Riley Elf MKII 1966
General Information
Released in 1961 as the "luxurious" versions of the Mini, both the Wolseley Hornet and the Riley Elf were designed with longer slightly finned rear wings and longer boots. Inside, the Elf bore all of the trappings of luxury synonymous with British cars at that time. It's interior was lined with wood trim and leather upholstery while additional chrome brightened up the exterior.
The wheel base remained the same as the Mini but the overall length was slightly increased to 3.27m (10'8"). The rubber/hydrolastic suspension which worked well in the Minis was also incorporated into the Riley Elf and Wolseley Hornet.
Both the Elf and the Hornet have very distinctive Grille designs together with chrome bumpers, overriders and larger dimension chrome hub caps and wheel trims.
Inside the Elf was given a full width wood veneer dashboard which was the idea of Christopher Milner, the sales manager for Riley. The seats were fully encased in leather and more luxurious carpets were fitted.
The bodies were built at Fisher and Ludlow under the Fisholow brand name which can be evidenced by an identity plate fixed onto the right side fitch panel under the bonnet.
The engine was the 998cc version of the Cooper power unit incorporating a SU HS2 carburettor and generating 38bhp which gave the cars a top speed of 77mph and the significant increase in torque made them more fun to drive.
The MKII cars came with increased braking power in the form of front drum brakes with twin loading shoes to cope with the increase in power output.
Sold
Information
Manufacturer – Riley
Model – Elf MKII
Year – 1966
Engine Size – 998cc
Transmission – Manual
Fuel – Petrol
History Report
We acquired this lovely little Riley Elf MKII in 2018, unusually for these cars the body work was rock solid and the paintwork, although in need of a good polish, was extremely tidy. The engine ran like a little sewing machine. However, the rest of the car was in need of some serious TLC.
So, we set about sorting this out. We stripped everything from the car including the seats, the carpets and all the trim, dashboards and gauges. We took the windows out. All the Chrome work went off to be re-plated and the dashboard went off to be re-lacquered. The seats were sent away to our trimmers who also replaced the headlining and all of the interior trims. The badges were very tatty so were sent away to a specialist in Birmingham to be replated and re-enamelled. All 5 wheels were sandblasted, powder coated and fitted with new tyres. We pumped up the hydrolastic suspension and checked all the mechanical components replacing anything faulty along the way. When the engine was refitted into the car the electrics were thoroughly checked and we replaced the starter motor, solenoid and battery. The clutch cable was replaced at the same time.
We then set about rebuilding the car.
The new leather seats were refitted along with the new carpet and headlining.
The newly chromed window surrounds were refitted to the glass and then refitted to the car with new rubber seals.
The dashboard was then reinstalled into the car together with a new wooden steering wheel, horn push and new indicator stalk. All the chrome work including the newly re-enamelled badges were fitted. The car was the reunited with its wheels and given a set of new number plates. The paintwork was thoroughly cleaned and mopped by a local detailing expert. An MOT was passed with flying colours in February 2021.
We are delighted to show off our beautiful little matching numbers Riley Elf presented in the classic colour combination of Arianca Beige and Old English white.
We invite you to come and view this stunning little motor car.
https://youtu.be/d400W_CZHLc
https://youtu.be/hTyjLcs2Z2w