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Mr. WH Bradburn with the first car he built - 'The Air Cooled' - in 1904
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The name Bradburn and Wedge has roots nearly as old as the motor industry itself.
Mr W.H. Bradburn, who had been apprenticed previously to the coachbuilding firm,
Forders, in Wolverhampton, built his first car in 1904. He later was to become one
of William Morris' first dealers as early as 1912. Subsequent expansion of the
business saw the company take on dealerships for Fiat, de Dion, Sunbeam, Swallow,
Wolseley, Riley Bristol, AC, TVR, Scania, MAN/VW, Nissan and Rolls Royce over
the years.
The 70,s and 80's saw the demise of BMC as a viable franchise and the Company was
reconstructed around core property interests. Jonathan Bradburn, who had joined the
firm in 1974, was instrumental in setting up a specialized car section with
particular interest in 50's and 60's Historic Sports and Racing Cars and this has
continued to this day.
Bradburn and Wedge premises, Darlington Street, Wolverhampton, 1930s.
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His speciality in this field is for AC, Frazer Nash and
Bristol cars amongst others.
The present company Bradburn and Wedge Properties Limited, trades as 'Jonathan
Bradburn Historic Cars' and is based in the Isle of Man.
Jonathan Bradburn in Ace Bristol, Loton Park 2002
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Historic Racing has always played a large part in the business and over recent
years cars owned and raced have included Chevron B8s, Lister Bristols, Frazer Nash,
AC Aces and Cobra, Ginetta G10 and 16, March 84S, Datsun 240Zs, Elva BMW,
Arnolt Bristol, Chevron B15, Brabham BT 23, TVR Tuscan and Turbo, Lotus 10 and
others.
Today the company usually holds in stock a few cars similar to the above for sale and
also has cars rebuilt, restored and race prepared using various expert restorers
and engineers. 2004 to 2008 saw Tony Hill and Simon Crompton racing various cars
including an AC Ace Bristol Sebring car, an AC Ace Zephyr - RS 5036, 2 AC Cobras, and a
Frazer Nash with some success including 3 wins at Silverstone (Bentley Drivers Club AC v.
MG race), Phoenix Park (Dublin), HSCC Historic Road Sports class win at the 2005 Oulton
Park Gold Cup Meeting, Class win in the 2006 Ken Rudd Trophy race at Donington, pole
position for the 2003 AC Ace anniversary race at Donington and others.
2009 to 2011 saw Simon Crompton driving Jonathan Bradburn's road and FIA spec. Mk 2 AC Cobra
to race wins in Aston Martin Owners cub, HSCC Roadsports, Thoroughbred Series, Classic Sports
Car series, with guest appearances in two driver races by Andy Shepherd, and similar
categories. The car finally gained an appearance at Goodwood in 2012, now in the ownership
of Robert Bremner. Driven by David Franklin and Andy Shepherd, despite some qualifying
gremlins, an excellent result was achieved. The cars original owner, the late Chris Browning,
would have been mightily pleased. For 2013 a GT350 spec. Mustang is being prepared and also
a Mk3 Cobra rebuild project is under way.
For 2009 the Black Country Museum has opened a new exhibit which is the Black country
Motor Company garage housing many vehicles produced in the area. The premises have
been built and are based upon the old Bradburn & Wedge , Darlington Street premises as
pictured above.
This website was last updated on 4th July 2013
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