1936 Cranston Ford V8 Special Replica. Registration No.… - Collector's Cars - Bonhams & Goodman (No longer trading)

Lot No.

***

Description:

1936 Cranston Ford V8 Special Replica. Registration No. Unregistered. Chassis No. 818F17323. Engine No. O S 'Ossie' Cranston was one of Western Australia's most successful and well-known motor sport competitors, accruing numerous wins and records over the course of a 20-year career from 1917 to 1937. In 1917 Ossie took up motorcycle racing and in 1919 won the State Track Championship, adding the State Road Championship the following year. After an accident in 1922 he gave up motorcycle competition and took up motor racing. Ossie was working at the Grave & Dwyer Ford dealership at the time and initially drove a Ford Model T in hill climbs, setting many fastest times. When Ford introduced the Model A, Ossie transferred his affections to the new model. Nicknamed 'Cactus', the Model A brought Ossie his first major motor racing successes, commencing with the State Championship in 1930, which would be the first of many. In 1935 Ossie switched to a Ford V8 that he had built, setting a new Australian record at Perkolilli over 10 miles (16 kilometres) at an average speed of 97.61mph (157 km/h). In that same year he established a new State Speed record of 111.1mph (178.8km/h) over a flying quarter-mile on Nicholson Road, Cannington, beating his record set in the old Model A. In December 1936 at the South Australian Centenary Grand Prix, held at Victor Harbour, the famous Cranston/Ford V8 combination was again successful when Ossie set fastest time in this handicap race, which was won by Les Murphy in an Mg P-Type. It was at the end of this event that Ossie told the reporter from 'Motorist and Wheelman' that he was retiring from racing, because he was 'too old'. Ossie's last known competitive event was the Applecross Grand Prix, held in November 1940, after a retirement of some years. Curiously, the press of the day referred to Ossie's Ford special as a 'stock model'. Originally a 1935 Ford V8 utility, the Cranston V8 was fitted with a light racing body, magneto ignition, a different exhaust manifold, flattened road springs and two Windfield carburettors in place of the standard item. 'Otherwise', the papers reported, 'the car is identical with the Ford V8s sold by Lynas Motors Ltd', the latter being a Ford dealership started by Ossie in partnership with V Lynas and J V Pascoe. In 1936 Ossie fitted the Special with a 1936-model radiator, and from that time onward it has been known as a '1936' car. Following Ossie's retirement from racing, the car was sold to an eastern states competitor who was killed when it rolled at Bathurst. The motor was installed in a speedboat and the chassis stored for some time before being destroyed. In 1983, Clem Dwyer of Perth, son of the Dwyer half of Grave & Dwyer, decided to recreate the Ossie Cranston V8. Clem was lucky enough to receive great support from Bill Spencer, a well-known Ford 'A' restorer, who provided almost all the major parts necessary, including chassis, axles and motor. After two years of construction, mostly undertaken by Max Gamble, the car was finished, incorporating hydraulic brakes from a 1939 V8 in the interests of safety and to enable a competition logbook to be obtained. The replica was patterned on photographs of the original car and information supplied by Ossie Cranston himself. Regrettably Ossie died before the car could be completed and he could be offered a drive.Since its completion the replica has been raced in historic events at the Wanneroo Circuit and in the York Flying Fifty and York Historic Hill Climb. In 1987 the vehicle was purchased for display at the York Motor Museum.

Estimate:

***

Price:

***

Category:

Motor Vehicles: Motor Cars