1932 Riley Nine

The Riley Company of Coventry, England built the Nine in various body styles between 1926 and 1938. The Riley brothers of Percy and Stanley were largely responsible for the design, with Stanley designing the chassis, suspension, and body, while Percy designed the engine. The engine was a 1,087cc four-cylinder engine with hemispherical combustion chambers with the valves operated by two camshafts mounted high in the crankcase through short pushrods and rockers. The valves were positioned at a 45-degree angle in a crossflow head. The power was sent to the rear wheels through a torque tube and spiral bevel live rear axle mounted on semi-elliptic springs.

The Riley Nine was introduced in July of 1926 and originally offered in two body styles that include a fabric-bodied saloon called the Monaco and a fabric four-seat tourer. Two additional body choices soon followed, the San Remo and a two-seater plus dickie open tourer.

In 1933, a sport version named the Riley Imp was introduced and would be offered until 1935. At the 1934 Ulster Tourist Trophy, an all-IMP factory contingent finished 9th, 11th, 12th, and 16th-place finishes. After this success, the model was known as the Riley Ulster Imp.

by Daniel Vaughan | Aug 2019