“Summed up, the 3½-litre Lagonda is a car of character which abounds in practical features of the kind appreciated by the motorist of experience. In these days of high-speed engines, the fitting of a big power unit capable of handling high gear ratios is a distinctive characteristic. It would be difficult to select a more appropriate vehicle for fast and lengthy journeys.” – Motor.
Lagonda's early success had been founded on the production of light cars, but the company changed direction in the mid-1920s with the introduction of the 14/60. The latter abandoned the firm's traditional in-unit gearbox in favour of a midships-mounted transmission, but of greater technical interest was the engine. Designed by Arthur Davidson, this advanced 2-litre ‘four’ featured twin high-mounted camshafts operating inclined valves in hemispherical combustion chambers. Davidson was less adventurous when asked to come up with a larger, six-cylinder engine for the 16/65. Originally of 2,692cc, the overhead-valve unit was enlarged to 2,931cc (and later to 3,181cc) to create the 3-Litre model of 1928. The final incarnation of Lagonda’s big six-cylinder engine arrived in 1934 powering the new 3½-litre M35. Displacing 3,619cc, the seven-bearing unit resided in a short-wheelbase (10' 3") variant of the 3-Litre chassis. Though endowed with highly respectable performance - 90mph was within the tourer's reach on a good day - the M35R was soon superseded by the 4½-litre Meadows-engined M45, a mere 65 or so 3½-Litre cars being completed before production ceased at the end of 1935.
Chassis number ‘Z11270’ was supplied new in December 1934 fitted with pillar-less saloon coachwork and first registered in September 1935. The car was re-bodied by Don Hoggard as a T9 Tourer in the early 1980s and came into the present ownership in 1996. Dry stored since then, it has been used only sparingly and not at all for the past four-or-so years. Reported as in good condition throughout, although in need of slight tidying, this car represents a rare opportunity to acquire an exciting post-vintage sports-tourer at a realistic price.