A painstakingly recreated replica of the first ever Riley car has been launched at the Coventry Transport Museum and will soon gain a period-correct engine to match.
The reproduction of Percy Riley’s 1898 Voiturette has been built by members of the Riley Motor Club and Riley Register with the encouragement of William Riley’s grandson, Victor.
The ultimate plan is to get it on the road in time for Coventry's stint as the UK City of Culture 2021, with WMG, at the University of Warwick, providing a sponsorship of £2000 to help with the construction of the engine.
The Riley car company was formed in 1890 as the Bonnick Cycle Company of Coventry before William Riley Jr incorporated the Riley Cycle Company in 1896.
His son, Percy Riley, started his first car secretly, aged 16, in 1896 and completed its build in 1898 – then drove it to Stratford Upon Avon to test it. By 1903 the Riley Engine Company was established, and in 1919 the company changed its name to Riley (Coventry) Limited.
The car featured was the first to have a mechanically operated inlet valve and led the way for the British motor industry.
