Arkley (automobile) on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
The Arkley is an English automobile that was manufactured by John Britten Garages workshops at Arkley in the London Borough of Barnet.
The first model was a two-seater called ''Arkley SS'', designed by John Britten in 1970 (not to be confused with the famous New Zealand motorcycle designer,
Arkley Midget (Internet Archive)
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England History of the London Borough of Barnet Kit car manufacturers Motor vehicle manufacturers based in London
The Arkley is an English automobile that was manufactured by John Britten Garages workshops at Arkley in the London Borough of Barnet.
The first model was a two-seater called ''Arkley SS'', designed by John Britten in 1970 (not to be confused with the famous New Zealand motorcycle designer, John Britten
John Kenton Britten (1 August 1950 – 5 September 1995) was a New Zealand mechanical engineer who designed a world-record-setting motorcycle with innovative features and materials.
Biography
John Britten was born to Bruce and Ruvae Britten in C ...
).
The retro "bug-eyed" design was inspired by a mixture of the Morgan Morgan may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Morgan (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters
* Morgan le Fay, a powerful witch in Arthurian legend
* Morgan (surname), a surname of Welsh origin
* Morgan (singer), ...
and the original Austin-Healey Sprite. The main purpose was recycling old rusty or damaged Austin-Healey Sprites or MG Midget
The MG Midget is a small two-seater sports car produced by MG from 1961 to 1979. It revived a name that had been used on earlier models such as the MG M-type, MG D-type, MG J-type and MG T-type.
MG Midget MkI (1961–64)
The first version, a ...
s. The Arkley SS utilised a BMC A-Series engine launched by Austin
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...
in 1951.
The ''Arkley Midget'' used fibre glass front and rear ends fitted to the donor car. Transformation did not affect the main structural members. There were two versions, the S for standard wheels and the SS for wide wheels.
Peter May, who had worked with John Britten Garages, founded ''Peter May Engineering'' in Halesowen in 1979 and bought the manufacturing rights to the Arkley in 1987. Production of the DIY fiberglass kits continues via Peter May Engineering, from their workshops in Ombersley, Worcestershire.
Since 1971, around 1000 kits have been sold, but the surviving number today is unknown.
Some kits were modified, such as a one-off called ''Pink Bathtub'', produced in 1990.
See also
*List of car manufacturers of the United Kingdom
:''This list is incomplete. You can help by adding correctly sourced information about other manufacturers.''
As of 2018 there are approximately 35 active British car manufacturers and over 500 defunct British car manufacturers. This page lists ...
References
External links
Arkley Midget (Internet Archive)
Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England History of the London Borough of Barnet Kit car manufacturers Motor vehicle manufacturers based in London