Solved - MJW #847 - Davis-Panhard Special

[woodinsight]

Identify this small sports racer for a point.

[woodinsight]

Experts?

[woodinsight]

Pros.....

[Wendax]

VW based?

[woodinsight]

VW based?

Not VW based....

[Wendax]

Panhard based?

[woodinsight]

Panhard based?

Yes it is!

[Allemano]

From the Netherlands?

[woodinsight]

Not from the Netherlands....

[RayTheRat]

Deutsch Bonnet?

[SACO]

Panhard-Devin ?

[Djetset]

A Bobsy creation?

[woodinsight]

Not a D-B, Panhard-Devin or Bobsy based (AFAIK).
The car is named after its constructor.

[RayTheRat]

I'm not sure if any were built with Panhard motors, but the Bocar was named after Bob Carnes (creator) and this looks like a Bocar Stiletto.

[woodinsight]

I'm not sure if any were built with Panhard motors, but the Bocar was named after Bob Carnes (creator) and this looks like a Bocar Stiletto.

Yes I can see where your coming from Ray but its not a Bocar (although it may have had a body from Bob Carnes)
The car was known as a xxxxx Panhard built in San Francisco........

[RayTheRat]

Bill Devin's shop was in Lancaster, but that's a few miles from SF.  He DID, however make glass bodies similar to the one in the photo and some of 'em had Panhard power.  One of 'em was sold to Jim Orr of Kentfield, California, which is on the north side of the SF bay.  One of the Devin Panhards won the 1956 SCCA H Modified championship.  Ironically, I used to race in H/Production...but I'm not quite old enough to have raced against those cars in their prime...although I witnessed an F3 race in Marrakesh, Morocco that was full of Panhard-powered cars around 1969.  Strange beasts.

[woodinsight]

Not a Devin Panhard....
Personally I think they were a better looking car

[woodinsight]

Here is a rear view of the puzzle car -

[barrett]

Just found this one by accident. It's the Davis Special, built by a Mr. Davis in the early 1960s. Despite the similarity to the Bocar body, this one was entirely hand made in aluminium.

[woodinsight]

Just found this one by accident. It's the Davis Special, built by a Mr. Davis in the early 1960s. Despite the similarity to the Bocar body, this one was entirely hand made in aluminium.

Yes, that's the car!
I have the same photo as you but have yet to find a better one than has been used so far.
Mr. Davis was based in San Francisco CA.
Another point for you.

[RayTheRat]

Just found this one by accident. It's the Davis Special, built by a Mr. Davis in the early 1960s. Despite the similarity to the Bocar body, this one was entirely hand made in aluminium.

Congrats.  I'd hit a brick wall.

RtR