1951 Allard J2 Roadster

This Allard J2 Roadster is powered by a 390 cubic-inch, overhead-valve Cadillac V8 engine breathing through triple Stromberg carburetors and delivering an estimated 280 horsepower at 5,400 RPM. It is backed by a four-speed manual transmission and there are four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes. It has a well-documented history from new and was ordered on June 7th of 1951 and specified with knock-off wire wheels, left-hand drive, left-hand spare wheel, twin fuel pumps, and headlamp stone guards. The interior was requested in red and supplied with a sample of metallic blue paint for the body. Mr. Del Lee of Grosse Point, Michigan took delivery on August 31st of 1951 via Wood Motors of Detroit. The new Allard was entrusted to Cal Connell of Detroit Racing Equipment where it received its race-prepared Cadillac engine. Period color photographs show the car finished in dark metallic blue with a red interior, polished alloy Borrani wire wheels, and a single side-mounted spare.

The race was raced at numerous regional events by Del Lee at such tracks as Watkins Glen, Thompson Speedway, and Bridgehampton. It raced at the Detroit Region SCCA ice-racing event at Lake Orion, Michigan on several occasions, and at Lake Orion, Lee was near the front of the pack when he spun while avoiding a bale late in the race. Among his greatest accolades with the Allard was 4th in class in 1951 at the Giant's Despair Hillclimb in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, followed by a 1st in Class B at the 1953 Hollenback Trophy for Fast Time of the Day.

Del Lee sold the car sometime around the 1954 Watkins Glen Grand Prix to Fred Lavel of Birmingham, Michigan. Lavel may have had Lee drive the car in the Glen race, before taking it back home. A year later, Lavel raced at Bonneville, running it up to 127.47 miles per hour.

At some point, Mr. Lavel replaced the Cadillac engine with a DeSoto Adventurer Hemi supplied by Virgil Exner of Chrysler fame. The alloy bodywork was later removed and replaced with an aerodynamic fiberglass body built by Sorrell, along with a Halibrand quick-change rear end, and Powerflight automatic transmission. In this guise, the car was brought to Bonneville in 1956 where it achieved 150.75 miles per hour. Mechanical issues prevented any additional runs.

After Bonneville, the Sorrell body was removed and the alloy bodywork was re-installed. The car was sold to John Whitlock and retained it until August 17th of 1968 to Robert Vandepaer or Jersey City, New Jersey. At some point, the car received a 1956 Corvette small-block V8 engine with a Jaguar Moss four-speed manual transmission. When the car was discovered in 1993 by a recent owner, it was sitting in Vandepaer's Jersey City garage and continued to carry the Corvette engine and Moss transmission. The original Allard aluminum coachwork was separate from the chassis when it was discovered, having spent 35 years stored away and preserved.

The new owner treated the car to a period-correct restoration including the fitment of a 1959-specification Cadillac 390 V8. Updates included triple Strombergs on an aluminum Weiand manifold, polished Offenhauser valve covers, and a Muncie M21 gearbox.

After the restoration, the owner partook in numerous VSCCA events on the East Coast, including the Fairmount Vintage Grand Prix, Pocono Vintage GP, Lime Rock Fall Festival, and two Allard reunion events at Pocono and Watkins Glen in the late 1990s.

By Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2021