The SS100 Matchless (MX100) was first revealed to the public in late-1935 and was to be the final series of the Brough Superior’s flagship ‘SS100’ model that had been in production since 1924. The SS100 had proved to be a continued success thanks to its exceptional design and build quality, receiving great praise from customers and press alike. High-profile clients such as T.E. Lawrence, otherwise known as Lawrence of Arabia, gave the bike a glamorous and adventurous edge while success in period competition events and multiple land speed records were found with the earlier J.A. Prestwich (JAP) V-twin motor.

The new MX100 featured a 50-degree overhead valve version of the V-twin, 986-cc BS/X2 engine, produced specifically for Brough Superior by Matchless, and as per the previous SS100 model, George Brough guaranteed every machine could lap Brooklands at 100 mph. A total of 102 examples were built from 1936 to 1940.

The example offered here was supplied new to one D. McCaughern in May 1936, and is thought to be just the third bike constructed at the manufacturer’s Haydn Road factory in Nottingham. A copy of its factory build record (available to view on file) denotes “SS100 – 1936; Rigid frame with Castle forks; AMAL twin-type carburettor; Lucas HF Alto horn; Smiths 120 mph speedometer; Lycett Super Aero saddle; and Lucas MSV Magdyno”. The record shows the bike was despatched by passenger train on 9 May 1936, bearing the registration “AUP237”, which it retains to the present day.

The original “buff” log book (also available to view on file) denotes the next owner as Mr John Cyril Buttle of Johnson Road, Croydon on the 15 April 1946, before it was sold 18 months later to Mr Henry Alfred Thompson of Oakfield Road, Penge, on 8 September 1947.

Remarkably, the SS100 would then remain within the Thompson family for the next 63 years. The Thompsons had a strong passion for the marque and owned a number of other Broughs, including an SS80, and the extremely rare four-cylinder model with an Austin 7-derived engine.

On 5 November 1960, Mr Thompson gifted the SS100 to his son, Phillip Ronald Thompson, of aptly named “The Broughs” on Broad Lane, Berkshire. Both father and son were among the first members of the Brough Superior Club, following its formation in 1958, meaning this SS100 and its long-term ownership has always been known to the enthusiasts’ club.

In 2010, the SS100 was sold by the Thompson family to noted Brough collector, Peter Lancaster of Sussex, who would later restore this highly original example back to its former glory. Its matching-numbers engine was rebuilt by Norton tuner, Ron Lewis, during the process. The SS100 was sold in 2018 to join another well-known Brough Superior collection and now RM Sotheby’s is delighted to present this beautifully restored and desirable machine.