1937 Riley Sprite Sports

A typical British roadster from another illustrious Coventry firm, the Riley Sprite's 1500cc four-cylinder engine was introduced in 1935, and used in the roadster when it was launched in 1936.

At that time, the two-seater Sprite, with its streamlined front end, was the only open-topped Riley on sale. Surprising, considering Riley was manufacturing over 23 models.

In September 1936, their ad said: '...we make far too many models of course. But then we have a pretty fertile design department, and we like making nice, interesting cars.' Amen!

Photograph: Riley Web site

Also see: The Tata legacy