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The Maserati Shamal (Tipo 339) is a compact, two-door coupé introduced by Italian automaker Maserati on December 17, 1989. It is named after shamal, a hot summer wind that blows in large areas of Mesopotamia. The Shamal was designed byMarcello Gandini, who is famous for designing the Lamborghini Countach and the Lamborghini Miura. The Shamal shows its Biturbo heritage in the doors, interior, and basic bodyshell, which were carried over from the Biturbo. Gandini's styling signature is visible in the profile of the rear wheel wheel arch which resembles that of the Lamborghini Countach.
The center pillar acts as a roll bar and is always finished in black, a distinguishing characteristic of the Shamal. The name "Shamal" appears on either side of the central pillar in chrome lettering. The car has alloy wheels, a small rear spoiler and a blacked-out grille with chrome accents.
The two-seat interior of the Shamal features extended leather seat cushions, temperature control and the famous Maserati oval clock, which is situated in the centre of the dashboard. The gear lever is finished in elm. While built for comfort as well as performance, the Shamal was not as luxuriously appointed as the similar Maserati Ghibli II.
The front-engined Shamal is powered by a 3.2-litre twin-turbocharged V8, DOHC and 32 valves engine (AM 479) producing some 326 bhp (243 kW). It has a six-speed Getrag manual transmission and an electronic active suspension control system. This system updates the adjustment on each wheel, based on road conditions and the level of comfort desired.
The Shamal has a top speed of 168 mph (270 km/h) and a 0 to 60 mph (97 km/h) acceleration time of 5.3 seconds.
The final year of production for the Maserati Shamal was 1996. Factory figures indicate that 369 Shamals were produced between 1989 and 1996.
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(Wikipedia)
Bonhams : the Zoute Sale
Estimated : € 120.000 - 160.000
Sold for € 115.000
Zoute Grand Prix 2018
Knokke - Zoute
België - Belgium
October 2018
A 'modern classic' if ever there was one, Porsche's long-running 911 arrived in 1964, replacing the 356. The latter's rear-engined layout was retained, but the 911 switched to unitary construction for the bodyshell and dropped the 356's VW-based suspension in favour of a more modern McPherson strut and trailing arm arrangement. In its first incarnation, Porsche's single-overhead-camshaft, air-cooled flat six displaced 1,991cc and produced 130bhp; progressively enlarged and developed, it would eventually grow to more than 3 litres and, in turbo-charged form, put out well over 300 horsepower. The first of countless up-grades came in 1966 with the introduction of the 911S for the 1967 model year. Easily distinguishable by its stylish Fuchs five-spoked alloy wheels, the 'S' featured a heavily revised engine producing 160bhp, the increased urge raising top speed by 10mph to 135mph. Thicker, ventilated disc brakes were fitted to the 'S' and there were also improvements to the interior, including a leather-rimmed steering wheel.
Over the past 40 years few sports cars have proved as versatile as Porsche's perennial 911, a model that has proved equally capable as a Grand Tourer, circuit racer or rally car. Success in the latter role came only a few years after its introduction, when works driver Vic Elford became European Rally Champion in 1967. In the modern era the 911 has established itself as one of the most popular and successful cars in historic rallying worldwide.
The Porsche 911S offered here, chassis number '11800760', is one of the last of the early short-wheelbase type much favoured by the historic rallying fraternity, a situation that has led to unmodified examples such as this one becoming a great rarity and consequently much in demand.
Finished in arguably the best colour combination of Tangerine with black leatherette interior, this Porsche 911 was delivered new to Italy on 1st June 1968, and is instantly recognisable as an Italy-delivered car by virtue of its special indicators, which were only fitted for the Italian market. This car was also equipped from new with the desirable five-speed gearbox option.
In February 1987, the car moved to Brussels, Belgium with Mr Pietro De Rosa, who kept it until recently. Unusually, this car retains its original Belgian registration papers dating from 1987, which are still current. Some mechanical refurbishment was carried out in 2016, while the carburettors were professionally overhauled only a few months ago. Recently the underbody and sills benefited from extensive work to make excellent again. An older restoration, this car retains its original interior and can be described as in lovely condition, 'on the button' and ready to go.
Accompanying documentation consists of a Porsche Certificate of Authenticity; Certificate of Conformity issued by D'Ieteren in 1987 when the car came to Belgium; old Contrôle Technique dated 1987; invoices for recent works and parts; compression test; and a Classic Data report confirming the car's condition and estimated value of €175,000 in 2016.
Humber Hawk series 4A (1965-67) Engine 2267 S6 OHV Production 3754 (15539 all Hawks Ser. 1 - IVA (1957-67)
Registration Number LOC 328 F
HUMBER SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623665287863...
The Humber Hawk Series 1- 5A (1957-67) were of a completetly new unitary construction which it would go on to share with the Humber Super Snipe. The 2267 cc engine is common to all the series with detail change and a Borg-Warner Automatic was available. The body was styled in house by Rootes, a feature of the Estate is the split tailgate with the lower portion opening downwards to provide extra length and the quirky idea of the filler cap being concealed behind the reflector. There are sevral revisions in each of the series,
Introduced in 1957 the Series 1 had a completely new body with unitary construction which it would go on to share with the 1958 Humber Super Snipe. This was the biggest bodyshell for a saloon/estate car built in Great Britain at the time. The 2267 cc engine was carried over, though with modifications to the distributor mounting, and other details; The body was styled in Rootes' own studios and featured more glass than previous models, with wrap-around front windscreen, which gave it a considerable resemblance to a 1955 Chevrolet.
The 1959 Series 1A had changed gear ratios and minor trim changes.
The Series II launched in October 1960 had disc front brakes, servo-assisted. The automatic option was no longer available on the home market.
The Series III of September 1962 had a larger fuel tank and bigger rear window. The export model automatic option was also dropped.
More significant changes came with the October 1964 Series IV. The roof was made flatter, the rear window smaller and an extra side window fitted behind the rear doors. Synchromesh was fitted to bottom gear. An anti-roll bar was fitted at the rear
The final Series IVA of 1965 saw the automatic option re-introduced, this time being the Borg Warner Model 35.
In March 1967 Rootes announced that production of the Humber Hawk, along with that of the Super Snipe and Imperial had ceased. and that their place in the range would be filled by Chrysler Valiants imported from Australia, though this never seemed to happen.
After Hawk production ended, Rootes came to concentrate on sectors offering greater volume, no longer featuring as a UK provider of large family cars. It had, in particular, been unusual for UK manufactured cars of this size to feature a spacious station wagon / estate car version; and, following the demise of the Humber Hawk, the UK market for large estate cars quickly came to be dominated by the Volvo 145,
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Shot taken 05:08:2012 at The Shugborough Classic Car Meeting. Ref: 93a-145
The Progress Rail depot at Longport has a strange atmosphere about it - one of both anticipation, mixed with an air of sadness. Of the locomotives in this photograph, at least one will never run again, two if we're counting ones out of direct shot.
Starting from the right is 56201, the former 56009. This locomotive was re-engined by Brush Traction with a Paxman powerplant in 1996, and at the same time given a coat of pale blue paint similar to that of 60006 Scunthorpe Ironmaster and 60033 Tees Steel Express. 56201 was never really an official number nor subclass, but nevertheless when the three Fastline locomotives were reconditioned in 2006, they were given the subclass /3. The locomotive was one of the first to arrive at Longport for the Class 69 project, but appears to be a spares donor, possibly due to its non-standard nature - certainly, it hasn't been allocated a Class 69 number at this time.
Behind that is the black-painted wreck of 66048 James the Engine. Formerly contracted to Stobart Rail, it was running one of the inaugural freight services along the Highland Mainline when it lost brake force and ran away on approach to Carrbridge. To prevent a collision after the train passed a signal at danger, it was derailed on a set of trap points with minor injuries to the crew, but the locomotive was written off. The bodyshell now has spent over a decade standing on accommodation bogies; surely it must eventually be scrapped.
Further to the left is 56104; one of GBRf's operational 56s, this locomotive has spent some time out of action at Leicester before being towed to Longport. She is in the queue for a rebuild, having been allocated the prospective number 69014.
On the far left is ex-preservation 56097, until late last year preserved at the Nottingham Heritage Trust. Sadly the locomotive was sold, and an unknown buyer presumably related to the project snapped up the opportunity - however, it has not yet been allocated a number among either the initial run of ten nor the follow-up batch of six. Whether this means it might see use as a substitute if one of the donors proves unviable, whether we could see even more Class 69s in the future, whether 56097 is destined to end her days as a spares donor alongside 56201, or perhaps whether this locomotive's presence at Longport is purely coincidental, time will only tell.
Three other locomotives - or parts thereof - were present on-site on the day of this visit. Firstly, shunter 08523 was parked up outside the main shed building, painted in RMS Locotec livery but with Progress Rail branding on the bodyside. Secondly, the shell of an unidentified Class 69 was seen behind 56097 - could be any from 56065/69009, 56060/69010, 56032/69011, 56077/69012, or 56312/69013, although the earlier numbers are significantly less likely as their conversion began a long time ago [Edited as of 7 February: this chassis is reported elsewhere to be 56312/69013, but this is currently not confirmed]. Thirdly, the sole surviving cab of 56106 was just to the left of this shot; this locomotive lost a cab a few years back, which was exported to Hungary to enable repairs to collision-damaged 56115, and the rest of the locomotive was finally stripped and scrapped at Longport in late-summer 2022, but still several components cling on.
Identity: 56201
Class: Electroputere Class 56/2
Livery: Brush Traction pale blue
Service: N/A
Identity: 66048
Class: EMD Class 66/0
Livery: Unbranded black
Service: N/A
Identity: 56104
Class: BREL Class 56/0
Livery: BR Railfreight grey
Service: N/A
Identity: 56097
Class: BREL Class 56/0
Livery: BR Railfreight triple grey, coal sector branding
Service: N/A
Location: Longport Depot
Date: 31 January 2023
Reliant Sabre (1962-64) Engine 1703cc S6 OHV Production 208
Registration Number AFH 516 B
RELIANT SET
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Developed in collaboration with the Israeli motor company Autocars, the first Sabres appeared in 1961 as two-door convertibles, front-engined, rear-drive, with four-cylinder OHV Ford Consul (later "Zephyr 4") engines of 1,703 cc. They had front disc brakes, rack and pinion steering, and a ZF all-synchro gearbox. The front suspension was an unusual leading-arm set-up. Power output was 73 bhp (54 kW) giving at least 90 mph (140 km/h). The bodyshells were originally based upon the Ashley 1172 to which Reliant had acquired the rights. Coupés were introduced in June 1962,
An update to the original Sabre with a restyled front end, and for 1964 wishbone front suspension. 109bhp Ford engine with electric fan cooling, triple overdrive option and a ZF gearbox.
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Shot at The Silverstone Classic 28th July 2013 Ref 95-706
The original Audi Quattro competition car debuted in 1980, first as a development car, and then on a formal basis in the 1980 Janner Rally in Austria. Largely based on the bodyshell of the road-going Quattro models (in contrast to the forthcoming Group B cars), the engine of the original competition version produced approximately 300 bhp (224 kW; 304 PS). In 1981, Michèle Mouton became the first female driver to win a world championship rally, piloting an Audi Quattro.[1] Over the next three years, Audi would introduce the A1 and A2 evolutions of the Quattro in response to the new Group B rules, raising power from the turbocharged inline 5-cylinder engine to around 350 bhp (261 kW; 355 PS).
The Quattro A1 debuted at the WRC 1983 season opener Monte Carlo Rally, and went on to win the Swedish Rally and the Rally Portugal in the hands of Hannu Mikkola. Driven by Stig Blomqvist, Mikkola and Walter Röhrl, the A2 evolution won a total of eight world rallies; three in 1983 and five in 1984. Two examples of the same car completely dominated the South African National Rally Championships during 1984 to 1988, with S.A. champion drivers Sarel van der Merwe and Geoff Mortimer at the helm of the 4WD turbo monsters.
Happy ‘May the 4th’!
For this year's Star Wars Day, I have created a new build from one of the newer Star Wars Universe stories, the 2018 film - 'Solo - A Star Wars Story'.
One of the notable vehicle was a navy blue speeder. This vehicle exhibits design asymmetry, but on closer inspection, the design looks as though it is a vehicle that has been damaged along the left hand side, removing some of the external bodywork.
The vehicle I chose to reinterpret the design over is the classic 1963 Ford Falcon Sprint. This US design (different to the very similar car sold in Australia) was available with both a 2-door bodyshell, convertible and with a V8 engine, sort of a precursor to the Falcon-based Mustang launched the following year.
As well as sharing the 'Falcon' name with a future Han Solo vehicle, this model year Ford Falcon also exhibits the best representation of Ford's 1960 'Space-era' styling - rocket pod rear lamps, along with matched single lamp front end.
One styling theme not found on the earth bound car, but featured on the speeder is a kind of targa-top roof ring. I have placed this over the second row seats in an effort to balance the proportions.
This new build is created for #mocaroundgang #mocaround65 #starwars theme, hosted by @poppalars
n° 56 of 100
Bonhams
Les Grandes Marques du Monde à Paris
The Grand Palais Éphémère
Place Joffre
Parijs - Paris
Frankrijk - France
February 2023
Estimated : € 60.000 - 90.000
Sold for € 63.250
Introduced at the Geneva Salon in March 1999, the DB7 Vantage was no mere high-performance version of the existing six-cylinder DB7 but an exciting new model powered by a state-of-the-art, all-alloy V12 engine, the first of this configuration to power a production Aston Martin. This 6-litre, quad-cam, 48-valve unit produced 420bhp and 400lb/ft of torque while meeting all current and projected emissions regulations, while there was a choice of two alternative transmissions: a new six-speed manual or ZF five-speed automatic with manually selectable ratios (Touchtronic). A top speed of 185mph was claimed for the Vantage coupé, 165mph for the Vantage Volante convertible.
To accommodate the new engine/transmission package, the existing DB7 bodyshell was re-engineered, acquiring a new frontal structure and an enlarged transmission tunnel. The result was a torsionally stiffer structure that exceeded all contemporary crash test requirements. Both front and rear suspension arrangements were developed specifically for this new model, incorporating revised linkages and special Bilstein shock absorbers. The 18" diameter wheels too were unique to the Vantage, which also featured cross-drilled and ventilated Brembo brakes and Teves electronic four-channel ABS.
The Vantage's introduction was the culmination of two years intensive development and testing that included hundreds of thousands of miles covered in climatic conditions ranging from arctic to desert, as well as continuous 30-day accelerated durability tests at MIRA. Notwithstanding all the DB7 Vantage's high tech attributes, its makers had not lost sight of customer expectations of what constituted an Aston Martin. Thus the Vantage's hand crafted interior featured traditional Connolly hide upholstery, and could be trimmed and equipped to an individual buyer's personal requirements. All the usual luxury appurtenances came as standard while clients could choose from an extensive list of options that included satellite navigation, fitted luggage and parking sensors.
This left-hand drive, automatic transmission DB7 Vantage Volante is one of only 55 Anniversary Edition cars, all finished in Slate Blue, built to celebrate the end of the model's production. The car was sold (it is believed new) to the current vendor on February 2005 by Aston Martin Antwerp.
Currently displaying a total of only 18,323 kilometres on the odometer, the car is offered with a Belgian registration document and copies of the original purchase invoice and manufacturer's Certificate of Conformity. A rare opportunity to acquire an example of what was once the ultimate soft-top Aston Martin for a fraction of the original €147,620 as-delivered price.
Les Grandes Marques du Monde au Grand Palais
Bonhams
Parijs - Paris
Frankrijk - France
February 2019
Estimated : € 200.000 - 300.000
Sold for € 173.833
'In rallying form its 4.2-litre engine produced at least 200bhp, which made it competitive with the Big Healeys, and there was a most impressive spread of torque. Had this car been properly developed, it should have had the Austin-Healey 3000 beaten.' – Graham Robson, 'A-Z Works Rally Cars'.
An ultra-rare works rally car of considerable importance, 'AHP 294B' was prepared by Rootes' Competition Department and first registered to Humber Ltd on 1st July 1964. Featured in Graham Robson's 'A-Z of Works Rally Cars' (page 155), it is one of only five surviving works Sunbeam Tiger rally cars constructed by Rootes' Competition Department.
Built in left-hand drive configuration, this extensively campaigned car made its international debut in the 1964 Geneva Rally driven by 'Tiny' Lewis and Barry Hughes, winning the GT Class and finishing 11th overall. Used by Andrew Cowan/Colin Turvey as a 'recce' car for the 1965 Monte Carlo Rally, 'AHP 294B' was driven in that event by Maurice Gatsonides and Albert Ilken, only to retire in the horrendous weather conditions encountered by the Paris starters.
Gatsonides then had the idea of using the Tiger to set some Dutch National Endurance records using the Zandvoort circuit, a successful attempt that culminated in new best marks for three, six, 12, and 24 hours, the latter at an average speed of 75.47mph (see press cutting on file). 'AHP' then went on to compete in the 1965 Tulip Rally driven by Peter Riley and Robin Turvey, being eliminated when it ran out of time after being slowed by un-seasonal snow when on racing tyres. Later in 1965, and again driven by Lewis/Hughes, the Tiger was forced to retire from the Alpine Rally when one of the rear brakes failed. The ensuing localised fire is almost certainly what led to the Tiger being rebuilt at the Competition Department around a new, later-type bodyshell to the latest international rallying regulations which required cars to match the silhouette of the production model.
The Tiger's next competitive appearance was in the 1966 Monte Carlo Rally, driven by Peter Harper and Robin Turvey, from which it retired on Stage 5 having posted some impressive times. Its final outing as a works entry was in the '66 Tulip Rally, serving as Harper/Turvey's recce car. 'AHP' was then sold by the Competition Department, via a well-connected Belgian intermediary, to racing driver Chris Tuerlinckx, who formed 'Sunbeam Tiger Racing' with former Rootes engineer, Vic Heylen.
Driven by Tuerlinckx, the car's first outing as a private entry was the 1966 Tour de Belgique, which 'AHP' won outright to secure only the second international rally victory by a Tiger (John Gott's in the International Police Rally had been the first). Then came an entirely new challenge: the Spa Francorchamps 1,000km. This first venture into endurance racing would end in a 'DNF', but at the following year's Spa race the Tiger won the GT Class and finished a highly creditable 13th overall despite being pitted against works prototypes fielded by the likes of Ferrari, Porsche, Lola, and Mirage. That year's Tour de Belgique saw 'AHP' win the GT category on its way to 3rd overall, and the car continued to be campaigned in Dutch and Belgian events until the early 1970s when it was sold to Hugh Chamberlain in the UK.
It appears that Chamberlain did nothing with Tiger, which he sold in 1988 to 'Big Healey' specialist, Ted Worswick. While with Ted Worswick, the car was restored by Jeff Goodliffe's GRV of Littleborough before being acquired by David Duncanson in 1991. An authority on Rootes Group works rally cars, David Duncanson ensured that 'AHP' was returned to as correct as possible 1966 specification. Subsequently, ex-rallying star Rosemary Smith campaigned the Tiger on several occasions in historic events, winning the Coupe des Dames category more than once (details on file).
Acquired by the current vendor in May 2014, 'AHP' was then treated to a full 'last nut and bolt' restoration by Hardy Hall Restorations of Thornbury, Herefordshire, while the engine has been rebuilt by Knight Racing Services of Daventry. Related bills on file total circa £100,000 (approximately €113,000) and the car also comes with a dynamometer test sheet (213bhp at the flywheel). On delivery from Hardy Hall, 'AHP' and its crew went out the next day and secured a class win in the 2015 Tour Britannia. In 2016, this famous ex-works Tiger successfully competed in the Monte Carlo Historique, and in 2018 led the Bromyard Motor Club's road trip to the Spa Classic, revisiting the historic Belgian circuit 51 years on from its last race there.
Prospective purchasers are urged to examine the most substantial history file, which contains the original buff logbook, period photographs, contemporary press cuttings, results sheets, expired MoTs, FIVA Identity Card, UK V5C Registration Certificate, and a Sunbeam Tiger Owners' Association Certificate of Authenticity. It also comes with the original factory hardtop, with various 1960s events stickers still in place, plus two sets of wheels shod with studded snow tyres. Possessing impeccable provenance and presented in superb condition, this historic works Sunbeam Tiger is ready to use.
DB Schenker Rail (UK) Ltd's class 92 number 92031 works 6B20 from Dollands Moor to Wembley European Freight Operations Centre on 15 September 2014 hauling G.E. Rail Services owned IZA (GE117CT Hfirrs 3) semi-perminantly coupled 4-wheeled CARGOWAGGON vans with shared running numbers built by Duewag. Having started out in France and passed through the channel tunnel these vans are used to transport Danone bottled mineral water (eau minerale) including Evian imported from the French Alps, Volvic from the Massif Central and Perrier which is loaded into the vans near Nimes in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France (the source of Perrier being at Vergeze about 15 km southwest of Nimes). (and Badoit?). From Wembley this train continues on route to Crick under headcode 6B41 and is ultimately unloaded at a distribution warehouse at Daventry International Rail Freight Terminal (DIRFT).
Wagons being hauled included numbers 8029291586, 8029291990, 8028292890, 23 80 2929 014-1, 23 80 2929 069-5, 23 80 2829 294-0, 23 80 2829 278-3, 23 80 2929 030-7, 23 80 2929 182-6, 23 80 2929 108-1, 23 80 2829 243-7, 23 80 2929 180-0, 23 80 2929 020-8, 23 80 2929 095-0, 23 80 2929 011-7, 23 80 2829 226-2, 23 80 2829 299-9, 23 80 2929 197-4, 23 80 2929 042-2, 23 80 2929 167-7 and 23 80 2829 242-9 (thanks to Noisynoel for filling in the gap).
A similar set of cargowaggon vans was photographed by Nicolas Villenave on 9 May 2014 returning empty passing through Écaillon (department Nord) on their way from Calais Frethun to Culoz railway junction in the Ain department in the Rhône-Alpes region of France, by Mattias Catry at Boisleux-au-Mont on 9 September 2012 and by Laurent Knop at Béthisy-St.-Pierre, Picardie in the Oise department on 12 March 2014.
92031 (works number BT1091) was assembled by the BRUSH Traction Company Loughborough in 1995, from sub-contracted components e.g. Procor UK bodyshell, Asea Brown Boveri (ABB Rail) traction converters and GTO (Gate Turn-Off thyristor) controlled via the MICAS-S2 electronics system, retractable third rail collector shoes and pantographs made by Brecknell Willis, the engraved aluminium BRUSH traction works plates made by J M Ranger Limited of Leicester and cast aluminium based alloy Crew Depot plaque produced by David Newton of Nottingham. For track to train communications class 92s were fitted with the Siemens International Train Radio (ITR) "chameleon" system which could automatically change over to match local ground systems e.g. at international boarders and allowed the driver to select from a range of language settings. STS Signals Ltd supplied electronic Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) control units for class 92s as an add on to the Automatic Warning System (AWS) equipment. STS Signals Ltd also developed a twin-lightweight AWS receiver for use on class 92s so that only one receiver was needed to detect both standard strength magnets on lines powered by AC overhead wires (Rx1) as well as the extra strength magnets used on DC third rail lines (Rx2). All non-metallic components of the class 92 were either certified for Eurotunnels fire regulations by the manufacturers or where suppliers could not provide this information products such as the divers seat (made by Chapman Seating Limited) and plastic push buttons were fire tested by BRUSH.
After working to Wembley 92031 continued to Daventry as 6B41 (92031 WFBC WEMBLEYYD 726B41CJ15 8 * DAVTRYREC N 20D A) and then returned southwards as 0A42 (92031 WFBC DAVTRYREC 700A42CP15 F WEMBLEYYD N).
According to Realtime Trains the route and timing in the UK was;
Dollands Moor Sidings [XLM]..................0646.........0735..........49L
Ashford International [AFK]......................0700.........0752 1/2...52L
Maidstone East [MDE] 1.............................0733 1/2...0823 1/4...49L
Otford Junction[XOT]................................0818..........0851 3/4...33L
Swanley [SAY] 1...........................................0830.........0904 1/4...34L
St Mary Cray Junction[XMU]...................0835.........0908 3/4..33L
Bickley Junction[XLY]...............................0836 1/2..0909 1/2...33L
Bromley South [BMS].................................0840.........0911 3/4.....31L
Shortlands [SRT].........................................0842.........0917...........34L
Shortlands Junction[XOR]........................0843.........0918..........35L
Bellingham [BGM].......................................0846 1/2..0920 1/2...34L
Nunhead [NHD] 1........................................0855.........0928.........33L
Peckham Rye [PMR] 3...............................0859.........0931..........32L
Crofton Road Junction..............................0901.........0933 1/4...32L
Denmark Hill [DMK] 1.................................0902........0934..........32L
Voltaire Road Junction [XVJ]..................0906 1/2..0938..........31L
Latchmere Junction...................................0911 1/2....0952 1/2....41L
Imperial Wharf [IMW] 2..............................0915 1/2...0956 1/2....41L
West Brompton [WBP] 4...........................0918..........0958 3/4..40L
Kensington Olympia [KPA].......................0922........1003 1/4.....41L
Shepherds Bush [SPB] 2..........................0923.........1006 3/4...43L
North Pole Signal Vc813...........................0924 1/2..1008 3/4...44L
North Pole Junction...................................0925........1008 1/2....43L
Mitre Bridge Junction[XMB].....................0926 1/2..1012...........45L
Willesden West Londn Junction[XWI]...0928.........1013 1/2.....45L
Wembley Eur Frt Ops Cntre.....................0939.........1020...........41L
In France the bottled water trains travelling to and from England may take a number of different routes after leaving or before arriving at Calais Frethun but pass through;
Gare de Arras………………………………
Boisleux-au-Mont……………….
Gare de Achiet-le-Grand………..
Gare de Beaucourt………………
Gare de’Albert…………………..
Gare de Montigny……………….
Ecaillon, Nord-Pas-de-Calais……
Gare de Somain………………….
Culoz Junction…………………...
Gare de Volvic (freight only)......
The Porsche 911 (pronounced as Nine Eleven, German: Neunelfer) is a luxury 2-door sports coupe made by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany.
These 1972 and 1973 Carrera RS models, valued by collectors, are considered by many to be the greatest classic 911's of all-time. RS stands for Rennsport in German, meaning race sport in English. The Carrera name was reintroduced from the 356 Carrera which had itself been named after Porsche's class victories in the Carrera Panamericana races in Mexico in the 1950s. The RS was built so that Porsche could enter racing formulae that demanded that a certain minimum number of production cars were made. Compared with a standard 911S, the Carrera 2.7 RS had a larger engine (2687 cc) developing 210 PS (150 kW; 210 hp) with MFI, revised and stiffened suspension, a "ducktail" rear spoiler, larger brakes, wider rear wheels and rear fenders. In RS Touring form it weighed 1075 kg (2370 lb), in Sport Lightweight form it was about 100 kg (220 lb) lighter, the saving coming from the thin-gauge steel used for parts of the bodyshell and also the use of thinner glass. In total, 1580 were made, comfortably exceeding the 500 that had to be made to qualify for the vital FIA Group 4 class.
The 1956 Chevrolet was the middle year of what has come to be known as the 'tri-fives', as such, it was the first refresh of the 1955 bodyshell. Notably the radiator grille was now leaned forward at the top, producing a longer hood (bonnet) profile.
Models were again arranged 150, 210 and Bel Air. The Bel Air Convertible shown here matched the only ope-top bodystyle with top-specification trim. The car shared a long arc chrome strip with the 210 model, which drooped at the tail and split the body in models with two-tone paint. The roof was paired to the upper bodysides (behind a vertical chromed trim feature half way along the car), along with the trunk, while the hood matched the upper bodyside, ahead of the vertical split (just behind the front door), along with the painted surface under the horizontal arc.
A range of six and vee-eight engines were available, the V8 was a 265 CID (4.3 L) rated at 170 bhp (127 kW), 210 bhp (157 kW) or 225 bhp (168 kW) depending on the carburetor configuration. Power was to jump considerable the following year with the introduction of the 283 CID (4.6 L ) small block.
Other GM divisions, picked up new bodies for 1957, with the exception of Chevrolet and Pontiac. The 1957 was a hasty refresh of the 1955/56, the top Bel Air trim becoming one of the most famous and sought after Chevrolet models.
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG: fascination and high tech: New legend with unrivalled performance - the Gullwing super sports car from Mercedes-Benz and AMG
Laguna Seca (USA) – Automotive fascination and high-tech at the highest level: the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, which is due to be launched in spring 2010. This Gullwing model captivates with a purist design, intelligent lightweight construction and superior handling dynamics, and is bound to cause a sensation in the super sports car segment. The new SLS AMG is nothing short of a masterpiece by Mercedes-AMG GmbH. As the first independently developed vehicle, the super sports car is the highlight in the company's more than 40-year history. It not only takes AMG, the performance brand within Mercedes-Benz Cars, into a new era, but also demonstrates development expertise of the very highest order.
The new super sports car from Mercedes-Benz and AMG makes for an alluring proposition with its unrivalled technology package: aluminium spaceframe body with Gullwing doors, AMG 6.3-litre V8 front-mid-engine developing 420 kW/ 571 hp peak output, 650 Nm of torque and dry sump lubrication, seven-speed double-declutch transmission in a transaxle configuration, sports suspension with aluminium double wishbones and a kerb weight of 1620 kilograms based on the DIN standard – this superlative combination guarantees driving dynamics of the highest order. The front/rear weight distribution of 47 to 53 percent and the vehicle's low centre of gravity are testimony to the uncompromising sports car concept. The 'Gullwing' accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds, before going on to a top speed of 317 km/h (electronically limited). The fuel consumption of 13.2 litres per 100 kilometres (combined) puts it at the front of the competitive lineup.
Design: purist, distinctive and passionate
The purist design of the new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG captivates by virtue of its passionate sportiness, and its reinterpretation of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL's breathtaking design lines. The stylistic highlights are the striking gullwing doors, which lend an incomparable charisma to the SLS AMG. The long bonnet, the low greenhouse positioned well to the rear and the short rear end with its extendable rear aerofoil stand for dynamism, as do the long wheelbase, the wide track and large 19 and 20-inch wheels. It is not only the gullwing doors that are reminiscent of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, as the wide radiator grille with its large Mercedes star, the wing-shaped cross fin and the fins on the bonnet and flanks also hark back to the legendary sports car of the 1950s.
Eyecatching features of the side view include the accented wheel arches and the pronounced shoulder line, which extends from the front to the rear end like a taut muscle. Dynamism and power are also communicated by the rear view of the SLS AMG: the gentle slope of the boot lid with the automatically extending aerofoil accentuates the impression of width, as do the flat LED tail lights.
Interior with a touch of aircraft engineering
Mercedes-Benz designers took their inspiration from the aviation world when
designing the interior. The stylistic centrepiece is the dashboard, which ensures a visual impression of breadth with its muscular, wing-like profile. The four air vents with adjustable cruciform nozzles are prominently integrated into the dashboard – their shape is reminiscent of a jet engine. The design theme of an aircraft cockpit is also reflected in the long centre console of matt-finished, solid metal. Features integrated into this include the AMGDRIVE UNIT, which enables the driver of the SLS AMG to choose a personal vehicle setup. The AMGSPEEDSHIFT DCT 7-speed sports transmission is operated by the E-SELECT lever, which resembles the thrust control of a jet aircraft. Despite the low seating position typical of a sports car, the wide-opening gullwing doors allow easy access and egress. They require less opening space than conventional coupé doors, and can be fully opened in a standard-size garage.
Aluminium spaceframe for lightweight design and high strength
The SLS also breaks the mould when it comes to the body concept: for the first time, Mercedes-Benz and AMG are presenting a car with an aluminium chassis and body. Compared with the traditional steel design this results in a significant weight saving, as is clearly illustrated by the DIN kerb weight of 1620 kilograms.
The newly developed bodyshell consists of an aluminium spaceframe. This exclusive design combines intelligent lightweight design with outstanding strength – thus delivering superlative driving dynamics. Lightweight aluminium sections connect the frame nodes to form a sturdy structure. The large, low-set cross-sections of these aluminium sections ensure high strength, and ensure the necessary, direct transfer of drive, braking and suspension forces. The structure prevents unwanted flexibility; the vehicle responds rigidly, directly and with practically no torsion.
45 percent of the intelligent, weight-optimised aluminium spaceframe is made
from aluminium sections, 31 percent from sheet aluminium, 20 percent from cast aluminium and 4 percent from steel. Maximum occupant safety requires the use of ultra-high-strength, heat-formed steel in the A-pillars. The bodyshell weighs 241 kilograms – an absolute benchmark in the super sports car segment in relation to the peak output of 420 kW/571 hp. With a DIN kerb weight of 1620 kilograms, the power-to-weight ratio is an extremely favourable 2.84 kilograms per hp.
Low centre of gravity and transverse reinforcing struts for superb
dynamism
The entire vehicle concept has been designed to achieve a centre of gravity that is as low as possible. This applies both to the low connection of the powertrain and axles as well as to the arrangement of the rigidity-related bodyshell structure. Examples include the rigid flexural and torque connections between the front and rear sections and the safety passenger cell, which have been realised using force paths that are consistently as low as possible. This results not only in a low centre of gravity, but also in a harmonious and therefore efficient force path in the vehicle structure.
Passive safety at a high level
The aluminium spaceframe provides the basis for outstanding passive safety. The extensive safety features include three-point seat belts with belt tensioners and belt force limiters, and up to eight airbags: adaptive front airbags for the driver and passenger, a kneebag for each, two seat-integrated sidebags and two windowbags deploying from the waistlines of the gullwing doors.
Fine-tuned AMG 6.3-litre V8 engine developing 420 kW/571 hp
A powerful eight-cylinder Mercedes-AMG engine forms the heart of the new SLS. The fine-tuned 6.3-litre V8 engine develops 420 kW/571 hp at 6800 rpm, making the SLS AMG one of the most powerful sports cars in its segment. A power-to-weight ratio of 2.84 kg/hp comes courtesy of the low vehicle weight. The naturally aspirated engine delivers its maximum torque of 650 Nm at 4750 rpm. The SLSaccelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 3.8 seconds, and has an electronically limited top speed of 317 km/h. Bearing the internal designation M 159, the high-revving V8 engine with its displacement of 6208 cubic centimetres has been thoroughly reengineered compared to the basic M 156 engine, and boasts all the hallmarks of powerful racing engines.
The principal measures in increasing output include the all-new intake system, the reworked valve train and camshafts, the use of flow-optimised tubular steel headers and the dethrottling of the exhaust system. This results in much better cylinder charging, which feeds through into an increase in output by almost nine percent - 34 kW/46 hp. The eight-cylinder engine responds swiftly to movements of the accelerator pedal, demonstrating much more pronounced high-revving flexibility across the entire rev range. The switch to dry sump lubrication also translates into a much lower installed engine position. And lowering the vehicle's centre of gravity has also paved the way for high lateral acceleration and exhilarating driving dynamics.
Perfect synthesis of lightweight design and strength
The use of high-strength components compensates for the increased engine loads associated with the higher output. Forged pistons, a reinforced crankshaft bearing, optimised crankcase structure, along with improved lubrication thanks to a demand-controlled, high-performance oil pump ensure optimum durability. Despite these higher loads, the engine weight for the M 159 has been further reduced. The forged pistons as oscillating masses play a particularly valuable role in this respect, resulting in a kerb weight of 205 kilograms and, in turn, a power-to-weight ratio of 0.36 kg/hp – an unrivalled figure compared with the competition. Sophisticated catalytic converter technology enables current and future exhaust emission standards such as EU 5, LEV 2 and ULEV to be met.
Enables demanding fuel consumption targets to be met
Despite its uncompromisingly sporty character, very ambitious fuel consumption targets have been met. The SLS AMG consumes 13.2 litres per 100 kilometres (combined, provisional figure), earning it a place at the top of the competitive ranking. Efficiency-enhancing measures include the familiar AMG-exclusive, friction-optimised twin-wire arc-sprayed coating on the cylinder walls as well as the on-demand, map-optimised oil supply and intelligent generator management: during the engine's overrun phases and braking, kinetic energy is used to charge the battery, rather than being wasted by simply generating heat. Conversely, the generator is switched to no-load operation during acceleration, thus reducing the load on the engine.
Double-declutch transmission with transaxle configuration and torque tube
The AMG 6.3-litre V8 engine delivers its abundant power to the rear axle via an ultra-light carbon-fibre driveshaft – similar to the setup used in the DTM C‑Class racing touring car. The double-declutch transmission is mounted at the rear (transaxle principle), and connected to the engine housing via a torque tube. A carbon-fibre shaft rotates at engine speed in the torque tube. The advantages of this sophisticated solution lie in the rigid link between the engine and transmission and, in turn, the optimum support for the forces and torque generated.
The AMG SPEEDSHIFT DCT 7-speed sports transmission boasts fast gear changes with virtually no loss of tractive force – in as little as 100 milliseconds. The driver has a choice of four different driving modes: "C" (Controlled Efficiency), "S" (Sport), "S+" (Sport plus) or "M" (Manual). In the Sport, Sport plus and Manual modes the automatic double-declutching function is active; all the modes can be selected conveniently via the rotary control in the AMG DRIVE UNIT. The RACE START function provides optimum traction -- as does the mechanical differential lock, which is integrated into the compact transmission housing.
Sophisticated suspension layout with double-wishbone axles
The chosen solution with a front-mid-engine plus transaxle configuration ensures an ideal front/rear weight distribution of 47 to 53 percent. Mounting the engine behind the front axle has created the ideal conditions for consummate driving dynamics with precise steering, first-class agility, low inertia with spontaneous directional changes and outstanding traction. All four wheels are located on double wishbones with a track rod, a technology that has proven itself in motor racing right through to Formula 1. With a double-wishbone axle, the wheel location and suspension functions remain separate; the spring/damper struts are supported on the lower wishbone. The double-wishbone concept with its high camber and track rigidity positively locates the wheel with minimal elastic movements, providing the driver with an optimum sense of road contact when driving at the limits.
Wishbones, steering knuckles and hub carriers at the front and rear are made entirely from forged aluminium – substantially reducing the unsprung masses; this configuration also notably improves the suspension response. The long wheelbase of 2680 millimetres not only results in outstanding straight-line stability but also low wheel load shifts, significantly reducing the vehicle's tendency to dive and squat when braking and accelerating. The broad track width – front 1682, rear 1653 millimetres – ensures lower shifts in the wheel loads from the inner to the outer wheel when cornering, enabling the tyres to retain more grip.
Direct steering, differential lock and 3-stage ESP®
The rack-and-pinion steering gear provides a consistently direct steering feel with a constant mechanical ratio of 13.6:1, in tune with the high expectations placed on a super sports car. The power steering provides speed-sensitive assistance and improves feedback for the driver as the road speed increases: an indispensable factor for high-speed straight-line driving. Mounting the steering gear in front of the engine on the integral subframe enables the engine to be set down very low. The Gullwing model comes with 3-stage ESP® as standard, and the driver can choose the three "ESP ON", "ESP SPORT" and "ESP OFF" modes at the touch of a button. In "ESP OFF" mode too, operating the brake pedal restores all the normal ESP® functions.
Acceleration skid is controlled in all three ESP® modes. If one of the drive wheels starts to spin, specific brake pressure is applied to improve traction significantly – especially in conjunction with the standard-fit mechanical multi-disc limited-slip differential. This means that the engine power is transferred to the road even more effectively when driving in a particularly dynamic style.
AMG ceramic composite high-performance braking system available as an option
The AMG high-performance braking system with composite brake discs at the front ensures extremely short stopping distances even under high loads. The newly developed, optional ceramic composite brakes with even larger brake discs guarantee even better braking performance. The ceramic brake discs perform reliably at even higher operating temperatures thanks to their greater hardness, all combined with an impressive weight reduction of around 40 percent. Reducing the unsprung masses has further improved both comfort and grip, and the reduced rotating masses at the front axle ensure a more direct steering response.
Lightweight construction was also key when it came to the wheels: weight-optimised AMG light-alloy wheels – 9.5 x 19 inch (front) and 11.0 x 20 inch (rear) – based on the innovative flow-forming principle reduce the unsprung masses while improving driving dynamics and suspension comfort. In addition to the standard-fit AMG 7-spoke light-alloy wheels, 5-twin-spoke wheels and weight-optimised 10-spoke forged wheels are available as an option. 265/35 R 19 (front) and 295/30 R 20 (rear) tyres developed exclusively for the SLS AMG ensure optimum performance. A tyre pressure monitoring system is fitted as standard to permanently monitor tyre pressure in all four wheels; individual tyres are shown on the display.
The SLS AMG as a masterpiece in AMG's more than 40-year history
The new SLS AMG is a true masterpiece on the part of Mercedes-AMGGmbH.
As the first independently developed car, the super sports car is the highlight of the company's more than 40-year history. With this car AMG, the performance brand within Mercedes-Benz Cars, is not only entering a new era, but also demonstrating development expertise of the highest order.
AMG was established in 1967 by Hans Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher, and is considered a pioneer in the field of vehicle tuning for motorsports. Following the cooperation agreement concluded in 1990 with Daimler-Benz AG, the company was gradually incorporated into what at the time was DaimlerChrysler AG in 1999. On 1 January 2005, DaimlerChrysler AG acquired 100 percent of the shares. Today Mercedes-AMG GmbH is a vehicle manufacturer in its own right, and AMG is the performance brand within Mercedes-Benz Cars. This subsidiary of Daimler AG specialises in unique, high-performance vehicles; its sporty saloons, SUVs, coupés, cabriolets, roadsters and specially built one-off models constitute a product portfolio which meets its customers' every wish. The product range encompasses a total of 16 AMG high-performance models with outputs ranging from 265 kW/360 hp to 450 kW/612 hp.
Mercedes-AMG has overall responsibility for developing the design, aerodynamics, interior as well as the powertrain, engine, suspension, brakes and electronics – right up to granting final approval for production of the complete AMG vehicle. The company is also in charge of all marketing and sales-related activities for its products.
This Ford Model T speedster was actually built in 1920! Using a Paco bodyshell, it was restored in the 1950's, the current owner first saw this car when he was five years old and it was love at first sight, many years later he had the opportunity to buy the car and jumped on it... He did some light restoration on it after many years of storage, and yes it's a stunning car...
Another great night for the local car cruise at Grey Eagle Casino...
Volkswagen Golf GTi Mk.2 (1983-92) Engine 1781cc S4 8v Production 6,000,000 (all Golf Mk.2's)
Registration Number E 772 UOK
VOLKSWAGEN SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623738785355...
The second-generation Volkswagen Golf was launched in Europe at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show.and launched into the British marketplace March 1984. It featured a larger bodyshell, and a wider range of engine options than the Mark 1 and a more rounded style.
The successful hot GTi model was continued with the Mk2 as a sporty 3- or 5-door hatchback. Like late Mk1 GTIs, it featured a fuel-injected and was later joined by the more powerful Golf GTi 16v marked by discreet red and black "16v" badges front and rear.
Shot at Cars in the Park, Lichfield 07:07:2013 REF: 89-681
Completely new body in very modern style. The look of car reminded some critics of a bath tub, and it consequently gained the soubriquet "Taunus Badewanne". At a time when competitors boasted that all four corners of the vehicles were visible from the driver's seat, the new Taunus instead offered a streamlined form. However, in Germany the concept of streamlining in cars was associated with narrow passenger cabins reminiscent of the 1930s and of the still popular Volksagen Beetle. The new Taunus, however, provided greater interior width than its predecessor despite being no wider on the outside. Although the 1.7 litre version was launched with the same 60 PS power output as the outgoing model, the new model was a full 10 km/h (6 mph) faster, which was attributed to improved aerodynamics and a lighter bodyshell.
(Wikipedia)
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Der 1960 vorgestellte Taunus P3 (= Projekt 3, d. h. die dritte neue Pkw-Konstruktion der Ford-Werke Köln seit Ende des 2. Weltkriegs) ist ein Mittelklassewagen von Ford Deutschland. Er präsentierte sich in einer vom Designer Uwe Bahnsen kreierten neuartigen, sachlichen Form, für die der Slogan „Linie der Vernunft“ geprägt wurde, die ihm aber auch den Spitznamen Badewanne eintrug.
(Wikipedia)
United Counties 712 is apparently the actual bus that was inspected and measured by Corgi in order to produce their model Bristol FS. It was inevitable that they would replicate it, but this didn't happen until October 2002, after four other liveries. The model is spoilt by Corgi's poor attempt at replicating the cream window rubbers by printing them on the glazing rather than the bodyshell, which was heavily criticised at the time and not repeated on any further releases. Incidentally, the owners of the real 712 would love to obtain the certificate numbered 712 for their model, so if you have it please get in touch.
Sold for £ 1.200
The Jaguar Land-Rover Collection
Brightwells Auctions
Bicester Heritage
Buckingham Road
Bicester
Oxfordshire
England
March 2018
Humber introduced the Super Snipe model in 1938, a big and impressive six-cylinder machine aimed at government officials, military top brass and upper-middle-class management types.
For 1958 it was restyled as the ‘New Super Snipe’, losing the big separate wings of old in favour of a more modern unitised chassis and body which was heavily influenced by the 1955 Chevrolet. Claimed to be the largest bodyshell being built in the UK at the time, it certainly looked the part, getting even more impressive in 1960 when the Series III version gained quad headlamps.
The Series IV of 1962 had a sleeker profile with a larger glass area and opening rear quarterlights to extract the Brigadier’s pipe smoke more efficiently. The rear compartment also gained picnic trays, four ashtrays and two cigar lighters! Under the bonnet lurked a more powerful 132,5 bhp 3-litre engine, while a higher ratio rear axle and a larger 16-gallon fuel tank extended the range between pit stops.
First registered in May 1964, this Series IV had just one owner from new until 2011 when it was acquired for the collection. While the last MOT expired in December 2012 (with no advisories recorded), it is not running at present and will doubtless benefit from some thorough recommissioning before use, a process which will be eased by the informative Olyslager manual which comes with the car.
Now looking somewhat down at heel with various loose wires under the dash, it could do with a bit of general tidying to bring it back to the standard that one’s commanding officer would expect.
395 002 Sebastian Coe
British Rail Class 395 is a dual-voltage electric multiple unit (EMU) used by train operating company Southeastern for its services along High Speed 1 and onwards to the Kent coast.
The trains were built in Japan by Hitachi and shipped to the United Kingdom to operate new high speed domestic services.
The trains are among the fastest operating domestic service trains in the United Kingdom, capable of running at a maximum speed of 140 mph (225 km/h).
During the 2012 Summer Olympics, Class 395 trains will be used to provide the Javelin shuttle service for visitors to the Olympic Games' main venue in Stratford and so the name Javelin has become a common nickname.
An order worth £250 million was placed with Hitachi Europe for 28 high-speed ‘A-trains’ in 2004.
A twenty-ninth train was later added to the agreement in order to provide additional capacity.
The first train was delivered from Japan to Southampton Docks on 23 August 2007.
It was then hauled to Ashford in Kent for acceptance testing by Serco.
Three more trains were delivered in 2007, with the remainder of the fleet in 2008–2009.
The final unit arrived in Southampton on 17 August 2009.
The first of the trains to be delivered was present at the official opening of High Speed 1 and St Pancras station on 6 November 2007.
A regular service commenced on 13 December 2009, with 2 trains per hour serving Faversham via Chatham and Gravesend, and 2 trains per hour travelling to Ashford International, where 1 train continues on to Dover Priory, and the other to Margate via Canterbury West.
As of September 2011 extra services run in peak hours from London to Ebbsfleet and Maidstone West, and some Dover Priory trains are extended to Sandwich and Faversham trains to Broadstairs.
The trains run up to 140 mph (225 km/h) on High Speed 1, but are restricted to 100 mph (160 km/h) on the South Eastern classic main lines and are based at a £53m five-road depot south of Ashford International railway station in Ashford, Kent, with stabling also at Ramsgate and Faversham.
They are owned by HSBC Rail, and leased by Southeastern.
The Class 395 units incorporate design elements from Hitachi's A-Train family including friction stir welded aluminium bodyshells, as well as elements of the 400 Series mini-shinkansen's design, the bogies are derived from shinkansen bogies.
They are designed as true high-speed trains, capable of 225 km/h.
The cab designs bear a resemblance to the 885 series EMUs used on limited express services on Japan's narrow gauge network.
The units are dual voltage, able to operate on third rail 750V DC and 25kV AC 50 Hz overhead electrification systems.
The train is equipped with GPS positioning equipment and a database to calculate the train’s exact position.
The pressure-sealed doors on each car can only be opened with an exact alignment to the platform.
The 6-car trainsets consist of
2 Driving trailer cars each of length 20.65 metres (67.7 ft)
4 Standard motor cars of length 20.0 metres (65.6 ft)
In total the train is 121.8 metres (400 ft) long over the couplings.
The train is unusual for a high speed train in that the doors and vestibules are not set at the ends over the bogies as on most long-distance trains (e.g. Mk 4 carriages), but in order to reduce dwell times (i.e. the waiting time at the station) they are set at approximately ¼ and ¾ along the carriage, which allows for faster loading and unloading, like most commuter trains (e.g. Electrostar); this means that the ride quality for passengers sitting over the bogies is diminished (due to transmission of vibration through the floor), though the quality of track on High Speed 1 is relatively high and the trains will not be used at speed on other lines.
The 395 has internally-hung sliding pocket doors, rather than plug doors; this has meant the sacrifice of a smooth external profile.
The door system is identical to that in use on the Japanese Shinkansen or bullet train and has over 40 years of operational experience and development.
The Class 395's seating capacity is as follows: Each DPT (1) vehicle seats 28, has 12 tip up seats in the wheelchair parking area and one RVAR wheelchair accessible toilet, each MS vehicle (four per a six carriage EMU train) seats 66 and finally each DPT (2) vehicle seats 48 and has one standard toilet.
Unusually for a high speed passenger train, there is no first class accommodation.
The latest addition to my growing collection of 1970s cars is this Mini 1275GT in Reynard Orange. Based on the long-nosed Clubman bodyshell, the 1275GT was the sporty model that replaced the more famous and sought-after Cooper range, and the real JCY 646N was apparently once owned by Taff, the boss of Oxford Diecast. The model is perhaps not quite up to the quality of some other Oxford products, but it is tiny (only 4cm long) and much better than the Springside kit version.
Class 47/0 No.47295 in Ipswich lower yard on 25th January 2003 awaiting onward transit to Loughborough for scrapping. The 47 worked to the lower yard under its own power 3 days previous.New as D1997 on 3rd June 1966 at 50A York and withdrawn in March 2002 and moved to Brush Traction,Loughborough for partial stripping on 27th January 2003.Whilst at Brush she was sold to the Brush Type 4 Fund in February 2003 and the bodyshell moved to MOD Ashchurch for secure storage,then on to Long Marston.Preservation did not happen and she was cut up at EMR Kingsbury in July 2011.
Direct Rail Services class 57/0s no. 57009 and 57008 join the West Coast Mainline at Coventry with 5Z66 Eastleigh-> Crewe empty stock. The stock and locos were used on the previous day's caterpillar cat charter with the 57/0s standing in for unavailable class 68s.
These locos aren't that well liked amongst enthusiasts however, they are probably my favourite diesels.
The first Class 57s were built in 1997 for Freightliner, a Class 47 bodyshell was taken, stripped, rewired and then fitted with an EMD engine. In 2002, 12 further Class 47s were converted to 57s for Virgin Trains, these were numbered 57/3 and fitted with ETH. In 2003, four additional locos were ordered for dragging Pendolinos, these were fitted with Dellner couplings from new and the remainder of the fleet was retrofitted with Dellners in the same year. DRS now operate the majority of the class 57/0 and 57/3. Network Rail operate some Class 57/3s, First Great Western operate the Class 57/6 fleet and West Coast Railways operate a fleet of 57/0, 57/3 and 57/6.
“A former London Underground D78 car has been crashed into a 3 tonne tank of water as part of the testing programme being carried out in support of Vivarail’s plans to use the bodyshells of the redundant metro trains to create low-cost ‘D-Train’ diesel multiple-units for use on the national rail network.
The crash test aimed to verify that the train driver would be protected in the event of an incident such as such as a level crossing collision with a farm vehicle.
As part of the rebuilding project Vivarail has ‘substantially strengthened’ the cab’s steel casing and moved the driver’s seat further back from the window. Creactive designed the cab and enhanced safety structure, with input from Simpact which develops protective structures and restraint systems for the automotive industry.
The test was held at the Quinton Rail Technology Centre on a former military site at Long Marston on May 8th 2015. Test track operator Motorail has experience of running crash tests to industry standards, and TRL provided independent monitoring and will produce a full report. The D-Train was pushed to a speed of 26 km/h, and released 80 m from the collision point.
‘We believed that the original aluminium bodies were of sufficient quality and strength and had been so well maintained by Long Underground that the D-Train would be more than up to the challenge’, said Vivarail. ‘However, as with all elements of our train we wanted to out-perform expectations and so it was important to us to prove the original train was in perfect structural condition and that our work to strengthen and increase the cab's structural integrity would provide the additional protection we intended.’
‘From a preliminary visual inspection of the train cab, it appears that the enhanced safety cell structure has improved the crash performance of the cab, maintaining a suitable survival base and protection offered to the driver’, said Mike Pittman, Principal Consultant at TRL. ‘Final results of the test will be released in the coming month.’
Railway Gazette – 12th May 2015
If you were to put an Alfasud and an Alfa 33 Permanent 4 on hoists and gaze at their bellies, you would have some trouble spotting differences. The flat-four motors look much the same; so do the gearboxes, the suspensions, much of the exhaust systems and the floor pressings.
Of course, the Permanent 4 has allwheel drive, and that means there’s a stout steel tube running down the centreline to drive a live rear axle, but this aside, the pair are near as dammit identical. The reason is simple - the 33 is merely a re-shelled Alfasud. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Not when the Sud's entrails were so good in the first place and the engineering philosophies behind them so sound.
Today, the Sud is best known for the frightening speed with which it turns to dust. Sub-standard steel, poor paintwork and foam-filled box-sections that soak up water are just some of the flaws that earned the Sud its terrible reputation. Yet the car still earns respect because of its handling, which reached a new plane for front-wheel-drive cars. This, and the boxer engine’s fabulous smoothness, gained the car a place on plenty of short lists.
Indeed, the Sud’s qualities here are so exceptional they obscure the fact that it has other strings to its bow. It was designed by a small team led by Rudolph Hruska, who hired the talents of a then- fledgling ItalDesign to shape and package the car. The singular approach of this group produced a machine of remarkably few unpleasant compromises.
It is immensely practical, for a start. Excellent packaging provides ample room for four adults and all their luggage, visibility is good, refinement and cruising ability well above average for its day. Servicing is a doddle, too, the carb, distributor and oil filter all being very accessible. It was, after all, designed as an ordinary family car as well as a real Alfa.
So if the Sud doesn’t have a twin-cam motor and rear-wheel drive, it nevertheless keeps faith with the tradition of innovative engineering and, most important of all, it drives like an Alfa. The aim was to endow a front-driver with the handling characteristics of a rear-drive machine, and, amazingly, Alfa succeeded.
Examine the innards of a Sud, and you begin to see why. It might incorporate MacPherson struts up front, but the suspension geometry was designed to provide a high roll centre and plenty of negative camber, both of which counter the understeer inherent to such a nose- heavy design. Mounting the brake discs inboard reduces both unsprung weight and the effects of torque reaction under braking, and careful bushing of all the suspension mounts cuts road noise.
1971 Alfasud 1.5Ti vs. 1991 Alfa Romeo 33 Permanent 4
Alfasud (top) puts huge loads on outside front tyre, cornering neutrally. Has very sharp steering. New 33 looks undramatic, but is travelling faster. It understeers at limit, has more rubbery steering. Alfasud interior clad in cruddy plastic (third from top); 33 only a little better. Soundproofing robs 33 of foot room. Short-legged driving position in both.
At the rear, Alfa’s liking for rigid rear axles lives on: a dead beam is located by pairs of Watt linkages at each end and a Panhard rod in the middle to provide sideways location. This is an ingenious solution. The Watt linkages allow plenty of vertical movement while restricting scope for rear-wheel steering, and because they are bolted direct to the axle, they force the dead beam to double as an anti-roll bar during cornering without in any way limiting suppleness. Add to this the layout’s low cost and the limited space it takes up, and it is easy to overlook the fact that it isn’t fully, independent. Coils, which encircle the dampers, are the springing medium.
The Sud might share its flat-four engine layout with the Citroen GS, but the Italian motor is water-cooled, and remarkable for using a one-piece cylinder block, whereas most boxer crankcases are split. There is a single overhead camshaft per bank.
The flat four was chosen not just for its inherent smoothness - a boxer motor is naturally better balanced than an in-line four - but for the low centre of gravity it allows, which helps the car’s handling. The low engine height also allows a lower, aerodynamically favourable, bonnet line.
Not that the body is terribly clean through the air by today’s standards with its 0.41 Cd, but that wasn’t a bad figure. More effort went into engineering the body for space, lightness and stiffness. Deep box sections help, and are one of the reasons the Sud acquired its double bulkhead, the forward wall further sealing the noisy bits from the cabin. In the space behind, the battery, wiper and fan motors, brake servo, fusebox and coil are housed away from dirt and spray.
The Ti, the direct antecedent of the Permanent 4 and the car we feature in our comparison, came three years after the Sud was announced in late 1971, and featured a modest battery of changes to appeal to enthusiasts, the most important of which was more power, something the chassis was well capable of containing.
The first 1974 Tis stayed with the 1186cc engine but used a twin-choke carb to boost power from 63bhp to 68bhp, which was not much, especially as torque dropped back from 71 lb ft to 67lb ft. However, a five-speed gearbox was standard, there were spoilers front and rear, real carpets and a tachometer.
Drivers loved the Ti but moaned about the power shortfall, which brought about a 76bhp 1286cc model in 1977. A year after that came the 85bhp 1.5 Ti motor, and with it the Sud’s first facelift, which ran to a new facia, allegedly improved rust protection, 165/70x13 tyres rather than 145s, trim changes and, for the Ti, wheel- arch extensions and restyled spoilers.
It’s one of these cars (my own, in fact) that we test here, survivors of the original series being exceptionally rare. Though more powerful, the series-2s lost none of the first car’s handling prowess and ride quality, characteristics that would gradually desert later versions of the Sud as Alfa successfully fiddled with it.
Recapturing that magic from the early days is something Alfa has been trying to do ever since. The problems began in the Alfasud’s twilight days, when the need to improve power and grip upset its delightful manners. The extra power induced torque-steer - despite equal-length drive shafts - and wider, lower profile tyres spoiled the ride. On top of that, alterations to the front suspension geometry, the springs and anti-roll bar undermined the wonderfully neutral feel.
When the 33 emerged as a replacement in 1983, it brought many of these problems with it, because apart from a new bodyshell and a redesigned interior, there was a little that was truly new in the 33. The short list of novelties ran to an instrument binnacle that adjusted with the steering column (later dropped), a change to outboard front discs and drum rear brakes, a retrograde step except that it made the stoppers easier to service and, most important of all, vastly improved corrosion protection. And that was it.
Two facelifts and dozens of derivatives later, we have the new Permanent 4, however, a car that appears to offer far more than 33s past. The fact that the gearbox lies behind the boxer engine and that the car has a dead beam rear axle makes it easy to convert the 33 to four-wheel drive, and indeed there was a part-time 4x4 estate some years back.
The Permanent 4 takes things a stage further by being full-time four-wheel drive, its centrally mounted viscous differential sending 95 percent of the drive to the front wheels unless traction trouble strikes. ABS is standard, the computer disconnecting drive to the rear wheels when it’s triggered.
Power comes from the ultimate version of the boxer engine, which has twin overhead cams per bank, 16 valves and Bosch Motronic ignition and injection. From 1712cc it produces 137bhp and 116 lb ft of torque at 4600rpm, quite an improvement on the 1.5 Ti’s 85bhp and 98 lb ft of torque at 3500rpm.
They both sound much the same when you fire up, though, the flat fours settling to an even, electric motor-like hum. Needless to say, the 1.7 has more life in it, the revs climbing eagerly to the backdrop of a rattling rasp that’s quite unique. The rasp is more subdued from the 1.5, and so is the performance, which by today’s standards would be called languid even for a family saloon. But the smaller engine endears with smoothness that lives to the red line - in the 1.7’s case, there’s more throbbing, if to a higher rev limit - and a more even torque spread. The 16-valve boxer serves maximum zest only when past 4000rpm.
1971 Alfasud 1.5Ti vs. 1991 Alfa Romeo 33 Permanent 4
In a straight line (opposite top) both cars ride firmly, but Permanent 4 less crashy than some old 33s. It’s the quicker of the pair by a mile. Both roomy in the back despite compact dimensions (opp middle). The Sud has more instruments, and a left foot rest. Otherwise, 33 has more equipment and better ergonomics - Sud’s heater fan switch is on a stalk and is easier to trigger than wipers. Rearward visibility poor on high-tailed 33. Engines: Sud’s single-carb 85bhp 1.5 (top); 33’s injected quad-cam 137bhp 1.7. Note double bulkhead.
To get the best of both cars the gearbox has to be used, but in neither case is the shift particularly good. Redesigned linkages make the 33’s change tighter and less floppy, but it’s doubtful whether it’s actually any quicker. Further impediments to rapid transit include the seat and steering wheel positions, which have never been right in either car. The Permanent 4 has a pair of good Recaros, but the steering wheel is curiously angled no matter how it’s adjusted, and the pedals are too bunched.
1971 Alfasud 1.5Ti vs. 1991 Alfa Romeo 33 Permanent 4
In the Sud the driver’s stance is still more emphatically stretched-arms crumpled-legs, but at least there’s a rest for an idle left foot-the 33 does without. The Permanent 4 is certainly the quieter cruiser, mainly because wind noise is better quelled. Both cars are vociferous under acceleration, though keen drivers won’t object, and at a steady speed the motors miraculously pipe down.
Neither car rides brilliantly - rapidly- taken humps and bumps are checked quite severely by the dampers, and the lower-profile tyres of the Permanent 4 patter more. But this 33 certainly is more supple than earlier examples, absorbing bumps effectively enough that, most of the time, the ride goes unnoticed. The same is true of the Sud.
It’s in the chassis department that the odds swing in the Sud’s favour. Of course, it can’t muster anywhere near the grip of the 33, with its skinny tyres, nor the 33’s security in tricky conditions, but it handles more pleasingly, sends more messages.
1971 Alfasud 1.5Ti vs. 1991 Alfa Romeo 33 Permanent 4
The biggest difference is the Sud’s responsiveness. It reacts instantly to the wheel, whether it’s entering a bend or halfway through, and resists understeer like almost no other front-driver, ancient or modern. It’s a cliche to say it, but it really does corner like a kart. This terrific quality is backed by accurate, reasonably quick steering that delivers plenty of feel.
The 33’s assisted steering is numb and not much quicker, though less effort is required. Initial vagueness and a surprisingly lethargic response to inputs don’t help. The Permanent 4 also understeers more. There’s no doubt, though, that the 33 is vastly more effective cross-country. It’s much quicker, of course (0-60mph in 8.5sec, 126mph against the Sud’s 11.7 and 102mph), but it’s also grippier and more effortless. And entertaining, too, the most fun any 33’s ever been, and more than the majority of rival rocket shoppers.
But it lacks the neutral handling and delicacy of response that marked out the Sud, and for that reason it’s often less satisfying. If Alfa could combine these with the extra grip and go, the Permanent 4 would be highly desirable.
The 4 also ought to make less noise, provide a slicker gearshift, a smoother ride and deliver decent ergonomics. Above all, it ought to be better made. But the 33 stands out with its marvellous engine - unmatched for entertainment value in this class - distinctive styling and capable chassis. Those who enjoy engineering will savour its layout, too.
That contrasts well with a couple of the cars in this comparison, the Audi and the Citroen, which abandon completely the philosophies promoted by their predecessors 20 years earlier. The ZX does without a flat four and fluid suspension, the 100 without a rotary engine and step-ahead styling, despite the fact that these approaches yielded such promise. They were killed by commercial cowardice in the first case and, in the second, spectacular warranty bills.
The Sud concept, on the other hand, remains intact to a startling extent. But on its own that's not enough to make the 33 a class leader 20 years on. Alfa has not had the money, nor perhaps the will, to develop the mechanicals to the pitch they might have reached today. It's to the Italians’ benefit that most rival manufacturers have been similarly reluctant to advance. Richard Bremner.
While the whole bodyshell is covered in "Desert Gold", the rims are strictly black giving an exciting contrast.
For more about the unveiling of the golden SLS AMG check www.sls-amg-reporter.com
1978 MGB GT.
Was red.
10 previous keepers.
Anglia Car Auctions, King's Lynn -
"Offered on behalf of the Executors.
1978 MGB GT Sebring Evocation. Well in excess of £20,000 has been invested in this B with works including fully restored bodyshell with composite Sebring kit, adjustable and polybushed suspension, bucket seats and Safety Devices roll cage, internally plumbed fuel and brake lines and compomotive 5 spoke wheels. Engine specification includes 1950cc overbore with standard Twin Cam Lotus pistons, Piper BHR2852E camshaft, 3 branch exhaust manifold and big valve gas flowed cylinder head. Unfortunately, serious illness prevented use so the car is offered in need of final fettling and fine tuning. Comes with a few MoT's.
V5 present
MoT October 2017
Recorded mileage 26,500."
Sold for £10,080 on an estimate of £9000 to £12,000.
Originally conceived by British Leyland, the Metro was built to similar principals as those of the Mini it was intended to replace, with a small, practical platform with as much use available to the passenger as was possible. The car came under various initial guises, including the Austin Metro, the Austin miniMetro, the Morris Metro van and the MG Metro, a version of the car with a 1.3L A-Series Turbo Engine.
Although the car was launched in 1980, development of a Mini replacement had dated back to the beginning of the 70's. Dubbed ADO88 (Amalgamated Drawing Office project number 88), the Metro was eventually given the go ahead in 1977, but wanted to have the appeal of some of the larger 'Supermini' (what a contradiction in terms) cars on the market, including cars such as the Ford Fiesta and the Renault 5. Designed by Harris Mann (the same guy who gave us the Princess and the Allegro), the car was given a much more angular body for the time, but despite its futuristic looks did share many features of the earlier Mini, including the 675cc BMC-A Series engine that dated back to 1959, and the gearbox. Initial cars also included the Hydragas Suspension system originally used on the Allegro and the Princess, though with no front/rear connection. The car was also built as a hatchback, which would eventually be a key part of its success as the Mini instead utilised only a small boot.
The Metro was originally meant for an earlier 1978 launch, but a lack of funds and near bankruptcy of British Leyland resulted in the car's launch being pushed back. This delay however did allow the folks at Longbridge to construct a £200m robotic assembly plant for the new Metro line, with the hope of building 100,000 cars per year. Finally the car entered sales 3 years late and got off to quite promising initial sales, often being credited for being the saviour of British Leyland. The Metro was in fact the company's first truly new model in nearly 5 years, with the 9 year old Allegro still in production, the 1980 Morris Ital being nothing more than a 7 year old Marina with a new face, and the 5 year old Princess not going anywhere!
As mentioned, an entire myriad of versions came with the Metro, including the luxury Vanden Plas version and the sporty MG with its top speed of 105mph and 0-60mph of 10.1 seconds. Eventually the original incarnation of the car, the Austin Metro, went on to sell 1 million units in it's initial 10 year run, making it the second highest selling car of the decade behind the Ford Escort. However, like most other British Leyland products, earlier cars got a bad reputation for poor build quality and unreliability, combined with the lack of rustproofing that was notorious on many BL cars of the time.
The show was not over however, as in 1990 the car was given a facelift and dubbed the Rover Metro. The 1950's A-Series engine was replaced by a 1.1L K-Series, and the angular bodyshell was rounded to similar principals as those by acclaimed styling house Ital to create a more pleasing look for the 90's. This facelift, combined with an improvement in reliability and build quality, meant that the car went on to win the 'What Car?' of the Year Award in 1991.
In 1994 the car was given yet another facelift, with once again a more rounded design and removal of the Metro name, the car being sold as the Rover 100. Engines were once again changed, this time to a 1.5L Peugeot engine and more audacious colour schemes were available for the even more rounded design of the new car. However, the car was very much starting to look and feel its age. Aside from the fact that the design dated back to 1977, the new car was not well equipped, lacking electric windows, anti-lock brakes, power steering, or even a rev counter! In terms of safety, it was very basic, with most features such as airbags, an alarm, an immobiliser and central locking being optional extras.
Eventually the curtain had to fall on the Metro, and in 1997, twenty years after the initial design left the drawing board, it was announced that the car would be discontinued. Spurred on by dwindling sales due to lack of safety and equipment, as well as losing out to comparative cars such as the ever popular Ford Fiesta, VW Polo and Vauxhall Corsa, with only fuel economy keeping the car afloat, Rover axed the Metro in 1998 with no direct replacement, although many cite the downsized Rover 200 a possible contender. Stumbling blindly on, the next car to fill the gap in Rover's market was the 2003 CityRover, based on the TATA Indica, which flopped abysmally and pretty much totalled the company (but that's another story).
In the end only 2,078,000 Metro's were built in comparison to the 5.3 million examples of the Mini that it was meant to replace. The main failings of the Metro were down to the fact that the car was too big compared to the Mini, and the rounded old-world charm of the Coopers and Clubmans was replaced by the angular corners. Because of this the car simply didn't have the novelty that the Mini continued to claim even 20 years after the first ones left the factory, and the Mini would even go on to outlive the Metro by another 2 years, ending production in 2000, then going on to have a revival in the form of BMW's New Mini Cooper that's still being built today. Unlike the Mini, the Metro also failed to conquer the international market in the same way, scoring its 2 million units pretty much in Britain alone, although some cars were sold in France and Spain, but only to the total of a few hundred.
The Metro however survived only on fuel economy and its spacious interior, but by the early 1990's, whilst other car manufacturers had moved on leaps and bounds, Rover continued to be stuck in the past with not the money or the enthusiasm to change what was a terribly outdated and extremely basic car. Towards the end the Metro, which had only a few years earlier won awards for its practical nature, was ending up on lists for Worst car on the market.
Today however you can still see Metro's, later editions are especially common on the roads of Britain. Earlier models built under British Leyland have mostly rusted away and are apparently only down to about a thousand nowadays, but the Rover 100's and Rover Metros continue to ply their trade, a lonely reminder of how here in Britain, we can never ever seem to move on!
One of the most revolutionary cars in all of motoring history, a car that has often been declared as the Space Shuttle in the Middle Ages! Beauty, style and performance all harnessed in one simple bodyshell. It can't be anything other than the Jaguar E-Type!
When it was launched in 1961, Britain was still very much an antiquated Victorian country, and transport was not much better. Steam Trains still had another 7 years to go and the most you could get out of the Motor Industry were flaky BMC products such as the humble Austin Cambridge and the Morris Minor. Unbeknownst to this very slow moving world of modesty, the entire picture was about to be turned on its head. In music, the Beatles rocked their way into everlasting legacy, the De Havilland Comet brought nations closer together, and Jaguar launched the E-Type, a car that set the motoring world ablaze!
Designed by Malcolm Sayer and powered by a 3.8L Straight Six engine, the Jaguar E-Type could now whisk people to 150mph, and with there being no speed limits back then, that was not too much of a stretch to imagine. You just had to look at it to see nothing but speed, everything about it was designed to go as fast as possible!
In spirit, the E-Type can trace its roots back to the race ready D-Type, also designed by Malcolm Sayer and notable for raking home victory after victory at Le Mans, being credited with being one of the most advanced sports cars of all time. A limited edition road going version, the XKSS, made the idea of a D-Type on the public highway possible, and parts developed in this often forgotten little gem helped to culminate in the final and superb E-Type.
On March 16th 1961, the E-Type was released upon the unsuspecting public at the Geneva Motor Show to an absolute roar of applause and acclaim. It made the front page of pretty much every newspaper in Europe, and orders absolutely rolled in by the thousand! The thing that made the E-Type so desirable was the fact that it was fun on a budget, a high performance 150mph capable machine for an affordable price of just £2,000, the equivalent of about £40,000 today. Now you may think that's a lot of money, but when you consider that a car of comparable beauty and performance was double that price, you'd know it was something truly special.
However, this proved to be a problem for the comparatively small company, who simply couldn't turn out the cars fast enough to supply the demand. Millions and Millions of Pounds worth of orders were being placed, with some owners even going so far as to place deposits at 10 to 15 Jaguar dealers hoping that one of them could give them a car! The biggest problem was trying to supply differing markets, especially if you were British because in order to appease the desperate American buyers, cars would be built in LHD for 6 month periods at a time, which meant if you were someone wishing to buy a car here in the UK, you'd be stuck for the best part of a year!
But it was obvious why, these cars were unrealistically fast! Tap the pedal and you'd be at 60mph in 7.1 seconds, press it further and you'd be over 100, and if you pressed it further, the bonnet would rise and with blood gushing from your eyes and every fibre of your body telling you to stop, you'd be hitting 150mph! That doesn't sound like much today considering the Aston Martins and Ferrari's we're so used to, but in 1961 this was absolutely unheard of.
Not that your E-Type would ever make 150mph because Jaguar had been a tad naughty. As it turns out the initial test cars that had been leant to the Press had been tuned to reach that golden 150, but the rest of the flock would barely go that fast. This was further compounded by a troublesome gearbox, hopeless brakes, cramped interior and uncomfortable seats. Jaguar's con had only been done to bless their car with the initial fame that would sell the production models, but in 1965 Jaguar chose to redress the issue by fitting the car with a much larger and much better 4.2L Straight Six engine.
But once the novelty had worn off the E-Type was starting to become maligned. Much like owning a topping Rolls Royce, seeing one being driven in the street opened the wounds of jealousy that continued to divide the social classes, and if you were very lucky you'd only get away with a disapproving look or a nasty name, if you weren't expect a brick, a can of paint or a rock to be hurtled in your direction! At the same time because so many cars had been built, the Second Hand market became saturated which meant that people could pick up early ones for a song, which removed the exclusivity that these vehicles had once commanded. Again, much like a Rolls Royce these owners only saw them as ways to get women to take off their clothes for you, and thus didn't exactly give them the love that such cars required.
However, this was before we got to the biggest problem of them all, America.
Actually I take it back, America can't be blamed for everything, in fact the stringent safety legislation and rules on car manufacturing can be credited to the increased safety of modern motor vehicles, the people to be blamed though are in fact the car manufacturers themselves for not being able to incorporate the compulsory safety features whilst still keeping the car stylish.
But still, throughout the 1960's the death of James Dean had resulted in a gradual increase in safety legislation on US Highways, and in order to have a market there, cars had to conform. The height of the headlights, the bumpers, the smoke emissions, the recess of the switches, all of these things were scrutinised and had to be taken into account by car builders. The E-Type became a shameful victim as its looks were compromised with changes to the lights, and body profile. To be honest the Series II was not that bad a car, still retaining much of its charm, especially when you compare it to 1971's Series III which was formulated by British Leyland. With the cabin looking like it had sunk, the lights being stretched and contorted, and sporting a massive 5.3L V12 engine. By this point many of the cars former buyers saw the E-Type as damaged beyond repair and thus sales began to tumble. British Leyland however had been planning to replace the car since the late 1960's, and after much deliberation its replacement, the Jaguar XJS, was launched in 1975, bringing an end to the increasingly hard to sell E-Type. Although very well performing, in terms of looks, the XJS was considered by many classic Jag fans to be absolute heresy, but would go on to have a much longer life that the E-Type, being built until 1996.
However, even before the last E-Type left the production line the originals were already being hailed as classical heroes. In total well over 70,000 of these cars had been sold, and a large number of them remain on the roads. During the late 70's and 80's the car continued to be a major pin-up, often ending up rather oddly, and to my mind a bit shamefully, in erotic films and porn movies (I sure hope they washed thoroughly afterwards). But when you look at the E-Type you can understand why, it is a seriously sexy looking car!
So iconic and so stylish were these cars that over the years many different replica models have also been made. Throughout the 1990's the company Eagle GB built the Eagle E-Type, brand new cars built to exactly the same specifications as the original Series I versions, whilst in 2011 the Eagle Speedster was produced, revising the bodyshape but attempting to maintain the charm of the original, and in 2014 several remaining chassis from the original production run that had been kept in storage are intended to be built into fully functioning cars.
The E-Type may have died a long time ago, but its reputation isn't letting up! :D
Ford Thames 300E Van (1954-61) Engine 1172cc S4
Production 196,885
Registration Number 5458 FX
FORD (UK) SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623665118181...
Based on Fords Anglia/Prefect 100E Saloons and sharing a bodyshell 100E Station Wagon. Powered by a Ford 1172 cc engine originally only in 5 cwt the range was later expanded to include standard and deluxe variants of a 7 cwt van. Production 196885.
Shot at The Commercial Vehicle Show, Gaydon 13.06.2010 Ref 56-109
The Manta A was released in September 1970, two months ahead of the then new Opel Ascona on which it was based. A competitor to the Ford Capri, it was a two-door "three-box" coupé, and featured distinctive round tail lights, quite similar to those on the Opel GT and which in fact were used on the GT in 1973, its final model year. In the UK market, the first Manta was sold only as an Opel: there was no Vauxhall-branded Manta (or Ascona) until after the launch, in 1975, of the Manta B1 and Ascona B.
The second car to use the Manta name was launched in August 1975. This two-door "three-box" car was mechanically based directly on the then newly redesigned Opel Ascona, but the overall design was influenced by the 1975 Chevrolet Monza. The Manta had more "sporty" styling, including a droop-snoot nose not seen on the Ascona, although it was standard, on the UK version of the Ascona, the Vauxhall Cavalier. There was still no "Vauxhall Manta", with the car remaining an Opel in the UK. However, a Vauxhall Cavalier was available with the same coupé bodyshell.
In 1977, a three-door hatchback version appeared to complement the existing two-door booted car. This shape was also not unique, being available on the Vauxhall Cavalier Sports Hatch variant.
Both Manta versions received a facelift in 1982, which included a plastic front spoiler, sideskirts for the GT/E and GSi models, a small wing at the rear and quadruple air intakes on the grille.
(Wikipedia)
- - -
Der Opel Manta ist ein fünfsitziger Pkw der Adam Opel AG, der als Manta A im September 1970 auf den Markt kam. Der Wagen ist die technisch identische Coupé-Version der zwei Monate später vorgestellten Opel Ascona A-Limousine. Das Coupé mit wassergekühltem Vierzylinder-Frontmotor und Hinterradantrieb wurde als Konkurrent des bereits seit 1968 erfolgreichen Ford Capri auf den Markt gebracht.
Der Manta A wurde zunächst mit drei verschiedenen CIH-Motoren angeboten, die auch in der größeren Rekord C-Limousine Verwendung fanden: zwei 1,6-l-Varianten mit 68 PS bzw. 80 PS sowie der 1,9-l-Version mit 90 PS.
Als im August 1988 der letzte Manta B vom Band lief, war seine Technik mit der aus dem Kadett B von 1967 stammenden Starrachse (Zentralgelenkachse) und den seit 1965 produzierten CIH-Motoren überholt, obwohl die letzten Modelle schon mit ungeregeltem Katalysator und 5-Gang-Getriebe ausgerüstet wurden. Für Opel war der Manta ein Erfolg: Von beiden Modellreihen wurden zusammen 1.056.436 Wagen gebaut.
(Wikipedia)
Taken 14/12/25, just a week before a special tour will mark the end of the class 455s. I had a brief chat with the driver who said he would miss them, not least because the sophisticated Train Management Systems on the newer unit mean they can get pulled from service for relatively minor faults.
According to Wikipedia the Class 455 "... was originally to be classified as the Class 510, at which point they were planned as a 750 V DC version of the Class 317. However, as the chopper control system at the time was not considered robust enough for the electrically rougher third rail Southern Region, they were fitted with second-hand camshaft control systems and thus classified as the 455 class.[
A total of 505 carriages were built by British Rail Engineering Limited's Holgate Road carriage works and together with 43 existing trailers from Class 508s, formed 137 four-car sets. The 455s allowed the Class 405 and Class 415 to be withdrawn, as well as allowing the Class 508s to be transferred to the Merseyside network for which they were originally intended. They also allowed other stock to be cascaded to the North London and Oxted lines.
There were three batches of Class 455s, all consisting of four cars: driving trailer vehicles at each end, an intermediate trailer vehicle and an intermediate motorised vehicle (powered by four EE507-20J of 185 kW carried on the bogies of the MSO vehicle, some recovered from Class 405s), all originally built to the standard class 3+2 seating arrangement with 316 seats. Technically, they are formed DTSO+MSO+TSO+DTSO.[ They have the same bodyshell as the Class 317 and Class 318, but as they were designed for inner suburban services they do not feature first class seating, air conditioning or toilet facilities and are restricted to 75 mph (121 km/h).[3] Like the Class 317/318, as well as the diesel Class 150, they are based on the British Rail Mark 3, with a steel construction, unlike the earlier PEP based Class 313, Class 314, Class 315, Class 507 and Class 508, which had an aluminium alloy body"
South Western Railway (SWR) is owned by FirstGroup (70%) and MTR Corporation (30%) that operates the South Western franchise. It operates commuter services from its Central London terminus at London Waterloo to South West London. SWR provides suburban and regional services in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset, as well as regional services in Devon, Somerset, Berkshire and Wiltshire. Its subsidiary Island Line operates services on the Isle of Wight. SWR was awarded the South Western franchise in March 2017 In December 2024, the government announced that SWR's contract would not be renewed in May 2025 and that the service would be renationalised., and took over from South West Trains on 20 August 2017.
Originally conceived by British Leyland, the Metro was built to similar principals as those of the Mini it was intended to replace, with a small, practical platform with as much use available to the passenger as was possible. The car came under various initial guises, including the Austin Metro, the Austin miniMetro, the Morris Metro van and the MG Metro, a version of the car with a 1.3L A-Series Turbo Engine.
Although the car was launched in 1980, development of a Mini replacement had dated back to the beginning of the 70's. Dubbed ADO88 (Amalgamated Drawing Office project number 88), the Metro was eventually given the go ahead in 1977, but wanted to have the appeal of some of the larger 'Supermini' (what a contradiction in terms) cars on the market, including cars such as the Ford Fiesta and the Renault 5. Designed by Harris Mann (the same guy who gave us the Princess and the Allegro), the car was given a much more angular body for the time, but despite its futuristic looks did share many features of the earlier Mini, including the 675cc BMC-A Series engine that dated back to 1959, and the gearbox. Initial cars also included the Hydragas Suspension system originally used on the Allegro and the Princess, though with no front/rear connection. The car was also built as a hatchback, which would eventually be a key part of its success as the Mini instead utilised only a small boot.
The Metro was originally meant for an earlier 1978 launch, but a lack of funds and near bankruptcy of British Leyland resulted in the car's launch being pushed back. This delay however did allow the folks at Longbridge to construct a £200m robotic assembly plant for the new Metro line, with the hope of building 100,000 cars per year. Finally the car entered sales 3 years late and got off to quite promising initial sales, often being credited for being the saviour of British Leyland. The Metro was in fact the company's first truly new model in nearly 5 years, with the 9 year old Allegro still in production, the 1980 Morris Ital being nothing more than a 7 year old Marina with a new face, and the 5 year old Princess not going anywhere!
As mentioned, an entire myriad of versions came with the Metro, including the luxury Vanden Plas version and the sporty MG with its top speed of 105mph and 0-60mph of 10.1 seconds. Eventually the original incarnation of the car, the Austin Metro, went on to sell 1 million units in it's initial 10 year run, making it the second highest selling car of the decade behind the Ford Escort. However, like most other British Leyland products, earlier cars got a bad reputation for poor build quality and unreliability, combined with the lack of rustproofing that was notorious on many BL cars of the time.
The show was not over however, as in 1990 the car was given a facelift and dubbed the Rover Metro. The 1950's A-Series engine was replaced by a 1.1L K-Series, and the angular bodyshell was rounded to similar principals as those by acclaimed styling house Ital to create a more pleasing look for the 90's. This facelift, combined with an improvement in reliability and build quality, meant that the car went on to win the 'What Car?' of the Year Award in 1991.
In 1994 the car was given yet another facelift, with once again a more rounded design and removal of the Metro name, the car being sold as the Rover 100. Engines were once again changed, this time to a 1.5L Peugeot engine and more audacious colour schemes were available for the even more rounded design of the new car. However, the car was very much starting to look and feel its age. Aside from the fact that the design dated back to 1977, the new car was not well equipped, lacking electric windows, anti-lock brakes, power steering, or even a rev counter! In terms of safety, it was very basic, with most features such as airbags, an alarm, an immobiliser and central locking being optional extras.
Eventually the curtain had to fall on the Metro, and in 1997, twenty years after the initial design left the drawing board, it was announced that the car would be discontinued. Spurred on by dwindling sales due to lack of safety and equipment, as well as losing out to comparative cars such as the ever popular Ford Fiesta, VW Polo and Vauxhall Corsa, with only fuel economy keeping the car afloat, Rover axed the Metro in 1998 with no direct replacement, although many cite the downsized Rover 200 a possible contender. Stumbling blindly on, the next car to fill the gap in Rover's market was the 2003 CityRover, based on the TATA Indica, which flopped abysmally and pretty much totalled the company (but that's another story).
In the end only 2,078,000 Metro's were built in comparison to the 5.3 million examples of the Mini that it was meant to replace. The main failings of the Metro were down to the fact that the car was too big compared to the Mini, and the rounded old-world charm of the Coopers and Clubmans was replaced by the angular corners. Because of this the car simply didn't have the novelty that the Mini continued to claim even 20 years after the first ones left the factory, and the Mini would even go on to outlive the Metro by another 2 years, ending production in 2000, then going on to have a revival in the form of BMW's New Mini Cooper that's still being built today. Unlike the Mini, the Metro also failed to conquer the international market in the same way, scoring its 2 million units pretty much in Britain alone, although some cars were sold in France and Spain, but only to the total of a few hundred.
The Metro however survived only on fuel economy and its spacious interior, but by the early 1990's, whilst other car manufacturers had moved on leaps and bounds, Rover continued to be stuck in the past with not the money or the enthusiasm to change what was a terribly outdated and extremely basic car. Towards the end the Metro, which had only a few years earlier won awards for its practical nature, was ending up on lists for Worst car on the market.
Today however you can still see Metro's, later editions are especially common on the roads of Britain. Earlier models built under British Leyland have mostly rusted away and are apparently only down to about a thousand nowadays, but the Rover 100's and Rover Metros continue to ply their trade, a lonely reminder of how here in Britain, we can never ever seem to move on!
Porsche 997
n° 208 of 356
Chassis n° WP0CB2A93BS795617
Bonhams : The Autumn Sale 2020
Estimated : € 220.000 - 250.000
Unsold
Autoworld
Brussels - Belgium
September 2020
With the introduction of the first 911 Speedster in January 1989, Porsche revived a charismatic model from its past, the name previously having been applied to that most stylish of the many Type 356 variants. Originally conceived as a basic, no frills, entry level version of the 356, the Speedster would later evolve into one of the most lavishly equipped, exclusive, and expensive models in the Porsche range.
Based on the 911 Turbo Cabriolet, though normally aspirated, '89 Speedster was launched immediately prior to the introduction of the new Type 964 bodyshell and thus was the last 911 model to feature the 'old style' body. The latter was reworked by chief stylist Tony Lapine, incorporating numerous references to the original 356 Speedster as well as a pair of controversial 'camel hump' cowlings behind the seats that concealed the stowed-away manual hood.
Following the Type 964's introduction in August 1989, it took Porsche a couple of years to reintroduce the Speedster to the 911 line-up, the Type 964 version being announced in October 1992. Based on the Carrera 2, it looked very like its immediate predecessor but unlike the latter was not initially available with the wide 'Turbo-Look' body style. With the Type 993's introduction in 1994, the Speedster once again disappeared from the 911 catalogue, only to be revived a few years later as part of Porsche's 'Exclusive' programme of strictly limited edition models.
This policy of offering the Speedster via the Exclusive programme continued on the succeeding Type 996 and Type 997 iterations of the 911, the latter arriving in 2005. As an homage to the first Porsche Speedster of 1954, it was announced that only 356 would be built. This new Speedster featured the wide body of the Carrera 4S Cabriolet but was rear-drive only, being powered by the 402bhp engine of the Sport Classic. Porsche's PDK seven-speed dual-clutch automatic was the only available transmission. Porsche claimed a top speed of 305km/h (190mph) and a 0-100km/h (0-62mph) time of 4.4 seconds, making the Type 997 Speedster one of the world's fastest convertibles.
The Speedster's signature double-bubble hood cover was retained for the Type 997, while the wide Fuchs-style wheels and front/rear bumpers and valances were other Sport Classic carry-overs. There was leather in great abundance in the interior, with even the smallest details trimmed in that material, while Porsche claimed that, once familiar with the procedure, the owner could deploy the hood in under two minutes. Despite shedding various components and adding aluminium doors and carbon brakes, the Speedster ended up weighing almost exactly the same as the C2S Cabriolet, thanks to its wide body and generous level of equipment. "The result is that it drives very much as you'd expect, offering flashing performance, admirable body rigidity and superb steering, chassis balance and poise," declared Autocar.
The Speedster offered here was built for the North American market and delivered new to Quebec, Canada, remaining there for some five years before returning to Germany in 2016. Subsequently converted to European specification, the Porsche is currently registered in Germany where it has had only one owner. Finished in white with black leather interior, this exceptional Speedster has covered only 3,174 kilometres from new and is presented in commensurately superb condition. Accompanying documentation includes sundry bills; a summary of its Canadian history; German registration papers; and a Vehicle Inspection Report rating the car as excellent in all areas.
Depending on their country of residence, prospective purchasers should consult with the local registration authorities regarding the registration of this vehicle or speak to a Bonhams specialist for further advice.
Please be advised that due to the limited number of kilometres recorded on the odometer, this Lot may incur VAT liability upon registration in the EU. The VAT payable will be the rate prevailing in the country of registration.
The Ford Galaxie was a full-size car built in the United States by the Ford Motor Company for model years 1959 through 1974. The name was used for the top models in Ford’s full-size range from 1959 until 1961, in a marketing attempt to appeal to the excitement surrounding the Space Race. In 1962, all full-size Fords wore the Galaxie badge, with "500" and "500/XL" denoting the higher series. 1965 saw the introduction of the Galaxie 500/LTD, followed by Galaxie 500 7-Litre in 1966. The Galaxie 500 part was dropped from the LTD in 1966, and from the XL in 1967, however the basic series structuring levels were maintained. The "regular" Galaxie 500 continued below the LTD as Ford’s mid-level full-size model from 1965 until its demise at the end of the 1974 model year.[1]
The Galaxie was the high volume counterpart to the Chevrolet Impala. Some Galaxies were high-performance, racing specification machines, a larger forebear to the muscle car era. Others were plain family sedans.
A version of the car was also produced in Brazil under the names Galaxie 500, LTD and Landau from 1967 to 1983.
1960-1964
Second generation 1960 Galaxie Starliner
Production 1960-1964
Body style(s)
2-door sedan
4-door sedan
2-door hardtop
4-door hardtop
2-door convertible
Engine(s) 223 cu in (3.7 L) OHV I6
289 cu in (4.7 L) Windsor V8
292 cu in (4.8 L) Y-block V8
352 cu in (5.8 L) FE series V8
390 cu in (6.4 L) FE series V8
406 cu in (6.6 L) FE series V8
427 cu in (7.0 L) FE series V8
Wheelbase 3,023 mm (119.0 in)
Related Mercury Meteor
Mercury Monterey
Lincoln Continental
The 1960 Galaxie was all-new in style, abandoning the ostentatious ornamentation of the 1950s for a futuristic, sleek look. A new body style this year was the Starliner, featuring a huge, curving rear observation window on a pillarless, hardtop bodyshell. The formal roofed 2-door hardtop was not available this year. It had been the most popular body style in the line in 1959, and sales dropped off sharply. Contrary to Ford's tradition of pie-plate round taillghts, the '60 featured "half-moon" lenses turned downward. The "A" pillar now swept forward instead of backward, making entering and exiting the car, more convenient.
For 1961, the bodywork was redone again, although the underpinnings were the same as 1960. This time, the tailfins were almost gone; the small blade-like fins capped smaller versions of 1959's "pie-plate" round taillamps once again. Performance was beginning to be a selling point, and the 1961 Galaxie offered a new 390 CID (6.4 L) version of Ford's FE series pushrod V8, which was available with either a four-barrel carburetor or, for serious performance, three two-barrel carburetors. The latter was rated at 401 hp (298 kW), making even such a heavy car quite fast indeed. The 352 was downgraded in favor of the 390; it was equipped with a 2-barrel carburetor and single exhaust. The Starliner was again offered this year, and Ford promoted this model with lots of luxury and power equipment, but it was dropped at the end of the year, as the re-introduced square-roof hardtop coupe took the bulk of sales.
For 1962, the Galaxie name was applied to all of Ford's full size models, as Fairlane moved to a new intermediate and Custom was temporarily retired. New top-line Galaxie 500 (two-door hardtop, four-door sedan and hardtop, and "Sunliner" convertible) and Galaxie 500/XL (two-door hardtop and convertible) models were also introduced; the 292 cu in (4.8 l) V8 was standard on the 500/XL. Performance was not ignored either, with an even larger 406 cu in (7 l) engine being available, again in single four-barrel or triple-carbureted "six-barrel" form. At the other end of the spectrum, of course, the 223 cu in (3.7 l) "Mileage Maker" 6-cylinder engine was still available for the more budget-minded driver. Tailfins were gone, giving the '62s a more rounded, softer rear end look. Taillights were set lower into the rear panel, and were partially sunken into the newly-sculped rear bumper.
The '62s, however, were overweight by comparison to the Super Duty Pontiacs with their aluminum body panels and larger-displacement engines, so late in the production run, Ford's Experimental Car Garage was ordered to put the Galaxie on a diet. It produced 11 "lightweight Galaxies", making use of fiberglass panels, as well as aluminum bumpers, fender aprons, and brackets; the result was a Galaxie weighing in at under 3,400 lb (1,542 kg). (The base 2-door Club Sedan was 3,499 lb (1,587 kg).) It was an improvement.
1963 Galaxie
For 1963, Ford saw no reason to radically change a good thing, and the 1963 model was essentially unchanged save for some freshening and added trim; a four-door hardtop 500/XL was added. A lower, fastback roofline was added mid year to improve looks and make the big cars more competitive on the NASCAR tracks with the added downforce. This 1963½ model, the industry's first official "½ year" model, was called the "Sports Roof" or "Fastback". (It shared this feature with the in '63½ Falcon.) Galaxie buyers showed their preference as the new SportsRoof models handily outsold the "boxtop" square-roof models. The SportsRoof was available in both Galaxie 500, and Galaxie 500/XL trim. As to be expected, sister Mercury also received the SportsRoof in Monterey, Montclair, and Park Lane models. A base-model Galaxie was offered for 1963 only, badged as the Ford 300
While not much changed for the everyday buyer, for the performance oriented, things were a little different; for partway through this year and in limited quantities there became available Ford's new racing secret weapon, the 427, replacing the 406. It was intended to meet NHRA and NASCAR 7-liter maximum engine size rules. This engine was rated at a conservative 425 hp (317 kW) with 2 x 4 barrel Holley carburetors and a solid lifter camshaft. Ford also made available aluminum cylinder heads as a dealer option. The '63½ was still overweight, however. To be competitive in drag racing Ford produced 212[citation needed] (around 170 from Ford Norfolk, about 20 from Ford Los Angeles) lightweight versions of the "R" code 427, in the Galaxie 500 Sport Special Tudor Fastback. Available only in Corinthian White with red vinyl interior, and with a list price of about US$4,200 (when a base Galaxie 300 went for US $2,324, and XL Fastback was US $3,268), these cars came stock with Borg-Warner T-10 four-speed, 4.11:1 rear axle, heavy-duty suspension and brakes, and were fitted with a fiberglass hood (a flat piece at first, late in '63 the popular blister hood also used on the Thunderbolt), trunk, front fenders, and fender aprons, as well as aluminum bumpers and mounting brackets, transmission cases, and bellhousing. Hood springs, heater, trunk lining and mat, spare wheel and tire (and mounting bracket), trunk lid torsion bar, jack, lug wrench, one horn (of the stock two), armrests, rear ashtrays, courtesy lights, and dome light were removed to reduce weight. The first 20 cars had functional fiberglass doors, which shaved 25 lb (11 kg); these were deleted because of Ford's concern for safety if used on the highway.[citation needed] The cars had all sound deadening removed, lightweight seats and floormats, and no options. Contrary to myth, they were not factory equipped with cold-air induction, as the Thunderbolt would be. In addition, they were built on the 45 lb (20 kg)-lighter Galaxie 300 chassis, originally intended for a smaller-displacement V8. In all, the 427s were 375 lb (170 kg) lighter than before (425 lb (193 kg) with the fiberglass doors).
The first two lightweight Galaxies, using 289 cu in bodies, were assembled at Fort Wayne, Michigan, late in January 1963, to be tested at the 1963 Winternats. They were delivered to Tasca Ford (East Providence, R.I.) and Bob Ford (Dearborn, MI). Bill Lawton's Tasca Galaxie turned the best performance, with a 12.50 pass at 116.60 mph (187.65 km/h). It was not enough, against the '63 Z-11s in Limited Production/Stock, however. Three more were assembled from parts and tested at Ford's Experimental Car Garage in Dearborn. One of the next two, the last Winternationals test cars, was prepared by Bill Stroppe in Long Beach, California, for Les Ritchey; it was featured in the July 1963 issue of Hot Rod. For all their efforts, Ford discovered the Galaxies were still too heavy, and the project was abandoned.Some of these cars competed in England, Australia and South Africa after being modified by Holman and Moody who fitted them with disc brakes and other circuit racing components. Jack Sears won the British Touring Championship in 1963 and the racing Galaxies were also driven by Sir Jack Brabham, David Hill and other notable drivers of the period. The heavy Galaxies suffered from persistent brake failure that led to a number of crashes, and in late 1963 started using the 12" disc brakes off the Ford GT40 program. By this time the Lotus Cortinas were being developed and the big Galaxie became uncompetitive. Some of these race cars survive in England and in Australia where they compete in Historic Touring Car racing. A new 289 cu in (4.7 l), derived from the 1962 Fairlane engine, replaced the Y-block 292 cu in (4.8 l) as the entry level V8.
1964 was the fourth and final year of this body style. Interior trim was much altered, and the exterior featured a more sculpted look which was actually designed to make the car more aerodynamic for NASCAR. The formal-roof "boxtop" style was replaced by the slanted-roof design for all non-wagon or convertible models, including sedans. Ford's quality control, spotty when the first Galaxie was introduced, was now as good as it ever was, and many '64 Fords passed the 100,000 mile mark intact. The '64s gained an enviable reputation as durable, comfortable cars that offered decent handling and roadability at a reasonable price, so it is no wonder they sold so well. Of the XL models, the '64 hardtop coupe takes the prize for the most produced. The base 300 was replaced by a line of Custom and Custom 500 models.
Under the hood, the 427 CID (7.0 L) engine carried on the high performance duties. Ford again took the 427-equipped Galaxie to the racetracks in serious fashion in 1964, building 50 lightweight, fiberglass equipped cars just for the purpose of drag racing. These competed with success in North America but were still too heavy and Ford introduced the lightweight Fairlane Thunderbolt which used the 427 engine and was immediately competitive. The 427 was the powerplant of the dominant Ford GT40 Mk II.
Late in the year Ford introduced their new engine challenger, the SOHC 427 "Cammer", Though not documented, it is believed a few may have found their way onto the street (this engine was only available to racers through the dealer network or from the manufacturer; none were ever factory installed). Rated at over 600 hp (447 kW), this is possibly the most powerful engine ever fitted to a production car by an American manufacturer. NASCAR changed the rules, however, requiring thousands (rather than hundreds) of production examples in service to qualify for the next season, and Ford decided against producing the Cammer in that quantity. Fears of liability concerns and the bad publicity possibilities in giving the public a car that dangerously powerful are often cited as reasons, but it might simply have been that Ford doubted that an engine so unsuited to street use could sell in such numbers.
It should be noted that the Ford Country Sedan station wagon, while wearing "Country Sedan" badging for many years, was actually part of the Galaxie 500 line. Some Country Sedans had "Galaxie 500" badging on the glovebox indicating the series name. These wagons featured the same tinware as Galaxie 500s inside and out, and were a step up from the base-model Ranch Wagon, which became part of the Custom series in 1964.
Coachwork by Henri Chapron
Bonhams : the Zoute Sale
Sold for € 218.500
Zoute Grand Prix 2017
Knokke - Zoute
België - Belgium
October 2017
Just as it had done 21 years previously with the revolutionary 'Traction Avant', Citroën stunned the world again in 1955 with the launch of the strikingly styled 'DS'. Beneath the shark-like newcomer's aerodynamically efficient, low-drag bodyshell there was all-independent, self-levelling, hydro-pneumatic suspension; plus power-operated brakes, clutch, and steering. No European car would match the DS's ride quality for several years, the fundamental soundness of Citroën's ahead-of-its-time hydro-pneumatic suspension being demonstrated by its survival in top-of-the-range models until earlier this year. The DS's original 1,911cc, overhead-valve, long-stroke engine was replaced in 1966 by a short-stroke 1,985cc unit, also available in 2,175cc and 2,347cc versions, while other DS developments included swivelling headlights, fuel injection and a five-speed gearbox.
Other models offered alongside the original DS were the ID (a simplified, cheaper version), the cavernous Safari estate and the two-door Décapotable (convertible), the latter boasting coachwork by Henri Chapron. (Chapron's first convertibles had been produced independently of Citroën, but the factory eventually gave the project its blessing). Henri Chapron started his career in the motor industry as an upholsterer's apprentice, working for various coachbuilders in the Paris area. In 1919 he started his own business in the well-to-do Parisian suburb of Neuilly-sur-Seine where his main activity was re-bodying cars that had been requisitioned in wartime by the French Government. Chapron moved to larger premises in Levallois-Perret in 1923 and became the official builder of coach and convertible models for Delage and Delahaye, going on to body many of the most elegant French and European automobiles of the inter-war period.
Despite a much-reduced demand for bespoke coachwork after WW2, Chapron survived thanks to his exemplary creations for Delahaye, Talbot and Salmson, switching to offering bespoke versions of unitary construction models when motor manufacturers began to abandon the traditional separate chassis frame. The arrival of the Citroën DS in 1955 presented Chapron with a fresh opportunity that would result in his name being forever linked with this remarkable car.
Citroën's own Décapotables were built on the longer, stronger chassis of the ID Break (Estate) but the model was never produced in England, where Citroën's right-hand drive cars were assembled at its Slough factory up to 1966. In total, 1,365 usine (factory) convertibles were made with either the DS19 or DS21 engine between 1960 and 1971, while Chapron built a further 389 of his own, the last in 1973.
According to the Henri Chapron Attestation on file, this car was built by Citroën in November 1966 and sent to the Charon Factory in Levallois Perret on the 24th of that month. Production number '9088', this car was built in the Chapron workshops as were all the convertibles marketed by Citroën at this time. It was completed on 28th February 1967 and returned to Citroën to be sold by one of the company's concessionaires. Citroën had introduced the superior green Light Hydraulic Mineral (LHM) fluid on all hydro-pneumatically suspended models in September 1966, making this car one of the first to benefit from this advance. Having the pre-facelift nose and the green LHM system makes this car particularly rare; indeed we are advised that only 42 DS21 Décapotable models were completed to this specification.
On 27th March 1967 the DS was sold new via the Citroën dealer in Nice to its first owner, Mr Jean Thore of Eze in the South of France. Mr Thore and Mme Dominique Thore enjoyed the car for 34 years. They always kept it at Eze and covered approximately 90,000 kilometres during their ownership.
In 2001, Australian Mr John Plooy was looking for a 'green fluid' DS21 Cabriolet and chanced upon this car. He wanted to keep the Citroën in the Netherlands and use it for annual trips to Italy. When the car arrived in Holland, Mr Plooy immediately sent it to marque specialist Bart Kocken; it turned out to be in excellent original condition, with no rust or evidence of past accident damage. Mr Plooy commissioned a mechanical overhaul of anything that required it, and had the car repainted and a new convertible top fitted.
This Décapotable retains its original chassis, body panels, interior, Jaeger dashboard, carpets and FM radio, and is in excellent original condition overall, something seldom encountered with these cars. Mr Plooy drove the DS only some 10,000 kilometres over the years, and in 2017 decided to sell it, having reached the age of 80 years. Offered with its original tools, jack, Chapron paperwork, etc, this rare and ultra-desirable soft-top DS is ready for the next owner to use and enjoy.
Originally conceived by British Leyland, the Metro was built to similar principals as those of the Mini it was intended to replace, with a small, practical platform with as much use available to the passenger as was possible. The car came under various initial guises, including the Austin Metro, the Austin miniMetro, the Morris Metro van and the MG Metro, a version of the car with a 1.3L A-Series Turbo Engine.
Although the car was launched in 1980, development of a Mini replacement had dated back to the beginning of the 70's. Dubbed ADO88 (Amalgamated Drawing Office project number 88), the Metro was eventually given the go ahead in 1977, but wanted to have the appeal of some of the larger 'Supermini' (what a contradiction in terms) cars on the market, including cars such as the Ford Fiesta and the Renault 5. Designed by Harris Mann (the same guy who gave us the Princess and the Allegro), the car was given a much more angular body for the time, but despite its futuristic looks did share many features of the earlier Mini, including the 675cc BMC-A Series engine that dated back to 1959, and the gearbox. Initial cars also included the Hydragas Suspension system originally used on the Allegro and the Princess, though with no front/rear connection. The car was also built as a hatchback, which would eventually be a key part of its success as the Mini instead utilised only a small boot.
The Metro was originally meant for an earlier 1978 launch, but a lack of funds and near bankruptcy of British Leyland resulted in the car's launch being pushed back. This delay however did allow the folks at Longbridge to construct a £200m robotic assembly plant for the new Metro line, with the hope of building 100,000 cars per year. Finally the car entered sales 3 years late and got off to quite promising initial sales, often being credited for being the saviour of British Leyland. The Metro was in fact the company's first truly new model in nearly 5 years, with the 9 year old Allegro still in production, the 1980 Morris Ital being nothing more than a 7 year old Marina with a new face, and the 5 year old Princess not going anywhere!
As mentioned, an entire myriad of versions came with the Metro, including the luxury Vanden Plas version and the sporty MG with its top speed of 105mph and 0-60mph of 10.1 seconds. Eventually the original incarnation of the car, the Austin Metro, went on to sell 1 million units in it's initial 10 year run, making it the second highest selling car of the decade behind the Ford Escort. However, like most other British Leyland products, earlier cars got a bad reputation for poor build quality and unreliability, combined with the lack of rustproofing that was notorious on many BL cars of the time.
The show was not over however, as in 1990 the car was given a facelift and dubbed the Rover Metro. The 1950's A-Series engine was replaced by a 1.1L K-Series, and the angular bodyshell was rounded to similar principals as those by acclaimed styling house Ital to create a more pleasing look for the 90's. This facelift, combined with an improvement in reliability and build quality, meant that the car went on to win the 'What Car?' of the Year Award in 1991.
In 1994 the car was given yet another facelift, with once again a more rounded design and removal of the Metro name, the car being sold as the Rover 100. Engines were once again changed, this time to a 1.5L Peugeot engine and more audacious colour schemes were available for the even more rounded design of the new car. However, the car was very much starting to look and feel its age. Aside from the fact that the design dated back to 1977, the new car was not well equipped, lacking electric windows, anti-lock brakes, power steering, or even a rev counter! In terms of safety, it was very basic, with most features such as airbags, an alarm, an immobiliser and central locking being optional extras.
Eventually the curtain had to fall on the Metro, and in 1997, twenty years after the initial design left the drawing board, it was announced that the car would be discontinued. Spurred on by dwindling sales due to lack of safety and equipment, as well as losing out to comparative cars such as the ever popular Ford Fiesta, VW Polo and Vauxhall Corsa, with only fuel economy keeping the car afloat, Rover axed the Metro in 1998 with no direct replacement, although many cite the downsized Rover 200 a possible contender. Stumbling blindly on, the next car to fill the gap in Rover's market was the 2003 CityRover, based on the TATA Indica, which flopped abysmally and pretty much totalled the company (but that's another story).
In the end only 2,078,000 Metro's were built in comparison to the 5.3 million examples of the Mini that it was meant to replace. The main failings of the Metro were down to the fact that the car was too big compared to the Mini, and the rounded old-world charm of the Coopers and Clubmans was replaced by the angular corners. Because of this the car simply didn't have the novelty that the Mini continued to claim even 20 years after the first ones left the factory, and the Mini would even go on to outlive the Metro by another 2 years, ending production in 2000, then going on to have a revival in the form of BMW's New Mini Cooper that's still being built today. Unlike the Mini, the Metro also failed to conquer the international market in the same way, scoring its 2 million units pretty much in Britain alone, although some cars were sold in France and Spain, but only to the total of a few hundred.
The Metro however survived only on fuel economy and its spacious interior, but by the early 1990's, whilst other car manufacturers had moved on leaps and bounds, Rover continued to be stuck in the past with not the money or the enthusiasm to change what was a terribly outdated and extremely basic car. Towards the end the Metro, which had only a few years earlier won awards for its practical nature, was ending up on lists for Worst car on the market.
Today however you can still see Metro's, later editions are especially common on the roads of Britain. Earlier models built under British Leyland have mostly rusted away and are apparently only down to about a thousand nowadays, but the Rover 100's and Rover Metros continue to ply their trade, a lonely reminder of how here in Britain, we can never ever seem to move on!
Departing Birmingham New Street with a train from Stafford to London Euston is Virgin Trains Class 390, 390010 'The Cumbrian Spirit'.
Since their introduction in 2002, the Class 390 tilting Pendolino sets have revolutionised services on the West Coast Mainline, bringing about an entirely new level of speed onto a route notorious for its laboriously winding route. But with such a technological leap, the Class 390 has sadly paid the price for its image due to what it was replacing.
The idea of a tilting train on the West Coast Mainline was however not a new one to Alstom when they developed the Pendolino sets in the late 1990's, with the concept being toyed way back in the early 1970's. British Rail first pioneered the concept of the tilting train with the ill-fated Advanced Passenger Train or APT of the mid-1970's. The idea was to create a train that could shift its centre of gravity whilst moving around sharp bends at high speeds, similar to how a motorcyclist leans into corners. This was to not only allow the train to travel at higher speeds on winding track without fear of it falling over, but also to improve passenger comfort levels and stop people being pressed against the windows when taking corners!
The original APT was a Gas-Turbine unit that operated on the Midland Region out of London St Pancras, and was later followed by the Class 370 electric multiple unit that began trials on the West Coast Mainline from 1980. A truly brilliant concept, the APT showed the world that the idea of a tilting train could be possible, that is, when it worked. The Class 370 was marred by teething problems and reliability issues, mostly consisting of the fact that the tilting mechanism wouldn't work properly or there would be just general train faults. Coupled with the winter of 1981, the worst winter for many years, and the train's image was damaged beyond repair. Even while developments were looking promising, and with only a few million Pounds required to complete the project, the British Government pulled the plug and the APT was axed in 1986, with only one complete set remaining as a rather sorry museum piece. The train of the future had become a thing of the past.
But the developments of the APT were picked up by none-other than Fiat Ferroviaria, who, following the failure of their British rival, developed their own and much more successful tilting train, the ETR-401 Pendolino, which began operations in 1988. This was later translated into a fleet of 15 ETR 450 production units which became the first revenue earning tilting trains.
In 2000, Fiat Ferroviaria was acquired by Alstom, who has been building their legendary tilting trains ever since. This coincided with the formation of Virgin Trains following privatisation of British Rail in 1994. As part of Virgin Trains' franchise requirements in 1997, the company intended the replacement of the ageing BR stock of the 1960's with a new fleet of high speed trains that would reduce journey times and up travel quality. As such, Virgin turned to Fiat Ferroviaria and later successor Alstom to provide them with a derivative version of the company's latest tilting Pendolino, the ETR 460.
Fiat Ferroviaria supplied much of the content of the Class 390 units, including the bodyshell and the bogies, while final assembly was carried out at Washwood Heath. The tilting technology was developed by SIG Switzerland (later Fiat-SIG, today Alstom). Two electromechanical actuators are used per car to achieve the desired tilting angle on curved stretches of track. The train can tilt to a maximum of eight degrees, at which point one side of the cabin train is 380 mm higher above the track than the other. In contrast to other Fiat Ferroviaria tilting trains which use hydraulic tilting actuators, the electromechanical systems offers lower maintenance cost and higher efficiency.
The new trains were intended to run at 140mph, but the West Coast Main Line modernisation programme, which was an upgrade to the infrastructure to allow faster line speeds, ran over budget. Consequently, plans were scaled back, and in a manner reminiscent of the introduction of the InterCity 225, the lack of signalling upgrades resulted in the maximum line speed being restricted to 125mph. Although this (and 140mph) are well below BR's hopes for APT of 155mph, it does match the maximum speed of 125mph for the APT in passenger service (although one APT set reached 162mph in testing).
The fleet was introduced into passenger services from London Euston to Manchester Piccadilly on 23rd July, 2002, to coincide with the opening of the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. Over the next few months they took over the Manchester services, and were soon introduced on routes from London to Liverpool Lime Street, Birmingham New Street, Wolverhampton and Preston.
With the start of Class 390 operations, the writing was very much on the wall for the ageing sets of trains it was replacing, and thus the Class 390's image began to be somewhat tarnished amongst the railway purists. First to go were the Class 86's of the 1960's, proud high-speed locomotives that were once the mainstay of the WCML, withdrawn from service in 2003 following both the introduction of the Class 390's, and the Class 220/221 Voyager units on Cross-Country services. Next were the newer Class 90's of 1989, replaced in 2004 once Class 390's had been allocated to routes north of Preston. The final locomotive hauled trains were provided by the Class 87's of the 1970's, which held strong until final replacement in 2005, bringing an end to locomotive hauled services on the West Coast Mainline. From then on, the Class 86's have mostly been scrapped, whilst Class 90's were transferred to Anglia to replace their Class 86 fleet. Class 87's on the other hand have since been exported largely to Bulgaria, the few remaining here in the UK either being scrapped, placed in storage, or made into museum pieces. This left a great deal of animosity towards the Class 390's by the railway enthusiast community, who, even after 10 years, still have a strong hatred towards these trains.
The service improvements however are something that can't be taken away from the Class 390's as these trains have taken the original and comparatively sluggish 110mph top speed and translated it into the extremely fast 125mph running speed that BR had dreamt of for years. In September 2006, the Pendolino set a new speed record, completing the 401 mile length of the West Coast Main Line from Glasgow Central to London Euston in 3 hours, 55 minutes, beating the 4-hour-14-minute record for the southbound run previously set in 1981 by the Class 370 APT. The APT however retains the ultimate speed record for this route, having completed the northbound journey between London Euston and Glasgow Central in 3 hours 52 minutes in 1984 which included a 5-minute delay due to a signal fault.
Since then the Pendolino has become very much a staple of high speed train travel in the UK, and still looks good even 15 years after the first ones hit the test tracks back in 2001.
The Class 390 was put to the test however with 390033 'City of Glasgow', which was written off after the Grayrigg derailment of February 23rd, 2007. The accident had been caused by a points malfunction, which, after a failure to inspect by Network Rail, changed the direction of travel from normal and thus resulted in the entire set derailing and plummeting down an embankment at 95mph. The sturdy design and robust nature of the Class 390 has been attributed to the fact that only one person, an elderly lady, was killed in the disaster, whereas if the previous MkII carriages had been involved, the death-toll could have been much higher. As said, the unit was written off, and the less damaged rear carriages of the set now reside at the Crewe Training Centre and are used for the instruction of drivers and train crew. The subsequent destruction of one of the units led to Virgin Trains reinstating a loco-hauled service to cover its diagrams, this being in the form of a hired Class 90 (usually from Freightliner), a set of 9 MkIII coaches, and a Driving Van Trailer. This train operated covering diagrams until November 2014, when it was retired and transferred to Greater Anglia.
Since 2007 the Class 390's have had their fleet enhanced from the original 53 sets to 57 with the addition of 4 new units between 2011 and 2012. The introduction of these new sets coincided with the extension of 31 sets to 11-cars, with new carriages built and imported from Alstom's factory in Italy, the first routine 11-car InterCity train to operate in the UK since the 1970's.
Today the Class 390's continue to ply their merry trade, and remain vital parts of the UK's high speed network, bringing Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham, Liverpool and London closer together than they've ever been before.
Peugeot 304 (1969-74) Engine 1288cc S4 OC Tr Production 1,178,425 (all variants)
Registration Number XDL 275 L
PEUGEOT SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623690496925...
Launched at the 1969 Paris Motor Show to fill a gap in the mid sized car market. Based heavily on the Peugeot 204 sharing the same floorpan, running gear and bodyshell but with different nose styling and larger more powerful engines.
The Coupe and Cabriolet version replaced theeir 204 equivalents from 1970.
Tha 2 door Cabriolet was a two seater and is probably now the most numerous of the range, still running in the UK
Shot taken 10.06.2012 at the Bromley Pagaent of Motoring REF 85-301
Bond Ranger Van Mk.G (1961-66) Engine 247cc Single Cylinder Villiers two stroke Production 3253 (all body styles)
Registration Number BMU 441 A
BOND SET
www.flickr.com/photos/45676495@N05/sets/72157623759866604...
Last of the line of the Bond Minicar dating back to 1949, originally built by Sharp's Commercial Ltd. until the change of company name to Bond Cars ltd. in 1964, both companies based in Preston.
The Mark G was billed as a new line Minicar and proved the final evolution, still based to a large extent on the bodyshell of the Mark F. With a revised shape fibreglass roof, new doors, new windscreen with opening quarter lights and bigger wheels largely transformed the cars appearance. However, although the car was similar in layout to the Mark F, almost everything mechanically about the Mark G was different with very few components carried over. Steel supports around the quarter lights allowed the windscreen to be both more steeply raked and moved forwards to provide more interior room. This also allowed a properly sprung bench-type rear seat to be fitted capable of seating two adults. The front seats were adjustable for position and the passenger side now folded much further forward than on previous models to allow easier access to the rear though the doors were still felt to be too narrow for easy entry.
Production of the Mark G began in August 1961 and initially the Bond 250 G Minicar was the only version available.
Under the bonnet, the car utilised the new Villiers Mk 35A unit designed specifically for the car. A development of the 9E, this incorporated numerous mechanical refinements to improve strength and reliability albeit slightly to the cost of overall power, now rated at 11.5 bhp (9 kW; 12 PS) at 4,500 rpm. Rear suspension was completely revised, with trailing arm units controlled by Armstrong dampers. The rod and cable brake systems of previous cars was also replaced by Lockheed hydraulic brakes acting on all three wheels.
Two further models were added to the range in 1962, the Bond 250 G Estate and the Bond 250 G Ranger. The estate featured a large hatchback, hinged at the roof. Inside, the rear seats could be folded flat reversed (so the passengers faced the rear or removed entirely.On the Ranger version the rear seats and rear side windows were omitted.
Shot 25:04:2012 Chasewater Transport Show, Chasewater, Brownhills, Staffordshire Ref: 84-034
Rover SD1 is both the code name and eventual production name given to a series of executive cars built by British Leyland (BL), under the Rover marque. It was produced through its Specialist, Rover Triumph and Austin Rover divisions from 1976 until 1986, when it was replaced by the Rover 800. The SD1 was marketed under various names including Rover 3500, Rover 2300 and Rover Vitesse. In 1977 it won the European Car of the Year title.
In "SD1", the "SD" refers to "Specialist Division" and "1" is the first car to come from the in-house design team. The range is sometimes wrongly referred to as "SDi" ("i" is commonly used in car nomenclature to identify fuel injection).
The SD1 can be considered as the last "true" Rover, being the final Rover-badged vehicle to be produced at Solihull, as well as being the last to be designed largely by ex-Rover Company engineers and also the final Rover car to be fitted with the Rover V8 engine. Future Rovers would be built at the former British Motor Corporation factories at Longbridge and Cowley; and rely largely on Honda.
Design
The new car was designed with simplicity of manufacture in mind in contrast to the P6, the design of which was rather complicated in areas such as the De Dion-type rear suspension. The SD1 used a well-known live rear axle instead. This different approach was chosen because surveys showed that although the automotive press was impressed by sophisticated and revolutionary designs the general buying public was not, unless the results were good. However, with the live rear axle came another retrograde step – the car was fitted with drum brakes at the rear.
Rover's plans to use its then fairly new 2.2 L four-cylinder engine were soon abandoned as BL management ruled that substantially redesigned versions of Triumph's six-cylinder engine were to power the car instead. The Rover V8 engine was fitted in the engine bay. The three-speed automatic gearbox was the BorgWarner 65 model.
The dashboard of the SD1 features an air vent, unusually, directly facing the passenger. The display binnacle sits on top of the dashboard in front of the driver to aid production in left-hand drive markets. The air vent doubles as a passage for the steering-wheel column, and the display binnacle can be easily fitted on top of the dashboard on either the left or right-hand side of the car.
An estate body had been envisaged, but it did not get beyond the prototype stage. Two similarly specified estates have survived, and are exhibited at the Heritage Motor Centre and the Haynes International Motor Museum respectively. One was used by BL chairman Sir Michael Edwardes as personal transport in the late 1970s. The two cars as befit prototypes differ in the detail of and around the tailgate. One car has a recessed tailgate, while the other has a clamshell arrangement, where the whole tailgate is visible when closed.
The SD1 was intended to be produced in a state-of-the-art extension to Rover's historic Solihull factory alongside the TR7. It was largely funded by the British government, who had bailed BL out from bankruptcy in 1975. Unfortunately this did nothing to improve the patchy build quality that then plagued all of British Leyland. That, along with quick-wearing interior materials and poor detailing ensured that initial enthusiasm soon turned to disappointment.
Initial model and first additions to range
Rover 2300 6-cylinder engine, in situ in SD1
This car was launched on its home market in June 1976 in liftback form only, as the V8-engined Rover 3500: SOHC 2.3 L and 2.6 L sixes followed a year later. The car was warmly received by the press and even received the European Car of the Year award for 1977. Its launch on the European mainland coincided with its appearance at the Geneva Motor Show in March 1977, some three months after the Car of the Year announcement. Dealers had no left-hand drive cars for sale, however, since production had been blocked by a tool makers' strike affecting several British Leyland plants and a "bodyshell dispute" at the company's Castle Bromwich plant. Closer to home, the car and its design team received The Midlander of the Year Award for 1976, because they had between them done most in the year to increase the prestige of the (English) Midlands region.
Poor construction quality was apparent even in the company's press department fleet. The British magazine Motor published a road test of an automatic 3500 in January 1977, and while keen to highlight the Rover's general excellence, they also reported that the test car suffered from poor door seals, with daylight visible from inside past the rear door window frame's edge on the left side of the car, and a curious steering vibration at speed which might (or might not) have resulted from the car's front wheels not having been correctly balanced. Disappointment was recorded that the ventilation outlet directly in front of the driver appeared to be blocked, delivering barely a breeze even when fully open; the writer had encountered this problem on one other Rover 3500, although he had also driven other cars of the same type with an abundant output of fresh air through the vent in question. Nevertheless, in March 1977, Britain's Autocar was able to publish an article by Raymond Mays a famous racing driver and team manager during, in particular, the 1930s, 1950s and 1960s, in which Mays explained why, after driving it for 12,000 miles, he considered his Rover 3500 was "the best car he [had] ever had", both for its many qualities as a driver's car and for its excellent fuel economy even when driven hard. Similar problems persisted until 1980 and were reported in tests of the V8-S version.
In television shows John Steed in The New Avengers and George Cowley in The Professionals both used yellow Rover 3500 models. Although using different registration numbers both were possibly the same car.
[Text from Wikipedia]
Moving within the yard at Wansford is UK Rail Leasing Class 56, 56081.
The Class 56's were once the pride of British Railway's freight network, a humble design mixed with incredible amounts of power to operate the toughest cargo the UK industry could throw at them, today sadly now whittled down to their final few by the advance of time and technology.
By the 1970's, freight traffic in the UK had dwindled to its lowest ever thanks to the massive shift from rail transport to road transport, compounded largely by the construction of the Motorway network. As such, British Rail was left with only a few long-distance or heavy-haul operations that lorries and trucks couldn't compete with, these being the Freightliner container trains and the lucrative coal market, supplying coal-fired power stations with their precious fuel from the collieries spread across the UK. As such, one of Dr. Beeching's various ways to streamline operations and reduce working costs was through the introduction of the Merry-go-Round train (MGR). The concept was to run lengthy block-trains loaded with coal to the power station and then unloaded, all while the train does not stop, thereby saving the amount of time taken to carry out the operation. Introduced in 1966, the operation was an immediate success, combined with the introduction of the now famous MGR Hopper wagons that replaced many of the older wooden or steel bodied mineral wagons of the steam era.
However, locomotives were the bigger problem as there weren't enough reliable engines to go around. By the start of MGR operations, British Rail had been inundated with a myriad of locomotive designs, and while some like the Class 37 and the Class 20 were quite successful and reliable engines, many classes, such as the Class 17, were highly unreliable, or there were such small numbers of particular locomotive classes that they couldn't really justify their operation. The result was a massive standardisation plan throughout the early 1970's, primarily done to kill off many of the earlier, more obscure classes such as Class 29's, but also the Diesel-Hydraulic Class 22's, 35's, 42's and 52's. The result was that there were not enough of the reliable locomotives left to operate the MGR workings, and thus a new class of locomotive was designed throughout these years specifically for the task of MGR trains.
BREL was assigned to design the locomotive, which would be powered by a 3,520hp Ruston-Paxman 16RK3CT engine, a derivative of the English Electric CSVT used in the earlier Class 50's. The bodyshell was utilitarian, taking many queues from the earlier Class 47's although somewhat shorter. Additionally, these locomotives were the first to be fitted with air train brakes only, using the Davies and Metcalfe E70 system. Earlier designs had variously been fitted with vacuum train brakes, or a dual braking system.
Designated Class 56, the first batch of these locomotives was for some very strange reason built under license in Romania by a company called Electroputere, known also for the Romanian 5100 kW Class 45 Electric. The first batch consisted of 29 locomotives, 56001 to 56030, but were quickly found to have major build quality flaws and were highly unreliable. As such, the remainder of the fleet was built in the UK, with 56031 to 56115 being built by BREL Doncaster, and 56116 to 56135 being built by BREL Crewe. The original Romanian locomotives were later rebuilt with upgraded quality and running gear to iron out the faults, or were withdrawn early.
Upon their launch in 1976, the class were immediately put to work on the MGR operations in the north of England, and were quite successful at their jobs. Their operations however were not limited simply to coal, with other operations including lengthy tanker trains, Freightliner container trains and, in some instances, Speedlink pickup goods. However, even before production of the class had ended in 1984, their market in the coal business was swept quite literally out from under them. In a time of major industrial disputes and strike action from all sectors of the nationalised British Industry, and the coal industry was no exception, led by Arthur Scargill and the various Trade Unions of the National Coal Board. The result was that by the middle of the 1980's, the results of the industrial turmoil and essential corporate suicide had resulted in most of the UK coal industry's market seeking their coal from other nations, primarily Poland, and thus many coal mines went out of business.
The result on the Class 56 was that it had much of its work removed and by the time the last class members rolled off the production line, there were only a few coal operations left to keep the class ticking over. Although, as mentioned, the class could find other work, many did find themselves languishing in depots such as Tinsley and Knottingley waiting for work that didn't appear to be coming.
Privatisation saw the class broken up and then put back together again, initially split among the BR shadow franchises Transrail and Loadhaul, before being reunited by the formation of 1997's English Welsh & Scottish Railways or EWS. EWS employed the Class 56's on many operations, including replacing Class 37's in South Wales on the steel trains, but things very soon turned bleak, not just for the 56, but for all of the older British Rail designs. The unreliability of those early Class 56's had helped many private contractors realize how poorly built many of the older BR classes are, and desired something much more sturdy. The result was the Canadian Class 59, ordered by Foster Yeoman in the mid-1980's, the spiritual precursor to what would be EWS's standard diesel freight locomotive, the Class 66. Upon their introduction in 1999, the 66's made quick inroads into the Class 56 fleet, and by 2003 only a handful remained in service. The end finally came for the Class 56's on the 31st March, 2004, with a farewell railtour being operated from Bristol to York.
But this was not the full end for the Class 56's, as many have since seen a new life in the private sector. Several members of the class were exported to France in order to assist in the construction of LGV High-speed lines, including the LGV Est from Paris to Strasbourg. Other small operators also saw the potential of these extremely powerful locomotives, one of the first being the redundant Fastline Freight, which rebuilt several Class 56's in order to create 56/3's for greater reliability. For many though, the scrapyard was their only future, whilst others remained in storage for year after year until in about 2012 many class members were taken on by Colas Rail, who began using them on their various Log Train operations as well as infrastructure workings. Private contractors such as British-American Railway Services (BARS) and Devon & Cornwall Railways (DCR) have also taken on several engines to help them with their routine operations. Perhaps the largest operator of the surviving fleet is UK Rail Leasing, which has 14 locomotives on its books.
Moving within the yard at Wansford is UK Rail Leasing Class 56, 56081.
The Class 56's were once the pride of British Railway's freight network, a humble design mixed with incredible amounts of power to operate the toughest cargo the UK industry could throw at them, today sadly now whittled down to their final few by the advance of time and technology.
By the 1970's, freight traffic in the UK had dwindled to its lowest ever thanks to the massive shift from rail transport to road transport, compounded largely by the construction of the Motorway network. As such, British Rail was left with only a few long-distance or heavy-haul operations that lorries and trucks couldn't compete with, these being the Freightliner container trains and the lucrative coal market, supplying coal-fired power stations with their precious fuel from the collieries spread across the UK. As such, one of Dr. Beeching's various ways to streamline operations and reduce working costs was through the introduction of the Merry-go-Round train (MGR). The concept was to run lengthy block-trains loaded with coal to the power station and then unloaded, all while the train does not stop, thereby saving the amount of time taken to carry out the operation. Introduced in 1966, the operation was an immediate success, combined with the introduction of the now famous MGR Hopper wagons that replaced many of the older wooden or steel bodied mineral wagons of the steam era.
However, locomotives were the bigger problem as there weren't enough reliable engines to go around. By the start of MGR operations, British Rail had been inundated with a myriad of locomotive designs, and while some like the Class 37 and the Class 20 were quite successful and reliable engines, many classes, such as the Class 17, were highly unreliable, or there were such small numbers of particular locomotive classes that they couldn't really justify their operation. The result was a massive standardisation plan throughout the early 1970's, primarily done to kill off many of the earlier, more obscure classes such as Class 29's, but also the Diesel-Hydraulic Class 22's, 35's, 42's and 52's. The result was that there were not enough of the reliable locomotives left to operate the MGR workings, and thus a new class of locomotive was designed throughout these years specifically for the task of MGR trains.
BREL was assigned to design the locomotive, which would be powered by a 3,520hp Ruston-Paxman 16RK3CT engine, a derivative of the English Electric CSVT used in the earlier Class 50's. The bodyshell was utilitarian, taking many queues from the earlier Class 47's although somewhat shorter. Additionally, these locomotives were the first to be fitted with air train brakes only, using the Davies and Metcalfe E70 system. Earlier designs had variously been fitted with vacuum train brakes, or a dual braking system.
Designated Class 56, the first batch of these locomotives was for some very strange reason built under license in Romania by a company called Electroputere, known also for the Romanian 5100 kW Class 45 Electric. The first batch consisted of 29 locomotives, 56001 to 56030, but were quickly found to have major build quality flaws and were highly unreliable. As such, the remainder of the fleet was built in the UK, with 56031 to 56115 being built by BREL Doncaster, and 56116 to 56135 being built by BREL Crewe. The original Romanian locomotives were later rebuilt with upgraded quality and running gear to iron out the faults, or were withdrawn early.
Upon their launch in 1976, the class were immediately put to work on the MGR operations in the north of England, and were quite successful at their jobs. Their operations however were not limited simply to coal, with other operations including lengthy tanker trains, Freightliner container trains and, in some instances, Speedlink pickup goods. However, even before production of the class had ended in 1984, their market in the coal business was swept quite literally out from under them. In a time of major industrial disputes and strike action from all sectors of the nationalised British Industry, and the coal industry was no exception, led by Arthur Scargill and the various Trade Unions of the National Coal Board. The result was that by the middle of the 1980's, the results of the industrial turmoil and essential corporate suicide had resulted in most of the UK coal industry's market seeking their coal from other nations, primarily Poland, and thus many coal mines went out of business.
The result on the Class 56 was that it had much of its work removed and by the time the last class members rolled off the production line, there were only a few coal operations left to keep the class ticking over. Although, as mentioned, the class could find other work, many did find themselves languishing in depots such as Tinsley and Knottingley waiting for work that didn't appear to be coming.
Privatisation saw the class broken up and then put back together again, initially split among the BR shadow franchises Transrail and Loadhaul, before being reunited by the formation of 1997's English Welsh & Scottish Railways or EWS. EWS employed the Class 56's on many operations, including replacing Class 37's in South Wales on the steel trains, but things very soon turned bleak, not just for the 56, but for all of the older British Rail designs. The unreliability of those early Class 56's had helped many private contractors realize how poorly built many of the older BR classes are, and desired something much more sturdy. The result was the Canadian Class 59, ordered by Foster Yeoman in the mid-1980's, the spiritual precursor to what would be EWS's standard diesel freight locomotive, the Class 66. Upon their introduction in 1999, the 66's made quick inroads into the Class 56 fleet, and by 2003 only a handful remained in service. The end finally came for the Class 56's on the 31st March, 2004, with a farewell railtour being operated from Bristol to York.
But this was not the full end for the Class 56's, as many have since seen a new life in the private sector. Several members of the class were exported to France in order to assist in the construction of LGV High-speed lines, including the LGV Est from Paris to Strasbourg. Other small operators also saw the potential of these extremely powerful locomotives, one of the first being the redundant Fastline Freight, which rebuilt several Class 56's in order to create 56/3's for greater reliability. For many though, the scrapyard was their only future, whilst others remained in storage for year after year until in about 2012 many class members were taken on by Colas Rail, who began using them on their various Log Train operations as well as infrastructure workings. Private contractors such as British-American Railway Services (BARS) and Devon & Cornwall Railways (DCR) have also taken on several engines to help them with their routine operations. Perhaps the largest operator of the surviving fleet is UK Rail Leasing, which has 14 locomotives on its books.
One of the most revolutionary cars in all of motoring history, a car that has often been declared as the Space Shuttle in the Middle Ages! Beauty, style and performance all harnessed in one simple bodyshell. It can't be anything other than the Jaguar E-Type!
When it was launched in 1961, Britain was still very much an antiquated Victorian country, and transport was not much better. Steam Trains still had another 7 years to go and the most you could get out of the Motor Industry were flaky BMC products such as the humble Austin Cambridge and the Morris Minor. Unbeknownst to this very slow moving world of modesty, the entire picture was about to be turned on its head. In music, the Beatles rocked their way into everlasting legacy, the De Havilland Comet brought nations closer together, and Jaguar launched the E-Type, a car that set the motoring world ablaze!
Designed by Malcolm Sayer and powered by a 3.8L Straight Six engine, the Jaguar E-Type could now whisk people to 150mph, and with there being no speed limits back then, that was not too much of a stretch to imagine. You just had to look at it to see nothing but speed, everything about it was designed to go as fast as possible!
In spirit, the E-Type can trace its roots back to the race ready D-Type, also designed by Malcolm Sayer and notable for raking home victory after victory at Le Mans, being credited with being one of the most advanced sports cars of all time. A limited edition road going version, the XKSS, made the idea of a D-Type on the public highway possible, and parts developed in this often forgotten little gem helped to culminate in the final and superb E-Type.
On March 16th 1961, the E-Type was released upon the unsuspecting public at the Geneva Motor Show to an absolute roar of applause and acclaim. It made the front page of pretty much every newspaper in Europe, and orders absolutely rolled in by the thousand! The thing that made the E-Type so desirable was the fact that it was fun on a budget, a high performance 150mph capable machine for an affordable price of just £2,000, the equivalent of about £40,000 today. Now you may think that's a lot of money, but when you consider that a car of comparable beauty and performance was double that price, you'd know it was something truly special.
However, this proved to be a problem for the comparatively small company, who simply couldn't turn out the cars fast enough to supply the demand. Millions and Millions of Pounds worth of orders were being placed, with some owners even going so far as to place deposits at 10 to 15 Jaguar dealers hoping that one of them could give them a car! The biggest problem was trying to supply differing markets, especially if you were British because in order to appease the desperate American buyers, cars would be built in LHD for 6 month periods at a time, which meant if you were someone wishing to buy a car here in the UK, you'd be stuck for the best part of a year!
But it was obvious why, these cars were unrealistically fast! Tap the pedal and you'd be at 60mph in 7.1 seconds, press it further and you'd be over 100, and if you pressed it further, the bonnet would rise and with blood gushing from your eyes and every fibre of your body telling you to stop, you'd be hitting 150mph! That doesn't sound like much today considering the Aston Martins and Ferrari's we're so used to, but in 1961 this was absolutely unheard of.
Not that your E-Type would ever make 150mph because Jaguar had been a tad naughty. As it turns out the initial test cars that had been leant to the Press had been tuned to reach that golden 150, but the rest of the flock would barely go that fast. This was further compounded by a troublesome gearbox, hopeless brakes, cramped interior and uncomfortable seats. Jaguar's con had only been done to bless their car with the initial fame that would sell the production models, but in 1965 Jaguar chose to redress the issue by fitting the car with a much larger and much better 4.2L Straight Six engine.
But once the novelty had worn off the E-Type was starting to become maligned. Much like owning a topping Rolls Royce, seeing one being driven in the street opened the wounds of jealousy that continued to divide the social classes, and if you were very lucky you'd only get away with a disapproving look or a nasty name, if you weren't expect a brick, a can of paint or a rock to be hurtled in your direction! At the same time because so many cars had been built, the Second Hand market became saturated which meant that people could pick up early ones for a song, which removed the exclusivity that these vehicles had once commanded. Again, much like a Rolls Royce these owners only saw them as ways to get women to take off their clothes for you, and thus didn't exactly give them the love that such cars required.
However, this was before we got to the biggest problem of them all, America.
Actually I take it back, America can't be blamed for everything, in fact the stringent safety legislation and rules on car manufacturing can be credited to the increased safety of modern motor vehicles, the people to be blamed though are in fact the car manufacturers themselves for not being able to incorporate the compulsory safety features whilst still keeping the car stylish.
But still, throughout the 1960's the death of James Dean had resulted in a gradual increase in safety legislation on US Highways, and in order to have a market there, cars had to conform. The height of the headlights, the bumpers, the smoke emissions, the recess of the switches, all of these things were scrutinised and had to be taken into account by car builders. The E-Type became a shameful victim as its looks were compromised with changes to the lights, and body profile. To be honest the Series II was not that bad a car, still retaining much of its charm, especially when you compare it to 1971's Series III which was formulated by British Leyland. With the cabin looking like it had sunk, the lights being stretched and contorted, and sporting a massive 5.3L V12 engine. By this point many of the cars former buyers saw the E-Type as damaged beyond repair and thus sales began to tumble. British Leyland however had been planning to replace the car since the late 1960's, and after much deliberation its replacement, the Jaguar XJS, was launched in 1975, bringing an end to the increasingly hard to sell E-Type. Although very well performing, in terms of looks, the XJS was considered by many classic Jag fans to be absolute heresy, but would go on to have a much longer life that the E-Type, being built until 1996.
However, even before the last E-Type left the production line the originals were already being hailed as classical heroes. In total well over 70,000 of these cars had been sold, and a large number of them remain on the roads. During the late 70's and 80's the car continued to be a major pin-up, often ending up rather oddly, and to my mind a bit shamefully, in erotic films and porn movies (I sure hope they washed thoroughly afterwards). But when you look at the E-Type you can understand why, it is a seriously sexy looking car!
So iconic and so stylish were these cars that over the years many different replica models have also been made. Throughout the 1990's the company Eagle GB built the Eagle E-Type, brand new cars built to exactly the same specifications as the original Series I versions, whilst in 2011 the Eagle Speedster was produced, revising the bodyshape but attempting to maintain the charm of the original, and in 2014 several remaining chassis from the original production run that had been kept in storage are intended to be built into fully functioning cars.
The E-Type may have died a long time ago, but its reputation isn't letting up! :D
This one has the badge Jaguar 3.8 LITRE on the hood (bonnet), and Jaguar 3.8 S on the trunk (boot). The overall design looks a bit different than the Mark II, and in fact it turns out that this is an S-Type. So, quoting from Wikipedia: Jaguar S-Type (1963-68):
• • • • •
The Jaguar S-Type was produced from 1963-68 as a technically more sophisticated development of the Jaguar Mark 2. It sold alongside the Mark 2, as well as the Jaguar 420 following its release in 1966. The 1960s S-Type should not be confused with the retro-styled Jaguar S-Type sold from 1999.
Contents
[hide]
•• 2.1 Engines
•• 2.4 Styling
•• 2.6 Interior
• Production
1963–1968
3.4-litre S-Type – 9,928
1963–1968
3.8-litre S-Type - 15,065
• Successor
• Class
4-door saloon
• Layout
4-speed manual; 4-speed manual/overdrive; or 3-speed automatic options available
2,730 mm (107 in)
• Length
4,750 mm (187 in)
• Width
1,683 mm (66 in)
• Height
1,416 mm (56 in)
1,625 kg (3,583 lb)
• Related
History
The Jaguar Mark 2 was introduced in 1959 and sold throughout most of the 1960s. It had a live rear axle and was powered by the XK six-cylinder engine first used in the Jaguar XK120 of 1948. In the Mark 2 the engine was available in 2.4, 3.4 and 3.8 litre capacities.
In 1961 Jaguar launched two new models. The full size Jaguar Mark X saloon (pronounced "mark ten") used Jaguar’s new independent rear suspension and a triple SU carburettor version of the 3.8 litre XK engine. The other new car for 1961 was the Jaguar E-Type sports car, which shared the same 3.8 litre engine as the Mark X but used a scaled down version of the independent rear suspension.
Having released the Mark X, with its many technical refinements, Jaguar boss Sir William Lyons expected the Mark 2 would need updating with similar features if it was to retain its place in the market. Accordingly, work began on developing the S-Type (codenamed "Utah Mk III", the Mark 2 having been “Utah Mk II”) as soon as development work was finished on the Mark X.
The S-Type was a major redevelopment of the Mark 2. It used a mid-scale version of the Mark X independent rear suspension to replace the Mark 2's live rear axle and featured longer rear bodywork, among other styling and interior changes. The S-Type was available with either 3.4 or 3.8 litre XK engines but only in twin carburettor form because the triple carburettor setup would not fit into what was essentially still the Mark 2 engine bay.
By the time of the S-Type’s release in 1963, the Mark 2 remained an unexpectedly strong seller despite its age. Although the Mark X was selling less well than hoped, especially in its intended market of the USA, Sir William decided to retain all three models in the Jaguar range concurrently. The Mark X was renamed “420G” in 1966 and was joined by another new model, the 4.2 litre 420. The 420 was developed to replace the S-Type but because some demand remained for the S-Type, all four saloon models (Mark 2, S-Type, 420 and 420G) remained on sale until the arrival of the Jaguar XJ6 in 1968. The XJ6 replaced all but the 420G in the Jaguar range.
Development
Engines
No new engines were developed for the S-Type. It was first released with the twin carburettor variant of the 3.8 litre XK engine, the same as that which had powered the 3.8 litre Mark 2 but which was no longer offered on the Mark 2 after the release of the S-Type. The 3.8 litre was the only engine offered on S-Types sold into the US market.
The lower powered 3.4 litre S-Type used the same 3.4 litre engine as the Mark 2. It was released a few months after the 3.8S and was not made available at any stage on Jaguar’s press demonstrator fleet in the UK. Whereas the 3.4 litre remained the most popular engine option for the Mark 2, the 3.8 litre S-Type outsold the 3.4S in the ratio 3 to 2.
Mechanical
Despite the S-Type’s weight gain of 152 kg (335 lb) over the Mark 2, no changes were deemed necessary to the Dunlop four-wheel disc braking system.
Major changes were made to the S-Type’s steering system. The Burman power steering system in the Mark 2, with its 4.3 turns lock-to-lock, was regarded as being excessively low geared and lacking in road feel. In the S-Type it was replaced by a higher-geared Burman unit of 3.5 turns lock-to-lock, which linked the input shaft and hydraulic valve by a torsion spring to improve its ‘feel’.
The heating and ventilating system of the Mark 2 was not considered adequate for the more upmarket S-Type and was replaced with an improved system. Separate control of ventilation direction was provided for both driver and front seat passenger. Warm air could also be directed to the rear passengers through an outlet situated on the propellor shaft tunnel cover between the two front seats.
Suspension
A key element of the Mark X that Jaguar wanted to include in the S-Type was its sophisticated, and by then widely acclaimed, independent rear suspension. The suspension was a revelation at the time of its introduction, and remained the benchmark against which others were judged until the 1980s. Essentially a double wishbone setup, it used the driveshaft as the upper wishbone. It carries the drive, braking, suspension and damping units in a single fabricated steel crossbridge, which is isolated from the bodyshell by rubber blocks. Including this suspension in the S-Type necessitated the development of a new crossbridge suitable for its 54” track, coming as it did between the 58” track of the Mark X and 50” track of the E-Type.
The S-Type used the same subframe mounted, coil sprung, twin wishbone front suspension as the Mark 2.
Styling
Sir William wanted to introduce some of the Mark X’s sleeker and sharper lines into the S-Type but with limited time and money available, most effort was applied to restyling the rear bodywork. The S-Type was given extended rear bodywork similar to that on the Mark X, which also gave it a much larger boot than the Mark 2. Relatively minor changes were made to the frontal styling of the car in an attempt to balance the longer rear styling but the overall affect at the front was still very rounded. The only change made to the centre section was to flatten and extend the rear roofline, which made the car look larger and helped to give rear seat passengers slightly more headroom.
The styling of the S-Type was regarded by many of those who worked on it as being not altogether successful. The mismatch between the horizontal lines of its rear styling and the rounded front was least flattering when viewing the car from the front quarter. Ref. [1] quotes Cyril Crouch, Assistant Chief Body Engineer at Browns Lane during development of the S-Type, as saying “We ourselves appreciated what an ugly looking car it was, and when it came out there was a ...’Is that the best you can do?’ sort of thing! People like myself had to take the stick for producing such an abomination! Perhaps I shouldn’t call it that, but I think everyone was very pleased to see the end of the S and move on to the 420. It seemed an odd-looking vehicle.”
The reasonable sales success of the S-Type prior to the release of the Jaguar 420 suggests that not everyone was as offended by its styling as Mr Crouch. Nevertheless, the 420 did ‘finish the job’ in a styling sense by adding to the car a squarer, four-headlamp front end more like that of the Mark X.
The list of the significant styling differences between the Mark 2 and S-Type is as follows:
• the tail was extended, with styling features similar to the Mark X only scaled down
• the Mark 2's spats over the rear wheels were deleted and the rear guards brought lower over the wheels and reshaped
• new slimline bumpers were used front and rear, the front bumper still featuring a dip to reveal the full depth of the radiator grille
• wraparound indicators and low mounted sidelights were added at the bottoms of the front wings
• the foglamps were recessed more deeply into the wing fronts
• the grille was given a thicker surround and centre bar
• the headlamps were given a small peak, making the car look longer and thus going some way to balancing the longer tail
• the roofline was extended rearwards slightly to make it look flatter and the rear window became more upright.
Bodyshell
Starting with the Mark 2’s monocoque bodyshell, Jaguar’s engineers had to alter it to accommodate the independent rear suspension's extra bulk and weight and the extended rear bodywork. Structural changes at the front were minimal and no changes at all were made to the inner scuttle, windscreen or dashboard structure.
A list of the significant structural differences between the Mark 2 and S-Type is as follows:
• the Mark 2’s underbody reinforcing rails were extended to the rear of the car and enclosed, sweeping up and over the space for the rear suspension assembly
• the boot floor was double-skinned and ribbed for additional strength
• the spare wheel well was relocated centrally in the boot floor (it was on the left in the Mark 2)
• the lid of the new longer boot (trunk) was secured by two catches rather than the single catch of the Mark 2
• the 12 gallon fuel tank was removed from under the boot floor and replaced by two 7 gallon tanks inside each rear wing
• new front wings were made to carry the frontal styling changes listed above
• new attachment points were made for the new wings and bumpers
• new wheelarches were made to match the new front guards and rear structure
Interior
The S-Type’s interior again reflected the styling of the Mark X but included features unique to the S-Type, not all of which found their way into the 420. Changes to the rear seat accommodation gave the impression of far greater room than in the rear of a Mark 2 and changes to the front of the cabin also gave the impression of greater luxury.
The list of interior differences between the Mark 2 and S-Type includes:
• a scaled down Mark X walnut veneer dashboard with a pull-out map tray below the centre section. The veneer extended to the dashboard centre section, which in the Mark 2 was black vinyl covered
• a full width parcel tray was fitted below the dashboard
• new controls were provided to go with the improved heating and ventilation system
• the front seats were widened to give the appearance of being almost full width, and each was provided with an inboard armrest.
• the centre console was redesigned to suit the wider front seats and rear compartment heating arrangements
• the door trims were given horizontal fluting
• Mark X type armrests were added to the front doors along with a map pocket
• the rear doors were given new armrests with a flip-top ashtray and magazine pocket
• the front seats were given a new fore and aft adjustment mechanism that raised the rear of the seat as it was moved forwards
• the backs of the front seats lost the Mark 2’s picnic trays and were made thinner, to the benefit of rear seat passenger legroom
• the rear seat had a 50 mm (2.0 in) thinner squab and its backrest was more steeply angled, further benefitting headroom already enhanced by the slightly higher rear roofline. These changes did, however, leave longer legged rear seat passengers in a fairly uncomfortable 'knee-high' posture.
Performance
A contemporary road test by Autosport magazine [2][3] was typical in describing the 'on paper' performance of the 3.8 S-Type as slower than the 3.8 litre Mark 2 but its actual cross country performance as faster. Despite its extra weight, the S-Type’s independent rear suspension allowed it to corner faster than the Mark 2, especially on uneven surfaces. Other benefits ascribed to the rear suspension were better traction and a much smoother ride for rear seat passengers. Some enthusiasts rued the loss of the Mark 2’s “driftability” and noted that the S-Type suffered more body roll during high speed cornering but the consensus was that the S-Type provided significant improvements over the Mark 2 in roadholding, safety and ride comfort.
Ref. [4] concluded its test report on a 3.8S with these words, "It can be a convenient family car, a businessman's express, a sports coupe, and a grand tourer. The latter two classifications come particularly clear to anyone who spends much time with the car in the wet, when the surefootedness of its all independent suspension and the Dunlop RS-5 tires makes its responsive handling an absolute revelation. The S-Type represents a great step forward for what has always been a fine automobile." The RS-5 cross-ply tyres were soon to be replaced by much better Dunlop SP41 radials, further enhancing the car's handling and grip.
Recorded performance figures obviously differed between testers and gearbox options but for the purposes of comparison, the following contemporary data are typical:
• 3.4 Mark 2 automatic
0-60 mph 10.0 sec
Max speed 118 mph (190 km/h)
• 3.4S manual/overdrive
0-60 mph 13.9 sec
Max speed 115 mph (185 km/h)
• 3.8S manual/overdrive
0-60 10.3 sec
Max speed 125 mph (201 km/h)
• 3.8S automatic
0-60 mph 11.5 sec
Max speed 116 mph (187 km/h)
Production developments
Several significant changes were made to the S-Type's interior and mechanicals during its six years in production.
Of the various performance enhancing mechanical changes, most were applied to both the 3.4S and 3.8S at the same time. These were:
• In June 1964 the original Dunlop RS5 cross-ply tyres were replaced with Dunlop SP41 radials, removing the former’s tendency to squeal under hard cornering and providing higher limits of adhesion with more gradual breakaway at the limit.
• In October 1964 the brakes were given a bigger servo, requiring lower pedal pressures.
• Also in October 1964, the Moss four-speed manual gearbox with no synchromesh on first gear was replaced with Jaguar’s own all-synchromesh four speed gearbox. Revised gear ratios improved acceleration and a more compact Laycock A-type overdrive unit was fitted (when the overdrive option was specified)
• A very few of the last S-Types built had the same Marles Varamatic variable ratio power steering that was available on the 420 and 420G. Detail of the Varamatic steering system can be found in the Jaguar 420 article.
The only production development not shared by both the 3.4S and 3.8S was that the Powr-Lok limited slip differential option ceased to be available on the 3.4S when the 1967 cost saving trim revisions were introduced.
In 1966 a dashboard switch was provided for the heated rear window, which had previously remained “on” as long as the ignition was on, leading to instances of flat batteries.
Reflecting a tougher economic climate (and similar changes made to the Mark 2s in 1966), all S-Types made from late 1967 onwards had Ambla upholstery instead of leather, and tufted carpets instead of woven. As part of the same revisions, dummy horn grilles replaced the foglamps in the front wings and the S-Type adopted the 420's new pattern wheel trim rings and hubcaps.
Sales performance
Though introduced in 1963, only a small number of S-Types was produced in that year. The S-Type did not manage to overtake the Mark 2’s production figures until 1965. It repeated the feat in 1966, the year in which the Jaguar 420 and its badge-engineered partner the Daimler Sovereign were introduced. In 1967 the 420/Sovereign outsold both the S-Type and the Mark 2, despite a resurgence in the latter’s sales that year. Both the Mark 2 and 420/Sovereign easily outsold the S-Type in 1967 and 1968. Sales of the S-Type in 1968, its last year of production, fell below four figures. Top seller in 1968 was actually the venerable Mark 2, potential buyers of both the S-Type and 420/Sovereign hanging back to wait for the new Jaguar XJ6.
Introduced late in 1968, the Jaguar XJ6 was slightly larger than the S-Type and 420/Sovereign and swept them both from the Jaguar range along with the Mark 2. The 420G continued to be available until 1970.
Production figures for each year of the S-Type's life were:
1963 - 43
1964 - 7,032
1965 - 9,741
1966 - 6,260
1967 - 1,008
1968 - 909
Specifications
• Engine
Jaguar 6 cylinder in line, iron block, alloy head
• Capacities
3.4 L (3442 cc) or 3.8 L (3781 cc)
• Bore/Stroke
3.4 L (83mm x 106mm) or 3.8 L (87 mm x 106 mm)
• Valves
DOHC 2 valves per cylinder
• Compression Ratio
8:1 (7:1 and 9:1 optional)
• Max. Power
3.4 L 210 bhp (157 kW; 213 PS) @ 5500 rpm or 3.8 L 220 bhp (164 kW; 223 PS) @ 5500 rpm
• Max. Torque
3.4 L 216 lb·ft (293 N·m) @ 3000 rpm or 3.8 L 240 lb·ft (325 N·m) @ 3000 rpm
• Carburettors
Twin SU HD6 (1.75in)
• Suspension
Front independent, with wishbones, coil springs with telescopic dampers and anti-roll bar
Rear independent, with lower wishbone and driveshaft as upper link, radius arms and twin coil springs with telescopic dampers
• Steering
Recirculating ball, worm and nut; power assistance optional
• Brakes
Servo assisted discs on all four wheels, inboard at rear
• Body/Chassis
Monocoque bodyshell with bolted front subframe, five seater saloon, front engine rear wheel drive
• Tyres/Wheels
6.40 x 15 crossply or 185 x 15 radial, 5.0in rim, five-stud disc wheels with wire spoke optional
• Track
Front=1,403 mm (55 in) Rear=1,378 mm (54 in)
Diecast Models
The S-type was modelled by Spot-on in the 1960s.
References
• ^ Taylor, James. "Jaguar S Type and 420 – The Complete Story", Crowood, ISBN 1-85223-989-1
• ^ "Autosport" magazine - 7 August 1964
• ^ "Jaguar S Type & 420 – 'Road Test' Limited Edition", Brooklands Books ISBN 1-85520-3456
• ^ "Car and Driver" magazine Road Research Report - June 1964
Further reading
• Ball, Kenneth. "Jaguar S Type, 420 1963-68 Autobook", Autopress Ltd ISBN 0-85147-113-7
• “Used cars on test: 1964 Jaguar S-Type 3.8". Autocar vol 127 (nbr 3725): Pages 28 – 29. 6 July 1967.
• "Buying secondhand: Jaguar S-Type and 420". Autocar vol 142 (nbr 4089): pages 44 – 46. date 8 March 1975.
• Harvey, Chris. "Great Marques - Jaguar", Octopus Books Ltd ISBN 0-7064-1687-2
Arriving at Bristol Parkway with the 08:27 Southampton – Gloucester First Great Western service is class 150 DMU 150233, 17th April 2010.
Unit History
150233 is one of the final batch of 85 two-car class 150 units which were built in 1986/87 with front-end gangway connections and numbered in the range 150201-285. They had different interiors to the earlier class 150/1 units and were used on longer-distance services. The end gangways make them very similar in appearance to later batches of the electric class 317 units, also based on the Mark III bodyshell. 150233 was initially allocated to Newton Heath before migrating to Laira in the mid 1990’s and is currently allocated to Bristol St Phillips Marsh.. 150233 is currently one of sixteen class 150 units operated by First Great Western for local duties.
LOCATION:- Derby Litchurch Lane
DATE:- 18.06.2001
'Networker Classic' prototype, what would of been the BR class 424 seen here stored at Litchurch Ln Works in Derby.
This vehicle was originally a 4-CIG driving trailer 76112. The "Networker Classic" concept involved rebuilding Mark 1 design Southern Region EMUs of Classes 411, 421 and 423 to meet current crash-worthiness standards. This involved building a new bodyshell on the existing chassis, but keeping the original electrical and motor equipment. Therefore, the aim was to produce a 'new' unit at one quarter the cost of manufacturing a train from scratch. The rebuilt units would have had a life of at least fifteen years, thus saving considerable amounts of money when replacing old stock. However, for some reason the project was not successful, and train companies turned to new-build trains of Classes 375, 376, 377, 444, 450, 458, and 460 from various manufacturers.
The Jaguar XJ (XJ40) is a luxury sedan manufactured by Jaguar Cars between 1986 and 1994. Officially unveiled on 8 October 1986 it was an all-new redesign of the XJ to replace the Series III, although the two model ranges were sold concurrently until the Series III was discontinued in 1992. The XJ40 used the Jaguar independent rear suspension arrangement, and featured a number of technological enhancements (such as electronic instrumentation)
Development:
Throughout the 1970s Jaguar had been developing "Project XJ40", which was an all-new model intended to replace the original XJ6. Scale models were being built as early as 1972. Due to the 1973 oil crisis and problems at parent company British Leyland, the car was continually delayed. Proposals from both Jaguar's in-house designers and Pininfarina were received. Eventually, it was decided an internal design would be carried through to production and, in February 1981, the British Leyland board approved £80 million to produce the new car.
Jaguar historians claim that the XJ40 was the last car which company founder Sir William Lyons had contributed to during its protracted development phase. The previous generation XJ had been the final Jaguar to be developed wholly under Lyons' leadership - although he continued to take an active consultative role within Jaguar design, long after had retired from the day to day management of the firm following its merger in 1966 with the British Motor Corporation.
During development, the XJ40 pioneered significant improvements to the way Jaguar designed, built, and assembled cars. Among these improvements was a 25 per cent reduction in the number of bodywork panels required per car (e.g. three pressings needed for a Series 3 door compared with one for a XJ40 door), resulting in not only a more efficient assembly process, but also a weight saving and a stiffer structure. Greater attention to panel gaps improved the drag factor (reduced from 0.849 Cd to 0.762 Cd), while also improving the fuel economy and lowering wind noise inside the cabin.
Mechanicals:
AJ6 4.0 L engine (in a 1990 Daimler)
Initially, only two engines were offered across the XJ40 models: a 2.9 L and a 3.6 L version of the AJ6 inline-six. In 1990, these were changed to 3.2 L and 4.0 L versions. In 1993, the XJ12 and Daimler Double Six (both equipped with the Jaguar V12 engine) were added to the available models.
During the development of the XJ40, British Leyland had considered providing the Rover V8 engine for the car, which would have eliminated the need for future Jaguar engine production. The XJ40 bodyshell was allegedly engineered to prevent fitting V-configuration engines such as the Rover V8; this delayed the introduction of the V12-powered XJ12 until 1993.
The automatic gearbox used in the 2.9 L, 3.2 L and 3.6 L six-cylinder cars was the four-speed ZF 4HP22. On the 4.0 L, the four-speed ZF 4HP24 was used. A stronger automatic gearbox was required for the V12-equipped cars, and the four-speed GM 4L80-E was selected. The manual gearbox fitted to early cars was the five-speed Getrag 265, while later cars received the Getrag 290.
The automatic transmission selector was redesigned to allow the manual selection of forward gears without accidentally selecting neutral or reverse. This new feature was dubbed the "J-Gate" and has carried over to more recent Jaguar models.
Exterior:
The curvaceous lines of the outgoing Series XJ were replaced by the more angular, geometric shape of the XJ40. The nose of the car would accommodate either matched pairs of round headlights, or rectangular single units; the latter were fitted to the higher-specification Sovereign and Daimler trim levels, and also to all cars for the US market.
The bumper is a visually distinct black-rubber-covered bar that runs the full width of the car and incorporates the sidelights and indicator lights. The bonnet is hinged at the front. Window frames are either chromed or black, depending on model. Rain gutters, door mirrors, and door handles are also finished in chrome. All XJ40s have a chrome surround for the windscreen and a single windscreen wiper.
Early low-specification cars were fitted with metric-sized steel wheels and plastic wheelcovers. From 1991, the wheels were changed to non-metric sizing.
[Text from Wikipedia]