R&S Pride JUNE 227.qxp 12/05/2021 13:41 Page 121
MOTORS
WHAT’S IN A
NAME If there’s a car with a better name, we’ve yet to hear it. “What do you drive?” she asked, with a coy smile. “A Lister Knobbly!” I replied, with a confident shrug. Daft name maybe, but this beast is absolutely magnificent, and it’s made not too far from Stamford, either! Words: Rob Davis.
REMEMBER THAT OLD JONNY CASH SONG, A Boy Named Sue? The protagonist’s absent father so named his eponymous lad, so that in loco parentis his deliberately provocative name would give him the strength of character to toughen up to the world. If motoring has an equivalent of Sue, it’s the Lister Knobbly. Odd name, but my goodness, it’s a right lovely car; bursting with style thanks to its hand-built body and with a crackling soundtrack courtesy of a 3.8 litre six-cylinder Jaguar-designed engine. Best of all, this isn’t some classic car with a few miles on the clock. Nor has it been rebuilt from a donor car. It’s not a third party replica, or a copy. It’s a new car created by its existing owner using the very
same jigs from which Listers’ 1950s vehicles were made, just over the border at the firm’s factory in Cambridgeshire. But unlike previous vehicles – which have been built only for the racecourse – the Knobbly is now available for the first time as a road-legal car too, with the company ensuring eligibility for Individual Vehicle Approval (IVA), following customer demand. Knobbly it may be, but the Lister is also lean and light. Weighing about 900kg, it’s about 200kg lighter than a Ford Fiesta. It also packs over 330bhp under the bonnet despite its lack of weight, ensuring that its power-toweight ratio is better than a Porsche 911 GT3. With less bulk to move and a 3.8 engine to propel it, little wonder it feels fast! >>
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