Bedford TA

Last updated

Bedford TA
Bedford light truck mfd 1955 engine 2800cc per DVLA data.jpg
Overview
Manufacturer Bedford
Also calledBedford A
Production1953-1958 (continued production as the TJ)
Body and chassis
Class Medium-Duty truck
Body style 2-door truck
Layout FR layout
Related Bedford TJ
Dimensions
Wheelbase 2,946–4,198 mm (116.0–165.3 in)
Length5,093–6,560 mm (200.5–258.3 in)
Width80–90 in (2,032–2,286 mm)
Height107–112 in (2,700–2,800 mm)
Curb weight 2,003–5,380 kg (4,416–11,861 lb)
Chronology
Predecessor Bedford K/M/O series
Successor Bedford TJ

The Bedford TA (also called Bedford A) is a medium-duty truck produced by Bedford Vehicles from 1953 to 1958, as a replacement for the older Bedford K/M/O series. In total around 200,000 TA trucks were built, until it was eventually modernised as the newer TJ.

Contents

The truck was an all new vehicle compared to its predecessors, and competed with similar vehicles from other manufacturers although the TA and TD were more popular than most competitors due to their larger engines, which were a development of the Stovebolt units. Apart from the main Chevrolet-derived 6-cylinder engines, various 4- and 6-cylinder Perkins diesel engines were also available. [1]

Development

1957 Bedford A5 1957 Bedford A5 (32730972663).jpg
1957 Bedford A5
1953 Bedford A1 1953 Bedford 'Brute' (15346624619).jpg
1953 Bedford A1

With the end of the Second World War, the Bedford factories had been converted into suitable only for military production for the war effort and were in a precarious state, so the revert process back to civilian production was not an easy one, resulting in the company being forced to limp on with the outdated Bedford K/M/O trucks. In order remain profitable, Bedford decided to prioritize their production mostly for export, something that happened with almost all British vehicle companies in a new fashion called "Export or Die" that was also responsible for the development of the Land Rover that became a legend. [2]

During that time General Motors, the parent of Vauxhall Motors that controlled Bedford, was thriving in the United States with new models on the commercial truck market with the Chevrolet and GMC Advance Design range, which were the most popular truck in the USA at the market during that time around. To cut costs it was decided to import a Chevrolet Advance Design truck in the Luton factory, to create a new model based on the tooling of the American truck instead of entirely developing a new one. [2] [3]

During the launch of the TA series, many motoring presses noted the similarities between the Advance Design and the TA, and suggested that some panels were even interchangeable, but Bedford proclaimed that apart from a similarity in design (that was also applied to the re-designed 1950s Opel Blitz) there was no mechanical commonality between these trucks, since if the company was going to "copy" the design of the American truck there were going to be production problems in order to adjust the American tooling and dies to the then British machines due to the Bedford truck being somewhat larger and heavier in almost all dimensions, while the Advance Design was ready to be discontinued in the USA. Despite this, the styling was considered fresh in the United Kingdom, a key feature that made the TA very successful. [2]

When the TA was released, it was presented to dealers and large fleet operators that gave the truck positive reviews, and initial sales were much higher than the production capacity at the Bedford factories, so there were shortages and delays in production. During the 1954 model year, some changes included a new bonnet pressing with a raised T-shaped ridge that strengthened the vehicle's overall front end. [2]

The TA series was produced in many versions, including platform trucks, vans, pickup trucks, chassis cabs and ambulances.

In 1957, the TA was modernized and renamed the TD. It was slightly restyled, with the heavier models specifically receiving a different front grille. [2]

It was planned to replace the vehicle with an all new truck, but due to Bedford eventually deciding that the styling was still popular and wanting to focus more on their lighter vans and cab-over trucks, it was decided to just facelift the model and rename it to the TJ series.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vauxhall Motors</span> British automotive manufacturing and distribution company, subsidiary of Stellantis

Vauxhall Motors Limited is a British car company headquartered in Chalton, Bedfordshire, England. Vauxhall became a subsidiary of Stellantis in January 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leyland Motors</span> Lorry and bus manufacturer

Leyland Motors Limited was an English vehicle manufacturer of lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company diversified into car manufacturing with its acquisitions of Triumph and Rover in 1960 and 1967, respectively. It gave its name to the British Leyland Motor Corporation, formed when it merged with British Motor Holdings in 1968, to become British Leyland after being nationalised. British Leyland later changed its name to simply BL, then in 1986 to Rover Group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commer</span> British van, lorry and bus manufacturer

Commer was a British manufacturer of commercial and military vehicles from 1905 until 1979. Commer vehicles included car-derived vans, light vans, medium to heavy commercial trucks, and buses. The company also designed and built some of its own diesel engines for its heavy commercial vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet C/K</span> American truck series

The Chevrolet C/K is a series of trucks that was manufactured by General Motors from the 1960 to 2002 model years. Marketed by both the Chevrolet and GMC divisions, the C/K series encompassed a wide range of vehicles. While most commonly associated with pickup trucks, the model line also included chassis-cab trucks and medium-duty trucks and served as the basis for GM full-size SUVs. Through its entire production, the model line competed directly against the Ford F-Series and the Dodge D series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet Colorado</span> Motor vehicle

The Chevrolet Colorado, are a series of compact pickup trucks marketed by American automaker General Motors. They were introduced in 2004 to replace the Chevrolet S-10 and GMC S-15/Sonoma compact pickups. The Colorado is named after the U.S. state of Colorado, while the Canyon would be the deep chasm between cliffs.

Flint Assembly is an automobile factory operated by General Motors in Flint, Michigan. It is the city's only vehicle assembly plant after the closure of Buick City. Flint Truck Assembly is also GM's oldest, still operating assembly plant in North America. As of 2022, the Flint factory currently produces full-size pickup trucks. Engine block and cylinder heads were cast at Saginaw Metal Casting Operations, internal engine components were created at Bay City Powertrain and Grand Rapids Operations, and the engines were then assembled at Tonawanda Engine and Romulus Engine. For most of the 20th century Flint Assembly was the home factory for all Chevrolet vehicles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opel Blitz</span> Motor vehicle

Opel Blitz was the name given to various light and middleweight trucks built by the German Opel automobile manufacturer between 1930 and 1975. The original logo for this truck, two stripes arranged loosely like a lightning symbol in the form of a horizontally stretched letter "Z", still appears in the current Opel logo. The Blitz name was then applied to the British-made Bedford CF when it replaced the Blitz in certain markets.

Bedford Vehicles, usually shortened to just Bedford, was a brand of vehicle manufactured by Vauxhall Motors, then a subsidiary of multinational corporation General Motors. Established in April 1931, Bedford Vehicles was set up to build commercial vehicles. The company was a leading international lorry brand, with substantial export sales of light, medium, and heavy lorries throughout the world.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet Kodiak</span> Series of medium-duty trucks by General Motors

The Chevrolet Kodiak and GMC TopKick are a range of medium-duty trucks that were produced by the Chevrolet and GMC divisions of General Motors from 1980 to 2009. Introduced as a variant of the medium-duty C/K truck line, three generations were produced. Slotted between the C/K trucks and the GMC Brigadier Class 8 conventional, the Kodiak/TopKick were developed as a basis for vocationally oriented trucks, including cargo haulers, dump trucks, and similar vehicles; on later generations, both cutaway and cowled-chassis variants were produced for bus use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isuzu Elf</span> Medium duty truck

The Isuzu Elf is a medium duty truck produced by Isuzu since 1959. Outside Japan it is known as N series and Q Series. The range was originally mainly available in Japan and other Asian countries. Australia was another important market for the Elf and N series – to the extent that it was manufactured there from the 1970s using many local components. Since the early 1980s, it has also been sold and built in the United States, and also as the Isuzu N-Series. Only North America receives the wide-cab version.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedford TJ</span> Motor vehicle

The Bedford TJ is a truck that was produced by Bedford and its successors from 1958 to 1998, as a replacement for the earlier Bedford A series of medium-duty trucks that were built between 1953 and 1958. The TJ was the last bonneted truck produced by the company, and the last vehicle to be produced to have a relation with Bedford.

General Motors New Zealand Limited, is a subsidiary of General Motors that distributes GM' motor vehicles, engines, components and parts in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suzuki Carry</span> Kei truck produced by the Japanese automaker Suzuki

The Suzuki Carry is a kei truck produced by the Japanese automaker Suzuki. The microvan version was originally called the Carry van until 1982 when the passenger van versions were renamed as the Suzuki Every. In Japan, the Carry and Every are kei cars but the Suzuki Every Plus, the bigger version of Every, had a longer bonnet for safety purposes and a larger 1.3-liter 86-hp (63 kW) four-cylinder engine. They have been sold under myriad different names in several countries, including those with Chevrolet and Ford badges.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isuzu Faster</span> Motor vehicle

The Isuzu Faster is a pickup truck that was manufactured and marketed by Isuzu between 1972 and 2002 over three generations. The Faster was succeeded worldwide by Isuzu D-Max, except in Japan and North America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet Advance Design</span> Motor vehicle

The Advance-Design is a light and medium duty truck series by Chevrolet, their first major redesign after WWII. Its GMC counterpart was the GMC New Design. It was billed as a larger, stronger, and sleeker design in comparison to the earlier AK Series. First available on Saturday, June 28, 1947, these trucks were sold with various minor changes over the years until March 25, 1955, when the Task Force Series trucks replaced the Advance-Design model.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedford CF</span> Motor vehicle

The Bedford CF is a range of full-size panel vans produced by Bedford. The van was introduced in 1969 to replace the CA model, and was sized to compete directly with the Ford Transit, which had entered production four years earlier. Its design was similar to its American counterpart, the Chevrolet Van (1971–1995).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford D series</span> Motor vehicle


The Ford D series is a range of middle-weight trucks that were introduced by Ford UK in 1965. It replaced the Thames Trader and appears to have been envisaged as a more modern competitor to the Bedford TK produced by General Motors' UK truck subsidiary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">General Motors de Argentina</span> Argentinas division of General Motors

General Motors de Argentina S.R.L. is the Argentine subsidiary of the US-based company General Motors. The company is currently headquartered in Vicente López, Buenos Aires, with its factory located in Alvear, Santa Fe Province.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chevrolet C/K (fourth generation)</span> American truck series

The fourth generation of the C/K series is a range of trucks that was manufactured by General Motors. Marketed by the Chevrolet and GMC brands from the 1988 to the 2002 model years, this is the final generation of the C/K model line. In a branding change, GMC adopted the GMC Sierra nameplate for all its full-size pickup trucks, leaving the C/K nomenclature exclusive to Chevrolet.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bedford HC</span> Motor vehicle

The Bedford HC is a small commercial vehicle that was made by Bedford, beginning in 1938. The vehicle shared its running gear with the H-series Vauxhall 10-4 saloon. Production of civilian vehicles ceased during World War II with the HC van re-entering production for a little while following hostilities. The HC was later joined by the heavier duty Bedford JC, which was itself replaced by the higher-roofed Bedford PC after the war. With the arrival of the much more modern Bedford CA the by now outmoded PC was finally retired.

References

  1. "Bedford A2C". Army Vehicles. Retrieved 25 October 2023.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bedford TA and TD History". Vauxpedia. Retrieved 23 October 2023.
  3. Baron, Rich (3 June 2023). "Curbside Classic: 1970 Bedford TJ – Advanced Past Its Prime". Curbside Classic.