100 | THE GOODWOOD REVIVAL SALE
The car’s story featured postwar in ‘The Autocar’ magazine’s ‘Talking
of Sports Cars’ series. It had achieved further fame in the ownership
of Dudley Folland. 0n the Qournal’s February 1 , 1949, edition ¶ under
the heading ‘The Folland Aston Martin’ – he was cited as being rightly
proud that ‘FGY409’ (as the car had been UK road-registered) was the
Aston Martin in which “...the late Richard Seaman, after confounding
the prophets by staying out of sight of the Frazer Nash-BMWs for
twelve laps, and twice breaking the Class E record for the circuit, the
second time at 7 .0 mph...¹ ¶ had competed in the 193 TT.
Having been returned to England by Hertzberger in 1939 the car
had “...fretted the war away in a Glasgow garage. Via Allan-Arnold
of Manchester it then passed into the hands of Jim Elwes...” (who)
“...ran the Aston on the road for about eighteen months, piling up a
substantial mileage and becoming progressively more enamoured
of a car which so entrancingly epitomized a great...tradition. Virtually
innocent of temperament and vices, the Aston proved as dependable
a bowler-hat machine as the heart could desire, and, with something
closely approaching 100bhp available on Pool...” (low-grade utility
petrol) “...was, frankly, a wolf in wolves’ clothing.”
Dudley Folland bought ‘FGY409’ in the summer of 1947, at which
time it represented the most potent British sports-racing car
available to compete in international endurance races. Here another
great name enters the story ¶ John Wyer, of postwar Aston Martin
works team and eventual Gulf-JW multiple Le Mans and World
Championship-winning fame.
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