Turners

aeronca65t · Dec 22, 2003

I'm liking Turners a lot lately.
A phase, I suppose.
I sat in a friend's Turner recently...if you like Sprites, you'll love Turners.

Anyway, one of my brothers lives near this place and he was telling me they had quite a few Turners. They also have a fair number of other interesting cars including some Lotus 7s and even a few 6s

Link:

https://www.newenglandclassics.com/index.tpl?action=inventory&startat=81

Bret · Dec 22, 2003

Very nice inventory those folks have. I kind'a like the Turner 950s they listed.

Bret · Dec 22, 2003

One more thing?

Is it just me or do the Turner 950s look kind’a like an old AC Bristol and the Turner MKI’s look a lot like a Midget/Sprite. Just curious if this is a co-winky-e-dink (coincidence) or if there a real family relationship?

Basil · Dec 22, 2003

Neat cars! I must confess, until this post I had never heard of Turners!

Basil

aeronca65t · Dec 22, 2003

<blockquote>quote:<hr>Originally posted by Bret:
One more thing?
Is it just me or do the Turner 950s look kind’a like an old AC Bristol and the Turner MKI’s look a lot like a Midget/Sprite. Just curious if this is a co-winky-e-dink (coincidence) or if there a real family relationship?<hr></blockquote>

I agree that the 950S (pretty car!) looks a lot like the AC cars (which,in turn, look like the earlier Ferrari Barchetta, the Cisitalia and probably other cars I can't recall right now)

Turner enthusiasts often point out that BMC brought out the Sprite in response to the Turner, so it makes sense that they would look similar. Jack Turner never really made a successful engine (he tried), so most of these cars had 948cc (Bugeye) engines. The one I sat in had a Ford 1500cc and some also have Coventry Climax engines. Neat little cars.

More stuff:

https://www.turnersportscars.com/

[ 12-22-2003: Message edited by: aeronca65t ]

Sherlock · Dec 23, 2003

If I'm not mistaken aren't most Turner's set up for racing only (ie. not street legal) even when they were new.

When I used to go to Mosport (back in Ontario...) there was one team that always brought up some Turners to race, and one year I actually saw one near their pits that wasn't a race car.

So I think one reason (among many) why they aren't seen much is because you'll mainly see them at a vintage race event and not on your local highway.

aeronca65t · Dec 23, 2003

Actually, Turners were built as street cars (they built about 700, in all). Jack Turner intended them to be a light, simple street roadster that was more up-to-date than the spartan MG-Ts that were popular at the time.
Like Bugeyes and Lotus 7s, they are very "spare" when it comes to "extras", so they seem more like race cars. There's no "fat" on a Turner!
The Turner I sat in has been a street car it's entire life, but I've seen several vintage-race Turners set up similar to my Spridget.

[ 12-23-2003: Message edited by: aeronca65t ]

Tiger · Dec 24, 2003

<blockquote>quote:<hr>Originally posted by Bret:
Is it just me or do the Turner 950s look kind’a like an old AC Bristol<hr></blockquote>

A bit, but your photo shows the size relationship between the Turner and the Lotus Seven behind it. That's one small car even for an LBC! Sadly, I've only seen them in magazine photos.

Basil · Dec 24, 2003

Now don't anyone be asking me for a separate Turner forum!

aeronca65t · Dec 24, 2003

Yep...we'd really like a "Turner Forum" here!
"Chassis-Turner", that is! (Nyuck, nyuck, nyuck...)

Dick Sobielo · Dec 26, 2003

Jack Turner began making specials in 1950 in Wolverhampton. His first car was an A30 Sport which was an Austin powered sports car using a tubular chassis with Austin coil spring front suspension, gearbox and brakes. The body was fiberglass and was sold in kit form.
A later model, the 950, was available from 1957 through 1965 and was produced with BMC "A" mechanical parts. Later cars were equipped with Ford Cortina engines and included front suspension componants from the Triumph Herald.
Some models of the 950 had the 75-90 bhp Coventry Climax 1100/1200 engines.
All models had fiberglass bodies and because of their great power to weight ratio they were a natural for racing.
Most of the Turners producd were exported to the USA.

coldplugs · Dec 27, 2003

He also made some engines early on. I read recently that Cyril Keift put one in one of his early cars. I think it was a 500cc, which would have been a nice change from the parade of Nortons and JAPs.

Bugeye58 · Dec 27, 2003

Turners are an absoute ball to drive. I've driven a friends a couple of times at Waterford Hills, and they are much like driving my Sprite. They just go where you point them, and do what you tell them to. I actually enjoyed driving his Turner more than his Lotus 7. Both of them have built 998's in them, so the power is there on demand.
Jeff

Dick Sobielo · Dec 27, 2003

That's right Coldplugs. Early on Jack Turner produced a 500cc four cylinder Formula 3 engine as well as some larger units. Before he got involved with the A30 Sport some of his first cars were powered with Ford-Zepher,Lea-Frances and Vauxhall engines. I don't know if those were Formula cars or sports cars though.
Sounds like he was a pretty handy guy around the garage.

Roger · Dec 29, 2003

I had a close friend years back in England whose father-in-law had a Turner. Unfortunately it was rough and got rougher. It ended up being made into a special and finally got "used up". Sad, really, as it was quite a nice car originally.

catfood · Dec 30, 2003

Would-ya believe it.

I don't think I've ever seen a Turner in the flesh (at least not close up) but a few days after reading these postings I see a restorable (read basket case!) Turner on the back of a trailer on my drive home from work!

Steve · Jan 3, 2004

Coincidentally, I was reading something about Turners recently. This was yet another car produced in the Black Country (a region in the English Midlands). I have a book that covers every vehicle made there, makes for dry reading, but historically interesting.

coldplugs · Jan 3, 2004

<blockquote>quote:<hr>Originally posted by Steve:
... This was yet another car produced in the Black Country (a region in the English Midlands). I have a book that covers every vehicle made there, ...<hr></blockquote>

Steve, this is generally northwest of Birmingham, isn't it? What were a couple of the other cars made there?

Steve · Jan 5, 2004

In addition to Turner, Sunbeams were made in Wolverhampton initially, until their takeover in the 30's by Rootes. Bean was a decent-size producer, just down the road in Tipton, and in fact one of their cars is at the Black Country Museum. A Bean-produced car, "Thunderbolt", captured the land speed record in 1937 at a speed of 312mph driven by Capt. George Easton.

There was Clyno, Jensen in West Bromwich, Kieft of course, Swallow (as in "Doretti"), and Westfield. In addition, Guy produced commercial vehicles and buses in Wolverhampton. Motorcycles from the area were, of course, Norton, and H.R.D. before it was bought by Phil Vincent in 1928 and moved to Stevenage. A.J.S. were from the area too.

Xracer · Jan 5, 2004

Turners were very competitive in G and F Production in the SCCA Northeast (New England, New York, & Northern New Jersey) Regions in the 1960's.

They weren't very pretty....kinda short and dumpy looking, but they went and handled very well. The Climax engined version was a class killer in G Production.

Side by side with an AC, they look nothing alike.

The AC roadsters were based on the Tojero Special, a space-framed, Bristol engined car with a body copied from an early Ferrari Barchetta.

Turners

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