RILEY - SPECIALS

as Old as the Industry, as modern as the Hour
Riley Specials form two distinct groups. The first is those built as 'racing specials', mainly before the war, and also a few post war. The second group is the many weird and wonderful hand-crafted designs that have been built on Riley Chassis in the last half-century. This particular page will concentrate largely on the former, and maybe one or two of the latter. Any further information on any of the cars below is welcomed! There is also a Gallery of other specials.

Dixon Rileys

See Dixon Pages.
Red Mongrel Chassis 80xx; Registration n/a
Dixon's Brooklands Chassis 80xx; Registration CDC152
Dixon Six Chassis 4/102; Registration KV5695
Dixon Six Chassis 4/104; Registration KV6078
There was a 3rd Dixon Six, it was crashed in 1934, details unknown.

The White Riley

English Racing Automobiles (ERA)

The ERA models were all based on Riley Components, with The White Riley regarded as the prototype. At one point, in 1935, an MPH was converted to the ERA formula, but it was regarded as ungainly and was returned to Riley to be put back to it's original condition.
See the ERA pages.

Dixon Rileys

The White Riley

See White Riley Page. The most famous of all Riley Specials is The White Riley, built in 1933 by Raymond Mays. It was based on the 12/6 TT Chassis, with the 1486cc version of the 6 cylinder engine, it could rev up to 8000rpm, and provide a peak of 147bhp.
Chassis 4/103; Registration KV5696 & KV5929!

English Racing Automobiles (ERA)

Duncan Ricketts Specials

See Ricketts Page.
Duncan Ricketts built a number of specials, 2 of which are detailed here.
Chassis n/a; Registration BBJ318


Chassis 26Fxxxx; Registration CKN465

De Havilland Special

John Treen's Special

See Treen Page.
A Series of specials were built by John Treen, with some details here.
Chassis various; Registration MPO79 and others

Hector Dobbs' Special

A very succesful racing car built by the Riley Dealer Hector Dobbs. The body was extremely lightweight, and mounted on an MPH chassis.
Chassis MPH; Registration n/a

De Havilland Special

The registration period would suggest that this is a chassis from an early model, most likely a 14/6, or possibly a nine. The current engine is a 6½Litre Aero Engine, providing a little more speed and power than the original!
Chassis n/a; Registration OD1808

Bronson Special

A Supercharged Big Four engine on an Adelphi chassis, with a racing body.
Chassis 38AX1093; Registration BSC761