English Racing Automobiles — better known simply as ERA — was one of the most important and romantic names in pre-war British motorsport. Founded in 1933, the company became Britain’s great voiturette racing hope during an era when continental manufacturers dominated Grand Prix competition. Combining technical ingenuity, national pride and fearless driving talent, ERA helped establish Britain as a serious force in international motor racing long before the country would eventually come to dominate Formula One.
| Nationality | British |
| Base | United Kingdom |
| Years Active | 1950–1952 |
| First Race | 1950 British Grand Prix |
| Last Race | 1952 Dutch Grand Prix |
The company was founded in November 1933 by Humphrey Cook, Raymond Mays and Peter Berthon, with operations based in Bourne, Lincolnshire, beside Mays’ family home at Eastgate House. Their mission was bold but clear: to create a British-built racing car capable of restoring national prestige against Europe’s established powers.
At a time when full-scale Grand Prix racing was financially out of reach for most independent teams, ERA targeted the smaller but fiercely competitive voiturette category — effectively the Formula 2 class of the era — which centred on 1500cc supercharged machinery. The strategy proved inspired.
Humphrey Cook provided the financial backing through the wealth generated by his family’s London drapery business, while engineer Peter Berthon oversaw technical development. Raymond Mays, already one of Britain’s leading racing drivers through his exploits with Bugatti, Vauxhall and Riley, became the public face and principal driver of the project.
The technical foundations of ERA were deeply impressive for a small British operation. Acclaimed engineer Reid Railton — famous for designing Malcolm Campbell’s Bluebird land speed record cars — created the chassis, while Brooklands specialists Thomson & Taylor handled construction. The engine itself evolved from the proven Riley six-cylinder unit, but extensive modifications transformed it into a formidable racing powerplant.
ERA’s engineers developed stronger internals, a completely new aluminium cylinder head and a bespoke supercharger designed by Murray Jamieson. The resulting engines could be built in several capacities, from 1.1 litres to nearly 2.0 litres, producing as much as 275 horsepower in their most extreme form — extraordinary figures for the period. Running on methanol fuel, the cars quickly developed a reputation for blistering speed.
Even the bodywork carried a handcrafted touch. Brothers George and Jack Gray shaped the sleek aluminium panels by hand, using styling concepts linked to the aerodynamic work carried out on Campbell’s Bluebird record breakers.
The first ERA, chassis R1A, was officially unveiled at Brooklands in May 1934 after testing at Syston Park. Early handling problems required rapid revisions, but the team quickly found its stride. By the end of its debut season, ERA was already defeating much larger and more established rivals. The breakthrough came in spectacular fashion at the Nürburgring in 1935, where ERAs finished first, third, fourth and fifth against top European opposition.
Throughout the remainder of the 1930s, ERA became the dominant force in voiturette racing, helped by exceptional drivers such as Dick Seaman and the charismatic Prince Bira of Siam.
The company’s famous A-Type cars were followed by the refined B-Type models in 1935, with development continuing as the decade progressed. Prince Bira and Prince Chula’s White Mouse Garage operation became particularly associated with ERA machinery, fielding the legendary trio of cars named Hanuman, Romulus and Remus. These beautifully prepared cars became icons of pre-war British racing culture.
By 1937, ERA introduced the updated C-Type, featuring revised suspension and improved handling, while the one-off D-Type further evolved the concept. The final major pre-war development was the striking E-Type, a technically ambitious machine intended to challenge the newest generation of continental Grand Prix cars. However, the outbreak of the Second World War prevented the project from being fully developed, and only one E-Type chassis saw significant competition before racing across Europe came to a halt.
The war changed everything. ERA’s Bourne premises were sold, and by the time motorsport resumed in the late 1940s, Mays and Berthon had moved on to establish British Racing Motors (BRM), another project intended to restore Britain’s international racing status.
ERA itself survived under new ownership thanks to racing driver and businessman Leslie Johnson, who purchased the company in 1947 along with the E-Type chassis GP2. Johnson campaigned the car extensively in post-war Grand Prix racing, often demonstrating remarkable speed despite relentless reliability problems.
The reborn ERA operation moved to Dunstable, where GP2 regularly showed flashes of brilliance. In 1948, Johnson tied for fastest lap in the British Empire Trophy alongside Reg Parnell’s Maserati, while also posting the quickest practice time for the British Grand Prix before mechanical failure ended his race almost immediately. Similar frustration followed throughout the late 1940s: lap records, front-row pace and podium potential repeatedly undone by broken driveshafts, fractured fuel tanks and fragile superchargers.
Meanwhile, the original E-Type chassis GP1 also continued competing, driven by racers such as Peter Walker and Fred Ashmore. Like GP2, the car often displayed genuine pace but suffered from persistent technical issues that prevented ERA from fully capitalising on its potential.
Determined to remain competitive in the new Formula Two regulations adopted for the 1952 World Championship, ERA introduced the radical G-Type. Designed initially by former Auto Union engineer Robert Eberan-Eberhorst — one of the most respected technical minds in racing — and completed by David Hodkin, the car featured highly advanced engineering concepts, including a magnesium-tube chassis and de Dion rear suspension.
On paper, the G-Type appeared revolutionary. In practice, it proved disappointing. Stirling Moss drove the car but struggled with constant unreliability and underdevelopment. Moss later criticised the project as an example of brilliant theory unsupported by sufficient funding, manpower or organisation to solve the inevitable problems.
Although the G-Type failed as a racing car, its engineering ideas lived on. Leslie Johnson eventually sold the project to Bristol, where it helped form the basis of the company’s successful Le Mans sports car programme during the 1950s.
Away from racing, ERA also contributed to automotive engineering through projects such as the chassis design for the Jowett Jupiter sports car. The company later evolved into a broader engineering and research organisation under the name Engineering Research and Application Ltd.
Even decades after its final Grand Prix appearance, ERA’s legacy remains extraordinarily strong. Most of the pre-war cars still survive in running condition and continue competing in historic racing and hill climb events today. They are especially associated with Shelsley Walsh, where Raymond Mays achieved major success and where ERA machinery remains among the most celebrated pre-war racing cars ever built.
More than simply a constructor, ERA represented the birth of Britain’s serious international racing ambition. At a time when Germany, Italy and France dominated the sport, this small Lincolnshire company proved British engineering could compete — and win — against the very best in Europe. In many ways, ERA laid the foundations for the British motorsport industry that would later come to dominate Formula One.
Complete Formula One World Championship results
| Year | Chassis | Engine | Tyres | Driver | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | GBR | MON | 500 | SUI | BEL | FRA | ITA | |||||
| ERA E-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Leslie Johnson | Ret | ||||||||
| ERA E-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Peter Walker | Ret* | ||||||||
| ERA E-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Tony Rolt | Ret* | ||||||||
| ERA B-Type ERA C-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Cuth Harrison | 7 | Ret | Ret | ||||||
| ERA C-Type ERA A-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Bob Gerard | 6 | 6 | |||||||
| 1951 | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA | ESP | ||||
| ERA B-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Bob Gerard | 11 | ||||||||
| ERA B-Type | ERA 1.5 L6s | D | Brian Shawe-Taylor | 8 | ||||||||
| 1952 | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | NED | ITA | ||||
| ERA G-Type | Bristol BS1 2.0 L6 | D | Stirling Moss | Ret | Ret | Ret | ||||||
