Identifying an early Frazer Nash

About a year ago, a very early, original and historic 1925 Frazer Nash was returned to the road after several years laid up. Chassis 1026 was only the 16th 'Nash built and the second with an Anzani engine. It was entered by H. J. Aldington in the 1925 Land's End Trial, in which it retired, and then sold to Sir John Best-Shaw, a young chain-drive enthusiast who entered it in the 1925 London-Exeter and picked up a gold medal.

Since it's been back on the road, some new history has come to light, and this has prompted one of Sir John's descendants to try to establish as complete a history of 1026 as possible.

The Light Car & Cyclecar published a report of the 1925 London-Exeter, in which it included two pictures of 'Nashes. One shows 1026 tackling White Sheet Hill in Dorset, while the other shows an unidentified 'Nash resting at the Dorchester check. The information being sought concerns the identity of the Dorchester car: is it 1026? We understand that all the LC&C negatives were lost years ago, so we must resort to an open appeal to the collected minds of the PreWarCar.com readership.

There's a reasonably good chance that it is Sir John's car. There were seven 'Nashes in total entered in the 1925 Exeter, but Aldington's had retired before Dorchester and we can rule out Hillary's and Jefferis's, as theirs had vee-shaped screens. Even so, it could be Paxman's, Veendam's or Robinson's. Who knows?

It's a tough question, but if any of our readers have the answer, or just a trace of a clue, we'd be very glad if you'd let us know.

Words: Zack Stiling; pictures: The Light Car & Cyclecar

Published:

Thursday January 19th, 2023

Simon Coates

24 January 2023, 20:47

The Porlock photograph was taken on the Lands End Trial in April 1925. My grandfather bought PE 1158 soon after that and the Dorchester photograph in question and the one on White Sheet Hill were taken on the London-Exeter at the end of that year. I agree that the front wing appears to be much higher, in fact it almost appears to be slightly kinked and bent upwards , quite high above the wheel. If there had been a minor collision with something en route, I think it would rule out PE 1158, as there is no present day evidence of that and I think that my grandfather would have remembered it in our conversations about the car. As far as I know all the 1925 Frazer Nashes with aluminium radiators with forks mounted on them had lights at the same height.

Peter Livesey, Trustee, Frazer Nash Archives

22 January 2023, 14:23

The Frazer Nash Archives has a photograph of H J Aldington climbing Porlock in chassis 1026 (PE 1158), with the competition number 339 clearly shown. The photo is verified by Jenks on the reverse side. The car number 339 agrees with Cowbournes' record in 'British Trial Drivers'. No number 333 appears in the record, but H Jefferis is listed as car number 338. Could your image on White Sheet Hill be that of Jefferis, with the number partially obscured?
I would agree with Mike Costigan's comment. The top of the wing in Aldington's car 1026 in the Archives' image is level with or slightly below the bottom of the headlamp, quite unlike the car in the Dorchester car park.

Editor

22 January 2023, 23:19

Is that picture from the Land's End Trial? The pictures we're looking at are from the London-Exeter and come from the issue of The Light Car & Cyclecar dated January 1, 1926. The magazine's report contains a list of the small car finishers and non-finishers, and states:
333 - Sir John J. K. Shaw - 12 h.p. Frazer-Nash
334 - E. Hillary - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash
335 - H. Jefferis - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash...
339 - Richard Twelvetrees - 11.40 h.p. Riley...
343 - E. P. Paxman - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash
344 - F. Veendam - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash

Non-finishers
342 - H. J. Aldington - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash
357 - F. B. Robinson - 11.9 h.p. Frazer-Nash.

Zack Stiling

Robert Pennington

19 January 2023, 19:22

Donald Cowburne's book British Trial Drivers 1919 - 1928 has 333 as Sir John K Shaw

Mike Costigan

19 January 2023, 09:32

I would suggest that the car parked at Dorchester is not the same car as no. 333; the position of the headlights on 333 is well above the top of the front wing, whereas the Dorchester car has the centre-line of the headlamp roughly in line with the top of the wing.

Identifying an early Frazer Nash

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