Bradley

Tony Place established the Bradley Motor Company at Whalley, Lancashire, in 1990 to manufacture complete specialist cars and kits under the Bradley name. Its central product was the S 61, a low two-seat roadster deliberately reminiscent of the compact fiberglass sports cars made by Ashley Laminates and Falcon in the 1950s and early 1960s. Unlike a body conversion on an untouched donor platform, the S 61 used Bradley's own steel spaceframe. Early cars could use Ford Ten or Vauxhall Viva components; the design later moved to the more available second-generation rear-wheel-drive Ford Escort donor. Output was exceptionally small—approximately two S 61s—and detailed factory dimensions, engine options, kit contents and chassis numbers have not survived in accessible histories. Bradley also listed a separate tubular chassis intended for a Rover V8. Its period model name, bodywork and completed production are unknown, so it is retained transparently as the Rover V8 Chassis rather than merged with the small-engined S 61. Place ended production in 1994. Thor Conversion Services of Blackburn acquired or continued the Bradley operation and kept the marque and S 61 available until 1996; a November 1995 kit cost £2,702 including VAT. No later production is evidenced. This British marque is unrelated to Bradley Automotive and the Bradley GT family in the United States, the earlier American Bradley Motor Car Company, Bradley electric neighborhood vehicles, or businesses sharing the founder's surname. The complete recoverable British range is two chassis families, of which only the S 61 has confirmed completed examples.

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