THERE is a large number of curious expressions, names and
descriptions in the jargon of motoring that have, so far as I can discover, no counterparts in the special language of any other industry, or hobby—if the pos- session of a motor-car can -still becalled a hobby. Some are good and some bad,: *neatly explanatory or, more often, pretentious and vague. Some are laboured and could be usefully dropped in favour of plain English, a few cannot be improved upon, but all except one are more or less comprehensible. You know what a " Speed Model " is, although it seems a clumsy way of expressing a rather special quality. "Light," as applied to cars of any size or power, also implies a definite characteristic. " De -luxe " is an abomination, one of the least forgivable instances of the snobbery of tongues, but it too conveys a meaning. " Sports," a word suggesting male millinery, is now applied to so many different _sorts of coachwork, from semi-racing' cars to saloons " built to carry four people and a week's luggage, that it has lost whatever significance it may once have- had, and is now little more than the term given to the shape of a body. Almost any car except a seven-seated limousine can call itself a " sports " type. All these are expressions and descriptions that, however absurd they may sound' and look, can be understood, but what is a family car ?
I ask the question guiltily, having often used the word myself, when all other definitions seemed to fall short. Sometimes I think I know, very roughly, what is meant by that extraordinary qualification ; far more often I have not the faintest idea. I know of cars that I would agree were, in fact, family, of many others to which the term could not possibly be applied. I would not call either of the Rolls-Royces family, although it is plain that both are cars eminently suited to the purposes of medium-sized and large families. I have driven examples of Humbers, Morrises, Singers, and Sunbeams, that those skilled in the finer shades of naming might very likely call family, but I would never think of the " Snipe " or the 2-litre Singer or the 25-h.p. Morris as of that elusive class. Why not ? Size does not necessarily imply familiness, nor the Jack of it. Speed ? -Do families like to go fast or not ? - Both the Rolls-Royces are Very fast cars and so is the Humber " Snipe," but it is surely not beeause these agreeable machines will exceed 70 miles an hour that nobody has called., them family. The 20-h.p. Sunbeam which I tried a short time .ago. is lively and full of other good qualities. - I believe it Will do a good deal more than 65 miles ati hour. I instinctively regarded it as family, but prolonged thOught has produced no shadow of reason why. I 'think: the 16-11.p..Humber is a fine family car, and the-. 20-h.p: :Austin and two or three of the smaller cars, like the 10-h.p. Standard, the 7-h.p. Jowett, the two smaller Renaults; but neither the 12-h.p. Rover nor the 9-h.p., Riley. So "far as my- own confused • views are concerned, power has nothing to do with it.
Is it appearance ? Does the confounded word mean that the car has lines so sober that: it is practically dowdy, its respectability so marked that it is merely a mechanical Mrs. Grundy ? Impossible. There is no such car built today, . nor has been for at least three yearsL--if you except " bespoke ", orders and certain celebrated privately-owned cars that are : duplicated every, few 3,-cais, regardless of the changing fashions. The chief characteristic of the modern car is its highly 'attractive appearance and the_ remarkable . variety of its figure, using the last word in an anatomical sense. Can it be price ? ObviouslY not What is a family car ? . A few weeks ago I took out over a specially chosen route two interesting cars that I immediately and for no ascertainable reason claisified as family. The first was the new 12-h.p. s-cylinder Austin, with the saloon known as the Ascot ; the second the , new 12-h.p. 4-cylinder Citroen with the de' luxe saloon. By an odd coincidence both cost £285 and both are taxed at £14, their rated power being 13.9 though their cubic content is different. The Austin has a capacity of 1,496 e.e. (for the same price you can have a 15.9 engine, with a capacity of 1,711 c.c.) and the Citroen one of 1,767 e.e. Both have a pleasant measure of efficient liveliness, neither is in the least stodgy, which I sometimes wildly take to be a family quality—heaven knows why. They differ slightly in body-space and, naturally, in details, but on the whole 'they resemble each other as closely as is possible (a remote likeness, in reality) in that one insistently family appeal. They are precisely the type of car you expect to find in the motor-houses of those ardent families every member of whom drives a car. Perhaps that, at last, is the function of the family car ; to be everybody's car in turn and simultaneously.
The basis of the Austin, the frame and engine, are substantially those of the earlier Twelve-Six, but it is a far better car in every way, better and more com- fortable in the full sense of the word. The bodywork is a clever piece of 'design. It is roomy but not large, there is plenty of head-room and driver and passengers have a properly wide view of the road and what lies beyond. The upholstery and seating are a great im- provement on the 'older car and the' finish is good. The lines are specially attractive, light and what is, I believe, called sweeping, but with no stressing of the " sports " motive. The maker has achieved that rarely won distinction of building a body that looks either large or small, as you please, and in which there is no waste of space. It is certainly one of the most successful bodies sold at within £50 of the price. The comfort is even more clearly expressed in the controls. The steering is excellent, light, firm and not too low-geared, and in conjunction with the well-controlled springing affords the degree of road-holding that breeds instant confidence. The brakes are good, effective and smooth in action, but I should prefer independent sets.
The rubber mounting of the engine successfully insu- lates the car from vibration. There is very little noise from under the bonnet at any speed. The gear-box is fitted with synehro-meshed engagement between top and third, and third and second are both " silent." The car as a whole is well planned from the owner-driver's point of view, sensibly and accessibly. The unforced maximum speed was about 56 miles an hour, the pick-up and ac- celeration were good and the car climbed steep hills at a good speed.
Good looks and decidedly un-Grundy and un-sports lines will draw an appreciative eye upon the Citroen, which is, like the Austin, the kind of car an entire family will jealously share. It is called the close-coupled saloon, but it is the only example I have yet seen of that rather pointless type in Which tall people can sit in comfort at the back. For all practical purposes it is not a close-coupled car at all, though it looks like one. Another really suc- cessful piece of body-design. The front seat is veil, roomy and could give points • in solid comfort to a good many bigger cars I know. All the fittings are good, par- ticularly the instruments on the dash and the manner in which they are arranged in a most attractive facia, and I was much taken with the trunk, inbuilt with the rear panel, which carries suit-cases and is fitted with a work- manlike tool-tray under the lid. The " floating power " engine suspension is, I believe, unique in having only two points of contact with the frame, one at the forward end of the engine and the other at the rear of the gear-box. It certainly contrives to damp out vibration and, I should imagine, is responsible for deadening transmission reson- ance. The features I liked most in this family car were the gear-change (there is a free-wheel as well as synchro- mesh for top and third), the springing, the brakes, the liveliness and the absence of noise. The tyres were too soft—intentionally----and spoilt the road-holding, so that I cannot say for certain whether the steering was as good as, or better than, it seemed. The comfortable maximum speed was about 57, the flexibility and performance on all gears excellent. A common-sensible sort of car.
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