Description 1938 Earls Court Motor Show car; extremely rare Corsica-bodied Sports model, one of only three made; four owners, the current for 47 years; never restored; always well-maintained and in regular use; vast history file; an absolute gem Like many car companies, the Coventry firm of Lea-Francis started life making bicycles, building their first motorcar in 1904.

Throughout the 1920s they concentrated on building fine small sports cars such as the highly successful P- and S-Type Hyper models fitted with the excellent 1.5-litre Meadows engine.

At their peak they were turning out 1,000 cars per year but trouble was never far below the surface.

Despite considerable competition success and a reliable and robust product range, a desire to produce their own engine caused a financial downward spiral from which the company could never quite recover.

Production in the early 1930s had dwindled to barely double-figures, with no cars at all leaving the factory in 1936.

The bones of the...