america

RILEY ELFs of USA and CANADA

Now in California, Brook K's ex-NZ 1970 MK III, with original vinyl upholstery and newer carpets. The engine had an 848 head on it, now replaced with a 998.

MYSTERY ELF
I know very little about this Elf, having inherited the pictures from my
predecessor who ran this site.
If the owner is still out there - please send me some details this is truly a spectacular Elf

Dennis and Yvonne, Texas, are restoring this Elf, which originated in Blenheim, New Zealand, only 25 miles from where I live! See my links page to go to their site and follow their progress.

Bruce has sent in photos of his year 2000- purchased 1965 Elf that came from New Zealand. It is now resident in Pitman, New Jersey USA.

The body is rust free but there is somewhat of a not-so-good respray. The original colour appears to be either an off white or very light green. The mileage is 38,000 and the interior is in good condition. The engine runs absolutely smooth and after installing a new fuel pump and battery starts right over even below freezing weather. Bruce plans to completely refurbish the car and bring it back to be a real eye turner.

Rodney of the Seattle Area Mini Owners Association (SAMOA) sent in this picture of his Elf. You can go to their site from my links page 1963 Riley Elf MKII. It came with a huge history dating all the way back to its purchase in 1963. I have a heritage certificate and all service notes from the dealer up to 1988. It has 50,849 original miles on the stock 998. My Riley was born on September 16 1963 and sold to its first owner November 18 the same year. The person who bought the car originally traded it back in after 3500 miles complaining his legs were too long! The second owner and the longest bought the car for his wife, they owned it for 25 years, it states in the paper work that it was a reliable daily driver for his wife. During the 25 years it had acquired an traveller radio and a center console box in powder blue ( to match the interior ) from Henley's of England which was still with the car at time of my purchase. Also during those 25 years it received new sills and wings! Current mileage at time of sale in 1988 44,158. In 1988 it was sold to a Gentleman in Rhode Island U.S.A, he had owned it for two or three years, but hardly drove the car. Then it was sold to a man in Ottawa, Canada who owned the car until 1996. He sold the car to a man in Seattle WA. U.S.A . . . .

It was shipped by train to Vancouver BC Canada some 2 hours north of Seattle. While in his possession he spent over 5,000 dollars US in parts which include Cooper S disk brakes, alloy minifin brake drums, all old new stock chrome parts, and many nuts and bolts to make the car his daily driver. He had also ordered from Newton commercial, every single piece of leather interior in powder blue, seat covers, door panels, headliner, and carpet kit for interior and boot! He had also had some Mk II Cooper S reclining seats (very rare here in the States) covered in powder blue. When I saw all of the time and hard work he had put into it I knew I had to have the car! So here I'm a proud owner of a Riley Elf. I have always wanted one ever since my first Mini back when I turned legal age to drive ( about 10 years ago ).

All the way from
Santa Cruz, USA!

My wife and I moved to England in 1977 from California. Stayed with my parents while we scoped out our prospects.....bought and toured around England, Wales, Scotland and Isle of Man in a 1967 Austin Mini motor- caravan. While there we bought a rusted out Mini Countryman but gave up on it for rust. It was while I was driving around that we had our first glimpse of a Riley Elf... loved the lines, radiator grille and classiness immediately.
Bought a 1963 in Arianca Beige with Cream roof........ upgraded that with a 1965 also in the same colour scheme. Finally got a 1967 Mk III from the original owner and had the first bodywork (aside from sills) of its life done on it. Factory paint was applied in of course Arianca Beige but had Weathershields of Sussex put on a black vinyl roof and sliding sunroof....(vinyl roof proved to be a big mistake) Put in a newer "diff" and away we went....shipped the car to California in May of 1979 and proceeded to drive it all over and up and down the hills of San Francisco!
Brakes went out on it in 1982 and even though we replaced: master cylinder, brake lines, wheel cylinders, brake shoes, and later had another idiot put a "kit" in the otherwise unused new master cylinder, and all for nothing.....put gallons of Castrol GTX brake fluid through the system and I do mean THROUGH the system......I'd pump her up, release a wee bit of pressure in my knee, and wham, the peddle went straight down to the floor again time and time again.
Gave up in disgust!
Car sat outside in a carport where we can get 8" of rain overnight in the winter time. We put in a foundation under our house while it sat there for years and the mud ran around the tyres and they took forever to go flat.....

Parked the car there in 1982 and pulled it out with my 1970 VW longbed pickup in November 1996 to lower it down the driveway and onto a flatbed trailer to take to San Jose for someone who KNOWS Minis to have a go and get it running for me.......
A frost plug had fallen out of the block; the tyres were all flat but with air installed they held; the lacquer had flaked and fallen off the wonderful dash but with a hard pull I could get the glove compartment door opened; the seams, thread, and leather of the front seats had perished; the bonnet release cable had frozen; and of course new master cylinders for the clutch and brakes were again necessary. Some more new copper brake line, front shoes, (the rear ones were brand new 14 years old never used) and after a week I drove the car home over a 3000 ft. mountain......the fellows who did the work, removed my stock carb., lost the replacement one I had shipped over with the car, and installed one off a MG 1100 which literally pours through the gasoline......It is running way to rich,   but will drive anywhere once again....San Francisco here we come.
Did I mention that when I brought the car over I packed inside it the following items? : a spare chrome radiator grill and the front turnsignal pods, the rear turnsignal lights, a complete bonnet in Arianca Beige, and a complete boot lid in the correct colour.    It was soon after getting the car to California in 1979 that the vinyl roof started peeling off where it was adhered in the rain gutter. So I had it removed and the roof went back to cream...
This "pregnant rollerskate" is easily the smallest car in Santa Cruz, not to mention 4-seater passenger car.   It has been driven in 2 December 7 parades and another parade in a neighbouring town in the summer. Cub scouts like to stand up with their heads through the open sunroof and throw candy in the parades. The sunroof which is a folding type like the on old VW beetles

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