Sydney Allard was an engineer and racing enthusiast. His designs for British sports cars with American engines gained a great reputation. He enjoyed great success, with the marque winning the 1952 Prix Monte Carlo and other events such as the Portugal Rally.
The Allard Motor Company was founded on 14 February 1945 by Sydney Herbert Allard. Although Sydney had already built the twelve Allard Specials before 1940 in the workshop of his garage business Adlards Motors, it was not until 1946, after the First World War, that production of Allard cars began. Initially, production took place at Keswick Road, Putney, south London, and then, over the following years, spread to other factory units in the area.
The company produced a wide range of models. It began with the L, followed by the J1, K and M models, all powered by the 3622cc Ford V8 Flat Header Pilot engine. This was followed in 1950 by the P, J2 and K2 models. In 1951, the J2X and M2X. In 1952, the P2 Palm Beach Mk.1, the JR in 1953 and finally the Palm Beach Mk.2 in 1956/57.
The Allard cars were very famous in the motor racing world between 1948 and 1952, especially in the United States. In fact, Sydney competed and participated in rallies with his cars. Between 1946 and 1957, a total of 1,900 vehicles were produced and exported all over the world, but mainly to the USA. The J2 and J2X models, with their American V8 engines, were the forerunners of cars such as the GMC Corvette and the Shelby Cobra.
