Crossley 10: Twice Restored

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As prewar cars go, Crossley is not particularly obscure and yet, for some reason, very few of its products survive. This 1932 10 Sports Tourer, for example, which came to light after long-term garage storage in 2014, is one of only three known to exist in Britain, plus a small handful in Australia. Fortunately, two careful owners ensured its survival until 2019, when it was bought by its new owner for restoration.

It wasn’t in a bad way and didn’t present the owner, an experienced restorer, with too much of a challenge. The engine had only recently been rebuilt and both the chassis and bodywork had survived well. Work progressed smoothly and, by 2021, it made its début at a Crossley rally.

It was there that disaster struck. Meeting a Range Rover careering down a country lane at speed, the Crossley was forced to take evasive action and steered onto a bank, causing it to overturn. The owner’s spirit was broken to see his hard work undone, but fortunately nothing else was. Once he’d come to term with the event, he went back into his garage, spanner in hand, and set about rebuilding it all over again.

Resplendent in its eye-catching original black and red colour scheme, the restored Crossley is a fine car for promenades and picnics and its owner is now enjoying it as intended. Read the full story of its salvation in the July issue of The Automobile, available now.

Words and photographs by Zack Stiling

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