Canada’s Campbell Sports Car Company – A Buckler Special Using Peel Body


Hi Gang…

Not to be confused with the Campbell Fiberglass Company which produced fiberglass boats and cars (known as “Hollywood Plastics”) in California….this “Campbell Sports Car Company” is from Canada and combines some of the best produced bodies, chassis, and designs from the UK for distribution in North American.

Great thanks goes to Richard Lewis, original Allied owner and builder, who recently shared these with me along with the following comment:

“Geoff…I got this in the mid ‘50s.  I wasn’t pleased with how the body looked, so I held out for the Allied Sports Car instead.”

So…let’s have a look and see what the brochures showed on this car which combines some well-known names:  Peel, Buckler, and Campbell.

Campbell Sports Car Company
Design and Construction of High Performance Sports Cars
122 Willowdale Street
Willowdale, Ontario  Canada
Sole Agents For Canada & North America

The Buckler Multitube Sports Car:

This new sports car is being constructed in Canada to compete in the low priced field sports car market and is based upon the highly successful Buckler multitube chassis developed and produced in England for sports car and competition car specials.

The Campbell Sports Car Company has undertaken to develop and produce in limited numbers, a Buckler Special utilizing the English Ford engine and suspension components along with a minimum competition body of our own design and manufacture.  A general touring shell in aluminum will be available also.

The prototype car is going to be entered in as many club and national events as is practical in order to prove the designs in the field and gain valuable experience for further development.

The engine is a 4 cylinder Ford side valve unit, sleeved to 1096 cc and fitted with special aluminum head and twin SU carbs.  Special close ratio gears and other suspension components are utilized, all of which are modified Ford units.  The car is available in kit form for approximately $1000 or complete for approximately 2000 F.O.B. Toronto, Canada.

Fiberglass Bodies:

The Peel fiberglass body shell is designed to fit the Buckler multitube chassis and similar units with a wheelbase approximately 90 inches.  The idea chassis is the English Ford Anglia 1948 throughout 1953.

The Ford based special has been developed in England and is now offered with this original body shell as the idea answer to low cost sports cars.

Peel Sports Car Body Shell In Fiberglass

Developed after research on the aerodynamic properties of the streamlined racing shell.  The Peel body shell offers you more performance and appearance.

Laminated glass fiber construction ensures maximum rigidity with minimum weight.  Net weight 60 lbs.  Will fit any suitable chassis approximately 90 inch wheelbase.

$390 F.O.B. Detroit

Summary:

Thanks again to Richard Lewis for sharing these rare sales brochures with us today.  It’s rare to see a fiberglass car being offered in the ‘50s in Canada.  Hopefully, we’ll find some history on these cars that we can share here in the near future.

So what did the final prototype car look like that is discussed in the brochures above?  Was it a match to the information and pictures shown on the “Peel Page” of their brochure?  And where is this car today?

So many questions to research….and so much fun to find out!  You too can join in the research and share what you know – here at Forgotten Fiberglass 🙂

Hope you enjoyed the story, and until next time…

Glass on gang…

Geoff


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Comments

Canada’s Campbell Sports Car Company – A Buckler Special Using Peel Body — 4 Comments

    • It is true that Bucklers in the UK never made a deal. In Canada the deal seems to have been a direct arrangement between Campbell Sports Cars and Peel Engineering in the Isle of Man.

  1. Buckler was a fairly competitive company in sports racing car and kart construction in England during the 1950s. More can be found here:

    http://www.bucklercars.com/

    This car looks pretty cool, as it appears to have styling influences from Frazer Nash and Arnolt Bristol at first glance. The Ford side valve mill would have made it possible to run in 750 Motor Club racing events in the UK under the 1100cc Formula which was incredibly popular in the UK throughout the late 1950s/early 1960s from what I’ve studied.

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