‘Ahead of its time’: wooden car goes under the hammer in Bath

Hustler DIY kit car was crafted by former Rolls-Royce engineer and school woodwork teacher in 1980s

It has had one careful owner, has never failed an MOT and there is no way the body work is going to rust.

But whoever buys John Brazier’s car at auction in Bath next month will have to get used to some pretty odd looks when they take it out for a spin.

The body of the six-wheeled Hustler car and interior were made out of wood by Brazier, a retired Bristol woodwork and metalwork teacher.

Though it looks like something out of an animated film, the Hustler is expected to attract attention from around the world when it goes under the hammer.

“It is quite possibly the most amazing car I have ever seen,” said the auctioneer Andrew Stowe. “It’s like something from Thunderbirds.

“Everything is made to an incredible standard. Even the steering wheel and gear knob were handmade from wood. It was a real labour of love.

“Our client is keen to point out that it turned heads wherever he drove, and it was fondly nicknamed the Popemobile by local children.

“A wooden car could almost be something dreamt up by Elon Musk – a sustainable way to build cars, an eco-friendly alternative to the mass-production car plants of today. It was remarkably way ahead of its time. Who knows, in 30 years we may all be driving wooden cars.”

The Hustlers were kit cars made by the Gloucestershire designer William Towns, who also created the angular Aston Martin Lagonda.

Fewer than 400 Hustlers were built by motor enthusiasts, mostly using fibreglass. Brazier, who worked at a comprehensive in Bristol, was one of those who opted to build his out of wood.

The car has Mini wheel subframes and an Austin Allegro engine and seats, and Brazier – a former Rolls-Royce engineer who worked on Concorde in the 1960s – built whatever he could out of wood over three summers in the 1980s.

Brazier, 76, said he had decided to sell the car because he could no longer drive it. “I’d love to occasionally see it being driven around but I just hope it goes to a good home.”

He said he had built it out of water-resistant plywood and ash, using his summer holidays from school to do the many hundreds of hours of work.

It could do “well over 60mph” and he always felt safe in it, he said. After a van collided with him because the driver was so startled by his car’s appearance, he got the dents out of the bonnet by dousing it with water and then ironing the damage out. “The wood just pops up again – you wouldn’t know it had been damaged.”

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Brazier added: “I’ll be sad to see it go, sadder to see it in my garage. The main thing is that other people will have the joy of looking at it.”

It served as the main family vehicle for 13 years, taking the Brazier family the length and breadth of the country on holiday. He would also drive it into his Brislington school.

It is roomy, able to sit up to eight people: two in the front, two in the middle and four on twin bench seats at the back.

The sales blurb says the attention to detail on the vehicle is “second to none”, including a wooden gear knob, handbrake handle and steering wheel. The car also has a tape deck and a glove compartment with cup holders.

The particulars say it stopped being driven after a battery went flat. “No attempt has been made to start it since the early 2000s.”

It is expected to sell for £2,000 to £3,000 at Auctioneum’s fine art, antiques and classic cars sale on 1 September.

The headline of this article was amended on 21 August 2023. The auction is taking place in Bath, not in Bristol as an earlier version said.