1992 Allard J2X'

We are delighted to be able to offer what is considered to be one of the, if not the, finest J2X replicas ever built. Recognised by the Allard Registry and the only right-hand-drive car ever built, this car took years to build.

Why so long? Well, it is the very first toolroom example, hand-built by engineer Carl Wade as a proof of work prototype. A later limited run of left-hand-drive cars, heavily modified to meet Federal legislation, were sold in the 1990s by Hardy Motors.

Having undergone extensive re-commissioning only 1,100 miles ago it’s fighting fit. As you can see, the work was significant and wide-ranging and included the removal and full rebuilding of the engine, partial rewiring, a new radiator, hoses, bonnet and a number of upgrades to improve its driveability. Heck, it even had a full dyno session at the famous engine builder and historic race car specialist Stanton Motorsports to enable it to fulfil its considerable potential.

Which is all a bit OTT, surely? Not at all. The owner is a talented amateur racer who’s used the car at places like Spa, Nürburgring, Goodwood and Brands Hatch, which means he insists that every single mechanically component has to be as good as it can possibly be.

He also used the car as a daily driver for pleasure and, as he explained, the Allard has to be able to brake as quickly and efficiently as any modern car if he’s to use it safely in modern traffic.

Not that he’s ignored the car’s roots. He’s been very careful to maintain the car’s patina, so while the mechanical components are shiny and new, the rest has been kept ‘as is’ which is a thoughtful and clever tactic and one that we approve of setting the car apart from the over-restored garage queens we see.

Only for sale due to the owner’s ill health, it is being offered with a very reasonable guide price, making this your chance to get your hands on a slice of Allard history and for considerably less than it would cost you to prepare one to the same standard, which means the car’s impressive provenance comes for free!

Look, this isn’t going to take long because there isn’t much bodywork and what there is is extraordinary.

Most noticeable are the cycle wings that hug the front wheels and tyres – and cycle wings are never a bad thing, are they? Then there are the swollen rear wings, long, long bonnet, and rear set cockpit.

Throw in a HUGE bonnet scoop, two aero ‘screens, a pair of roll bars, chrome rear wing protectors, wire wheels, leather bonnet straps, racing roundels, a massive pair of headlamps and a side-mounted spare wheel and you’ve got every 1950’s schoolboy’s fantasy car. And that’s without mentioning the pair of side-exit exhausts…

This is no one-trick pony though because in addition to the aero screens, the J2X Tribute comes with a matching leather tonneau cover, centre split with a zip, which gives a degree of weather-proofing for those times when Mother Nature shows her spiteful side and rains on you while you’re out. Should the car’s new owner fancy using it in the wet roundabouts would be huge fun/terrifying (delete as applicable) depending on your personal attitude towards risk.

Of course, some of the stuff is more subtle. Like the aluminium bonnet hand-crafted by the wonderfully named The Dorset Copperfish (celebrity of The Restorers T.V show) at a cost of £1,500 – plus half as much again to paint it.

Or the newly built splined hubs for the powder-coated new wire wheels, which were custom-made and supplied by Orsen Equipment, setting the owner back £2,662. Unequal in size – the fronts are 6” x 15”, while the rears are an inch wider, the diameter being stepped down an inch as proper racing rubber isn’t available for the original 16” rims - they are fitted with matching Avon CR6 ZZ tyres, 185/70R15 on the front and 215/70R15 on the rear.

As we will never tire of explaining, our experience shows that matching high-quality tyres like this are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly. Their presence does not, of course, preclude the need for a thorough inspection - something the vendor would welcome, by the way – but it does perhaps give you a shortcut into their attitude towards their car’s maintenance and use.

There is almost nothing bad to say about it other than it has a few – and we do mean ‘a few’ – stonechips. Really, that’s it.

As you might have guessed, the obsessive nature of this tribute means that the interior hasn’t been neglected. Finished in burgundy ox-blood leather cross-stitched in a fetching diamond pattern, it is still in an absolutely stunning, albeit lightly patinated, condition giving that authentic feel.

It’s got a machine-turned dashboard too, which acts in concert with the array of dials and switches to give a convincing period-feel to the cockpit, something the original Bluemel’s Brooklands steering wheel and the novel round rear-view mirror help in no small way. (Included is the original 17” Bluemel's Brooklands steering wheel which was replaced with the current 15” version to accommodate the 6' 4” owner)

Safety is taken care of via a pair of full Willans FIA-approved harnesses bolted to a pair of Hayward & Scott roll bars, plus a fire extinguisher and an electrical cut-off switch.

The boot is, well, it’s in an almost new condition. Obviously. It also contains a few spares. Please see the photos for details.

What can we say about the engine? As you can hear on the video (volume up, obvs) it starts immediately and has the sort of engine and exhaust sound that turn grown men’s legs wobbly.

Rebuilt only 1,100 miles and two oil changes ago, so now fully run-in, the work included new forged pistons, connecting rods and a four-bolt crankshaft, all fully balanced. There’s a pair of pressure-tested Edelbrock cylinder heads too, plus a new oil pump, distributor, hydraulic tappets, valves, seals, and gaskets all topped off with a new clutch, master cylinder and race release bearing. A custom-made oil catch tank is fitted for safety.

The Borg Warner T10(S) gearbox was fully refurbished and it mates to a new, custom-built and fully balanced propshaft to the rear axle.

The video of the dyno run at historic race car specialist and engine builder Stanton Motorsports shows an easy 388bhp and 412lb/ft of torque....and will give a little more as the engine loosens up! Given the car only weighs 978kgs – and that includes half a tank of fuel - that’s enough, surely?

It’s not just about the power though because the brand new Titan Wilwood four-pot race calipers and ventilated Porsche front disc brakes are so effective they came with a nigh-on four-figure price tag - plus fitting. The rear brakes are equally convincing being discs, a choice that also demonstrates the owner’s impeccable taste. The good work continues because the whole lot is connected via a split front/rear brake system with separate fluid reservoirs, a manual brake balance system, and new master cylinders for both front and rear circuits.

We’ve touched on the recommissioning already but you’ll note that the bill for labour alone from Royal Kustoms was almost £6,000. Please take the time to look at the invoices and photos to fully understand the care that went into it.

The engine bulkhead is lined with machine-turned alloy and even features a light so you can admire the engine in the dark. The wiring is as neat as any sane chap could ever hope to see, and almost all of the nuts feature a painted mark to show at a glance that they have been torques correctly and haven’t loosened in the meantime.

The underside is (and you’re ahead of me by now, aren’t you?) all but flawless.

Things to address? Well, those with a hint of OCD in their makeup (i.e. me) would want to turn the air filter cover round so it aligns more pleasingly but that aside, we can’t think of anything.

The J2X Tribute has a new MOT running until next June 2023, gained, of course, with no advisories, something it’s done for the past seven years. There’s a thick stack of paperwork too, plus dozens of photographs charting its recent recommissioning and detailed engine build.

Look, there are kit cars and there are factory sanctioned continuation cars costing millions of pounds – and somewhere in-between are cars like this, accurate tributes that utilize the advances in engineering and technology to faithfully reproduce the look of a vehicle but one that is underpinned by solid 21st century techniques and materials.

This this an Allard J2X that is fully fit for purpose on today’s crowded roads, which means you could drive it to a hillclimb or track-day, compete at the very highest level, and then drive it back home, all accompanied to the sort of visceral stimulation many of us suspect won’t be available to our grandchildren.

That it’s achingly pretty and can be maintained by an enthusiast with a well-equipped garage is further proof that you can still enjoy supercar levels of performance at a very reasonable cost.

How reasonable? Well, despite the car’s rarity, provenance, and huge recent bills, we think it will probably sell for somewhere between £55,000 and £65,000, which is a bit of a bargain in our books, especially when you consider it previously sold in 2011 at Sotheby's Salon Prive for £45,000 and that's before it had all the recent work carried out.

Yes, that’s still a big chunk of cash but when you factor in that it probably won’t depreciate, it might actually turn out to be a shrewd financial buy for the canny enthusiast who’s tired of earning low interest on their savings and wants one last hurrah before Elon takes over the world…

Viewing is always encouraged. This particular car is located with us at The Market HQ near Abingdon; we are open weekdays between 9am-5pm, to arrange an appointment please use the Contact Seller button at the top of the listing. Feel free to ask any questions or make observations in the comments section below, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.