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| PRICE, Barrie and "the late Barry Price". http://www.bugattibuilder.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=1818 |
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| Author: | GCL-Wales [ Mon Jan 04, 2010 3:02 pm ] |
| Post subject: | PRICE, Barrie and "the late Barry Price". |
PRICE, A.B.(Barrie). A UK engineer who has spent over fifty-five years in the expensive end of the motor industry. He is mainly associated with the name Lea-Francis having acquired the assets of the company after it ceased automobile manufacture. He runs a spares, repairs and coachwork business dealing with Jaguars, Bugattis etc.and around 1980 was involved, with Peter Engelbach, in the production of a new Jaguar engined Lea Francis. He has owned various Bugattis including a type 35 (with frame no. 358 and UK BOC chassis plate no. BC 06 or 1006), two type 57s (57495-370 and 57750) and a 57S(C). On 16th October 1987 he was one of the five founding directors of the Bugatti Trust and in the same year he drove Uwe Hücke’s type 53 ; fifty-five years after it was crashed at Shelsley Walsh by Jean Bugatti. He has competed at Prescott over a 28 year period with best times for the 35 of 52.44 and 60.99, for the 53; 52.57 (short course), for the 57; 61.63 and 68.15, and for the 57SC; 56.73 and 66.37. He is best remembered for his ownership of the "Atlantic" 57S(C) ; chassis 57591 with engine no. 39S and frame no. 45. The car was originally purchased through Sorel’s Brixton Road, London agency. Its bodywork is described as “Aerolithe” in factory documents and it was completed on 31st March 1938, painted a rich sapphire blue with a “porc” interior. To accommodate Richard Pope; the tall hat-wearing first owner, the car had a roof-line an inch higher than normal and was delivered in May, 1938 with the UK reg. no. EXK 6. The car was upgraded by the fitment of a supercharger in 1939 and was retained by Pope until 1967 when it was purchased by Price. The asking price had been £3,000 for a car with a total mileage, at this time, of 37,500 miles. Price ran the car for over 10,000 miles but crashed it during a 1970 Rally at Molsheim. He subsequently rebuilt it and repainted the bodywork in a colour said to be very close to the original. He kept the car until around 1977 when he sold it to Anthony Bamforf, the chairman of the UK JCB excavator company. It was subsequently owned by S.F.(Tom) Perkins (USA) and is now in the ownership of fashion magnate Ralph Lauren, painted black. Price is still actively involved with the world of Bugatti and in recent years has produced (with the help of J-L Arbey) several picture albums devoted to the early 8-cylinder touring cars; the type 40; the types 44 and 49; the types 46 and 50 and the type 57. On 3rd January 2010 an internet advert offered a type 59 engine "kit" for sale which was said to be from the "late" Barry Price. Whether the advertiser intended to refer to Barrie Price is uncertain. Barrie did in fact build a type 59 "recreation" and is quite likely to have had certain components left over. However, he is said to still be alive and well. All our best wishes Barrie ! |
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