Historic British brand Alvis was revived last decade with a plan to launch “continuation” examples of original pre- and post-war Alvis cars, some of them using parts that have been in storage since the original company folded in 1967.
The latest in Alvis’ continuation series is the post-war Graber Drophead convertible, of which just two will be built in 2024. The company will also build a pre-war Lancefield in 2024, making the year a record in terms of production for the modern company.
Other models in the series include the Vanden Plas, Bertelli, Park Ward, and Graber Super Coupe.
Graber was a Swiss coachbuilder that supplied bodies for Alvis’ chassis during the 1950s and ’60s, including for the Graber Drophead and Graber Super Coupe. The Alvis team today recreates the bodies using an original archive of over 25,000 drawings and 23,000 car records, which the company said enables the modern builds to remain faithful to the originals. Traditional methods are used wherever possible, including hammering and rolling of metal.
Alvis continuation series production
For the powertrain, in this case a 3.0-liter inline-6, Alvis uses original engine blocks built almost six decades ago. They are fitted with modern technologies like fuel injection and electric engine management, and also benefit from a higher 9.5:1 compression ratio as well as CNC machining to achieve tighter tolerances. The result is an engine that’s 32% more powerful than the original at a rating of 172 hp, as well as being emissions compliant.
The engine is mated to a 5-speed manual transmission and can hustle the car to a top speed of 120 mph. According to the company, pre-delivery test drives take place on the same roads around Warwickshire, U.K., that the original Alvis used.
For the interior, Connolly leather is used for the trim while wool cloth is used for the headliner of the three-layer convertible top. Should the customer desire, modern amenities like automatic transmissions, power steering, climate control, and audio systems can be fitted.
Pricing for an Alvis continuation car starts at 295,000 British pounds (approximately $370,000).