2CV Kits and Specials Club Archive
Pembleton
Kit-Car July 2001
Four Weeks Work
Just when you thought the Morgan three-wheeler had exhausted its inspirational contribution to the kit car world,
along comes the Pembleton. Can yet another Citroen 2Cv-based trike have anything new to recommend it?
Ian Hyne finds out.
There have been many reasons for individuals' being moved to design and build their own cars but the fact that a
three-wheeler goes for free on the ferry to Ireland is a new one. It was Phil Gregory's wife, Mary, who spotted it whilst
reading a brochure in preparation for a cycling holiday in Ireland. She then issued the order for such a vehicle to be
constructed and, with just four weeks to departure, Phil got to work. The Pembleton Super Sport is the result. It made it
to the ferry with bikes strapped on the back, it did go free and it's never missed a beat since. Not only that but others
who have seen the car have been quick to persuade Phil that he should build more of them and though this piece is the first
sight many kit car industry observers will have had of it, the last two years have seen over twenty kits leaving Phil's
rural workshop.
Naturally it goes without saying that Phil is clued up when it comes to automotive engineering but though
he's a trained engineer, his CV has followed a random path embracing horse racing, motorcycle racing, moving a very old
house, brick by brick, from its original location to its present site and various equestrian activities while engineering
has been largely a leisure pursuit. It has involved the design of various creations on and in which friends and family have
raced round the very large garden. It got more serious with the design and manufacture of the GRP monocoque, Escort Mk4
based Gregori sports car but this project is in the hands of Phil's brother, Roger. So what of the quaintly christened
Pembleton Super Sport?
Phil has always been an admirer of the Citroen 2CV and his wife has run one as a daily car for a
long time. She intends to keep it too! However, with minimal time for design and planning, Phil immediately decided to base
his car on the 2CV and its mechanical components. That said, step one was to discard the heavy platform chassis and design a
replacement steel tube frame. This is in a mixture of square and round- section tube of various gauges, which results in a
multi-tube structure fully bracketed to accept the 2CV mechanics. Up front this comprises the 2CV suspension cross-member
with the leading arms on each end and the steering rack inside. At the back it accepts a modified suspension cross-member
with a reversed trailing arm to achieve the central rear wheel with the fuel tank ahead of it and under the floor. The
suspension remains standard 2CV except that the springs are removed from their heavy canisters and mounted directly to the
brackets on the chassis. The engine hangs off two rubber- bushed mounting brackets up front with drive to the front wheels
via the Citroen four-speed box with its distinctive dash- mounted gear change.
Once the chassis is rolling, it is clad in
18 gauge aluminium which is cut to shape with the aid of full size patterns supplied in the kit. Actually, the design
sophistication belies the short time invested in its planning as, though the car looks extremely curvaceous, it doesn't
have any compound curves so the ali sheets are just folded over the frame and riveted in place to achieve the rounded form
that is the barrel- back, Morgan-inspired Pembleton.
It's a neat design that is strong but lightweight the result that the
Super Sport tips the scales at just 320Kgs wet: Such minimal weight pays dividends in performance as, though the 602cc
air-cooled flat twin is in standard tune save for the addition of twin carburettors, it has a lot less weight to carry than
a car built on the 2CV chassis which sends the needle round to the 400Kgs mark.
As well as the use of cunning in the design
of the body panels, Phil has not neglected the dynamic aspects of the car and his efforts have largely been directed at the
front suspension. Though the leading arms are standard 2CV, they are modified to significantly improve the geometry to
overcome the lurid body roll and equally extreme camber change that affects the 2CV and its design ilk when negotiating
comers. The kingpin inclination angle has been altered to give more positive camber, while there's also less castor. It's
all designed to keep the front wheels as upright as possible as the car cuts through a turn. The one thing he didn't want
was a front anti-roll bar as he feels all they do on a three wheeler is promote increased understeer. His knowledge harks
back to his youth when he had a Berkeley B60 trike with which he played about and from which he learnt quite a bit. The
suspension arms with all modifications carried out are included in the kit on an exchange basis as are the modified gear
lever and throttle 1 pedal.
The third area in which Phil has successfully employed design flair is in the on-the-road
cost of the car. This one represents £1,600 plus the front wires, hubs and spinners. There's a few hundred quid there but if
you're building on a budget, the 2CV's 15" pressed steel wheels will do perfectly well while their chrome hub caps seem to
add to the vintage look, The tyres are crossplies. They're 5.60 x 15" and with their greater rolling radius over the
corresponding, radials, they add about 15% to the overall gearing which also suits the car's driving character.
The engine
is Citroen's familiar air-cooled boxer twin, which, in standard 6O2cc form knocks out a pip-squeak 29bhp@ 5,750 rpm with an
equal 29ft1bs @ 3,500rpm. It sounds pretty dismal but a quick punch on the calculator keys reveals a surprisingly sprightly
92bhp per ton. You can have some fun with that. The only modification that Phil suggests you make is to replace the standard
single, twin-choke Solex carburettor with twin carbs. For this he has selected the 28mm carbs off a Honda 2S0N bike for
which the kit supplies the necessary left and right manifolds. The Pembleton hasn't felt the need to caress the rollers but
the engine feels strong and torquey which suggests the Japanese converts are earning their keep.
Clamber aboard and it's
quite a struggle for tall troops to thread themselves under the 15" home- made steering wheel. It's also quite tight once
the battle is won for which reason Phil offers a long version boasting an additional 200mm of cockpit length. As well as
being better suited to tall drivers, the additional length also allows the fitment of rear dickey seat for small children.
The fact that one chap ordered the long cockpit version so he could fit his dog in the back speaks volumes for the
Pembleton's versatility.
The seats are interesting as they actually comprise the outer halves of a pair of Jaguar leather
seats removed from their frames, stitched together and mounted on the Pembleton's wooden supports. It's a very cheap way of
acquiring leather trim that looks the part and is also comfortable and supportive. To either side are commodious pockets
built into the cockpit sides while additional storage is provided by the huge glove-box facing the passenger. There's even
more behind the seat back so holiday luggage is no problem.
The remaining half-dash accommodates the 2CV's main instrument
and standard switchgear with the dash-mounted gear lever protruding from the centre panel. This car is fitted with
Brooklands aero-screens but a full split vee screen and hood is available for those who are averse to getting wet.
A clever
feature of the driving position is the dropped footwells just behind the pedals. As well as providing a firm pivot for your
feet, they have the effect of just dropping your legs to overcome the slightly precarious feeling of sitting on a chassis
rather than in it. It's the feeling you get when your bum and your feet are on the same horizontal surface but which the
Pembleton's simple mod overcomes.
Start her up and you get the distinctive fairly high-pitched whiff of the 2CV motor as it
idles and warms. However, once it's got some heat in it and you let in the clutch, the soundtrack is dramatically altered.
In place of 'the inoffensive whiff comes the aggressive cackle of the fish- tailed side pipes which blow a final raspberry
as you dip the clutch to change up. It's a glorious sound peculiar to twins and one that just invites you to press the
throttle as you climb the box. The only note of caution' concerns remembering which way is up. The dash-mounted gear lever
goes away from you and back for first, forward, across the gate and forward for second, straight back for third and forward,
across the gate and forward for top. I've driven enough 2CV powered cars to get it right when I take off but when it comes
to a deft flick down, I still have to pause and think of which way to push the stick. That said, it is soon mastered.
In
general driving the Pembleton is a competent performer. It has a great ride courtesy of its standard 2CV springs and dampers
while its power and torque are what Rolls Royce describe as adequate. The exhaust noise makes you Think you're going rather
slower than it feels but when you do glance at the speedometer, you confirm that you are in fact travelling quite quickly.
Naturally it's no Westfield but that was never the intention. The car was designed to convey the feel of vintage motoring
which it does but I don't think many vintage cars cornered as effectively as the Pembleton. Come the twists, Phil's front end
geometry changes really have a thoroughly positive effect with the body remaining pretty stable and the steering feeling
accurate and communicative. It's all helped by the positive needle-roller 5 bearings that mount the suspension arms to their
cross-member while braking feels I hugely effective in typical 2CV fashion due to the absence of flexible tubes in the
system.
I really enjoyed driving this car I and can quite see why twenty people have been sufficiently impressed to place
orders. It's well and imaginatively designed, well manufactured and great fun I on the road and all for under £2,000. Now
that's a bold claim that several manufacturers have made in the past and then been unable to substantiate. However, not so
in the case of the Pembleton.
The kit costs £995 inclusive which brings the chassis, all necessary brackets, all exchange
components, the exhaust system in mild steel, carburettor manifolds, cutting patterns for the aluminium panels and the
manual. The only options are for a stainless exhaust system and the full weather gear. On top of that you need seats, a 2CV
donor, a steering wheel aero-screens if you don't want the full monty, paint if you don't fancy bare aluminium panels, tyres
and your choice of the donor pressed steel wheels or replacement wires. The 2CV mechanics will need an overhaul but, wire
wheels aside, I reckon most people will do the rest f9r under a grand after which you'll be ready for some fun. You can even
go to Ireland and it won't cost you a penny more!
As for whether the car has anything new to commend it, I think it does.
The rest is up to you. Finally, though Phil worked hard on the prototype and has put in a great deal of effort and
development on the subsequent cars, such projects are necessarily never a completely solo effort and Phil would like to
express his appreciation for the computer expertise, design and manual help given by Ian Hainsworth.
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