K series V8

That car still exists, The Beast, & it now has the RR back on the front.
The new owners of RR are happy to have whatever advertising they can, without advertising.
There are a number of interesting vehicles with Merlin derivative engines installed, including a blower type Bentley. The Avro Shackleton used them, the Griffon, & there are quite a few still crated up & unused.
The Shackleton was referred to as the Growler by those who flew & maintained them due to the low rumble of the four engines.
M

Yeah the car had a couple of iterations it was as ugly as a hat full of arseholes

This was the 1st version note the rear section of the bodywork from a Capri
 

The 2nd version here, was even uglier
 

I remember that and just found a good link to a recent article. 27 litres of aweinspiring eccentricity. The Beast, Merlin Rolls

I have the same memory. I remember reading it in that wonderful publication, Custom Car magazine. It was a monster, wish I could remember the builders name. Okay, I missed the previous post while typing. Thanks for the link!

ol' mate might 've been handy at stuffing an aero engine into a car, but styling definitely was not to be found lurking within his skill set!
I recall the was another bloke that successfully managed to jam a Jag V12 into a Triumph TR7!
And here in Oz serial lunatic Rod Hadfield did a 55' Chev powered by a Merlin

 

 

 

 

Mind you he also built this silly thing

 

Which had a Ford Boss 429 (7 litre) V8 with 2 blowers!
It would be an absolute pig to drive!
 

The last one reminds me of the Creepy Coupe fom Wacky Races.

Cobber wrote:

Yeah the car had a couple of iterations it was as ugly as a hat full of arseholes

This was the 1st version note the rear section of the bodywork from a Capri
 

The 2nd version here, was even uglier
 

David Aiketgate wrote:-
I once saw that car (2nd iteration) in Carlisle at a set of traffic lights. More impressively I heard the tickover and then the growling rumble as it pulled away! Glorious noise, It almost made the pavement tremble.🤣

 

Although claimed to be a Merlin engine IIRC the Dodds Car actually had a Meteor engine. I am sure that its 750 hp was more than enough to accompany the sound though. 

The meteor was a tank engine, which was more appropriate in context.
It was son in law to the Merlin & termed the Rover Meteor, I’m not sure why, a trip to Wikipedia would no doubt clear that up (possibly).
M

The Meteor was used in the Centurion tanks it was the detuned naturally aspirated version of the Merlin

There must be any number of Merlin derivatives sat around in military stores, just waiting to roused from their slumbers. I bet the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight had a stack of Giffon & Meteor engine waiting for the right modifications to turn them into any Mark that’s required at any one time.
M

When the Royal Australian Army retired the Centurion tanks the sold them off to the public, so there are still some lurking in private collections and hidden away on farms, there were huge piles of spares that were also sold off.
I'm not sure what happened to their Leopard Tank replacements, but I don't think they were sold off to the public, certainly the just retired early version Abrahams tanks (49 of them) are off to Ukraine having been donated by our Government, since we acquired the latest versions.