MOTOR CARS | 145The car that we present here is one of the most visibly recognisable
pre-war sports racing cars to survive from those halcyon days. It
is a car that Geoff Seaton notably described as ‘the most famous
Lagonda of all’, and it is one of the few cars of any period that have
come to be known simply by its number plate, in this special case
even that is simply abbreviated to ‘EPE’.
12111 is without doubt an automotive icon, heralding from the
days when there truly were ‘all rounders’ - cars that with a few
tweaks to their form or formula campaigned in all manner of events.
From a brief spell behind the wheel it is easy to appreciate the
car’s immense appeal to the number of luminaries who have been
privileged to have owned her. The Rapide is fast, comfortable
and straightforward to drive making it ultimately a very rewarding
experience. But the best aspect of all is that the car simply oozes
its history. Were there not a badge or sticker on her, you would still
be able to tell that this war horse has an incredible tale to tell, a
story that begins nearly 80 years ago.
It is perhaps an overlooked fact that the name of the Lagonda Motor
Company of Staines in Middlesex originated from the Ohio District of
Lagonda where its founder Wilber Gunn hailed from. Setting up shop
in 1906, it was nearly 20 years before chief engineer Arthur Davidson
designed a 2-litre overhead-valve engined model which established
the company as a sporting marque.
At the 1933 London Motor Show two important new Lagonda
models were unveiled: the 1,104cc Rapier with twin-overhead
camshaft engine and the 4½-litre M45 which employed an overhead-
valve six-cylinder proprietary engine, manufactured by Meadows.
Here at last was a Lagonda sports car which was capable of
genuinely high performance, not only by the standards of the time,
but enduringly so – even today.In 1935, two additional models were also introduced. Both shared
the same shorter, lighter chassis frame and were entitled the 4½-litre
Rapide and the 3½-litre. Unfortunately, this multiplicity of models
added to the company’s post-Depression financial problems, and
even the notable victory in the 1935 Le Mans 24-Hour Race came
too late to save the company from collapse. It looked as if Lagonda
was about to absorbed by Rolls-Royce – as had Bentley Motors –
but that summer it was rescued by entrepreneur Alan Good, who
appointed the revered W. O. Bentley himself as new chief designer.‘W.O.’ took Lagonda straight into the luxury car market in 1936 with
the new LG45 model. It featured longer springs and Luvax dampers,
while retaining the successful and well-proven M45-model Meadows
six-cylinder engine and chassis. Bentley also directed his attention to
improving the proprietary engine, and his modifications emerged in
the ‘Sanction III’ power units introduced at the London Motor Show
that very same year.It was against this background that special competition variants of
the LG45 had been tailor-made at Staines Bridge for the Lagonda
company’s experienced and battle-hardened quasi-works racing
team, Fox & Nicholl Limited, of Tolworth, Surrey.