MG R-Type | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Manufacturer | MG (Morris Motors) |
Production | 1935 |
Body and chassis | |
Class | competition car |
Body style | single seat |
Layout | FR layout |
Powertrain | |
Engine | 746 cc supercharged I4 |
Dimensions | |
Curb weight | 1400 pounds (620 kg) |
Chronology | |
Predecessor | MG Q-type |
The MG R-type is a motor car that was produced by MG in 1935. It was designed for competition use and was a development of the Q-type.
The MG Q-type is a racing car that was produced by MG in 1934. The chassis was based on the one used on the MG K3 but was narrower and used N-type axles. The engine used the cylinder block from the P-type but with a special crankshaft to bring the capacity down to 746 cc by reducing the stroke from 83 mm (3.3 in) to 71 mm (2.8 in). A high-pressure Zoller supercharger was fitted giving a boost to 2.5 atmospheres (1.8 kg/cc) and allowing the engine to produce 113 bhp (84 kW) at 7200 rpm. A sprint version was also made with output increased to 146 bhp (109 kW) which at nearly 200 bhp (150 kW) per litre was the highest specific output of any engine in the world at the time
The car used a tuned short-stroke (73 mm) version of the bevel-gear driven overhead camshaft engine from the 1928 Morris Minor and Wolseley 10. This had already been highly tuned for use in the Q-type and was further modified, especially in the input area, to improve reliability. It was fitted with a Zoller supercharger and produced 110 bhp (82 kW) at 7200 rpm. The gearbox was a four-speed preselector type unit. At the rear the differential in its aluminium casing was fastened to the chassis and drove the wheels through short shafts with sliding splines and universal joints.
Overhead camshaft, commonly abbreviated to OHC, is a valvetrain configuration which places the camshaft of an internal combustion engine of the reciprocating type within the cylinder heads and drives the valves or lifters in a more direct manner compared with overhead valves (OHV) and pushrods.
Morris Motors Limited was a British privately owned motor vehicle manufacturing company formed in 1919 to take over the assets of William Morris's WRM Motors Limited and continue production of the same vehicles. By 1926 its production represented 42 per cent of British car manufacture—a remarkable expansion rate attributed to William Morris's practice of buying in major as well as minor components and assembling them in his own factory. Self-financing through his enormous profits Morris did borrow some money from the public in 1926 and later shared some of Morris Motors' ownership with the public in 1936 when the new capital was used by Morris Motors to buy many of his other privately held businesses.
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The revolutionary Y-shaped steel chassis had a backbone that divided around the engine and gearbox, and was very light. The suspension was independent all round, making a first for MG and possibly the British motor industry, and used wishbones and longitudinal torsion bars allowing a large amount of wheel travel to allow for the poor surfaces on many of the contemporary racing circuits, especially Brooklands. Lever arm hydraulic shock absorbers were used. The brakes were cable-operated using 12-inch (305 mm) drums and the wheels were wire spoked and secured by a centre lock nut.
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The aluminium single-seat body had the appearance of a miniature Grand Prix racer, and was designed to be easily removable.
The car was offered to the public at £750 and the initial ten were sold to pre-selected customers. A further batch was planned but never happened. A car changed hands at auction in 2006 for £130,000.
The first major sporting outing was to Brooklands for the International Trophy where a six-car team including three works entries appeared, but the best result was a 6th place and none of the works cars finished. It was realised that the suspension was giving problems, mainly with the rear being too soft, and solutions were proposed but all work stopped when new boss Leonard Lord closed the MG Racing Department. Private entries to competition continued and the works cars were sold to the Evans family who already owned one of the other cars.
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