- Motors and_ Motoring
-108 Cars and Their Prices—II—Representative British Models IN continuation of my review of a few .representative British makes and .models of -car, before dealing with the 16-h.p,
class, mention may be made of the 15.94 cylinder Morris- - Oxford, which:is a machine -representing sound value both for
use at home and overseas. - As a well-found four-door saloon, with six movable :windows,-this production sells at -the relit- :tiyely, inexpensive price of -1845.: :The wheel-base is p ft. 6 ins:, _and the track of 4 ft._ 6: ins. _conforms to requirements abroad. This car is _caPahle of g5,7 85- and 55 miles an- hour without undue pushing, on :seeond, third and lop, and the controls are generally well to hind... It is notable that the standard equipment includes a Mechanically driven tire pump-a fitting which jhotrldbe incorporated on many Moremodels of all nationalities 'than- it is at the present tirne:• the four cylinders haVe dimensions of 80:and- 10 nun, There are four forward speeds and the propeller shaft is enclosed. The springs are half_ elliptical and six brakes are provided. The oversea motorist will note that the brake gear is above the axles, and so does not interfere with ground clearance. The chassis costs but £225. In the 16 nominal horse-power group we have several good makes of 2-litre car, and one of the most pro- gressive types is the 16-45 h.p. Wolseley. This machine has six cylinders, with an overhead camshaft, -four speeds, cen- trally governed, and six brakes.. It is a car, too, that should :prove popular oversea. For export an impeller is supplied to assist the water circulation. The chassis, which weighs 1.18 cwt. and has a wheel-base and track of 9 ft. 9 ins. and 4 ft. 6 ins. (or for-overseas use 4 ft. 8 ins.) is not expensive at £850. A five-seated saloon, with adjustable front seats, and a .51 ins. wide rear teat, sells at £495. A 4-cylinder and an :8-cylinder model on the same simple-lines as the 16-45 are also :being made for 1928, and the respective prices of the saloons are £815 and £750. The Eight has the same cylinder dimen- : sions as the Six. The latest Lea-Francis 6-cylinder model • is of 16-60 h.p. The engine has a bore of 65 mm., as against 60 on the 14-40, while the stroke in both cases. is 100 mm. With vacuum assistance for the braking and a track of :4 ft. 8 ins., the Saloon de luxe sells at £675. There are four speeds, which are controlled by a side lever. The firm fit a free-wheel device to some of their models, and thiS enables quiet changes of gear to be made at any time with the minimum of skill. A good illustration of what the BritiSh manufacturer can do in the way of a really high efficiency car is the 11.9 4-cylinder supercharged Lea-Francis. This is a standard production which costs (with a four-seated body complete) £405, and with but cylinder size of 69 and 100 mm., the vehicle is stated to be capable of reaching, within a short distance, a speed of over 80 miles an hour. Space does not allow me to detail more examples of this class, but a brief reference may be made to the new 2-litre Rover. This model is a distinct improvement on former ones. Well-equipped as a five-seated Weymann saloon, or as a saloon with a folding roof, it costs £425. The 2028 c.c. 6-cylinder engine has over- head valves, and these are worked by rockers and push rods. It is convenient that a single oil filler under the bonnet serves for replenishment, for engine, clutch and gear-box. Here the designer has retained the three-speed gear-box. There is a central flexible lever for effecting changes. The propeller shaft . is enclosed, the springs. are half elliptical, and there are four brakes. This machine; which hria a wheel-baSe and track of 9 ft. 10 ins. and 4 ft. 8 ins., is capable of comfortable maxima speeds on first, second and top, of about 16, 88, and 60 miles an hour. In the 20-h.p. class there is considerable width of choice and variety, -for in addition to getting sound _mediam-priCed rmachines built on modern lines,. such as Vauxhall, . Crossley, Humber, Sunbeam, and Armstion)kSiddeley, there are several of the deluxe:Order, as, for: instance, the Lanchester, the Bentley; and the B011s-floice: -The 20-60 h.p: Vauxhall is, in my opinion, ,a far better production than the former 14: To start with, it has a 6-cylinder engine, which has no less than ..9 crankshaft bearings, and the unit-runs exceptionally sweetly at all speeds. It may be as well to mention here that the design was got out before General Motors acquired the financial control of the company; and thus it_ is accurate to state that the model is of British design and manufacture. The valves are" overhead, and for the most part the components under the bonnet- are reasonably accessible; Considerable attention has evidently been paid to the design of the inlet manifold and to the heating of the mixture, and- this is no doubt answerable, in:: large part, for the smoothness and responsiveness in the -running of the engine. The four forward speeds are changed by a central lever, and at the back of the gear-box there is a parking brake, aPPlied by hand: The pedal applies four wheel -brakes; which are -fully Coiiiiiensated in action, and from my .experience no servo assistance requlied oh' this car, for a -powerful -but well-graded deceleration -force' is obtained with but little physical effort, the Main part of the leVerage being :obtained in the- brake drums. The saloon Will pull well against -Wind and.collar at 50 miles an hour, while about 80 and 45ean lie dcine On second and third. The wheel-base and track are 10-ft. 8 ins. and 4 ft. 8 ins.,nnd ground clearance is
9 ins.—a figure which is seldom loWer on any -British car of to-day. The chaisis is listed at 2875, while the all-metal saloon and the tourer cost respectively £495 and £475.
The 20.9 h.p. 6-cylifider Crossley has been improved for 1928 by small modifications. The engine capacity is over 8 litres, being 8198 c.c. The chassis is generally modernly planned, and is on straightforward lines. The overhead valves are worked by push-rods, and both water and oil circulation, are forced. There are four speeds and six brakes, while the suspension -is -half elliptical. A four-door four-light sports fabric saloon, to seat five persons, and capable of about 75 miles an hour, sells at £750. The standard five-seated tourer and fabric saloon are listed at £675 and £720 respectively, while a useful model is the 11 ft. 5 ins. wheel-base seven-seater at £725. Notable alterations in the 20-55 6-cylinder Humber for 1928 are a plate clutch, a twin vertical carburettor, four brakes with. vacuum servo assistance in application, and a single front seat. This engine has overhead inlet and side exhaust valves, and there are seven bearings to the crankshaft. -The four speeds are changed by a lever on the off side, and the rear brakes' can be operated by hand, separate linkage being provided for this purpose. With a wheel-base and track of 10 ft. 8 ins. and 4 ft. 9 ins., the chassis sells at £550 and the tourer at £890 and £675 respectively. The firm also makes a £920 and £1,440 h.p. model. In Sunbeam cars there are, in addition to the 80 and 85 h.p. 8-cylinder chassis, 16, 20, 8-litre, and 25 h.p. types, all of which have six cylinders and four speeds, together with overhead valves. The Twenty, as a Weymann saloon, costs £875, the chassis being £595. Here an engine of 75 and 110 mm. is used, and the wheel-base and -track are 10 ft. 4,1 ins. and 4 ft. 7 ins. The four-seated sports 8-litre, which is a car for which I have an affection, is designed to do 45 miles an hour on top at-an engine speed of 2,000 r.p.m. About 80 is the highest comfortable speed with a loaded saloon body, and the car soon runs up to 60 on top or third, while about 50 can be done on second. The chassis sells at £950 and the complete car at £1,125.
A111928 Armstrong-Siddeley models, which, in the 6-cylinder - group, include the Fifteen,the long and short wheel-base Twenty, and the 80 h.p. chassis, have a Central oiling system to the chassis, by means of which the most inaccessible parts can be lubricated from the driver's seat, and automatic ignition control—both of which should conduce to better maintenance. On these cars rear unit assembly is adopted, so that the three-speed centrally controlled gear-bOx fornis a unit with the enclosed propeller shaft and rear axle. The Twenty and . Thirty have overhead valves, and the new Fifteen side valves. The respective chassis prices of the Fifteen, the short and
long Twenty; and the Thirty are £270, £840, £450 and £750. The 14 h.p.- 4-cylinder chassis sells at £280. The Lanchester Motor Company make, in addition to the well-
, . . . known and high-class 40 h.p. 6-cylinder car, which sells as a
chassis, with 12 ft. 6 ins. wheel-base and 4 ft. 10 ins. track, at £1,800, the 21 h.p. model. This production, which also has
six cylinders, but has an ordinary 4-speed gear-box with side change, as against the 8-speed epicyclic box on the Forty, is listed at 11,050. It is, as all Lanchester productions have been since the early days of motoring, soundly and cleverly designed. It is interesting to recall, as illustrative of the work of this firm, that although the original car, which was the first British built four-wheel petrol driven machine, was built in the years 1895-96, there are technical features in it which may still be regarded as being of modem practice. The designer, however, may have been somewhat optimistic in those days, as, although it was only of 8 h.p. it was built to hold six persons and luggage. Of Daimlers there are a large number of models, ranging from the 16-55, which sells as a chassis at £490, up to the Double Six " 50," which is listed, with a 13 ft. 7 ins. wheel-base, as a chassis, at £1,950. Here I propose only to refer to the new 12-cylinder or Double Six " 80." This chassis is marketed, with four different lengths of wheel-base, and the price of the smallest-10 ft. 11 ins.- is £1,130. The construction-is on the lines of the bigger car. With its two banks of 6 cylinders, piston impulse is reduced to a minimum, and exceptionally smooth and rapid accelera- tion power is one of its chief claims. Light alloy pistons, light steel sleeves, pocketless combustion chambers, a seven-bearing crankshaft with a vibration damper, two cross-driven magnetos and water pumps, two carburettors and sets of manifolds, and dual ignition, are outstanding features of the engine. There are four speeds, five brakes, with vacuum servo assistance for the four-wheel braking, while final drive is by worm.
- The 3-litre Bentley has well earned a good reputation for itself. This efficient high-speed car sells, as a four to five seated tourer, and a Weymann saloon, at £1,225 and £1,850 respec- tively. The 8-litre speed model Weymann saloon costs the same. The 61-litre 6-cylinder chassis, sold with 12 ft. 7i ins. and 12 ft. 1} ins. wheel-bases, at £1,575, is a true de luxe chassis of the highest class. An outstanding feature of the engine is the drive to the overhead camshaft. The new model is a 4j-litre 4-cylinder, which, as a sports four-seater, costs £1,295. It is on the same lines as the 3-litre, and has four overhead valves per cylinder, but improved acceleration and a speed capacity of 90 miles an hour. Lastly, there are the Twenty and 40-50 h.p. Rolls-Royce cars. Only small improvements have been made on these well-tried chassis. They represent the highest art of the British, or for that matter, the international, motor chassis manufacturer. The new Rolls-Royce hydraulic shock dampers are used, and both models have the Rolls- Royce six-brake system. The Twenty chassis costs £1,185, while the short and long 40-50 are listed respectively at £1,850 and £1,900.
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