JENSEN – AJS SPECIAL OPEN TOURER FROM 1931
£19,500.00
Description
1931 Jensen-AJS Open Tourer
‘CHAMBERLAIN SPECIAL’
Original registration ‘OJ 59’
£19,500
Background to AJS: AJS is a company better known for its motorcycle production. However, the company also produced commercial vehicles and radios plus a range of sidecars for which they established a body shop which also had a contract to build the “Clyno Nine” car bodies. When Clyno entered bankruptsy in 1929, AJS decided to design and make their own cars.
About 1000 cars, all “A chassis numbers” were built and sold during 1931 & 1932. Late in 1932 they decided to upgrade the car , mainly larger brakes and lowered radiator but they entered administration late in 1932 when Barclays Bank foreclosed on a large loan. All assets of the company were sold off including the car division to Willys-Overland Crossley. The sale included 34 of the new “D” series cars in rolling chassis form.
Jensen connection: One of these, “D2 chassis”, was sold to Chamberlain, King & Jones, the Birmingham distributor of AJS cars. The Jensen brothers (later Jensen Motors Ltd) were commissioned to build an open 4 seater model body Completed, it was known as “The Chamberlain Special” registered as ‘OJ 59’ and displayed at the 1932 London Motor show. Only one AJS version was made by the brothers who continued the car but using other manufacturers rolling chassis.
Peter Hubbard, seller of this car, founded the AJS Car Club in 1991 and was Chairman Until 2022. During this period the remnants of ‘OJ 59’ were found and purchased. Research led to the Beaulieu Car Museum who provided pictures of the car that had appeared in period magazines.
The car for sale was re-constructed by the seller, using a full size printout of the Beaulieu pictures to obtain all body dimensions and shapes.
Whilst the DVLA declined to reissue the original ‘OJ 59’ registration number when applied for in 2021, due to a new body, current rules indicate that the number may be reissued upon a re-application.
The car is sold with a valid V5C and period number ‘PXS 585’. An original image showing ‘OJ 59’ is shown for comparison purposes.
Contact me at – pahubbard@icloud.com
