1958 Lister Jaguar 'Knobbly' Prototype

1958 Lister-Jaguar 'Knobbly' Prototype
Sold for $1,980,000 Including Commission
RM Auction, Monterey, CA. 2013
Chassis no. BHL EE 101
256 bhp, 3,785 cc double-overhead cam inline six-cylinder Jaguar engine, four-speed manual synchromesh transmission, coil-spring front suspension with parallel equal length wishbones, coil-spring rear suspension with de Dion tubular axle and four trailing arms, and Girling four-wheel disc brakes. Wheelbase: 90.75 in.

•The original Knobbly Lister-Jaguar prototype
•The Walt Hansgen Briggs Cunningham team 1958 SCCA World Championship car
•Well-known, clear history from new
•Offered in the U.S. for the first time in over 42 years
•Sold with a spare original Cunningham-prepared, 3.75-liter engine and FIA papers
•Built by a legend, for a legend, and driven by legends; unparalleled provenance


When one thinks of legendary racing cars of the late 1950s, words like sleek, sexy, and dramatic come to mind. Cambridge manufacturer Brian Lister's offering was all of the above, but it found its groove in rather unique contours that nonetheless gave it the popular nickname "Knobbly." Designed by Brian Lister to meet windshield height regulations set by the FIA, while also minimizing the frontal area of a car powered by a rather large three-liter Jaguar engine, its aluminum body featured a large central bump covering the engine, which fell off in wide grooves on either side and aft, and incredibly curvaceous streamlined fenders and headrest. The result was an athletic-appearing, distinctive racing car that took the sporting world by storm when it made its debut in February 1958.

The first Knobbly Lister-Jaguar, the very car shown to the motoring press at the Cambridge factory on that day, was this car, BHL EE 101; its unusual serial number resulted from the chassis having first been stamped "EE" for Ecurie Ecosse and then, to match the usual Lister pattern, overstamped with "BHL."

This was the first automobile that Lister really marketed; his original plan was to build cars and race to advertise his father's wrought-iron company, but the Knobbly struck him as an automobile that he could actually build and sell to make money. This car achieved a lot of publicity and was heavily photographed; it was prominently featured in the February 1958 issue of Autosport, appearing both on the cover and in a feature article within.

BHL EE 101 was one of two Jaguar-powered Knobblys ordered for the 12 Hours of Sebring by American sportsman par excellence, Briggs Cunningham, using a chassis that had originally been earmarked for the renowned Ecurie Ecosse racing team. Both cars were shipped to America and prepared by Cunningham's technical director, Alfred Momo, of the Momo Corporation. Upon their arrival at Sebring for the September 12th race, they attracted much attention in their Cunningham team colors, pure white with blue stripes, and proved fierce competition to the other European exotica on the track, including Prancing Horses and the like. During those 12 hours, BHL EE 101 was co-driven by Archie Scott-Brown, Lister's factory team ace, and American star Walt Hansgen. Running 5th in the first two laps behind the Aston Martins of Moss and Salvadori and the Ferrari TRs of Mike Hawthorn and Phil Hill, it was involved in a spectacular shunt on lap four. Olivier Gendebien was caught unawares by the Lister-Jaguar's sudden deceleration due to a burned-out piston, and his Ferrari rode up the Knobbly's tail, reportedly damaging Scott-Brown's helmet and leaving a tire mark on the driver's shoulder. The Lister-Jaguar was out of the race.

The three-liter XK engine proved itself to not be up to a challenge, so both Lister-Jaguars were re-engined after Sebring. According to Alfred Momo, BHL EE 101 was fitted with an exceptionally rare, experimental department, 3.75-liter engine with a twin-plug wide-angle head, heavily tuned and blueprinted by Momo's magicians. Having shaken off its growing pains, BHL EE 101 set to the track in the SCCA National Championship, and there was no looking back.

Walt Hansgen had fallen in love with the Lister-Jaguar at Sebring, and on April 20, 1958, he won at Marlboro behind the wheel of this car; he finished 2nd at Danville, Virginia, on May 4, and then 1st over teammate Ed Crawford, in the other Cunningham Lister-Jaguar, in a second race, resulting in a 1-2 victory for the Florida team. They repeated that success at Cumberland on May 18th and again at Bridgehampton on June 1.

Hansgen racked up victories at Lime Rock on June 15 and at Elkhart Lake on June 22, with Crawford finishing 2nd in the latter event for a fifth 1-2 Cunningham finish for the 1958 season. A sixth 1-2 finish was scored back at Lime Rock on July 5, this time with Hansgen and BHL EE 101 taking the 2nd place position.
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Robert Myrick Photography