5. The Kingfisher Sprint

In 1980 Luton school teacher Roger King quit his job and sold his house to build the car he had been working on since 1973. Under a scheme to attract new business to the North-East, he leased a factory at Rothbury in the hills of Northumberland.

The Kingfisher car was in fact a development of a Mini Jem which King had bought. The body was chopped and enlarged, and wider wheel arches were added joined by an air dam at the front. Foglamp recesses were provided on some cars. The rear hatch was swept up at the back to provide a spoiler. The rear window came from a Datsun 120Y while at the front the VW Beetle screen was employed.

A range of models was planned, including a convertible, a family estate and a sports estate. In the end only about 35 Sprints were built - not all of them complete - before the firm went into receivership. No two cars were the same, and very few kits were sold complete. No mark numbers apply. Shells appear to have been numbered 001 upwards.

One Kingfisher Convertible was produced and it is still owned by Roger King.

Kingfisher also supplied (or at least advertised) various GRP and trim parts for the Mini Marcos Mk. IV plus a range of engine options for the Sprint including one with a Rajay turbocharger.

Richard Porter