1958 Berkeley SE492 Sports Roadster

The three-cylinder 492cc engine with three carburetors was capable of producing 30 horsepower achieving an 80 mph speed. This period race car has finned brake drums, factory-reinforced wheels, and a factory downdraft Zenith carburetor. The total weight of this race car is a little over 600 pounds. The SE492 was introduced to the public at a 1957 Motorshow alongside of the SE328. The SE492s were constructed to be either left or right-hand drive, and most were exported to the US. Production was low, with around 650 examples of the two-seaters being created.

The original Berkely Manufacturing Company produced cars as early as 1913. Eighteen horsepower engines powered the cars. The company reappeared near the close of the 1950s and was located in Biggleswade, Bedfordshire.

'The Berkeley is going places....FAST' - The 1958 Berkely was manufactured in Biggleswade, England, by Travel Trailer maker Berkeley, in unused factory space. Engineer Laurie Bond designed this front-wheel drive, fiberglass-bodied Monocoque car in 1956. The front wheel drive is chain driven, and the transaxle has four forward speeds.

The engine is a 492cc air-cooled 2-cycle 3-cylinder that develops 30 bhp at 5500 rpm and is capable of 90 mph. This Berkeley was raced when new. Six hundred sixty were built. The car was found in an overgrown backyard in Florida (where it had been for 20+ years). The car was restored over 12 years.