1955 Swallow Doretti Roadster

The Swallow Doretti, in an effort to capitalize on the growing United States sports car market, was conceived by a group of enthusiasts, including Dorothy Dean, who sold sports car accessories through her Italianized brand name 'Doretti.' The United States debut, on January 6, 1954, was in the Embassy Room at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California. It was displayed courtesy of Dorothy Dean's 'Cal-Sales.' These cars were raced with limited success, most notably by Max Balchowsky, whose early Buick-powered Buretti was said to have influenced Carroll Shelby, who later stuffed a Ford motor into an AC chassis.

Designed by Frank Rainbow and built by Swallow Coachbuilding Company of Walsall, England, the Doretti Swallow is well known for their years of attention to detail and quality fit and finish. Just 2933 Doretti's were produced. Though only built for two years, the Doretti extensively used Triumph TR2 parts but was certainly more stylish and had considerably better performance than their Triumph sibling.

Sports car enthusiasts might remember the name 'Swallow' from their Jaguar interests. In fact, Swallow coachbuilding began with the first 'SS,' which later became Jaguar. Most of the Doretti production was shipped and sold to the United States. Remarkably, a majority of the cars produced still exist today.

This is one of the last Doretti Swallows produced, being car number 292. It is an exceptionally rare numbers-matching example restored in its original colors. This car was found in California, still wearing its original 1963 California black license plate.

The car was owned by an Air Force serviceman who later placed it in dry storage in Riverside, California. It rested untouched for nearly half-a-century. It was later sold by the gentleman's daughter in October 2010 to its current caretakers. The car was then given a restoration that took three years to complete. After the work was completed, it was shown in several shows and won numerous awards, including Amelia Island Concours, The Milwaukee Masterpiece, The Geneva Concours, the Concours d'Elegance of America, where it was awarded the HVA 'this car matters' award, and a 'First Place' at the Vintage Triumph Register National Convention, held at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin in 2015.

This Swallow Doretti is one of just 276 examples built and the last production chassis recorded. Power is from a 1,991cc inline 4-cylinder engine fitted with twin SU carburetors and produces 90 horsepower. There is a four-speed manual transmission with an overdrive and four-wheel drum brakes.