1954 Swallow Doretti

Registration umber should be PNB 999 not PMB 999

• Built by The Swallow Coachbuilding Co. (1935) at The Airport, Walsall, Staffordshire
• Box-section tube chassis, TR2 mechanicals. 1991cc, OHV, 90bhp, 4-cylinder
• Doretti production ceased in 1955 after only 276 had been completed
• Superbly restored over one year by Marksdanes Classic Cars in Shepton Mallet
• In bright Signal Red with a superb cockpit in Light Tan piped in Maroon with a matching hood
• Smart engine bay with a chrome rocker box cover. Attention to detail wherever you look
• Quite a number survive and there is an active Owner's Club

The Doretti sports car was built at Walsall in Staffordshire by the Swallow Coachbuilding Company (1935) Ltd, which was the part of William Lyons' empire that specialised in building motorcycle sidecars. Somewhat paradoxically, another of Lyons' companies, Swallow Sidecars, made the 'SS' cars that adopted the 'Jaguar' name post-war. Sold by Lyons to Tube Investments after the Second World War, and facing a declining market for sidecars, Swallow used its spare capacity to launch the Doretti sports car in 1954, aimed at the Californian market. The stylish two-seater adopted the Triumph TR2 engine and running gear, which went into a bespoke chassis fabricated from Reynolds 531 tubing and clothed in aluminium outer body panels supplied by Panelcraft. The design was the work of one of TI's engineers, Frank Rainbow, who, working alone, managed to get the Doretti from drawing board to the prototype stage in a mere ten months. Robustly built with a chassis longer and wider than Triumph's TR2, the Doretti handled more securely and had more refinements including a heater and fitted luggage. The 18 strong workforce at Walsall turned out about 5 cars per week. The styling was unashamedly borrowed from the contemporary Ferrari 166MM 'Barchetta' and the name 'Doretti' was an Italian derivation of the first name of Dorothy Dean, a California Triumph distributor. Offering 100mph performance at a relatively bargain price, (although more expensive than the TR2), the Doretti sold well in California where its hand-built exclusivity had much appeal. More than half of the total production went for export. One of its chief rivals was the Jaguar XK120, consequently, Lyons was not best pleased and pressured TI to axe the Doretti, threatening to look elsewhere for the components they supplied to Jaguar. TI complied and the Doretti ceased production in 1955 after only 276 had been completed. Testimony to the build quality and the discerning nature of the original customer base is the high survival rate of the marque and model.

Offered here from The Anthony Hamilton Collection, a Doretti enthusiast for several years, is a beautifully restored example of the car that rattled Jaguar in the fifties. Chassis #1100 (PNB 999) is finished to an excellent standard in a bright Signal Red with a superb cockpit in Light Tan piped in Maroon with a matching hood and sparkling chrome wire wheels. The engine bay is smart with a chrome rocker box cover and there is evidence of attention to detail wherever you look.

The most noteworthy owners of #1100 were John and Vivienne Machon who, being early Doretti owners had hill-climbed one in the sixties at Les Val de Terres, St. Peter Port in Guernsey. Having sold his original car some years before, Guernsey-based John had a hankering for another Doretti. Peter Landers who had a classic car restoration business, Marksdanes Classic Cars in Shepton Mallet Somerset, was a good friend and had a Doretti