The Berkeley Coachwork Company of Biggleswade was England’s top manufacturer of trailers in the 1950s. Company topper Charles Panter decided to expand the business’s line and introduced a diminutive economy sports car, designed by Laurie Bond, at the 1956 London Motor Show. These little cars from Berkeley had many unique design features. They were constructed as a fiberglass monocoque with aluminum reinforcements, were front-wheel drive and employed a transversely mounted engine.
The first production sports car, known as the SA 322 (also known as the B60) was powered by a 322-cc Anzani two-cylinder, two-stroke engine, which cranked out 15 bhp. The later SE 328 (also known as the B65) used the “more potent” 328-cc Excelsior Talisman two-cylinder, two-stroke, which produced 18 bhp. The “B” numbering system for each model indicated the car’s top speed. Berkeley built both three-wheeled vehicles and four-wheeled sports cars.
