditation. The JR will have a re-engineered version of the original specification Cadillac 331 ci (5428cc) overhead-valve V8 (300 bhp at 4500 rpm).

Another option that the Allard Sports Cars is offering are the three- and four-speed gearboxes, along with a differential final drive with a selection of quick-change transfer gears. The option to change the ration to suit specific events, race circuits, and road rallies are also offered. Chassis number 3408 will have a four-speed transmission. 

The aerodynamic drop-head body of the JR continuation series was created from the original specification using the body buck that Dudley Hume, JR’s original designer, created back in 1953 along with the hand-formed aluminum body. The divided front axle suspension and twin tubular chassis from the original JR were also retained and this has kept the JR’s low weight of just 2200 lbs (dry). 

“As a family, we have been passionate about reviving and continuing the legacy of what Sydney Allard created over eight decades ago. Since we’re all [the current Allard family members involved in the project] passionate drivers, engineers, and archivists, it’s been important to stay true to our roots and passion. We see this car as a tribute and we’d love to see the JR continuation model car follow in the footsteps of my grandfather’s legacy and get back to Le Mans. Likewise, it would be a pleasure to see our creation on the historic and competition car circuit,”  

Lloyd Allard 

The JR continuation model bearing chassis number 3408 will be exclusively sold by RM Sotheby’s London on 31st October 2020 and it is estimated to fetch upwards of £180,000 to £240,000. RM Sotheby’s was utilized previously to sell the 1953 Allard Motor Company JR Le Mans entrant, which the JR continuation is based on, for $605,000 during the Amelia Island sale back in 2013. They have also previously auctioned a range of highly collectible Allard racing cars. 

For more information regarding the continuation series and the upcoming JR continuation models built to individual specifications, please contact Allard Sports Cars.

[Source: Allard Sports Cars]