Clapham vs Stuttgart

This works Allard J2X took on the Mercs at Le Mans in 1952 – and it's still running today, as Simon de Burton reveals

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European and UK manufacturers ranging from Iso to De Tomaso and from Jensen to Sunbeam saw an easy route to performance by fitting big American V8 engines into their relatively light sports car chassis - but British engineer Sydney Allard got their first.

Allard, the scion of a successful family of Ford car dealers based in Clapham, southwest London, began to prove his worth as a competitive driver after taking up the sport in 1929 with a Morgan three-wheeler.

Then only 19, he went on to compete in long-distance events, the Brighton Speed Trials and the Prescott Hill Climb (where he set a sports car record in 1938) before founding the Allard Motor Company in 1945.