Austin Twelve 1660 cc & 1861 cc | |
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Overview | |
Manufacturer | Austin |
Production | 1921–1939 88,000 |
Body and chassis | |
Body style | catalogued: tourer, saloon, sports coupé, Harley all-weather tourer, [1] fabric saloon special chassis for various—hire car, taxi, London taxi, van and other commercials |
Powertrain | |
Engine | 1660 [1] or 1861 cc Straight-4 |
Transmission | single-plate clutch, 4-speed centrally controlled gearbox, linked by disc coupling to the open propellor shaft, by metal universal joint to a helical bevel-driven live rear axle. The clutch housing is cast in one with the gearbox. [1] |
Dimensions | |
Wheelbase | 9' 4", 112 in (2,800 mm) [2] Track 4' 4", 52 in (1,300 mm) [2] 4' 8", 56 in (1,400 mm) [3] |
Length | 13' 6", 162 in (4,100 mm) [4] |
Width | 5' 3", 63 in (1,600 mm) [4] |
Kerb weight | Chassis 16¼ cwt, 1,820 lb (830 kg) [1] tourer 22 cwt, 2,464 lb (1,118 kg) saloon 24 cwt, 2,688 lb (1,219 kg) |
Chronology | |
Predecessor | Austin Ten-Twelve |
Successor | Austin 12/4 |
Austin Twelve engine 1660 | |
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Overview | |
Manufacturer | Austin |
Layout | |
Configuration | Straight 4-cylinder [1] |
Displacement | 1,660 cc (101 cu in) [1] |
Cylinder bore | 72 mm (2.8 in) [1] |
Piston stroke | 102 mm (4.0 in) [1] |
Cylinder block material | Cast iron, alloy crankcase. The inlet manifold is cast in one with the cylinder head [1] |
Cylinder head material | Detachable, pistons are aluminium [1] |
Valvetrain | Side-by-side valves, tappet covers may be easily removed, timing is driven by chain [1] |
Combustion | |
Fuel system | Single carburettor supplied by a vacuum tank which draws from a reservoir beneath the driver's seat, ignition by magneto driven by chain placed behind the timing, dynamo driven by same chain [1] |
Management | Back seat |
Fuel type | Petrol [1] |
Oil system | lubrication by forced feed, filler on the offside [1] |
Cooling system | Radiator, fan, cooling water is circulated by a pump forward of the timing on the nearside [1] |
Output | |
Power output | 20 bhp (15 kW; 20 PS) @2,000 rpm Tax horsepower 12.8 [1] |
Chronology | |
Successor | Austin Twelve 1861 cc |
Austin Twelve engine 1861 | |
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Overview | |
Manufacturer | Austin |
Production | Unknown |
Layout | |
Configuration | Straight 4-cylinder [3] |
Displacement | 1,861 cc (114 cu in) [3] |
Cylinder bore | 72 mm (2.8 in) [3] |
Piston stroke | 114.5 mm (4.51 in) [3] |
Output | |
Power output | 27 bhp (20 kW; 27 PS) @2,000 rpm Tax horsepower 12.8 [3] |
Chronology | |
Predecessor | Austin Twelve 1660 cc |
Successor | Austin Twelve 1535 cc, 1946 |
The Austin Twelve is a motor car introduced by Austin in 1921. It was the second of Herbert Austin's post World War I models and was in many ways a scaled-down version of his Austin Twenty, introduced in 1919. The slower-than-expected sales of the Twenty brought about this divergence from his intended one-model policy. The Twelve was announced at the beginning of November 1921 after Austin's company had been in receivership for six months. [5] The number twelve refers to its fiscal horse power (12.8) rather than its brake horsepower (bhp) which was 20 and later 27. The long-stroke engines encouraged by the tax regime, 72 × 102 mm later 72 × 114.5 mm, had much greater low-speed torque than the bhp rating suggests.
Initially available as a tourer, by 1922 three body styles were offered: the four-seat tourer, the two/four-seater (both at 550 GBP) and the coupé at 675 GBP.
The car enjoyed success throughout the vintage era with annual sales peaking at 14,000 in 1927.
While the mechanical specification changed little (the engine increased from 1661 cc to 1861 cc in 1926), many body styles were offered with saloons becoming more popular as the twenties drew to a close.
The car continued in the Austin catalogue and as a taxi option until 1939. The last cars were produced for the War Department in 1940.
After the early thirties the car was referred to by the public as the Heavy Twelve to distinguish it from the other, newer, 12HP cars in the Austin catalogue Light Twelve-Four, Light Twelve-Six etc. and received some updating. The artillery style wheels were replaced by wire wheels in 1933 and coil ignition replaced the magneto in 1935. The gearbox was provided with synchromesh between its top two ratios in 1934. The factory catalogued body range was steadily updated with the last of the no longer fashionable Weymann style fabric-covered cars in 1931 and no open tourers after 1934.
After the war the Austin Twelve name resumed in the Austin catalogue for a couple of years until the arrival in 1947 of the Austin A40 Dorset and Devon saloons.
Today, the Austin Twelve is remembered as being virtually unburstable and is well catered for by the Vintage Austin Register in the UK and various other clubs in other parts of the world.
"The gears were easily changed, the brakes worked well, yet were smooth in application, and the steering is steady and light. Ample lock enables the car to turn in a small space. Of the springing I have no complaint; much of its efficiency is probably due to proper lubrication of the leaves. The various controls are to hand, and in addition to a horn button on the instrument board there is a large circular switch on the steering wheel so that warning can be given without having to take off a hand." [1] from the report on the Austin Twelve Harley all-weather tourer published February 1924.
A pedal operates shoes in enclosed drums at the rear and a centrally set hand lever applies a locomotive type of transmission brake which is anchored to the gear box. Hand adjusters are provided. Compensation is given by rubber washers. The rear-wheel brakes can also be taken up by hand on the primary rod. [1]
This "very marked improvement" was announced for the Motor Show October 1924. The pedal now applied all four brakes on the wheels. Application was by cable, the sets were compensated and wear could be taken up individually.
The carburettor was now given a strangler. The handbrake worked on the transmission for parking. [2]
Steering gear is by worm and worm wheel. [1]
Suspension is by half-elliptical springs, those at the rear are underslung. Gaiters allowing leaf lubrication by oil are fitted, and such parts as shackle pins are greased by gun. [1]
The Twelve-Four is familiar to children in the form of Gumdrop , the title character of a series of books authored by Val Biro, who owned an example. Gumdrop is an Austin Clifton Heavy Twelve-Four of 1926. [6]
The stories revolve around the car and his owner, initially the younger Bill McArran, but for most of the series, the more senior Mr Oldcastle (later joined by a dog, Horace). The plots often involve the search for replacement parts for Gumdrop.
Biro wrote the stories from the late 1960s to the 1980s. The main series of books, all fully illustrated in colour by Biro, ran to at least seventeen titles, [7] with a further twelve (at least) "Gumdrop Little Books" [7] also published in the 1980s.
Whilst Gumdrop's adventures are fictional, the car is not. Mr Biro and Gumdrop were frequent visitors to car shows and other events in Sussex and surrounding area (2008)
In 2022 the Heavy 12/4 celebrates 100 years, with the Vintage Austin Register hosting a commemorative event in Leicestershire featuring a gathering of one hundred cars. [8]
The Austin Sixteen Light Six is a British car that was made by Austin from 1927. Announced in October 1927, the first deliveries were planned for March 1928.
The Austin 7 is an economy car that was produced from 1923 until 1939 in the United Kingdom by Austin. It was nicknamed the "Baby Austin" and was at that time one of the most popular cars produced for the British market and sold well abroad. Its effect on the British market was similar to that of the Model T Ford in the US, replacing most other British economy cars and cyclecars of the early 1920s. It was also licensed and copied by companies all over the world. The first BMW car, the BMW Dixi, was a licensed Austin 7. In France they were made and sold as Rosengarts, and in the United States they were built by the American Austin Car Company. In Japan, Nissan also used the 7 design as the basis for their first cars, although not under licence. This eventually led to a 1952 agreement for Nissan to build and sell Austins in Japan under the Austin name.
Lloyd Cars Ltd was a British motor manufacturer, founded by Roland Lloyd (1904–1965), son of a garage owner, and based in Patrick Street, Grimsby, Lincolnshire, England between 1936 and 1951. Two models were made, separated by World War II; the company was unusual for a small manufacturer in making nearly all components in-house. After car production ceased the company continued in general engineering until 1983. During World War II the company made components for Rolls-Royce Merlin aircraft engines.
Morris Cowley was a name given to various cars produced by Morris from 1915 to 1958.
The Morris Minor is a small 4-seater car with an 850 cc engine manufactured by Morris Motors Limited from 1928 until 1934. The name was resurrected for another newer car for the same market in 1948.
The Rover 8 was a small single-cylinder 8 hp 1327 cc car made by the British Rover car company. It was Rover's first production car. It was remarkable for being supported by a backbone chassis rather than a conventional ladder frame. The first model was manufactured from 1904 to 1912. A Daimler-Knight sleeve valve engine option was available on the original model in 1911 and 1912.
The Rover 10 was a small family car from the British Rover car company produced between 1927 and 1947.
The Morris Ten announced 1 September 1932 is a medium-sized car introduced for 1933 as the company's offering in the important 10 hp sector of the British market. It continued through a series of variants until October 1948 when along with Morris's Twelve and Fourteen it was replaced by the 13.5 hp Morris Oxford MO.
The Austin 10 hp is a high-quality small car produced between 1910 and 1915 by the British car manufacturer Austin Motor Company Limited at their Longbridge, Worcestershire plant near Birmingham. 1,336 cars were made, 213 with the 1125 cc engine and 1,123 with the 1615 cc engine. Like the 1087 cc Austin 7 hp produced by both Austin and Du Cros's Swift Motor Company it was not very successful when sold with the small engine.
The Austin Light Twelve-Six is a 14 tax horsepower car with a 1496 cc engine that was introduced by Austin in January 1931. It was named by Austin Light Twelve to separate it from the well-established Austin Twelve. The general public then dubbed the original Twelve Heavy Twelve but Austin never used that name. The Light Twelve-Six remained in production until 1936.
The Austin Light Twelve-Four is a car that was produced by Austin from 1933 until 1939. It was replaced in 1939 by a completely new car also called the Austin 12 which kept the same engine. The "12" in the name referred to the taxation horsepower, a British rating which controlled the annual taxation payable to use the car on the road.
The Rover 12 was a name given to several medium-sized family cars from the British Rover car company between 1905 and 1948.
The Vauxhall 30–98 is a car manufactured by Vauxhall at Luton, Bedfordshire from 1913 to 1927. In its day, its best-known configuration was the Vauxhall Velox standard 4-seater with open tourer body. Vauxhall's own description was the 30–98 hp Vauxhall-Velox sporting car. The 30–98 is also known to enthusiasts by Vauxhall's chassis code E.
Balint Stephen Biro was a children's author, artist and illustrator. He received his education in Budapest and London. From about 1955 he lived in Chesham, where he helped to found the Chesham Society, and then moved to Amersham about 1971 until 1985.
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Austin Twenty is a large car introduced by Austin after the end of the First World War in April 1919, and continued in production until 1930. After the Austin 20/6 model was introduced in 1927, the first model was referred to as the Austin 20/4.
The Gumdrop stories are a series of 37 children's books written and illustrated by Val Biro. They concern a 1926 Austin 12 hp four cylinder called "Gumdrop", who gets involved in various adventures. The car is real and was in the author's possession, but the stories are fictional. The first book was The Adventures of a Vintage Car (1966) and the last was Gumdrop's School Adventure (2001). His adventures have included such tales as an encounter with the Loch Ness Monster where Gumdrop and his owner helped to protect the monster being exploited for publicity, a meeting with Father Christmas where Gumdrop helped him deliver presents, and helping an elephant escape an abusive zookeeper and deliver him to a safari park which they soon help to rescue from being destroyed by bulldozers. Given Gumdrop's age, various stories feature a sub-plot of his owners needing to find replacement parts for him as certain components become worn out over time, ranging from a new starter to a complete replacement of his engine, often made more difficult by the fact that these parts are no longer being manufactured directly.
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The Rover Fourteen was a medium-sized family car and variants produced by the British Rover car company between 1924 and 1948. Civilian automobile production was interrupted in 1940 because of the war, but when the war ended in 1945, the Rover 14 returned to the market and remained available until replaced by the Rover 75 at the beginning of 1948.
The "bullnose" Morris Oxford is a series of motor car models produced by Morris of the United Kingdom, from 1913 to 1926. It was named by W R Morris after the city in which he grew up and which his cars were to industrialise.
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