Frazer Nash Lemans coupe

Archibald Frazer-Nash started his company in 1922, but found himself in receivership by 1927. From the ashes came AFN limited. A majority of the company was purchased by H.J. Aldington. Archibald went on to create a new company with E. Grattan Thompson ( Nash&Thompson) which developed hydraulic aircraft gun turrets.

The early Frazer-Nash “chain drive” cars were a thing of the past. In 1934 AFN Ltd. became importers and assemblers of BMWs and sold them as Frazer-Nash BMW. They were the official importer until the war got in the way in 1939. After the war, strong ties with BMW kept AFN in good stead. What was left of the heavily damaged BMW plant that wasn’t removed by troops found its way to AFN’s Islworth Falcon works.

 The Bristol Aeroplane company, who wanted to be part of the postwar auto industry, bought a controlling interest in AFN. The plan was to build cars using a Bristol version of the pre-war BMW engine. The touring cars would be Bristols, and the Frazer-Nash name would be kept for the sports cars.

In the end, there was a great deal of friction between the companies—they both went their separate ways. Yet even with the split, Bristol agreed to supply AFN with its engines and transmissions.

The first car after WWII with the Frazer-Nash name still had a great deal in common with the pre-war 328 BMW, including its designer Fritz Fielder. Fielder came up with a tube frame chassis, using suspension from both the 328 and 326.

Frazer Nash was in the thick of things in post war racing, Their cycle-fender entry took “Aldy” Aldington and Norman Culpan to a third overall in the 24 hours of Lemans. This style of car was soon known as the “Lemans replica.” The envelope-bodied car was known as the “Mille Miglia” after its success in the 1000 mile race. The two styles of Frazer Nash continued to show well at the Lemans over the years. 1953 brought rule changes that outlawed cycle fendered cars, as well as restrictions on windscreen heights. Frazer Nash answered with the “Lemans Coupe.” The prototype was a modified envelope bodied car with a hardtop and larger grill for better cooling. The new car took 13th overall and won the 2-liter class outright that year.

 1959 was the final year at Le Sarth for Frazer Nash. A well-used coupe was brought back to life to run again in the 24 hours, but an off-track excursion damaged the car enough that its race was over in the early hours of the event.

The Lemans coupes are very rare machines indeed, with a total of only nine cars being built. Three of the flock actually ran the famed race.

Josephus "Jo" Conn Guild, Jr. was a businessman from Chattanooga, Tennessee, with a love of handmade sports cars. He paid a visit to AFN’s Falcon works and ordered up a Lemans coupe of his very own. Being a somewhat oversized individual he asked that the roof be raised an inch; for better headroom (and as the car was emigrating to the US ) the steering wheel was moved to the left side—the only Frazer Nash to ever be built this way. This was to be a road car, but Conn went for the power and requested the 140hp BS4 engine. Conn received the car in May of 1954. In 1958, after building only 13 more cars, AFN was no longer an automobile manufacturer.

Not a young man, Conn only kept the car a short time, using it on the roads around his home, before passing it on to his friend J. Frank Harrison. Harrison entered the Frazer Nash in SCCA events in the 1960s for top lady racer Smokey Drolet. Harrison then passed the car on to one of his employees Mack Williams. The car disappeared for a number of years, finally resurfacing in a “For Sale” ad in the back of a 1966 Road & Track.

In 1972, vintage racer Gary Ford was in search of a Frazer Nash. Remembering the old advertisement, he searched his back copies of R&T and found the ad. He was in luck: against the odds, the car had never sold. Ford got the machine home, very much the worse for wear, and performed a total restoration. For many years Ford and the Frazer Nash were regulars in Vintage Sports Car Club of America events, until a serious shunt at Lime Rock Park put the car out of commission.

 Soon after, with a trade for an Offenhauser Indy roadster, the Frazer Nash found its way into the capable hands of Sandy Sadler. Sadler took care of the racing damage and put the car back on the road, running it in the 1999 Colorado Grand. Sadler, a dyed-in-the-wool 356 Porsche guy, found the Lemans coupe a bit truckish for his tastes. The next owner was a bit more in tune with the cars pre-war personality. 

All that aside, on the road, the Frazer Nash is a very well balanced machine. The steering is neutral with good directional stability, a real compliment to the early rack & pinion steering. You have to work hard to make it go fast, but it is still very much a driver’s car. The slab dash holds a full compliment of Smiths gauges, with a simple 3-spoke steering wheel growing out from between the tach and the speedo. The short throw gearbox, even for its age, is a pleasure to use, and the leather seats will keep you comfortable for many a mile. You certainly won’t be burning up roads with the coupe, but as a companion on a long distance rally, you are in excellent company. This car will keep the Frazer Nash name alive for many years to come.

My thanks to Frank Allocca for letting me experience this special machine.