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A PERSONAL REMEMBRANCE BY AB (BARRIE) PRICE
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DETAILS OF THE LIFE AND WORK OF COLIN RIEKIE
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THE RIEKIE LETTERS
- DETAILS OF
THE LIFE AND WORK OF COLIN RIEKIE.Although Barrie feels he did not fulfill his potential, he is remembered as an enthusiastic communicator of engineering information by Mike Byrne, who persuaded him to speak to the JOC in 1974. Mike said:
He was a very big man, not fat but of big
stature and walked with a limp...he was a very entertaining person... a brilliant man.
So what facts do we know about this man?
His father, George Stedman Riekie (1896-1979),
came from the South Coast of England and had a job with the
French company Latil - he appears to have sold,
demonstrated and designed these early cross-country
lorries.
He also designed a lorry that turned into a
locomotive - see
this link! (new
window)In later years, Colin still recalled the thrill of being 11 years old and being allowed to ride in the cab as his father drove this creation up the Great West Road, Middlesex. To the cheers of a massed crowd he hauled a huge crane, drove up the steps to the Firestone factory, and then drove onto the rail tracks and shunted several heavy trucks with ease.
By 1920 George Riekie had moved to Durham and married; late the following year while he was working in Sussex, Colin Riekie was born.
Colin Richard Riekie (14 Dec 1921 - 24 Dec 1982) was born in Bognor Regis.
After an apprenticeship at David Brown, he and his father both joined Jensen on the first day of 1946.
Still single in his 30s, he shared a house with his parents until he married Jackie Spencer. They kept an eye on him during this time: his father was furious with him when he bought a "too large" 3.5 litre 1934 Bentley. As a result of his motorcycle accident as a youth, (he was left for dead in the road, while the medics of the time tried to save the other motorcyclist, who later died) he was in hospital for the best part of two years, during which time he had his war time call up to the services. During his recuperation his parents were a constant source of strength and support for him. While happy living at home, when he wanted a break he would visit friends and stay until 11pm discussing cars and engineering, despite hints about the late hour!
Colin joined Jensen, with his father, in January 1946.
His father spent most of his time at the Pensnett
plant to the West of Carters Green, working on the
commercial vehicles, Jen-Tugs and possibly the A40
Sports that were made there. Colin also worked on
updates to the Jen-Tugs and lorries, and also
special orders for one-off bodies, but he was based
in the Carters' Green Headquarters, in a drawing
office that housed no more than five staff including
the "Girl Friday". In his diary, Colin recounts that while he was in this Drawing Office one day in February 1953, Richard Jensen approached him and asked what he thought of "making a smallish car with the Austin 4-litre engine in it. The car was to be a four-seater, as light as possible, with high gearing - a sound Jensen brothers formula."
Work on this "New Car" began immediately; Colin credits Eric Neale with the later "541" name. A mockup of the seating and engine/gearbox was made and from that the position of the rear axle, to give good accommodation and 50:50 balance. The chassis was not arrived at by chance or availability of material, but by careful calculation by Colin Riekie which suggested the need for 5" tubes. Experience with the X-frame A40 Sports had shown this was definitely not the chassis configuration required for the four-seater 541, so a tubular ladder frame was produced. After projections of the anticipated horsepower form the Austin engine it was clear that horssepower would be a limiting factor, so Colin argued for a fast-back design. With this criteria, Eric Neale went away and produced his masterly styling.
A fascinating account of the detailed work carried out by Colin in this period was published in the October 1977 Classic Cars magazine, which I urge all 541 enthusiasts to acquire. Colin wrote the article himself, from the diary he had kept.
When the car had been exhibited at the 1953 MotorShow, it was made roadworthy. Stan Miller from the Car Shop took it for its first drive, then both the Jensen brothers, and fourthly Colin. Over the next few months, he put many more miles on it, and had many enjoyable times both pushing the car to the limit and ambling around the lanes with pleasant company on board.
One of the less enjoyable experiences was testing the car on the MIRA high-speed circuit at 100mph when he
accidentally leant against the gearlever mounted
overdrive switch and abruptly dropped the car into
normal top gear, locking the wheels and leaving a
skid mark hundreds of yards long. His lucky escape
from this incident is the reason that the overdrive
is now operated from the long lever out of harm's
way on the dashboard!He later went on to design and test drive the first disc braked car OEA 541, [now being restored by Mike Byrne], which was at the very edge of known technology at the time, and design the revised steering for the R model.
Colin decided to leave Jensen in 1957, shortly after having developed the rack and pinion steering for the 541R. The trigger for this was the takeover by the "money men" at Norcros. The new boss from Norcros arrived at the factory in 1957 in an ostentatious new Bentley limousine. Colin saw the writing on the wall for the "old way" of doing things and immediately started planning to leave. He hated the industrial relations and the short sightedness of management and the unions that later developed in the 70's and always said it would kill the British car industry.
Colin at the wheel of the 541 Prototype at Bartley Green reservoir, Birmingham - possibly about to depart for a high speed test drive, which sometimes took him as far as his beloved Lake District.
After leaving Jensen he obtained positions at Rover and at Scammell, and later worked for the legendary Tadek Marek at Aston Martin in Milton Keynes, where his family settled. He regretted not having overseen the development of the Jensen V8 cars, as V8 engines could only be imported after his time with Jensen. He retained an interest in the 541 and enjoyed chatting to owners at car rallies. According to his son, Rob, his fascination on how things worked and how to improve them never left him. In later life, he fought cancer and had to cope with the legacy of his motorbike accident which required treatment every day. His resilience inspired his children, Rob and Jayne, and Rob has paid tribute to his father's determination by becoming a triathlete. Once his medical routines were dealt with, "he would go to work or on some jolly, or off on a road rally with the Aston Martin workers rally club, he had a real zest for life".
Colin at his desk while working at Aston Martin. He enjoyed joining in the social life at Aston.
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A PERSONAL REMEMBRANCE BY AB (BARRIE) PRICE -
DETAILS OF THE LIFE AND WORK OF COLIN RIEKIE -
THE RIEKIE LETTERSPlease let me know of any omissions or amendments necessary. This item will be given a permanent home on the Jensen541.com site. Stephen Carter 2012.