1948 Lea-Francis 14 hp Sports

A little spirited driving in a 1948 Lea-Francis 14 hp Sports. These hand-built English sports cars are so much fun to drive. The light weight of the aluminum body, coupled with Lea-Francis's own 4 cylinder twin camshaft engine, makes the 14hp Sports a delight to drive on twisty roads. The engine has plenty of low-end torque, so one does not have to change gears to maintain a steady pace. the 4-speed gearbox has synchromesh only 2nd, 3rd and 4th, so 1st gear is often not used. 111 of these cars were built between 1947 and 1949. Because they were hand-built, they were expensive and, sadly, could not compete commercially with Jaguar's mass-produced XK120. The Lea-Francis Owners' Club reports that as of 2019, 46 of these cars are owned by members, and other examples are known to exist. A high survivability rate for cars from that era, likely due to the high standards of engineering demanded by Lea-Francis Cars Ltd.

Added 17 Aug 2026