The Jensen 541R is a closed four-seater GT-class car built in the United Kingdom by Jensen between 1957 and 1960.
The original aluminium prototype appeared in 1953 as the 541 at the London Motor Show, although this changed to glassfibre for all production cars. Within a year, the new 541 had already earned rave reviews from magazines, notably Autocar, whose testers drove the grand tourer to a top speed of over 125mph (201km/h). It was the fastest four-seater the magazine had ever tested at the time.
The 541R employed a low-revving 3,993cc (4.0L; 243.7cuin)straight-six engine from the Austin Sheerline. The suspension system came from the Austin A70 with independent suspension by coil springs at the front and a live axle with semi-elliptic springs at the rear. The 541R, introduced in 1957, differed from the 541 by using rack & pinion steering instead of a cam-and-roller system, and large disc brakes were used on all four wheels.
The car's styling was by Jensen's designer Eric Neale, and was not only considered attractive, but was aerodynamically efficient too; a Cd figure of only 0.39 was recorded, which became the lowest figure at Jensen. The body covered a chassis built by bracing 5-inch (12.7cm) tubes with a mixture of steel pressings and cross-members to create a platform.
The 1957 model carried the DS7 version of the Austin Sheerline's four-litre motor equipped with twin carburetors on its right side. The cylinder head was reworked for the lifted compression ratio of 7.6:1 and a "long dwell". The engine had a raised output to 150hp (112kW) at 4100 rpm and 210lb⋅ft (285N⋅m). Only 53 cars were built with the engine.
In total Jensen built 193 541Rs before it was succeeded in 1961 by the Jensen 541S. This was similar to the 541R, but with a larger body and a GM-licensed Rolls-Roycehydramatic gearbox, and only 127 cars were built before the model was discontinued to be replaced by the CV8.
Performance
Jensen 541R
When the Jensen 541R was tested by Autocar magazine in January 1958 it achieved their highest maximum speed for a four-seater car at 127.5mph (205.2km/h). It was conducted in below-freezing conditions with a "stiff diagonal breeze". 0–60mph was recorded at 10.6 seconds with fuel consumption at 18mpg‑imp (16L/100km; 15mpg‑US) overall with the normal range given as 15mpg‑imp (19L/100km; 12mpg‑US)–24mpg‑imp (12L/100km; 20mpg‑US).
The Lotus Elite name has been used for two production vehicles and one concept vehicle developed and manufactured by British automobile manufacturer Lotus Cars. The first generation Elite Type 14 was produced from 1957 until 1963 and the second generation model from 1974 until 1982. The Elite name was also applied to a concept vehicle unveiled in 2010.
The Austin Princess is a series of large luxury cars that were made by Austin and its subsidiary Vanden Plas from 1947 to 1968. The cars were also marketed under the Princess and Vanden Plas marque names.
Berkeley Cars Ltd of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England produced economical sporting microcars with motorcycle-derived engines from 322 cc to 692 cc and front wheel drive between 1956 and 1960.
The Ford Zephyr is an executive car manufactured by Ford of Britain from 1950 until 1972. The Zephyr and its luxury variants, the Ford Zodiac and Ford Executive, were the largest passenger cars in the British Ford range from 1950 until their replacement by the Consul and Granada models in 1972.
The Peugeot 404 is a large family car produced by French automobile manufacturer Peugeot from 1960 to 1975. A truck body style variant was marketed until 1988. Styled by Pininfarina, the 404 was offered initially as a saloon, estate, and pickup. A convertible was added in 1962, and a coupé in 1963. The 404 was fitted with a 1.6 litre petrol engine, with either a Solex carburetor or Kugelfischer mechanical fuel injection or a 1.9 litre diesel engine available as options. Introduced at the Paris Motor Show as an option was the inclusion of a 3-speed ZF automatic transmission, similar to the unit already offered on certain BMW models, as an alternative to the standard column-mounted manual unit.
The MGA is a sports car that was produced by MG from 1955 until 1962.
The A40 Devon are automobiles that were marketed by Austin from 1947 to 1952 – the first post-war saloons to be produced by Austin – featuring a mix of old and new technologies. They were previewed by the UK press at the Paris Motor Show on 22 October 1947, who expressed immediate disappointment at the car's conservative appearance. More than 450,000 were built before the model's replacement in 1952 by the Austin A40 Somerset.
See Austin A40 for other A40 models.
The Austin Cambridge is a motor car range produced by the Austin Motor Company, in several generations, from September 1954 through to 1971 as cars and to 1973 as light commercials. It replaced the A40 Somerset and was entirely new, with modern unibody construction. The range had two basic body styles with the A40, A50, and early A55 using a traditional rounded shape and later A55 Mark IIs and A60s using Pininfarina styling.
The Wolseley 4/50 and similar 6/80 were Wolseley Motors' first post-war automobiles. They were put into production in 1948 and were based on the Morris Oxford MO and the Morris Six MS respectively. The 4-cylinder 4/50 used a 1476 cc 50 hp version of the 6/80 engine, while the 6/80 used a 2215 cc 72 hp straight-6 single overhead cam.
The Bentley S1 was a luxury car produced by Bentley Motors Limited from 1955 until 1959. The S1 was derived from Rolls-Royce's complete redesign of its standard production car after World War II, the Silver Cloud. Each was its maker's last standard production car with an independent chassis. The S-series Bentley was given the Rolls-Royce - Bentley L Series V8 engine in late 1959 and named the S2. Twin headlamps and a facelift to the front arrived in late 1962, resulting in the S3. In late 1965 the S3 was replaced by the new unitary construction Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow-derived T series.
Gilbern, Gilbern Sports Cars (Components) Ltd , was a Welsh car manufacturer from 1959 to 1973, based in Llantwit Fardre, Pontypridd, Glamorgan, Wales.
The Morris Commercial J4 was a 10 cwt forward-control van launched by Morris Commercial in 1960 and produced with two facelifts until 1974.
The Bond 875 was a small three-wheeled car partly designed by Lawrence "Lawrie" Bond and manufactured by Bond Cars Ltd in Preston, United Kingdom from 1965 to 1970. There was also a van version from 1967, known as the Ranger.
The Jowett Jupiter is a British sports car which was produced by Jowett Cars Ltd of Idle, near Bradford.
The Jensen 541 is an automobile which was produced by Jensen Motors from 1954 to 1959. It was first exhibited at the London Motor Show in October 1953, and production started in 1954.
The Lancia Trevi, initially marketed as the Lancia Beta Trevi, is a saloon car that was produced between 1980 and 1984. It has transversely mounted in-line four-cylinder engines driving the front wheels. Its engines have twin overhead camshafts and electronic ignition. The clutch is a single dry plate with diaphragm and a five-speed gearbox was standard. The suspension consists of MacPherson struts all round with coil springs and anti-roll bar. The wheels are fitted with 185/65 14 inch tyres. Steering is rack and pinion. The manufacturer's estimated fuel consumption is 29.4 mpg (9,6l/100 km) at 75 mph for the 1600 manual and 28 mpg (10,1l/100 km) at 75 mph for the 2000 manual. The 2000 fitted with an automatic transmission had an official fuel consumption of 25.4 mpg (11,1l/100 km) at 75 mph.
The Jensen 541S was Jensen Motors luxury GT model of the Jensen 541. Announced in mid-October 1960, the Jensen 541S was four inches wider than the 541R. The increase track allowed the new car's interior to be roomier and improved the roadholding. The 541S had a conventional radiator grill to allow for the extra heat given by a proposed new V8 engine, and a Salisbury limited slip differential for the extra torque demanded..
The Jensen Interceptor made its debut in 1950 as the second car made by Jensen Motors after World War II. The car was based on Austin components with a body built by Jensen and styled by Eric Neale. The 3,993 cc straight-six engine and transmission came from the Austin Sheerline and the chassis was a lengthened version of the one used on the Austin A70 with a modified version of the independent coil sprung suspension.
The Triumph Renown is strictly the name given to the Triumph's large saloon car made from 1949 to 1954 but it is, in reality, part of a three-car series of the 1800, 2000 and Renown models. Together with the Triumph Roadster, they were the first vehicles to carry the Triumph badge following the company's takeover by the Standard Motor Company.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
