Not only did Sir Stirling Moss race this 1950s British Barchetta, which is presently for sale with ChromeCars, but it was also built by prominent race car engineer John Tojeiro. It also symbolizes the beginning of the renowned Shelby Cobra and the AC Ace.

This similarly little Tojeiro MG bears the distinctive diminutive signature, which suggests that it was once ridden angrily by the late, great Sir Stirling Moss. In a significantly more unique Maserati that same year, Moss won his first Formula One race at the British Empire Trophy race held at Oulton Park.

The legendary driver, of course, also led the Tojeiro MG to a class victory in the opening heat of the Empire Trophy, but a damaged crankshaft forced a DNF in the championship round.

However, this car’s remarkable history goes much beyond the fact that Moss handled it expertly at one point. For this reason, it is currently under the care of ChromeCars, a German dealership that enjoys finding vehicles that have contributed to automotive history, hence its moniker, “Automotive Archaeologists.”

What role does the Tojeiro MG play then? As most readers of Classic Driver will know, it could only have come from the workshop of John Tojeiro, who, at the age of less than a year, had traveled from Portugal to England in 1924 with his widowed mother. He entered the automobile industry after serving in the Fleet Air Arm during the war, rapidly showcasing a talent for all facets of automotive engineering, and especially for chassis design.

An English privateer named Lionel Leonard was among his early clients. Leonard had developed a fondness for MG-powered sports cars and came to Tojeiro with a plan to construct a racer similar to the modern Ferrari 166MM, which was gaining popularity in exotic European races like the Targa Florio and Mille Miglia.

Tojeiro dutifully complied; he worked out of a shed behind the crash-repair facility that hired him. The end product was a charming car with an aluminum body registered as JOY 500. He donated it to Leonard, who drove it in its first race, the 1951 British Empire Trophy on the Isle of Man. However, their romance was short-lived, as Leonard sold it to fellow racer Cliff Davis in the paddock when the engine exploded during a meeting at Goodwood.

After quickly mending JOY 500, Davis raced it with such remarkable success that he ordered a second car from Tojeiro, a Bristol-powered barchetta with Panelcraft bodywork. Davis made his debut in the vehicle, registered as LOY 500, during the Goodwood Easter meeting in 1953. He won his first race and placed fourth in the second.

Leonard arrived back in Tojeiro around the same time, carrying a commission for a different vehicle, the LOY 501, which is currently being sold through ChromeCars. This time, Tojeiro created a custom ladder-frame chassis out of three-inch tubing, which not only permitted the installation of Cooper-type independent suspension, but also—and this is crucial—a wide variety of engines.

With LOY 501, also dubbed “the Leonard Special,” Leonard had more success. He personally drove the vehicle in a number of events during the 1953 season, helping Eric Brandon win the Davidstow races. The following year, he gave it to Moss, as previously stated.

The true significance of JOY 500, LOY 501, and the other three early Tojeiros constructed in the early 1950s (LOW 77, Vin Davison’s LER 371, and the original chassis, JAK 6916) is that they can legitimately be considered the progenitor of the legendary Shelby Cobra and the AC Ace.