In need of some Ruddspeed help!

[barwick27]

I'm looking for some help with any information / history / photos / stories on the late Ken Rudd or Ruddspeed cars and their modifications.

Steve Grey from Brooklands Motor Company who is based at Brooklands will shortly be launching the official Ruddspeed website. Steve is no stranger to Ruddspeed as he owners and has restored the 1954 AC Ace (RPO 826), which became the Rudd Racing Team development car and demonstrator, this is first Ace personally owned, tuned and raced by Ken Rudd.

Steve found the car after it was dragged out of a back garden in Birmingham where it sat for many years. During the restoration he kept as much originality in the car and has retained the original patina.

What's my role in all of this...well as a Volvo Amazon owner (I've owned roughly 15 cars in my time including 5 or 6 123GT and a 2 door that had a Ruddspeed engine and dash modifications, but sadly not an original factor modified car).

Besides the usual AC, Healey and maybe Alf models that Steve knows about I'm helping him gather as much information as possible on the various Volvo's that were modified or tweaked down in Worthing by Ken and his team. As all the old records were destroyed when the company folded, there is very little information on the cars and their modifications

So I'm wondering if anyone out there currently has a Volvo that was given the Rudd treatment, or maybe you used to own one but sold it, maybe you bought one from new or you knew someone that did...where are the cars that were used in the various articles on Ruddspeed (like the 4 door 5 NBP seen in a 1964 ad), or maybe you just have a story on Ken or one of the cars....any information not matter how small we'd love to hear about it.

Better still if you have photos of the cars, details of the modifications that were carried out...maybe you worked with Ken on Worthing or you knew someone that worked on the cars when they were being converted?

I know the cars had various type of modification depending on the customers budget, but no matter how small we'd still like to hear about the cars.

Please spread the word as we loved to be able to add any information, photos, spec or stories to the website. The new website will hopefully be launched in the next few months, but we will always be updating it with new stories of the cars that were given the treatment so no worries if it takes a little longer.

The same goes for other marques of cars as well, even if you don't know of any Volov's with modification but have something on an AC, Healey, Alfa etc that would be good too. We've heard rumours Ken modified a Mustang too but we don't know anything else...so as I mentioned earlier, any information no matter how small would be great, we don't mind doing the leg work if all you have is a name or an old address...we'd just like to build a record of as many of these cars were modified and how many survive today.

You can reply here on the forum or email either myself or Steve directly with information, we are more than happy to cover the cost of scanning old documents or photos if you don't have the equipment to hand to do so. Or I'm more than happy to meet to up for a chat and take photos myself.

Our details are:
barwick@me.com
steve@ruddspeed.com
www.ruddspeed.com (current holding page)
Or call Steve on 07860 912217

I've attached a couple of the old ads using Volvo.

Many thanks for any information, leads or suggestions in advance

Cheers

Peter

[123gt]

Brickboard website has`the attached thread on Ruddspeed.

http://www.brickboard.com/RWD/volvo/...ed_engine.html

Best of luck in tracking down details. It will be a most interesting site when up and running.

[Derek UK]

Thanks to the link to my post on BB. I do have a folder that contains some original price lists and info from Rudds. I guess I should get them all scanned for the new site. As said, all of the info was lost when they moved from Worthing. I was told that all of the info on the cars and parts supplied was in a school type exercise book and that went in the skip with the rest of the stuff. Sacrilege!

[barwick27]

hi Derek, your right about the records...I heard they went in a skip or maybe burnt...what a terrible loss as it would be wonderful to have now.

But these thing happen, so hopefully with the help of any Ruddspeed owners we can build up a list of cars, engines and mods that were done over the years. it can always be added to as and when we have new information.

Anything you have would be wonderful and we can give credit or thanks on the website. it all helps build up some of the lost history with the brand.

I've had a couple of good replies from a couple of social media sites that I put the same message up on, I'm putting the information together and hope to make some sort of sense of it for the new website.

Thanks again for any help, it really does help not matter how small the information.

Peter

[asneddon]

I 'probably' have a Ruddspeed P1800. Its got the rivets in the head for where the plate should be. I'll have the head off at some stage in the near future, and was planning on taking quite a few photos of any head work thats been done.

Not much help, but if you want a record of cars that have been Rudd'ed, my chassis number is 5817.

Looking foward to the site when its up.

[barwick27]

Thanks for the information, it all helps no matter how small you think it is. Look forward to seeing the photos of the rebuild and also when it's up and running.
Cheers

Peter

[barwick27]

Well, the Ruddspeed site is up and running. For the moment it's geared towards the AC marque, but that's because we need your help in locating and supplying any details, photos, stories of Ruddspeed Volvo's.

The address is www.ruddymad.com

There are a couple of images and old ads in the gallery section, but we'd like to keep adding and get as much information as we can on the modified Volvo Ruddspeed cars...

Any help and information would be great.

cheers

Peter

[222s]

Saw a Ruddspeed 122S at a show the other week (classics on the common, in Harpenden) - even had wire wheels, which the owner said were listed on the original bill of sale that was still with the car. I'll try to dig out the pics

[barwick27]

fantastic...would love to see those. cheers 222s

[agent_strangelove]

Great web page. That red AC is amazing....