1912 | Renault Lawton Brougham

1912 RENAULT LAWTON BROUGHAM
Chassis number:32570
Registration Number: LK7981
The Renault left the factory on the 8th March 1912 destined to be sent to ‘Limited’ the Renault term for cars to be sold in England. Arriving in England April 1912, the car was originally to be sold by a dealer named ‘Grose’ but eventually was delivered to another Renault Garage called ‘C. Jaquier’ in May of 1912. The registration number plate of LK7981 was given to the vehicle and this number plate relates to vehicles sold originally in Northwest London.
The Brougham coach work was made by a factory in London called ’Lawton’ a subsidiary of the Lawton Coach building company from Liverpool.
In 1963/64 information came that an early Renault car had come up for sale at Maples Department Store in London where the building was being demolished. Three old cars had been found in the cellars believed to have been stored there for many years.
Maples Stores said that the Renault had been originally owned by Soloman Joel & Maples Store traced their records and contacted the Joel Family in South Africa. The family said that they no longer wanted the car and Maples Stores then advertised it for sale to pay for the outstanding storage charges.
After many years of storage The car retained its lovely original condition, however the black paint had faded and crazed, yellow was chosen to give the car a brighter, more appealing look. The interior upholstery of the car is still original and in delightful condition. The car still retains the original front wings covered with elephant hide. The engine is still the same as the day it was purchased by the current owners with a classic very quiet running sound. This is clearly a low mile survivor and swings easily into life every time with a nudge of the starting handle.
From 1964 the second owner Mr Dennis Sharpe used the vehicle to drive on many Renault rallies, starting with “The London to Paris rally” followed by trips to Amsterdam, Rouen and finally “The Paris to Vienna rally”. Besides these rallies the car went to France to “Les Routieres de Jardis” car club concourse events.
It is said that Solomon Joel owned many cars and that each day he was chauffeur driven to work in London, the police would stop the traffic to allow his car to pass through unhindered by traffic problems and congestion. The only other London inhabitant to get this accolade was “The King”. The front wings said to be elephant hide are a further eccentricity of Solomon Joel who liked to personalise his cars with elements of his South African heritage. Solomon Joel died in 1931 and after his death his family sold all his possessions. The Renault car was not included in the sale leading to speculation that the car had been put into Maples store many years earlier.
The Sharpe brothers in their lifetime combined working tirelessly at their garage in Rayleigh, Essex with enthusiasm for collecting veteran, vintage and classic cars. Together with a passion for motorcycles, bicycles, motoring and railway memorabilia. The 1960s was a “golden time” for car collecting. The brothers traveled the country and the world to find hidden gems each with a fascinating history. This Renault is the last car to be sold from “The Sharpe family collection” because it was the car that gave the family so much pleasure.
The car is presented in excllent running condition with a real "Go anywhere" feel to it. The Lawton coachwork is very distinctive & Edwardian in appearance. The rear passenger compartment is completely original & in lovely order. The 12hp 4 cylinder side valve engine displaces a little over two litres & is sufficient to propel the car along well at B road speeds up to 60KPH or so. It is amazingly smooth & refined in its operation. An assortment of period brass lamps adorn the car in the appropriate places. All in all this is a wonderful time-warp car coming to the market for the first time in some 60 years.
This is a very very rare car with the only other one I know of regrettably being aboard the Titanic.