1934 Wolseley Hornet Special Eustace Watkins Daytona 4 Seater

A variation of the Hornet Special, but this particular purchaser would have chosen the Coachbuilding Firm of Eustace Watkins to cloth the dynamic factory produced rolling chassis to his or her particular taste. Eustace Watkins was the Chelsea based London main dealer for Wolseley, and in collaboration with Whittingham and Mitchel of New Kings Road, produced the Hornet Eustace Watkins Daytona Specials, a very desirable variant in their day and an exciting beast now in the 21^st century. Available from 1932 until 1935, the Special bodied Hornets offered great performance and indeed achieved success at sporting events, most notably at the LCC Brooklands Relay Race of 1932 where a trio of Hornets averaged 77.5mph for 270 miles!

We pick up the history of this Eustace Watkins Daytona Special in 1957, when it resided in Kent before finding its way to Lyme Regis in 1969. Its current owner purchased the Wolseley in 1973 in a similar condition to the one it can be seen in today, and promptly put the sporting car into dry storage, where it has remained ever since. The styling and lines are lovely on this Wolseley and we believe that it is in very original condition, that originality could be preserved with some sympathetic restoration. The interior and hood are well worn. The mechanicals appear to be complete and also original, but will need an overhaul. Overall, it is a super project and a very rare find.

The history file contains correspondence (including from the DVLC), an MOT test certificate from 1969, an RF60 continuation book, a V5 document and the V5C registration certificate.

Auction Date: 1 March 2024