MIDGET GEMS

Hedley Studios' little versions of vintage Astons, Bugattis, Ferraris and Bentleys are dream toys for car-mad kids and fully-grown connoisseurs.

Without a fully-grown driver to draw attention to its products’ scale, you’d swear blind that Hedley Studios (which, until recently, was called the Little Car Company) were producing full-size replicas from motoring’s most valuable archive. In fact, you’d be forgiven for thinking that was an all-original 1926 Bugatti Type 35, 1957 Ferrari 250 Testa Rossa or 1963 Aston Martin DB5 convertible before you, such is the attention to detail and craftsmanship.

The 75%-scale electric versions of three of the most iconic roadsters ever created are manufactured under license from these prestigious and uncompromising supercar companies in a small unit at Bicester Heritage, a historic vehicle heartland on the site of a World War II Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire, UK. The Little Car Company was launched in 2019 when Bugatti sought to celebrate its 110^th birthday by recreating the ‘Bugatti Baby’ which Ettore Bugatti built for his youngest son Roland. That was a 50% scale electric buggy, built in 1926 and based on a Type 35 too, but the Little Car Company made theirs large enough to accommodate an adult. Like the original, the Bugatti Baby II is a limited edition: 500 are being built, priced at $38,400 before taxes and shipping. Power is available up to 10kW and there’s a top speed of up to 42mph (in some countries, like Canada and the US, it has to be restricted).

Inspired by a one-off built by Aston Martin which was delivered to the Buckingham Palace nursery in 1966, the DB5 Junior’s production run reflects that of the real thing – 1,059 – and is priced from $59,600. Power is up to 10kW and a top speed of up to 45mph, and there’s also a more potent No Time To Die special edition which is loaded with 007 gadgets including mini guns, rotating license plates and smoke screen priced from $109,500.

The Ferrari is the most exclusive. In close collaboration with Ferrari’s Centro Stile and Classiche Department, 299 examples of the Testa Rossa J are being built, priced from $103,500. There’s an even rarer $130,000 ‘Pacco Gara’ version designed for racing, with 14kW of power, a roll cage and Sabelt harnesses, adjustable dampers and brake bias.

Hedley Studios has already started production of its biggest little car yet: the bellicose 4.5-litre Bentley Blower of 1929, a legend of Le Mans which was described as “the fastest tank in the world” by Monsieur Bugatti. In this company, it’s even more giant due to Hedley building it in 85%-scale. It measures 3.7 metres long and 1.5m wide, can accommodate four adults and, unlike the other cars mentioned, the Blower Jnr is fully road-legal. This surely makes it the perfect vehicle for Sunday drives to an English country pub (designated driver permitting, of course). It’s priced at $115,000 – around twentieth the price of a 100%-scale ‘Continuation’ Blower. Expect these to be the most sought-after accessory at the Goodwood Revival in September.

Getting permission from Bentley, Aston Martin, Bugatti and especially Ferrari to do anything with their brand is a major hurdle. How did CEO Ben Hedley do it? “We took a Bugatti Baby II to Ferrari very discretely, brought it through the back gate at Maranello and put it in front of the board. They said, ‘we thought you were bringing us a toy, but you’ve brought us a little car.’”

Hedley, who studied mechanical engineering at Cambridge University before becoming an entrepreneur, has also been COO of Linley, the high-end furniture maker founded by King Charles III’s cousin Lord Snowdon. This gave him core insight into the luxury industry. The little cars he produces are “not replicas, they’re reinterpretations. And we’ve had a bit of fun with them, like the little manettino dial for the mode selection on the Ferrari’s Nardi steering wheel. Or the missile switch on the Aston. We feel like the naughty cousins of these car companies.” There’s also a Pur Sang version of the Bugatti, boasting a ‘speed key’ to unlock extra horsepower, which is inspired by the modern Chiron hypercar, and a Carbon Edition inspired by the 261mph Mistral; both are aimed at collectors. One wonders how many ever get into the hands of children.

Each little car is based on a digital 3D scan of all the full-size vintage car parts or archived design drawings. Each uses the original suspension geometry design and the aluminium is hand-beaten. The paint is original Bugatti, Aston, Ferrari and Bentley Mulliner paint. So too the leather and other materials, and those iconic badges in enamel or silver. In the Testa Rossa J, the pedals are taken directly from the F8 Tributo. The handling is as authentic as an enthusiast could hope for, and is developed, tuned and signed-off by the chief test driver from each supercar marque – all professional racing drivers. There are different driving modes to manage the amount of power at the rear wheels and various safety features with children in mind, but generally the cars are designed for the over-14s.

The cars are built to order and are fully-customisable, and the waiting list is eight months. However, there are a handful of stock cars ready to drive away from Harrods and Selfridges department stores in London and a few Ferrari dealers in the US. “If you teach your kids to learn to drive in a Ferrari, that’s the most amazing way to learn,” Hedley tells me. “I think the manufacturers have twigged that if you learn to drive in, say, a little Ferrari, that young person may go on to drive a full-size Ferrari. That’s brand loyalty for life.”