Cars

This lot will be auctioned via Iconic Auctioneers, The Iconic Sale at Race Retro 2025 - Collectors' Cars on Saturday the 22nd of February, Stoneleigh Park, Stoneleigh Rd, Coventry, CV8 2LG. , If youre reading this listing its highly likely that you are the sort of person whonods appreciatively at a passing classic, regardless of the badge, because, above all, we are enthusiasts. We all remember the first car that made us smile, perhaps your dads car or maybe a shiny MG or Austin Healey that passed you every morning whilst standing at the bus stop as a fourteen-year old on the way to school.The remarkable motor car on offer here owes its very existence to that level of nostalgia, generated from a fifteen-year-olds first experience of going fast in a road-rally prepared Chevette back in the day. With later success, came the sports cars that one expects to see in an enthusiasts garage, and yet that memory lingered, could that first experience be recreated? With a healthy budget and some firm ideas, that formative memory grew into a compulsion to create something very special.No ordinary undertaking, and with only a handful of specialist workshops with proven experience of combining precision engineering and design flair, the talented team at Retropower Ltd., of Leicestershire were duly commissioned. Not many workshops would be brave enough to resto-mod a car for, Gordon Murray, one of the worlds leading automotive designers, however, they had been tasked with that project and he was delighted, declaring his Mk1 Escort A masterpiece of functionality and classic understatementthe car is more than Id ever hoped for.However, understatement, was clearly missing in the brief for Project Vader and the photographic record of the 18-month transformation of a rather tired hatch-backed, 1983 Vauxhall Chevette L in faded Yellow to the spectacular one-off motorcar we see today is breathtaking. The Chevette HSR enjoyed much success in Group 4 rallying in the past and its distinctive looks with a wide rear end tapering to a slightly narrower front was much admired, however, Project Vader was never intended to be some half-baked rally homage, but a new car, with performance to match its looks.The record of works is exhaustive, and well therefore highlight the key points that make this car unlike any other.Happily, motoringjournalist Jonny Smithinterviewed Callum Seviour ofRetropowerabout the build and Jonnys subsequent road test is a joy to watch on hisYouTube channel, The Late Brake Show.Taken back to its bare shellwhich wasthenbracedthegearbox and axle tunnels were enlarged to house the upgraded mechanicals whilst the car was fitted with a triangulated cage,andthe extra-wide GRP body-kit was extensively refinished for the perfect fit. One of Paul Exons highly rated C20XE Redtopengine, rated at 265bhp at the flywheel, was then mated toa Quaife six-speed sequential gearbox. The interior speaks for itself;the carbon fibre trim, push button controls and digital displayhas more than a hint ofKnightrider. The attention to detail is exquisite, from the raised Vader badgeat he rearto thesubtly re-finished period Vauxhall emblem on the bonnet.The odometer currently reads some 42,000 miles which is largely immaterial in what is essentially a new car. The project took 18-months with an investment of close to £200,000 and the spectacular result is unquestionably unique in the proper sense of the word.Further technical and specification to follow.