Its foundations as a major motor manufacturer having been established by a highly successful cyclecar, Singer went from strength to strength and by the end of the 1920s was Britain's third largest car producer behind Austin and Morris.

Like rivals MG, Singer recognised the validity of the adage 'win on Sunday, sell on Monday' and pursued an active competitions programme during the 1930s, commencing with the Sports and Le Mans versions of the Nine that had been introduced in 1932.

The Le Mans had resulted from a successful venture into endurance racing, when a Nine Sports took 13th place in the 1933 Le Mans 24-Hour Race.

But it was in trials events that the sporting Nines proved particularly effective, successfully challenging the previously dominant MGs.

Capitalising on the Nine's success, in May 1933 Singer had introduced a 1½-Litre Sports based on the existing six-cylinder 14hp model, and predictably followed that up with a Le Mans version in '34.

The six-cylinder 1½-Litre's 7th...