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The Allard Clipper was first created in the UK in 1953 by the sports car maker Sydney Allard. Despite winning the 1952 Monte Carlo Rally in a sports car of his own design, the sales of Allard sports cars were swamped by manufacturers like Jaguar and so Sydney Allard decided to design an economical car. The Allard Clipper was designed by David Gottleib and had an “indestructible” plastic body that was made by Hordern-Richmond Ltd. This made it the first car to have a plastic body. It was powered by a 346cc Villiers twin engine that powered one of the rear wheels.
Unfortunately the Allard Clipper was to suffer from many problems that included cooling and weak drive shafts and so manufacture ceased in 1955 after only about twenty vehicles were made. It is believed to date that only two vehicles still exist. One vehicle is in the Hammond Collection (Kent, UK) whilst the other is believed to be in a museum in Germany.
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