http://www.completekitcar.co.uk September 2019 63ABOVE: Interior
is basic, but well
crafted.LEFT: Peter’s
brother Tim now
maintains the PJR.BELOW: Unusual
placement of lights
are most likely due
to later regulations.cleaning and painting the spokes on his
chosen set of wire wheels.
There are classic touches all over the
Sports, however, this is more than a mere
homage to vintage styling of the ’40s and
’50s, and much of its construction wouldn’t
look out of place on a sports car of that
era. Like the Morgans and MGs that
inspired the build, the PJR also makes use
of a wooden ash frame to hold the formed
aluminium bodywork in place – both of
which were fabricated by Peter.
He spent many hours sanding away at
the frame and bodywork buck – an item
which in itself was a work of art according to
widow Liz – and he wouldn’t use either until
he felt they were absolutely perfect. Peter
certainly wasn’t above throwing anything
away and starting again if something wasn’t
quite right, no matter how much work was
involved getting to that stage. He also knew
when to pick his own battles and certain
jobs, like fabricating the fuel tank and
shortening the propshaft, were outsourced to
save both time and head scratches.
But for the most part, this is Peter’s car
and there is little on it that he didn’t do
himself. Inside he trimmed everything, right
down to the pump-up ‘Whoopee Cushion’
seating, and outside he painted and prepared
every single panel by hand. Being fond of
the traditional, rather than the modern
and conventional, meant that he grabbed
the brush instead of the spray can. This
methodical process may have taken its time- 16 years in fact – but the finished result
was something that Pete was deeply very
proud of.
He envisaged a shape that harked back
to the sports cars he owned and dreamed of
owning in his youth, which tended to be pre-
war sports cars in the mould of the T-series
MGs and his old Morgan. Speak to anyone
who knew Peter best and one car that always
springs into conversation is the Morgan
4/4 he comprehensibly rebuilt in the early
’60s. It should come as no surprise, then,
that the design he embarked on had various
similarities to that car, but more on that later.
The build truly began in ’86 when Peter
found a rusty heap of an early ’64 MGB
to act as his creation’s donor, and a nearby
lock-up to take it apart in. Once all of the
sporting mechanicals were freed and grafted
into a rolling chassis, Peter used his acetylene
torch to cut up the early B’s leftovers like
a Christmas turkey and placed its remains
in a nearby skip. Space, or lack of it, was a
constant concern for him, however, now that
only the bare necessities were left he was able
to fit the build into his workshop at home.
This change of location was crucial as with a
growing family, among other commitments,
Peter couldn’t devote all of his time to
building the PJR. In other words, he was in
it for the long run.
The only real downside to this steady,
one step at a time progress was hearing
the comments of “still at it Peter?” and the
equally annoying “not finished yet?” from
over the fence. But really these words only
acted as stimulus to crack on whenever he
could and there was little else that could
stop him from working on the car whenever
he got the chance. Not even a broken ankle
could stop play as he sat in his wheelchair“THIS IS MORE THAN A MERE
HOMAGE TO V INTAGE ST Y LING”
060 PJR.indd 63 01/08/2019 12:45 pm