 |
 |
|||||
|
|
|||||
|
||||||
|
||||||
|
Vauxhall
The Early Years and their 1950`s models
This is a car manufacturer whose roots go back to the turn of the last century, having been founded as the “Vauxhall Iron Works Ltd” in London in 1903. The works moved to Luton in 1905 with a change to the more familiar “Vauxhall Motors Ltd” in 1907.
The first offering was a single cylinder horizontal engined, chain driven runabout with tiller steering, an engine rating of 6 h.p. and selling at £150. In 1904 wheel steering and a reverse gear were offered together with 3 cylinder models of 1.4 and 2.4 litres.
The classic Vauxhall fluted radiator first appeared in 1906 on a 3.3 litre 4 cylinder model and was to last almost 50 years, even when the radiator shell became a thing of the past, flutes continued on the bonnet sides for another 10 years or so.
The first of the famous “Prince Henry” cars appeared in 1910 with a 3 litre engine and which was later expanded to 4 litres. Vauxhalls` most popular sporting model was the 30/98, the prototype appearing in 1913 with an engine capacity of 4.5 litres, sadly, World War 1 brought production to a halt with only a few cars being made.
1919 saw production renewed, the E type 30/98 was a superb touring car, very flexible and with a top speed of over 80 mph. Smaller models were also produced, like the 14/40 of 2.3 litres. In 1924 Vauxhall sold around 1,400 cars but like so many other car makers finance was a problem and at the end of 1925 the firm was bought by General Motors, its present owners, who are still producing cars at Luton.
The first car produced under the helm of the new owners in 1928, was an American looking vehicle with ohv 6 cylinder engine, coil ignition and central gear-change. 1931 saw the introduction of the “Cadet”, a low priced car at £280. 1933 saw smaller engines being made available of 12 and 14 h.p. 1935 saw the introduction of “knee action” independent front wheel suspension to replace the solid front axle and semi-eleptic springs.
The 6 cylinder 14 saloon was a wonderful car, easy and comfortable to drive. I well remember driving one of these models over 400 miles in a day to attend a VSCC meeting at Silverstone in the early 1960`s.
1938 saw the introduction of the 1200 c.c. 10 h.p. model with unitary body construction. Hydraulic brakes were standardised in 1939 on all models.
World War 2 ended civilian production for the duration, with things getting back to normal at the end of hostilities with revised versions of the pre-war Ten, Twelve and Fourteen. In 1948 the all new Wyvern and Velox models were introduced of 1.4 litres (1442 c.c.) and 2.3 litres (2275 c.c.) respectively, these cars also has a column gear-change, independent front wheel suspension and a syncromesh 3 speed gear-box. Headlamps were built into the wings, and there was a rounded bonnet with narrow flutes and horizontal grille bars. From September 1949 leather upholstery was available, separate parking lamps and larger headlights. These models ceased production in 1951 and models with the all new, full width body, the subject of this article were shown at the London Motor Show in October 1951.
The Wyvern EIX Series commenced with chassis number 1001, having a 15.63 h.p. 4 cylinder engine (1507 c.c). The Velox LIP Series commenced with chassis number 1001 and had a 17.96 h.p. o.h.v. 6 cylinder engine (2262 c.c). The former ceased manufacture in January 1957 with chassis number 110275, the latter in September 1957 with chassis number 278968. The Cresta model was introduced in October 1954, a luxury version with pointed bonnet mascot, larger windows, wider slots and bars in a stainless steel grille, amber convex flashing trafficators, a combined arm rest and door pull on all doors, new door locks and winding windows. Tubeless tyres were fitted as standard. Production commenced with series EIPC with chassis number 130000 and was discontinued In September 1957, the final number being 278969.
The Vauxhall Wyvern 4 Cylinder.
In 1951 the 4 seat Vauxhall Velox and Wyvern were replaced by models of the same name with a completely new design. According to a Motor road test report of 1955, the Wyvern had remarkably good carrying capacity for its price. It would carry 5 people in comfort and would genuinely take six without “doubling up of arms and legs”, and it had a large boot capable of carrying a good deal of family luggage. The total purchase price came to £702. 7s. 6d. in 1955 of which £207. 7s. 6d. was for purchase tax.
The 1507 c.c. engine gave an overall fuel consumption of 27.7 mile to the gallon with a maximum speed of 71 miles per hour. The car was available with two compression ratios, 6.8 for standard petrol and 7.7 for premium fuel. The higher ratio did give an improvement in performance.
Vauxhall literature of the period stated that the Seats, deeply sprung were upholstered on the Wyvern and Velox in Tygan and / or Vynide, easily cleaned, which meant they kept their smartness.
Cars were equipped with a 3 speed gearbox with steering column change. Optional extras were a fresh air heater and de-mister, radio, windscreen washers, fog-lamps, loose seat covers, wheel rim embellishers, clock, cigar lighter etc.
The Wyvern body colour range for 1955 was Black, Kingfisher Blue, Pewter Grey, Shoal Green and Morocco Red. A new range of colours was introduced in July 1956 for both the Wyvern and Velox.
The Vauxhall Velox 6 cylinder.
The same body as the 4 cylinder car but with the benefit of a 2262 c.c. 6 cylinder engine these cars gave a superb performance over the whole speed range, and were available with high and low compression engines, a 3 speed gearbox and syncromesh on 2nd and top gear. A special feature that Vauxhall claimed for all three models was the re-circulating ball steering. The movement of the steering wheel is transmitted to the road wheels through recirculating ball bearings. Because the steering becomes progressively lighter as the lock increases, parking or manoeuvring a Vauxhall requires trifling effort, yet at speed steering is reassuringly firm.
The Vauxhall Cresta 6 cylinder.
The Cresta was the most luxurious of the Vauxhall range, it had the fine performance of the Velox plus a score of luxury features in built into the basic price. The interior was upholstered in leather or your could chose from a combination of modern fabrics (Nylon and Elastofab). The floor was tastefully carpeted in a rich wool pile, as was the luggage boot. Other features included distinctive side flashes in a contrasting colour, whitewall tyres, stainless steel rim embellishers, a “speedbird” bonnet mascot, windscreen washers, fresh air heater, automatic switches for interior light and glove box, electric cigarette lighter, electric clock and automatic light in luggage boot.
These three models brought Vauxhall into the so called modern post war era, unfortunately these cars rusted badly and it took Vauxhall many years to live this down. Those that have survived are now lovingly cared for by their owners and are still capable of keeping up with modern traffic and represent an excellent buy for attending the many classic rallys that abound and also everyday use.
home | help | contact | e-mail
Copyright www.Age-Net.co.uk 2000 - 2008
