Blackjack Cars, founded by Richard Oakes in 1996, is a manufacturer of three-wheeled kit cars based in Helston, Cornwall, England. The company’s first car, the Blackjack Avion, was produced from 1996 until 2004, replaced by the VW Beetle-engined Blackjack Zero. In 2008 a lighter variant of the Zero known as the Blackjack Guzzi was introduced, the name derived from the Moto Guzzi motorcycle engine that powers it.[1]
Vehicles
Blackjack Avion
The styling of the two front wheel and single rear-wheeled Avion is based on the pre-war Morgan three-wheeler racing cars. It was launched in 1996 and continued in production until 2004, during which time 69 were built. It uses Citroën 2CV mechanical parts and engine mounted on a steel chassis of Blackjack’s own design, all housed in an open-top doorless fibreglass body.[1]
Blackjack Zero/Guzzi
The Zero is a more performance-oriented car than the Avion, with which it shares its three-wheeled front-wheel drive layout. Introduced in 2005, it was initially powered by a VW Beetle air-cooled engine.[2]
A 2009 review published in The Telegraph praises the “elegant practicality and the production-quality finish” of the Zero.[3]
Hole, Steve. A–Z of Kit-Cars: The Definitive Encyclopaedia of the UK’s Kit-Car Industry Since 1949. Haynes Publishing, 2012.
Rees, Chris. Three-Wheelers A–Z:The Definitive Encyclopaedia of Three-Wheeled Vehicles from 1940 to Date. Quiller Print, 2013.
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