Davrian

Davrian cars were built by Davrian Developments^[1] at 65 North Street, Clapham in London, England, from 1965^[1] to 1976, in Tregaron, Dyfed, Wales from 1976 to 1980 and Lampeter, Dyfed, from 1980 to 1983.

Adrian Evans (d. 1992), a structural engineer and the car's designer, built a series of cars called Davrian from 1965, based on components from the Hillman Imp, including the front and rear suspension, the 875 or 998 cc (53.4 or 60.9 cu in)^[1] aluminium alloy Hillman Imp engine which was Coventry Climax-based^[2] and the Imp transaxle.

Davrian 1965–83[]

Davrian
Overview
Manufacturer	Davrian Developments
Powertrain
Engine	875 or 998 cc Hillman Imp

In 1967, the design had settled to a 2-seat glass fibre monocoque coupé, officially called the Davrian Imp and series production started with a company being formed called Davrian Developments. The cars were sold in kit form. Over time, a variety of power units were offered including the Mini-engined Davrian Demon (mid-mounted),^[1] Volkswagen Beetle Type 1 (rear-mounted),^[1] Renault (rear-mounted), and Ford Fiesta (mid-mounted). The car weighed in at 8 long cwt (900 lb; 410 kg).

Rear view of a 1970 Davrian Mk. V

Over the years, a series of improvements led the cars to go through Marks 1 to 8. They proved very popular in amateur hands as rally and circuit racing cars.

In 1980, the Mk8 was offered as a complete car called the Davrian Dragon. This was mid-engined and used Ford Fiesta components and engine. The company was insufficiently capitalised for this operation, and went into receivership in 1983.^[2] This car was subsequently relaunched as the Corry and the earlier more basic versions continued being made in the same premises but under new ownership as the Darrian.

Corry 1983–85[]

The rights to the Dragon were bought by Will Corry and production transferred to Lisburn, Northern Ireland, to be built by the newly founded Corry Car Company.^[2] The body was restyled by Tony Stevens^[2] and the name changed to the Corry Cultra.^[3] Ford engines and were used and the suspension was based on that of the Mk III Cortina. The cars were mostly sold for competition use, but a few road-going versions were made.

Darrian 1986 onwards[]

The Darrian was a revival of the original Davrian in the old factory.^[2] The body was considerably modified and the car became mid-engined. Like the Davrian, the Darrian is built using a glass-fibre composite monocoque body construction. The engine was usually from a Ford, but the Rover V8 or Vauxhall 16-valve units were options.

In 1996, Swansea Institute Team Darrian (SITD) took outright honours in the Privilege Insurance British GT Championship.^[4]

The company also built a limited number of replicas of the Renault Alpine A110 rally car, known as the Monte Carlo MC220 Berlinette.^{[citation needed]}

Now based in Llangybi, near Lampeter and owned by Tim Duffee, Darrians continue to be built and raced with great success, performing many giant-killing acts.^{[citation needed]} The current model is the Darrian T90GTR, usually fitted with the Millington 2.5 16v 4-cylinder racing engine producing 300BHP, mated to a Hewland transaxle.^{[citation needed]}

References[]

Citations

Bibliography

External links[]

• The Davrian Register website
• Darrian Cars
• The Corry Cultra