1939 Alvis Speed 25 Tourer

1939 Alvis Speed 25 Tourer by Cross & Ellis

This restored example of a fine British touring car is the 37th of the 38 built. It has a number of special features including a Luvax one-shot chassis oiling system, adjustable shocks, chassis-mounted scissor jacks, wind tone horns, and dual side-mounted spares. It has been shown at Amelia Island and Pebble Beach as well as at events in England.

The Alvis Company was a successful British automobile manufacturer that built a reputation for reliable and competitive cars. Their cars set many racing records and had many racing successes. They developed an innovative front-wheel-drive car with a De Dion front suspension in the pre-World War II and they built the first British automobile with fully independent suspension and the first fully-synchronized four-speed gearbox offered on a British production car.

The Speed 25 was introduced in mid-1963 and it was powered by the Speed 20's 2.8-liter engine that was enlarged to 3.6-liters. The Speed 25 was a sporty automobile that could achieve speeds in excess of 100 mph. In total, there were 391 examples constructed with 207 surviving in modern times. 38 were given coachwork by Cross & Ellis and 34 of those are believed to exist.

This Speed 25 Tourer is the next-to-last of the 38 examples and was sent to Canada on August 4th of 1938. It has a Luvax one-shot chassis oiling system, Luvax A.L.C. adjustable shock absorbers, wind tone horns, cigar lighter, chassis-mounted scissor jacks, a special-order fold-flat windscreen, dual side-mounted spares and quick-release radiator cap, and a two-inch longer steering column.

The car's previous owner had it shipped to England for the anniversary meeting of the Alvis Club. It is an AACA Junior winner at Hershey in 1992, was shown at Amelia Island in 2001 and at Pebble Beach the following year. It was given a restoration in the 1990s which still shows well in modern times.

The car is powered by a 3571cc overhead valve six-cylinder engine capable of producing over 100 horsepower. There is a four-speed manual transmission, independent front suspension, and four-wheel mechanical drum brakes. The engine is believed to be the original one it was given when it left the factory.

In 2009, this Cross & Ellis Tourer was offered for sale at the Automobiles of Amelia Island auction presented by RM Auctions. The car was estimated to sell for $125,000 - $175,000. Bidding began at $40,000 and rose by increments of $10,000 until it reached $70,000. From there, bids rose by $5,000, all the way up to $110k. The bids got smaller, rising by $2,500, but there was still a plethora of bids left to come. In total, there were 29 bids before the hammer finally came down for the third and final time, signaling that the lot had been sold. The high bid, including buyer's premium, was $173,250.