Dutton Cars
Encyclopedia
Worthing
Worthing is a large seaside town with borough status in West Sussex, within the historic County of Sussex, forming part of the Brighton/Worthing/Littlehampton conurbation. It is situated at the foot of the South Downs, west of Brighton, and east of the county town of Chichester...
, Sussex, England, was a maker of kit car
Kit car
A kit car, also known as a "component car", is an automobile that is available as a set of parts that a manufacturer sells and the buyer then either assembles into a car themselves, or retains a third party to do part or all of the work on their behalf...
s between 1970 and 1989. In terms of numbers of kits produced, it was for a time the largest kit car manufacturer in the world.
The company was founded by Tim Dutton Wooley and ran from a small workshop where a series of cars based on the P1 prototype were built, no two being the same. Things stabilised in October 1971 when a production model, the B-Type appeared with a more or less standard specification and based on Triumph Herald
Triumph Herald
The Triumph Herald was a small two-door car introduced in 1959 by the Standard-Triumph Company of Coventry. Body design was by the Italian stylist Michelotti and the car was offered in saloon, convertible, coupé, van, and estate models....
components. A move was also made to a larger factory in Tangmere
Tangmere
Tangmere is a village and civil parish in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. Located three miles north east of Chichester it is twinned with Hermanville-sur-Mer in Lower Normandy, France....
, Chichester.
The B-Type eventually evolved into the Dutton Phaeton. Later versions of the Phaeton were based on Ford Escort components and were produced until 1989.
In 1979 Dutton announced the Dutton Sierra, an Escort-based estate car with off-road looks. In 1982, the Ford Motor Company decided to use the Sierra name for a new model, and claimed sole rights. A court case resulted and Dutton won the right to continue with the name on kit cars as the judge ruled that these were a separate category from assembled cars. Dutton was awarded costs against Ford and gained immense publicity. The Sierra is claimed to be the biggest selling kit car ever. A further move to larger premises back in Worthing was made in the same year with glass fibre body making at a separate works in Lancing
Lancing, West Sussex
Lancing is a town and civil parish in the Adur district of West Sussex, England, on the western edge of the Adur Valley. It lies on the coastal plain between Sompting to the west, Shoreham-by-Sea to the east and the parish of Coombes to the north...
.
By 1984, 70 people were employed and production topped 1000. In 1989 the company was closed down and the designs sold. A new model had been developed called the Maroc, a heavily modified Ford Fiesta with convertible body, and this was made by Hacker Engineering in Littlehampton
Littlehampton
Littlehampton is a seaside resort town and civil parish in the Arun District of West Sussex, England, on the east bank at the mouth of the River Arun. It lies south southwest of London, west of Brighton and east of the county town of Chichester....
. Initially it was available as a factory finished car but prices became too high and from 1993 kit versions were made available. The design has been sold on to Novus of Bolney
Bolney
Bolney is a village and civil parish in the Mid Sussex district of West Sussex, England. It lies south of London, north of Brighton, and east northeast of the county town of Chichester, near the junction of the A23 road with the A272 road. The parish has a land area of 1479.41 hectares...
, Sussex and a modified version is still available (2006).
After leaving the kit car business and closing down the company Tim Dutton Wooley operated as a consultant but returned to the automobile making business in 1995 with the Dutton Amphibian and Dutton Commando, amphibious cars based on the Ford Fiesta
Ford Fiesta
The Ford Fiesta is a front wheel drive supermini/subcompact manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company and built in Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, China, India, Thailand and South Africa...
and Suzuki Samurai. One has been driven across the English Channel.
Dutton kits are now hard to come by. Most Duttons have already been assembled and are only available to purchase as second hand cars, usually in need of some restoration. When a Dutton is purchased in 'kit form' the person building it will require a donor car. The donor car is used to provide the engine, gearbox and many other essential components for the car. Fords usually make perfect donor cars. Most people use donor cars that would no longer be road worthy and use the spares to create a new kit–car.
In August 2008, Tim Dutton Wooley was convicted of selling an amphibious vehicle unfit for carrying fare-paying passengers, contrary to the Trade Descriptions Act 1968
Trade Descriptions Act 1968
The Trade Descriptions 1968 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which prevents manufacturers, retailers or service industry providers from misleading consumers as to what they are spending their money on....
.
Models
| Type | Year | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Dutton P1 | 1970–1971 | Lotus 7 like car based on MG Midget MG Midget The MG Midget is a small two-seater sports car produced by the MG division of the British Motor Corporation from 1961 to 1979. It revived a famous name used on earlier models such as the MG M-type, MG D-type, MG J-type and MG T-type.-MG Midget MkI :... mechanical parts. Aluminium body panels, glass fibre wings. |
| Dutton B Type | 1971–1974 | Triumph Herald based. Body mainly made from glass fibre. Ford engine optional. |
| Dutton B Plus | 1974–1977 | Rear axle now Ford Cortina Ford Cortina As the 1960s dawned, BMC were revelling in the success of their new Mini – the first successful true minicar to be built in Britain in the postwar era... but with coil springs. |
| Dutton Malaga | 1974–1977. | Front wings moulded in with body. |
| Dutton Malaga B+ | 1975–1977 | Malaga front and B+ rear. |
| Dutton Cantera | 1976–1977 | Coupé version of Malaga B+. |
| Dutton Phaeton Series 1 | 1977–1981 | Updated Malaga B+. |
| Dutton Phaeton Series 2 | 1980–1982 | Rear suspension modified to use Cortina springs. |
| Dutton Phaeton Series 3 | 1981–1986 | Modified chassis to use Ford Escort components. |
| Dutton Phaeton Series 4 | 1986–1989 | Modified body with integral bumpers. |
| Dutton B Plus Series 2 | 1989 | B+ with Phaeton body style. |
| Dutton Melos | 1982–1989 | Phaeton chassis with new body with more rounded styling. 2+2 seat configuration |
| Dutton Legerra | 1988–1989 | The first Dutton sports car with opening doors. |
| Dutton Sierra Series 1 | 1980–1984 | Ford Escort based four seater. Estate car/off road styling. An early 2 wheel drive SUV. |
| Dutton Sierra Series 2 | 1984–1986 | Improved body with some double skinned panels. |
| Dutton Sierra Series 3 | 1986–1989 | New body but very similar in styling to Series 2. |
| Dutton Sierra Drop Head | 1983–1989 | No roof. Pick up version also made. |
| Dutton Rico | 1984–1989 | Ford Escort-based four seat saloon. |
| Dutton Rico Shuttle | 1986–1989 | Estate car version of the Rico. |
| Dutton Beneto | 1989 | "SUV" styled version of the Rico. |