A rather unique Interstyl Hustler 6 in Wood by William Towns - now For Sale for only the second time in near 40 years
My own rebuild project of RKW 252J
Why a Hustler, especially a wooden one?
Serendipity. Searching for a project or a ‘barn find’ in December 2017 I found a 6 year old ad on the ‘Swapz’ site for a Wooden Hustler with Cooper engine. The ad described it as “an unusual 6 wheeled car looking like a glass doored Popemobile”.
I knew what it was! Vanishingly rare, William Towns execution of the first ever ‘green’ car project
It was owned by John Hall who’d bought it at a 1986 Preston Auction. He was told that it had been professionally (perhaps Interstyl) built. Details like the fully integrated, modular dashboard and contrasting solid wood wheel arches and comprehensively tuned engine appear to bear this out.
According to the Auctioneers the original owner had used it to tow a wooden cannon around various shows in the north west of England. It still had the tow hitch when I bought it
John Hall was (and is) a collector of unusual things After his purchase he drove it to his estate in Poulton la Fylde where it remained virtually untouched in one of his coach houses until it became mine in early 2018
The car had faced the elements through the open entrance to the coach house and much of the front wooden structure had been removed. The bonnet ply had delaminated and ‘power bulge’ deteriorated. Almost every single mechanical and electrical component had corroded to solid whilst the original upholstery (Recaros in front, simple bench in rear) had obviously housed many wild life families over the years
The only components not suffering were the remaining woodwork monocoque structure, the three Mini subframes and the engine/clutch internal assemblies. This was a testament to the quality of the marine ply used in the original construction supported by different tropical hardwood frame and detail items and the inherent robustness of the A Series engine
I’m an Austin ex Apprentice so familiar with the A Series engines and the Mini componentry which formed the base of most Hustlers. Skills used in harmony with others over the long extended rebuild period (two house moves and wide family duties taking precedence over the years)
The car has now been restored with ALL new parts (other than core engine, clutch and transmission – all good – all working – all as designed) with my aim to deliver a practical daily use classic car. One that embodies the grounded, original vision of it’s designer
First things first
My new to me car was transported the 300 miles from ‘oop north to my home in Devon. On the journey other drivers took pics from their cars and at rest stops. The roof blew off, never to be seen again; taking with it one of the side rails (the other side rail and the rear roof rail, unused, remaining with car as ‘pattern parts’
The car was stripped of the ‘animal bed’ upholstery which was beyond saving so a pair of pristine Mercedes Benz A Class front seats were bought as replacements for later fitting
The wooden monocoque was sound but for softening to non structural under bonnet areas which same were restored with Ronson’s wood hardener.
The engine and associated waterworks were blocked with hardened antifreeze. This was flushed out (sounds easy, it wasn’t) and the oil and filter were replaced. After replacing the necessary ignition bits and petrol the car started and ran. As designed. After 31 years. Wow
The old solid varnish was removed from the outer body and clear varnish built up not only to protect and waterproof but to show the beauty and contrasts of all the different hardwoods and ply’s used in the construction. Much of the front end had to be created from scratch, using original parts when available and to complement the original material choices
Then the replacement of just about everything else
Some parts were OK, like the subframes (apart from a torn cross piece in front subframe), Minifin alloy brake drums to rear and the handbrake cable. But there was no battery. There were no keys. No wiper blades. No roof. No front assembly. What I’d bought was essentially just over 30 years of a rare classic with pedigree turning to stone
Here is what was bought to remedy that. Here is what has been fitted.
Brakes:
Master Cylinder, screws, brake drum screws, spring and copper washers, clevis pins, split pins, flange nuts
Front brake cylinder link pipes
Pressure reducing valves
Copper brake pipe, straight and three way unions, banjo bolts, brake fluid
Front brake assemblies (shoes, cylinders) back plates, wheel studs
Rear brake assemblies (shoes, cylinders) backplates
Front and rear Flexi hoses, front brake cylinder link pipes
Clutch:
Slave and master cylinders, service kit, clutch fluid
Cooling system:
Water pump
Thermostat with housing and gasket
Dedicated fittings, fan belts, antifreeze
Head/block bypass hose blue silicone with clips
Spare bypass hose and clips
Engine:
Oil filler cap, ID plate, Decals
Engine mount (bell housing end)
Crankcase oil seal
Rocker cover gasket and bolt seals
Miller 20/50 oil, sump plug & washer, oil filters
Exhaust:
Stainless steel connectors, rear muffler and end trim
Mid section pipe
Misc fittings, cement, hangars and clamps
Fuel system:
Carburettor gasket set
Fuel pump
Carburettor service kit
Accelerator Cable clamp/trunnion
Billet Alloy Fuel filter
Fuel lines (tubing) and clips
Ignition:
Alternator, coil, points, condenser, plugs, distributor cap, plug leads and battery
Dash mounted ignition/starter wsitch
Steering and chassis:
Front subframe rolled steel bar and fittings
Rear subframe bolts
Front wheel bearing kit
Rear wheel bearing kit
CV-Joint kits, CV boots, trunnions, split pins, castle nuts
But wait, there’s more!
Wheels and Tyres:
Shot-blasting and two pack epoxy undercoat
Finishing coats
Tyres and balance
Matching Black Centre Caps
Wooden H Show Caps from John Brazier
Chrome wheel dome-nuts on all new wheel studs
Interior:
Wood insert nuts
Hardwood ply
Gear lever knob and badge
Hand brake handle from John Brazier
Gear lever sleeve
Horn centre badge
Seat belts
Mercedes Benz A Class front seats
Rear window struts
Carpet
5mm stainless steel bolts and washers
Thick stainless washers
Yacht varnish
Ronson Teak wood-stain gloss
Ronson wood hardener
Dashboard Panel Lights
Indicator Stalk Column Switch
Exterior:
Stainless steel bonnet retaining pins
Stainless steel bonnet lift pull
Marine ply roof
Hardwoods
Land Rover Petrol protect plate, lockable filler cap
Number Plates
Land Rover Protective grills to sides/tails/stop lights
Cable connectors
Number plate lights
Rear stop and tail and indicator LED light units
Front side and indicators
Five headlamps (one broke)
Light bulbs
Greenline 20” Wiper Blade, 11” Mini Wiper Blades (2)
Lucas twin spray washer head in chrome
Washer fluid tubing
Premix washer Fluid
Paint, varnish, adhesives, sealants, fittings
Ronseal teak varnish
Yacht varnish
Smoothrite
Bitumen paint
Then of course the costs we amateur classic car restorers try hard to forget, like the purchase price, transport and project specific tools:
Project purchase price
Collection from Poulton-le-Fylde
Transport between house move necessitated build locations
Transport to Stone Cold Classics
Sub contract specialist labour (brakes, carb and ignition, electrics)
Feeler gauge set
Brake pipe flaring tool set
Fine cut and tenon saws
Torque wrench
Ball joint pullers x 2
T40 and T50 Torx star socket 1/2" drives
Flywheel and ball joint (hub) 1.5" 1/2" drive socket
Steering column (wheel) nut 1/2" drive socket
PTFE spray lube
Electric tyre inflator
2 tonne trolley jacks (2)
Steel cutting discs, varnish brushes and butane blowtorch
The result:
The Hustler in Wood had been designed to provide cost savings to both supplier and customer; lower carbon footprint, organic build materials and everything else recycled/saved from automotive scrapyards. Towns was years ahead of the curve in offering real cars to countries with little infrastructure but craft skills and natural resources. Countries without a steel industry but where car bodies could literally be grown on trees
There are only a handful of wooden 6’s ever pictured and of those that remain only two have a dashboard comparable to the one in my car. A dashboard that incorporates the CompuCruise automotive computer and cruise control.
Mine has wooden ‘mudguards/wings’ too (like the GRP Huntsman) and these touches, together with the upgraded power unit fitted, suggest a no expense spared original build. One to showcase and complement the original design taking it beyond the usual DIY result.
The enlarged bore engine has been fitted with multi-branch inlet and exhaust manifolds. The radiator has been enlarged and moved to the front and into the air stream. It has electric cooling fans. It has an oil cooler. It has a Weber twin choke downdraught carburettor. All these being the state of the art tuning given to Cooper engines at the time of build. Best described as fast road use with occasional track day too. It was a time of driving to track, having a race day then driving home in the evening.
My car has been restored by me with the help of three specialists and rare parts from John Brazier as a daily use car rather than a museum piece. As such it is, as far as I know (and as owner of the hustler-registry.org site I should know) the only Hustler 6 in Wood on road and not already in a Collection.