1964 Turner Ford 1600 Sports Mk3

For those of us who have been involved in Club Motorsport for over half a century, the mention of racing Turners is nearly always followed immediately by someone mentioning ‘Tatty Turner’. ‘Tatty’ was a seriously quick Mark 1 Climax (678 ERC) that was raced in the early 1960s by Pat Fergusson and Warwick Banks with great success and became known for epic ‘David and Goliath’ battles around Mallory and Brands.

As I recall, the epithet ‘Tatty’ was singularly well deserved at the time but the car did scrub up well in later years, however, the word could never be used to describe the immaculate Mk3 on offer here. “Tidy Turner” would be far more appropriate.

This superb example is a Turner Ford 1600 Crossflow Mk3. right-hand drive, 2-seater Sports that was first registered on 1st June 1964. It features original GRP bodywork painted in white with a reconditioned inner tub in aluminium and Turner seats trimmed in Jaguar Mulberry leather. Manufactured by Turner Sports Cars at Pendeford Airport, Wolverhampton, it was treated to a no-expense-spared rebuild in 2010/2012 at 64,226 miles in Wolverhampton by Turner-guru, John Cullis, the third of five owners.

It’s formally identified by a V5C registration document issued on 27 May 2021, recording its original Turner tubular-chassis number #64/615 and Ford 711-block engine number UP00325 (originally S367981). It’s fitted with a big-valve head, Cortina GT cam and inlet with a single-choke Weber carburettor, lightened and balanced crankshaft with ARP bolts, large-core radiator and fan, Pertronix electronic distributor, Facet fuel pump, alternator and a custom stainless steel exhaust.

Further aspects of the car’s current spec include Cortina GT 4-forward speed gearbox with Lotus Cortina aluminium bell-housing, original Turner 5-link rear axle with 8ins brakes, Peter May halfshafts, twin bearing hubs, 3.5:1 differential, GT6 front suspension, adjustable-camber top wishbones, Wilwood front discs and calipers, gas coil-over shocks and 5.5 x 14 Minilite alloys all round, 5/8 ins MG Midget anti-roll bar, renewed fuel tank, wiring loom, electric instrumentation indicating 3,500 miles (since restoration), fused and relayed with master battery switch and a fitted tonneau cover.

Historic Vehicle Road Tax exempt (last renewed 5th May 2022 for 12 months), scissor jack and spare Minilite in the boot along with hood and frame. Included, too, is the most comprehensive September 2016 compiled Turner cuttings file, recording marque history through 84 magazine features from July 1951 to September 2012, together with production and technical info, including sources of parts employed in the manufacture of all models and chassis. A complete run of Fairthorpe Sports Car Club newsletters are full of essential Turner Register intel within the ‘Turner Tattle’ section from the March 2016 to and including July 2022 issues.

Several hundred Turners were built prior to the company’s demise in 1966 and there are a good few in regular daily use but we can’t ever recall seeing one that sits so well and just looks ‘right’. In immaculate condition with good provenance and lots of Turner-based history, this seems an excellent opportunity.