This is David Swann’s 1933 Brooklands Racer OUI 5670. The car is a recreation of KV5670, which was the red car of the red, white and blue team cars built by the Singer Competition Department shortly after it was established in April 1933. These cars competed in the Light Car Club Relay Races held at Brooklands in 1933 and 1934. The red and blue cars also raced at Donington Park in August 1933.
David’s interest in them stems from his discovery of the white team car (19B) in June 2004. Following his unsuccessful attempts to persuade the owner to part company with 19B, and it’s temporary loan to the Brooklands Museum, David’s attention focused on tracking down the red team car. He found that shortly after finishing the 1934 Relay Race, the red car was sold to the One Tree Motor Co., Huddersfield. Their Sales Director, J.D. Middlebrook, raced it later that summer at Donington Park.
In May 1935, KV5670 appeared at Green Bros in Leeds where it was purchased by Rex King-Clark. Later that month Rex traded in the Singer for an MG J4 at Allens Motor Mart in Bradford. The last recorded owner, George Sherwen, owned a garage on the same road as Allen Motor Mart. According to DVLA records, KV5670 is believed to have been scrapped in 1946.
Inspired by Rex, the oldest surviving member of the BDRC and one of two pre-war Brooklands drivers left, David set about recreating the lost ‘Brooklands’ racer in April 2005. The basis of his project came from one of the very first production 9 Sports, chassis 45063, registered ten days after the 1932 Motor Show, and using pictures from Rex’s meticulous photograph albums and diaries, which yielded many previously unseen pictures of KV5670, David completed the car in April 2007.
Wikepedia tells us that Rex King-Clark MBE, MC was a British Army World War 11 pilot, racer, photographer, author and diarist, who once headed the Army Air Corps. He served in the Manchester Regiment from 1934, and in Palestine fighting Arab guerillas from 1936 to 1938, for which he was awarded the Military Cross. Outside his army career he raced cars, driving a Monoposto MGK4 at Brooklands in 1936, as well as achieving 59mph in a Lombard and racing a 1933 Singer 9 at Filey Sands. That Singer 9 was, as you can see from the photo, KV5670. Its recreated twin was the only Singer at the Brooklands Festival on 17 June. He was fortunate to be included in the special display of Brooklands cars. Highlight of the day was the short sprint on the original Byfleet Banking, and John Cobb’s 24-litre Napier-Railton pulling up behind him on his return to the club house enclosure!
