AEC Trucks and Lorries

AEC – Associated Equipment Company

Associated Equipment Company (AEC)

Industry	Automotive
Fate	Renamed AEC Ltd. upon the establishment of the holding company ACV Ltd.
Founded	1912
Defunct	1979
Headquarters	Southall, Greater London, England
Products	Lorries, buses, motorcoaches
Parent	Leyland Motor Corporation (1962–1968) British Leyland Motor Corporation (1968–1975) British Leyland Ltd (1975–1979)

AEC Buses:

https://myntransportblog.com/2013/10/28/buses-aec-associated-equipment-company-ltd-england-uk/

AEC Regent

As­so­ci­ated Equip­ment Company (AEC) was a British ve­hi­cle man­u­fac­turer that built buses, mo­tor­coaches and lor­ries from 1912 until 1979. The name “As­so­ci­ated Equip­ment Com­pany” was hardly ever used; in­stead it traded under the AEC and ACLO brands.

AEC Routemaster

While fa­mously as­so­ci­ated with Lon­don’s AEC Routemas­ter buses, AEC sup­plied com­mer­cial ve­hi­cles to many com­pa­nies, both do­mes­ti­cally and around the world.

History

Inception

LGOC-X type

The Lon­don Gen­eral Om­nibus Com­pany, or LGOC, was founded in 1855 to amal­ga­mate and reg­u­late the horse-drawn om­nibus ser­vices then op­er­at­ing in Lon­don. The com­pany began pro­duc­ing motor om­nibuses for its own use in 1909 with the X-type de­signed by its chief motor en­gi­neer, Frank Searle, at works in Black­horse Lane, Waltham­stow, Lon­don. The X-type was fol­lowed by Searle’s B-type de­sign, con­sid­ered to be one of the first mass-pro­duced com­mer­cial vehicles.

1911 LGOC B-Type bus B340 London Transport Museum

In 1912, LGOC was taken over by the Un­der­ground Group of com­pa­nies, which at that time owned most of the Lon­don Un­der­ground, and ex­ten­sive tram op­er­a­tions. As part of the re­or­gan­i­sa­tion fol­low­ing the takeover, a sep­a­rate con­cern was set up for the bus man­u­fac­tur­ing el­e­ments, and was named As­so­ci­ated Equip­ment Com­pany, bet­ter-known as AEC.A 1921 AEC S-type Bus at the Heritage Motor Centre

AEC’s first com­mer­cial ve­hi­cle was a lorry based on the X-type bus chas­sis. With the out­break of the First World War in 1914, AEC’s abil­ity to pro­duce large num­bers of ve­hi­cles using as­sem­bly line meth­ods be­came im­por­tant in sup­ply­ing the in­creas­ing need for army lor­ries. AEC began large-scale pro­duc­tion of the 3-ton Y-type lorry, com­menced in 1916, and con­tin­ued be­yond the end of the war. From then on, AEC be­came as­so­ci­ated with both lor­ries and buses.

Interwar years

In 1926, AEC and Daim­ler formed the As­so­ci­ated Daim­ler Company (ADC), which was dis­solved two years later. In 1927, AEC moved its man­u­fac­tur­ing from Waltham­stow to a new plant at Southall in Mid­dle­sex.AEC Southall Works from the south, 1973

AEC Southall Works from the north, 1973

G. J. Rack­ham was ap­pointed Chief En­gi­neer and De­signer in 1928. He had pre­vi­ously worked for Ley­land Mo­tors. His ideas con­tributed sig­nif­i­cantly to AEC’s rep­u­ta­tion for qual­ity and re­li­a­bil­ity.1962-built AEC Mercury

From 1929, AEC pro­duced new mod­els: the names of lor­ries began with “M” (Ma­jes­tic, Mam­moth, Mer­cury, and so on), and those of buses began with “R” (Re­gent, Regal, Renown, and so on). These orig­i­nal “M-mod­els” con­tin­ued in pro­duc­tion until the end of the Sec­ond World War. AEC in­tro­duced diesel en­gines across the range in the mid-1930s.

From 1931 to 1938, AEC and Eng­lish Elec­tric co-pro­duced trol­ley­buses. AEC sup­plied the chas­sis, and EE the elec­tric mo­tors and con­trol equip­ment.

In 1932, AEC took a con­trol­ling in­ter­est in the British sub­sidiary of the Amer­i­can Four Wheel Drive(FWD) com­pany, and began to use more stan­dard AEC com­po­nents in those ve­hi­cles. To avoid con­fu­sion, these were mar­keted under the name Hardy. Pro­duc­tion ceased about 1936.

Second World War

Non-mil­i­tary pro­duc­tion stopped in 1941, from then until 1944 AEC pro­duced nearly 10,000 ve­hi­cles for the war ef­fort Road Trans­port Archives Dur­ing the war, AEC pro­duced their

10-ton 4×4 Mata­dor ar­tillery trac­tor (an adap­ta­tion of their com­mer­cial 4×2 Mata­dor lorry that ex­ploited AEC’s ex­pe­ri­ence with the Hardy FWD ven­ture).AEC 850 6 x 6 artillery tractor of 15 AA Battery towing a 3-inch AA gun on the cruciform travelling platform.

A 6×6 ver­sion was des­ig­nated as the AEC Mar­shall but al­most al­ways called the Mata­dor. To this they added theAEC Armoured Car Mk I

AEC Mk III Armoured Car

AEC Ar­moured Car in 1941. Other uses of the Mata­dor chas­sis were the Dea­con self-pro­pelled anti-tank gun ve­hi­cle, used briefly in North Africa; and theAEC Ar­moured Com­mand Ve­hi­cle, pop­u­larly known as the Dorch­ester.

AEC 6×6 Armoured Command Vehicle

Post war

A 1957 AEC Regent V

In 1946 AEC and Ley­land Mo­tors formed British United Trac­tion Ltd (BUT) as a joint ven­ture to man­u­fac­ture trol­ley­buses and trac­tion equip­ment for diesel rail­cars since re­duced de­mand would not re­quire the ex­ist­ing ca­pac­ity of both par­ents.

In 1946 AEC re­sumed civil­ian pro­duc­tion with the 0661/20 Re­gent II and the 0662/20 Regal I. These were not new mod­els but a recom­mence­ment of the most basic AEC 1939 spec­i­fi­ca­tion bus mod­els. The sin­gle-decker was going to be mar­keted as Regal II until some­body at Southall re­mem­bered the 1936-8 light­weight 0862 model of that name and as a re­sult the name was cor­rected after the launch pub­lic­ity had been printed. At the end of 1946 the post­war 0961 RT was in build and by 1948 Mam­moth Major, Mata­dor and Monarch Mk IIIs were in pro­duc­tion, fol­lowed by the ‘provin­cial’ Re­gent III and the Regal III. Also in 1948 AEC ac­quired Cross­ley Mo­tors and the Maud­slay Motor Com­pany and on 1 Oc­to­ber 1948 AEC set up As­so­ci­ated Com­mer­cial Ve­hi­cles (ACV) Ltd. as the hold­ing com­pany for the newly ac­quired busi­nesses and its own man­u­fac­tur­ing firm, which was re­named AEC Ltd. The ini­tials “AEC” re­mained on its ve­hi­cles, with the ex­cep­tion of some badge-en­gi­neered ver­sions, such as the Cross­ley Re­gent bus (one ex­am­ple of which may be seen at the North West Mu­seum of Road Trans­port). In 1949 ACV ac­quired the (bus) coach­build­ing com­pany Park Royal Ve­hi­cles, along with its sub­sidiary Charles H. Roe. Park Royal de­signed a new cab for the AEC Mer­cury in the mid-1950s, which ap­peared on all mod­els across the range about this time.

In 1961 ACV ac­quired Trans­port Equip­ment (Thorny­croft). Thorny­croft’s name dis­ap­peared from all the ve­hi­cles ex­cept the spe­cial­ist air­port crash ten­ders, such as the Nu­bian, and the “Mighty” Antar off-road trac­tor unit. The AEC Dumptruk was trans­ferred to Bas­ingstoke, and the Thorny­croft six-speed con­stant-mesh gear­box and later nine- and ten-speed range-change ver­sions were fit­ted to AEC, Ley­land and Al­bion buses and lor­ries.

The AEC en­gines were used in Finnish Vanaja lor­ries and buses in the 1960s.

Leyland takeover

Ley­land Mo­tors Ltd ac­quired ACV in 1962. AEC lor­ries were given the same “Er­go­matic” cabs used across sev­eral Ley­land mar­ques (in­clud­ing Al­bion). In 1968, all AEC dou­ble-decker buses ceased pro­duc­tion, and its last buses, mo­tor­coaches and lor­ries were built in 1979. The AEC name ac­tu­ally dis­ap­peared from com­mer­cial ve­hi­cles in 1977, but the Ley­land Marathon was built at the Southall plant until British Ley­land (as the par­ent com­pany was named by then) closed it in 1979.

Foreign operations

ACLO

ACLO (sup­posed to be the acronym of Asso­ci­ated Com­pany Lor­ries and Omnibuses) was the brand name used by AEC in Latin Amer­i­can coun­tries, in­clud­ing Brazil, and in Spain (but not in Por­tu­gal) to sell all their prod­ucts.

It seems that there was no clear rea­son for this badge en­gi­neer­ing op­er­a­tion, al­though a for­mal re­quest from the Ger­man AEG in­dus­trial group, which was very ac­tive in the Span­ish-speak­ing coun­tries, has been sug­gested. This is quite likely as the AEC 422 NS type ex­ported to BVOAG Berlin was also badged ACLO.

ACLOs were spe­cially per­va­sive in Ar­gentina, Uruguay and Brazil. Par­tic­u­larly in Uruguay, there were two ACLO fleets. They were in­ter­est­ing buses, quite faster than Ley­land Tiger in use by other fleets. It was said at the time (early ’60s) that the main rea­son was in­ter-ur­ban gear­ing in­stead of purely urban gear­ing pre­sent in Ley­lands. An in­ter­est­ing fea­ture was pre­s­e­lec­tor gear-change, sim­i­lar to those in Ley­land buses, com­manded by a small­ish gated lever in­stalled by the steer­ing wheel, with a re­versed gate, with first gear to the right and up, and fourth gear to the bot­tom and left.

In Spain, ACLOs could be seen mainly as dou­ble-deck buses in Barcelona, and as line coaches in ALSA fleet.

UTIC-AEC

In Por­tu­gal, the AEC ve­hi­cles, mainly coaches and buses but also lor­ries, were as­sem­bled and bod­ied by União de Trans­porta­dores para Im­portação e Comércio, UTIC, a large coach­build­ing firm based in Lis­bon, and mar­keted under the UTIC-AEC badge, for many years.

From 1971-3 the Lough­bor­ough based dealer Moseley im­ported nine UTIC U2043 coaches which were mar­keted as the Mose­ley Con­ti­nen­tal Tagus. They were me­chan­i­cally equiv­a­lent to a rear-en­gined Re­liance or a coach ver­sion of the Swift 691 which AEC had planned but never mar­keted. They were ex­pen­sive to buy new and the square sided styling looked dated to British eyes in the age of the Elite and Dom­i­nant coaches, thus they were slow sell­ing. These were prob­a­bly the only right hand drive coaches built by UTIC. At the time Mose­ley also mar­keted Sal­vador Cae­tano Coaches under its own name.

Barreiros AEC

In the late fifties, Span­ish gov­ern­ment re­stric­tions on im­ports re­duced AEC sales in Spain to vir­tu­ally nil. As a con­se­quence, AEC ap­proached a Span­ish truck man­u­fac­turer, Bar­reiros Diesel, to jointly pro­duce buses and coaches based on AEC de­signs. The ven­ture started in 1961, used Bar­reiros AEC as brand name, dis­re­gard­ing ACLO, and seemed very promis­ing; pro­duc­tion of the AEC off-road dump trucks being planned too. Nev­er­the­less, the Ley­land takeover in 1962 soon un­der­mined the agree­ment, as Ley­land was part­ner­ing with Bar­reiros’s Span­ish arch-ri­val, Pe­gaso; and even­tu­ally Bar­reiros looked for an­other col­lab­o­ra­tor in the bus arena, sign­ing in 1967 an agree­ment with Bel­gian – Dutch com­pany Van Hool.

Vehicles

A preserved AEC Renown, previously run by King Alfred Motor Services.

Buses

Main article: List of AEC buses

Lorries and other commercial vehicles

Mammoth Major Tanker

Majestic

The 6 ton nor­mal-con­trol AEC Ma­jes­tic (Model 666) was in­tro­duced in 1930.

Mammoth

The AEC Mam­moth dates from the 1930s. This was a 7/8 ton lorry with a six-cylin­der over­head valve en­gine de­vel­op­ing 110 bhp (82 kW) on a wheel­base of 16 ft 7 in.

Later a dis­tinc­tion was made be­tween the Mam­moth Minor (6×2, with two front axles), the Mam­moth Major 6 (6×4) and the Mam­moth Major 8 (8×2 or 8×4), which ap­peared in 1934. The Mam­moth Major Mk II was in­tro­duced in 1935; the eight-wheeler could carry 15-ton loads. It re­mained in pro­duc­tion until 1948 when it was su­per­seded by the Mk III, which was me­chan­i­cally sim­i­lar, but had the Park Royal cab.

Mammoth Minor:AEC MAMMOTH MINOR GXF70

 GXF 70 HVD 318D

Mammoth Major 6:

1959-1966 AEC Mammoth Major 6 Mk V G6RA

Mammoth Major 8:

1939 AEC Mammoth Major 8 Mk II BEW605

Mandator

AEC Mandator MkV ( model G4 ) 9500

The AEC Manda­tor dates from the 1930s. The post-war Mk II was avail­able as a lorry and a trac­tor unit and the name was used for trac­tor units built from the 1950s to the 1970s.

Marshal

Pre-war 6×4 3ton lorry-There was a mil­i­tary ver­sion with var­i­ous body styles- some were em­ployed by the Royal Air Force as cranes (using the Coles Crane) See also: Matador

1960s-70s.

Matador

The orig­i­nal

AEC Mata­dor five-ton 4×2 com­mer­cial lorry was in­tro­duced in 1932. The name was most fa­mously used for AEC’s 4×4 Mata­dor ar­tillery trac­tor, which were known by the nick­name “Mat”. These ve­hi­cles ex­ploited AEC’s ex­pe­ri­ence with four-wheel drive that it had gained from its in­volve­ment in the British Four Wheel Drive ve­hi­cles mar­keted under the name Hardy.

The Mata­dor name is very often used for the 6×6 mil­i­tary ve­hi­cles that are more prop­erly des­ig­nated the 0854. These were an ex­tended Mata­dor chas­sis, mated to a ‘Mar­shall’ dou­ble-drive bogie

AEC pro­duced 9,620 ar­tillery trac­tors; 514 6×6 bowsers for the Royal Air Force; 192 6×6 lor­ries (some of which had Coles Cranes mounted); and 185 sim­i­lar ve­hi­cles, but 6×4, for mo­bile oxy­gen plants. Many mil­i­tary Mata­dors were adapted for post-war com­mer­cial use, es­pe­cially as tim­ber lor­ries and re­cov­ery ve­hi­cles.

There was a short run of the 0853 4×4 Mata­dor in the early fifties, due to on­go­ing is­sues with the in­tro­duc­tion of the re­place­ment Ley­land.

New civil­ian Mata­dors ap­peared after the war.

Mercury

The AEC Mer­cury (Model 440) was first built in 1928. This was a for­ward-con­trol lorry with a wheel­base of 14 ft (4.3 m) for 4 ton pay­loads. The Model 640 was in­tro­duced in 1930, with a four-cylin­der petrol en­gine de­vel­op­ing 65 bhp.

A 1970 AEC Mercury

The name was res­ur­rected for lor­ries built from the 1950s to the 1970s.

Militant

The AEC Mil­i­tant – or “Milly” – was the 1952 re­place­ment for the Mata­dor, and con­tin­ued in var­i­ous forms until the 1970s. (The orig­i­nal Mil­i­tant had been pro­duced by Maud­slay in the 1930s.)

Mogul

The AEC Mogul was a nor­mal-con­trol trac­tor unit from the 1960s. The name had orig­i­nally been used on Maud­slay lor­ries.

Monarch

The orig­i­nal AEC Monarch was built from 1931 to 1939 at AEC’s Southall works. The first ver­sion (Model 641) was su­per­seded by the Mk II (Model 637) in 1933, with pay­load in­creased to 7½ tons. The Monarch was fit­ted with ei­ther an 85 hp (63 kW) four-cylin­der 5.1-litre diesel en­gine or an 80 hp four-cylin­der 5.1-litre petrol en­gine. This was a ro­bust and well-de­signed lorry, pop­u­lar with both dri­vers and op­er­a­tors. Later vari­ants con­tin­ued into the 1970s.

 TL 3513 (1934) KYE 402 (1949)

The Monarch name was res­ur­rected for ex­port ver­sions of the Mer­cury built from the 1950s to the 1970s.

Mustang

1950s

Model 201

Model 428

Model 501 & 506

Model 701

Y Type

AEC’s first pur­pose-built com­mer­cial ve­hi­cle was in­tro­duced in 1916. The im­proved YA Type ap­peared in 1917. More than ten thou­sand of these ve­hi­cles were sup­plied to the War De­part­ment by 1919. Many of these were ac­quired by civil­ian op­er­a­tors fol­low­ing the war. YB and YC Types con­tin­ued in pro­duc­tion until 1921.

Railcar engines

Main articles: GWR railcars, British Rail British United Traction, and AEC railmotor

Centenary celebrations

2012 was the cen­te­nary of the found­ing of AEC Ltd, and to mark this, a num­ber of events took place through­out the year. By far the biggest was hosted by The AEC So­ci­ety, and was held over the week­end of 26 and 27 May 2012 at Newark Show­ground in Not­ting­hamshire. It was the biggest ever gath­er­ing of AEC’s, and over 225 AEC ve­hi­cles at­tended as well as over 350 ve­hi­cles of other mar­ques. It was the biggest rally ever held by The AEC So­ci­ety and as well as glo­ri­ous weather all week­end, was closed by a BBMF fly­past.

See also

AEC bus in Malta

• Crossley Motors
• Daimler
• Guy Motors
• Leyland Motors

References

1. ^ “From omnibus to ecobus, 1829-1850”. London Transport Museum. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2007.
2. ^ “From omnibus to ecobus, 1919-1938, 4th page”. London Transport Museum. Archived from the original on 9 June 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2007.
3. ^ “From omnibus to ecobus, 1919-1938, 3rd page”. London Transport Museum. Archived from the original on 8 June 2007. Retrieved 3 July 2007.
4. ^ “Contact Us - Moseley Coach Sales”. Retrieved 6 October 2014.

External links

AEC (Associated Equipment Company).

• AEC Society
• Remembering AEC
• The AEC Bus Site
• AEC Matador and Militant Owners Club
• The British/Portuguese UTIC AEC Coaches
• Page on ALSA’s ACLO buses
• Home of a famous Militant Mk1
• Catalogue of the AEC archives, held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick

AEC vehicle model range

Buses

a blog about AEC Buses I made in 2013:

Buses AEC Associated Equipment Company Ltd England UK

Trucks

AEC Southall Models

I can’t find any pictures on the WWW about AEC 4G6

• 4G6

AEC 10 Ton Knocker

AEC Mandator 10Ton 4×2 Tractor (1493RN)

AEC made also Railcars and some of them are also called 10, so I show you some pictures:

1938 AEC 10-ton diesel railcar

1955-fwk-som-10rm 102hp Walker 10RM substitutes for the regular AEC railmotor between Fawkner and Somerton

AEC RAIL MOTOR No.10

AEC Dumptruck 10 cu yd ( model 3673M )

• 10

AEC 18 cu yd ‘Dumptruck

• 18

Also nothing to find about AEC 201

• 201

It’s impossible to know what they mean by AEC 428. I can’t find anything than numberplates with 428.

• 428
• 501

AEC 506 ENGINE. SAME AS A 505 BUT A LATER ENGINE

• 506

AEC 691T = a trolleybus from 1933

• 691
• 692

• 701
• 1100

• Majestic
• Mammoth
• Mammoth Major
• Mandator
• Marshall
• Matador
• Mercury
• Militant
• Mammoth Minor 6
• Mammoth Minor 8
• Mogul
• Monarch
• Mustang
• TG6
• Y Type

Engines

• AEC 9.6L
• AEC 11.3L

Related companies

• ACLO
• Barreiros AEC
• British Leyland
• British United Traction
• Charles H Roe
• Crossley Motors
• Maudslay Motor Company
• Park Royal Vehicles
• Thornycroft
• UTIC-AEC

I will give you my complete collection that I gathered in the last years on the World Wide Web.

1961 aec matador mkII 4gm4ra k1

That was it what AEC Truck concerning. The buses can you find on another blog about AEC Buses made earlier in 2013.

https://myntransportblog.com/2013/10/28/buses-aec-associated-equipment-company-ltd-england-uk/

RILEY Automobiles and Motorcycles Coventry, England, UK

Riley Motor

http://www.classiccarcatalogue.com/RILEY%201948.html

http://rileyrob.co.uk/specs/guide.htm

This article is about the British car manufacturer. For the American racing-car manufacturer, see Riley Technologies.

The Riley Cycle Company Limited (1896–1912)
Riley (Coventry) Limited (1912–1950)
Riley Motors Limited (1950–1960)

“As old as the industry, as modern as the hour”
Industry	Automotive
Fate	Acquired by William Morris in 1938 thereafter with Morris Motors Limited
Successor	Nuffield Organisation
Founded	1896 as The Riley Cycle Company
Headquarters	Coventry, England
Key people	William Riley (1851–1944) William Victor Riley (1876–1958) Allan Riley (c.1880– ) Percy Riley (1882–1941) Stanley Riley (c.1889–1952) Cecil Riley (c. 1895– )

12/18 c. 1910

and chauffeur for William Beveridge

Riley was a British motorcar and bicycle manufacturer from 1890. Riley became part of the Nuffield Organisation in 1938 and was merged into the British Leyland Motor Corporation in 1968. ln July 1969 British Leyland announced the immediate end of Riley production, although 1969 was a difficult year for the UK auto industry and cars from Riley’s inventory may have been first registered in 1970.

Today, the Riley trademark is owned by BMW.

Riley Cycle Company

The business began as the Bonnick Cycle Company of Coventry, England. In 1890 during the pedal cycle craze that swept Britain at the end of the 19th century William Riley Jr. who had interests in the textile industry purchased the business and in 1896 incorporated a company to own it named The Riley Cycle Company Limited. Later, cycle gear maker Sturmey Archer was added to the portfolio. Riley’s middle son, Percy, left school in the same year and soon began to dabble in automobiles. He built his first car at 16, in 1898, secretly, because his father did not approve. It featured the first mechanically operated inlet valve. By 1899, Percy Riley moved from producing motorcycles to his first prototype four-wheeled quadricycle. Little is known about Percy Riley’s first “motor-car”. It is, however, well attested that the engine featured mechanically operated cylinder valves at a time when other engines depended on the vacuum effect of the descending piston to suck the inlet valve(s) open. That was demonstrated some years later when Benz developed and patented a mechanically operated inlet valve process of their own but were unable to collect royalties on their system from British companies; the courts were persuaded that the system used by British auto-makers was based on the one pioneered by Percy, which had comfortably anticipated equivalent developments in Germany. In 1900, Riley sold a single three-wheeled automobile. Meanwhile, the elder of the Riley brothers, Victor Riley, although supportive of his brother’s embryonic motor-car enterprise, devoted his energies to the core bicycle business.

Riley’s founder William Riley remained resolutely opposed to diverting the resources of his bicycle business into motor cars, and in 1902 three of his sons, Victor, Percy and younger brother Allan Riley pooled resources, borrowed a necessary balancing amount from their mother and in 1903 established the separate Riley Engine Company, also in Coventry. A few years later the other two Riley brothers, Stanley and Cecil, having left school joined their elder brothers in the business. At first, the Riley Engine Company simply supplied engines for Riley motorcycles and also to Singer, a newly emerging motorcycle manufacturer in the area, but the Riley Engine Company soon began to focus on four-wheeled automobiles. Their Vee-Twin Tourer prototype, produced in 1905, can be considered the first proper Riley car. The Riley Engine Company expanded the next year. William Riley reversed his former opposition to his sons’ preference for motorised vehicles and Riley Cycle halted motorcycle production in 1907 to focus on automobiles. Bicycle production also ceased in 1911.

In 1912, the Riley Cycle Company changed its name to Riley (Coventry) Limited as William Riley focused it on becoming a wire-spoked wheel supplier for the burgeoning motor industry, the detachable wheel having been invented (and patented) by Percy and distributed to over 180 motor manufacturers, and by 1912 the father’s business had also dropped automobile manufacture in order to concentrate capacity and resources on the wheels. Exploitation of this new and rapidly expanding lucrative business sector made commercial sense for William Riley, but the abandonment of his motor-bicycle and then of his automobile business which had been the principal customer for his sons’ Riley Engine Company enforced a rethink on the engine business.

Riley (Coventry) Limited

Riley (Coventry) Limited share certificate issued 17 May 1937

In early 1913, Percy was joined by three of his brothers (Victor, Stanley, and Allan) to focus on manufacturing entire automobiles. The works was located near Percy’s Riley Engine Company. The first new model, the 17/30, was introduced at the London Motor Show that year. Soon afterwards, Stanley Riley founded yet another business, the Nero Engine Company, to produce his own 4-cylinder 10 hp (7.5 kW) car. Riley also began manufacturing aeroplane engines and became a key supplier in Britain’s buildup for World War I.

In 1918, after the war, the Riley companies were restructured. Nero joined Riley (Coventry) as the sole producer of automobiles. Riley Motor Manufacturing under the control of Allan Riley became Midland Motor Bodies, a coachbuilder for Riley. Riley Engine Company continued under Percy as the engine supplier. At this time, Riley’s blue diamond badge, designed by Harry Rush, also appeared. The motto was “As old as the industry, as modern as the hour.”

Riley grew rapidly through the 1920s and 1930s. The Riley Engine Company produced 4-, 6-, and 8-cylinder engines, while Midland built more than a dozen different bodies. Riley models at this time included:

• Saloons: Adelphi, ‘Continental'(Close-coupled Touring Saloon), Deauville, Falcon, Kestrel, Mentone, Merlin, Monaco, Stelvio, Victor
• Coupes: Ascot, Lincock
• Tourers: Alpine, Lynx, Gamecock
• Sports: Brooklands, Imp, MPH, Sprite
• Limousines: Edinburgh, Winchester

Introduced in 1926 in a humble but innovatively designed fabric bodied saloon, Percy Riley’s ground-breaking Riley 9 engine- a small capacity, high revving unit- was ahead of its time in many respects. Having hemispherical combustion chambers and inclined overhead valves, it has been called the most significant engine development of the 1920s. With twin camshafts set high in the cylinder block and valves operated by short pushrods, it provided power and efficiency without the servicing complexity of an OHC (overhead camshaft) layout. It soon attracted the attention of tuners and builders of ‘specials’ intended for sporting purposes. One such was engineer/driver J.G. Parry-Thomas, who conceived the Riley ‘Brooklands’ (initially called the ‘9’ Speed Model) in his workshops at the banked Surrey circuit. After Parry-Thomas was killed during a land speed record attempt in 1927, his close collaborator Reid Railton stepped in to finish the job. Officially backed by Riley, the Brooklands, along with later developments and variations such as the ‘Ulster’ Imp, MPH, and Sprite, proved some of the most successful works and privateer racing cars of the late 1920s and early 1930s. At Le Mans in 1934, Rileys finished 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th and 12th, winning the Rudge-Whitworth Cup, the Team Prize, two class awards, and the Ladies’ Prize. Rileys also distinguished themselves at the Ulster TT, at Brooklands itself, and at smaller events like hill climbs, while providing a platform for the success of motorsports’ first women racing drivers such as Kay Petre, Dorothy Champney and Joan Richmond. Another engineer/driver,Freddie Dixon, was responsible for extensive improvements to engine and chassis tuning, creating a number of ‘specials’ that exploited the basic Riley design still further, and contributed greatly to its success on the track.

For series production, the engine configuration was extended into a larger 12 horsepower ‘4’, six-cylinder and even V8 versions, powering an increasingly bewildering range of touring and sports cars. The soundness and longevity of the engine design is illustrated by Mike Hawthorn’s early racing success after WW2 in pre-war Rileys, in particular his father’s Sprite. By about 1936, however, the business had overextended, with too many models and few common parts, and the emergence of Jaguar at Coventry was a direct challenge. Disagreements between the Riley brothers about the future direction of the enterprise grew. Victor Riley had set up a new ultra-luxury concern, 1938 Autovia, to produce a V8 saloon and limousine to compete with Rolls-Royce. By contrast, Percy, however, did not favour an entry into the luxury market, and the Riley Engine Company had been renamed PR Motors to be a high-volume supplier of engines and components. Although the rest of the Riley companies would go on to become part of Nuffield and then BMC, PR Motors remained independent. After the death of Percy Riley in 1941, his business began producing transmission components and still exists today, producing marine and off-highway vehicle applications, as PRM Newage Limited based in Aldermans Green, Coventry. Percy’s widow Norah ran his business for many years and was Britain’s businesswoman of the year in 1960.

Riley sports saloons and coupés

Nine Biarritz 4-door saloon 1930 Nine Monaco 4-door saloon 1932 Nine Gamecock 2/4-str sports 1932 Nine Lynx instrument panel Nine Lynx tourer 1934 Nine Merlin 4-light saloon 1935 Nine Kestrel 4-light saloon 1934 12/4 Kestrel 4-light saloon 1934 1½-litre Kestrel 4-light saloon 1935 1½-litre Kestrel 6-light saloon 1938 Riley 12/4 Kestrel 6-Light 16/4 2½-litre Kestrel 6-light saloon 1937 16/4 2½-litre Kestrel 6-light saloon 1937 14/6 Lincock fixed head coupé ’34 1½-litre Falcon 4-door saloon 1935 15/6 Adelphi six-light Saloon 1935 12/4 Lynx sports tourer 1937 12/4 Continental sports saloon 1937 Twelve six-light saloon 1939 First Nuffield Model

Riley racing and sports cars
Nine Brooklands open 2-seater 1931 1½-litre Sprite TT Replica 1935 1½-litre Sprite 2-seater sports 1936 Nine MPH 2-seater sports 1936 Vincent MPH replica

Nuffield Organisation

Riley 12/4 Kestrel 6-Light

 

2½-litre Kestrel 1938
with the new Big Four engine

 RMD 2½-litre drophead coupé 1950

RMA 1½-litre saloon as a weddingcar 1951

 RMH 2½-litre Pathfinder 1953
the last real Riley with the Big Four engine 1956 example

By 1937, Riley began to look to other manufacturers for partnerships. A contract with Briggs Motor Bodies of Dagenham to provide all-steel bodies for a cheaper, more mass-market saloon had already turned sour, with dozens of unsold bodies littering the factory. It had withdrawn from works racing after its most successful year, 1934, although it continued to supply engines for the ERA, a voiturette (Formula 2) racing car based on the supercharged 6-cylinder ‘White Riley’, developed by ERA founder Raymond Mays in the mid-thirties. BMW of Munich, Germany was interested in expanding its range into England. But the Riley brothers were more interested in a larger British concern, and looked to Triumph Motor Company, also of Coventry, as a natural fit. In February 1938, all negotiations were suspended. On 24 February the directors placed Riley (Coventry) Limited and Autovia in voluntary receivership. On 10 March the Triumph board announced merger negotiations had been dropped.

It was announced on 9 September 1938 that the assets and goodwill of Riley Motors (Coventry) Limited had been purchased from the receiver by Lord Nuffield and he would on completion transfer ownership to Morris Motors Limited “on terms which will show very considerable financial advantage to the company, resulting in further consolidation of its financial position”. Mr Victor Riley then said this did not mean that the company would cease its activities. On 30 September Victor Riley announced that Riley (Coventry) Limited would be wound up but it would appear that the proceeds of liquidation would be insufficient to meet the amount due to debenture holders. Nuffield paid £143,000 for the business and a new company was formed, Riley Motors Limited. However, in spite of the announced intention to wind-up Riley (Coventry) Limited, perhaps for tax reasons, continued under the management of Victor Riley presumably with the necessary consents of debenture holders (part paid) creditors (nothing) and former shareholders (nothing). Nuffield passed ownership to his Morris Motors Limited for £100. Along with other Morris Motors subsidiaries Wolseley and MG, Riley would later be promoted as a member of the (1951) Nuffield Organisation. Riley Motors Limited seems to have begun trading at the end of the 1940s when Riley (Coventry) Limited disappeared..

Nuffield took quick measures to firm up the Riley business. Autovia was no more, with just 35 cars having been produced. Riley refocused on the 4-cylinder market with two engines: A 1.5-litre 12 hp engine and the “Big Four”, a 2.5-litre 16 hp unit (The hp figures are RAC Rating, and bear no relationship to bhp or kW). Only a few bodies were produced prior to the onset of war in 1939, and some components were shared with Morris for economies of scale. Though they incorporated a number of mechanical improvements- notably a Nuffield synchromesh gearbox- they were essentially interim models, suffering a loss of Riley character in the process. The new management responded to the concerns of the marque’s loyal adherents by re-introducing the Kestrel 2.5 litre Sports Saloon in updated form, but as the factory was turned over to wartime production this was a short-lived development.

After World War II, Riley took up the old engines in new models, based in concept on the 1936-8 ‘Continental’, a fashionable ‘notchback’ design whose name had been changed prior to release to ‘Close-Coupled Touring Saloon’ owing to feared objections from Rolls-Royce. The RMA used the 1.5-litre engine, while the RMB got the Big Four. Both engines, being derived from pre-war models, lent themselves as power units for specials and new specialist manufacturers, such as Donald Healey. The RM line of vehicles, sold under the “Magnificent Motoring” tag line, were to be a re-affirmation of Riley values in both road behaviour and appearance. ‘Torsionic’ front independent suspension and steering design inspired by the CitroënTraction Avant provided precise handling; their flowing lines were particularly well-balanced, marrying pre-war ‘coachbuilt’ elegance to more modern features, such as headlamps faired into the front wings. The RMC, a 3-seater roadster was an unsuccessful attempt to break into the American market, while the RMD was an elegant 4/5-seater two-door drophead, of which again few were made. The 1.5-litre RME and 2.5-litre RMF were later developments of the saloon versions, which continued in production into the mid-fifties.

Victor Riley was removed by Nuffield in 1947. In early 1949 the Coventry works were made an extension of Morris Motors’ engine branch. Riley production was consolidated with MG at Abingdon. Wolseley production was moved to Cowley. Nuffield’s marques were then organised in a similar way to those of General Motors: Morris was the value line, and Wolseley the luxury marque. Aside from their small saloons MG largely offered spartan performance, especially with their open sports cars, while Riley sought to be both sporty and luxurious. With Wolseley also fighting for the top position, however, the range was crowded and confused.

British Motor Corporation

Two-Point-Six saloon 1959

4/72 saloon 1965

One-Point-Five saloon 1965

Kestrel saloon 1968

Elf Mk III saloon 1968

The confusion became critical in 1952 with the merger of Nuffield and Austin as the British Motor Corporation. Now, Riley was positioned between MG and Wolseley and most Riley models would become, like those, little more than badge-engineered versions of Austin/Morris designs.

The first all-new Riley under BMC, however, was designated the RMH, and because of its distinctive engine and suspension design, has been called ‘the last real Riley’. This was the Pathfinder, with Riley’s familiar 2.5-litre four developed to produce 110 bhp. (The RMG ‘Wayfarer’, a projected 1.5-litre version, was rejected as underpowered). The Pathfinder body was later reworked and, with a different engine and rear suspension, sold as the Wolseley 6/90. The Riley lost its distinct (though externally subtle) differences in 1958, and the 6/90 of that year was available badge engineered as a Riley Two-Point-Six 1957 Riley two-point-six 1957 207 CWL. Although this was the only postwar 6-cylinder Riley, its C-Series engine was actually less powerful than the Riley Big Four that it replaced. This was to be the last large Riley, with the model dropped in May 1959 and Riley refocusing on the under-2-litre segment.

Riley and Wolseley were linked in small cars as well. Launched in 1957, the Riley One-Point-Five and Wolseley 1500 were based on the unused but intended replacement for the Morris Minor. They shared their exteriors, but the Riley was marketed as the more performance-oriented option, having an uprated engine, twin S.U. carburetters and a close-ratio gearbox. With its good handling, compact, sports-saloon styling and well-appointed interior, the One-Point-Five quite successfully recaptured the character of the 1930s light saloons.

At the top of the Riley line for April 1959 was the new Riley 4/Sixty-Eight saloon. Again, it was merely a badge-engineered version of other BMC models. The steering was perhaps the worst feature of the car, being Austin-derived cam and peg rather than the rack and pinion of the One-Point-Five. Overall, it could not provide the sharp and positive drive associated with previous Rileys, being based on the humble Austin Cambridge and Morris Oxford. Sharing many features with the similarly upmarket MG Magnette Mark III and Wolseley 15/60, it was the most luxurious of the versions, which were all comfortable and spacious, and (nominally) styled by Farina. The car was refreshed, along with its siblings, in 1961 and rebadged the 4/Seventy-Two.

The early 1960s also saw the introduction of the Mini-based Riley Elf. Again, a Wolseley model (the Hornet) was introduced simultaneously. This time, the Riley and Wolseley versions were differentiated visually by their grilles but identical mechanically.

The final model of the BMC era was the Kestrel 1100/1300, based on the Austin/Morris 1100/1300 saloon. This also had stablemates in Wolseley and MG versions. Following objections from diehard Riley enthusiasts, the Kestrel name was dropped for the last facelift in 1968, the Riley 1300.

Between 1966 and 1968 a series of mergers took place in the British motor industry, ultimately creating the British Leyland Motor Corporation, whose management embarked on a programme of rationalisation—in which the Riley marque was an early casualty. A BLMC press release was reported in The Times of 9 July 1969: “British Leyland will stop making Riley cars from today. “With less than 1 per cent of the home market, they are not viable” the company said last night. The decision will end 60 years of motoring history. No other marques in the British Leyland stable are likely to suffer the same fate “in the foreseeable future”.

In spite of the decline of the marque under BMC, surviving well-preserved examples of the period are now considered desirable classics, the Riley ‘face’ and badge lending a distinctive character. The needs of enthusiasts are met by the Riley Motor Club, the original factory Club founded in 1925.

The future

Riley production ended with the 1960s, and the marque became dormant. The last Riley badged car was produced in 1969. For many enthusiasts, however, the name of Riley still has resonance into the 21st century. Many of the original racing Rileys compete regularly in VSCC (Vintage Sports Car Club) events, and pre-war racing ‘specials’ continue to be created (controversially) from tired or derelict saloons. For a short while, following BMW’s purchase of the Rover Group in 1994, there were hopes that Riley might be revived, since the then Chairman Bernd Pischetsrieder was an enthusiast for many of the defunct British marques. After Pischetsrieder’s removal in 1999, and BMW‘s divestment of the MG Rover Group in 2000, however, these hopes faded; though the rights to the Triumph and Riley marques, along with Mini were retained by BMW.

In 2007, William Riley, who claims to be a descendant of the Riley family, although this has been disputed, formed MG Sports and Racing Europe Ltd. This new business acquired assets relating to the MG XPower SVsportscar from PricewaterhouseCoopers, the administrators of the defunct MG Rover Group, and intended to continue production of the model as the MG XPower WR.

In September 2010 the motor magazine ‘Autocar’ reported that BMW were considering the revival of the Riley brand in the form of a variant of the redesigned MINI. This would most likely be a luxury version taking its cues from the ‘Elf’ of 1961-9, with a ‘notchback’ (booted) body, and the interior trimmed in wood and leather in the manner of earlier Rileys. No sources were quoted, however, and in the absence of any statement from BMW reports of the possible resurrection of Riley must be regarded as highly speculative. ‘Autocar’ reiterated this information in April 2016.

List of Riley vehicles

Pre-World War I

• 1907–1911 Riley 9
• 1907–1907 Riley 12
• 1909–1914 Riley 10
• 1908–1914 Riley 12/18
• 1915–1916 Riley 10

Inter-war years

• 1913–1922 Riley 17/30
• 1919–1924 Riley Eleven
• 1925–1928 Riley Twelve
• 1926–1937 Riley Nine
• 1929–1934 Riley 14/6
• 1933–1935 Riley 12/6
• 1935–1935 Riley 12/4
• 1935–1938 Riley 15/6
• 1935–1938 Riley 1½-litre
• 1936–1938 Riley 8/90 V8
• 1937–1940 Riley 16
• 1938–1938 Riley Victor
• 1939–1940 Riley 12 Nuffield body

Notable bodies

• 1927–1931 Riley Brooklands Nine
• 1934–1935 Riley Imp Nine
• 1934–1935 Riley MPH 12/6 14/6 or 15/6
• 1936–1938 Riley Sprite 12/4 1½ litre

Post-war

• Roadster
  • 1948–1951 RMC
  • 1949–1951 RMD
• Mid-sized
  • 1945–1952 RMA
  • 1952–1955 RME
  • 1957–1965 One-Point-Five (Wolseley 1500)
  • 1959–1961 4/Sixty-Eight (Wolseley 15/60)
  • 1961–1969 4/Seventy-Two (Wolseley 16/60)
• Large
  • 1946–1952 RMB
  • 1952–1953 RMF
  • 1953–1957 Pathfinder
  • 1958–1959 Two-Point-Six (Wolseley 6/90)
• Mini
  • 1961–1969 Elf (Mini)
• Compact
  • 1965–1969 Riley Kestrel/1300 (Morris 1100)

Riley 1.5litre Sprite with Kestrel body 1936. The 6-light Kestrel body was given to the new 1½-litre car in 1936

Riley 12/4 Kestrel 6-Light

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Notes

1. Jump up^ Information extracted from Notice issued in compliance with the Regulations of the Committee of The Stock Exchange, London (with regard to the issue of 150,000 Preference Shares of £1 each on 17 January 1934).

   The Company was incorporated in England on 25 June 1896 under the name The Riley Cycle Company Limited, changed to Riley (Coventry) Limited on 30 March 1912.

   In and around the year 1927 closer working arrangements were made between the Company and the Riley Engine Company and the Midland Motor Body Company whereby the designing and manufacturing resources of the three businesses were pooled.

   (During 1932) these two associated concerns were absorbed by the Company which became a completely self-contained manufacturing unit on modern lines.

   The Company’s works at Coventry and Hendon cover a combined area of 16½ acres, in addition to which the Company owns adjoining land at Coventry of approximately 6 acres.

   About 2,200 workpeople are regularly employed.
   Riley (Coventry) Limited. The Times, Thursday, 18 January 1934; pg. 18; Issue 46655

2. Jump up^ Riley Motors Limited, Company no. 00344156 was incorporated 8 September 1938—and changed its name in 1994 to BLMC Engineering Limited. Curiously the name Riley (Coventry) Limited continued to be used in all Nuffield group advertising until 1946 as if the original company had not been liquidated but continued to survive.
   Riley Motors Limited was used in all advertising between 1950 and July 1960

References

1. ^ Jump up to:^a b c Peter King (1989). The Motor Men: Pioneers of the British Car Industry. Quiller. ISBN 1-870948-23-8.
2. ^ Jump up to:^{a b c d e f g h} “‘Renowned since ’98“. Motor. Vol. nbr 3515. 1 November 1969. pp. 19–22.
3. Jump up^ Riley (Coventry) Limited. The Times, Thursday, 18 January 1934; pg. 18; Issue 46655
4. Jump up^ “Collections”. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
5. Jump up^ The Future Of Riley (Coventry).The Times, Saturday, 26 February 1938; pg. 17; Issue 47929.
6. Jump up^ Merger Negotiations Dropped. The Times, Friday, 11 March 1938; pg. 21; Issue 47940.
7. Jump up^ Riley Motors. Purchase by Lord Nuffield, The Times, Saturday, 10 September 1938; pg. 17; Issue 48096
8. Jump up^ Riley (Coventry) Winding Up. The Times, Saturday, 1 October 1938; pg. 17; Issue 48114
9. ^ Jump up to:^a b Obituary, Mr. Victor Riley. The Times, Tuesday, 11 February 1958; pg. 10; Issue 54072
10. Jump up^ Report of the A.G.M. of Morris Motors Limited, The Manchester Guardian; 9 May 1939;
11. Jump up^ rileyrob.co.uk/specials/index.htm
12. Jump up^ M.G. and Riley to combine, The Manchester Guardian; 22 January 1949; p.6
13. Jump up^ News in Brief. End of the line for Riley. The Times, Wednesday, 9 July 1969; pg. 2; Issue 57607
14. Jump up^ Riley, V. W. (19 July 2008). “Riley dynastic claim is a non-starter”. Financial Times. Retrieved 4 January 2010.
15. Jump up^ “MG is back on the road”. Birmingham Mail. Midland Newspapers Limited. 8 April 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2009.
16. Jump up^ “Mini Countryman Coupe revealed – Autocar”. http://www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 30 July 2017.
17. Jump up^ “Mini saloon to be fifth model in new-look range – Autocar”. http://www.autocar.co.uk. Retrieved 30 July 2017.

• Brochures (incomplete)

1930 Riley Nine

1937 Riley Motors

• Riley 12-18 tourer 1909
• The Riley RM Club – The Club for the Preservation of all Rileys from 1945-1957
• Riley Motor Club ‘The Club for all Rileys’
• The 1100 Club based in the UK
• Austin and Longbridge All about the history of Longbridge and models produced

Riley (merk)

1936 Riley Sprite, 85PS, 1500ccm, open two-seater

Riley Sprite

Riley is een historisch merk van motorfietsen en automobielen.

De bedrijfsnaam was Riley Cycle Co. Ltd., City Works, Coventry (1899–1908).

Riley was een Engels merk, opgericht door William Riley, dat in 1901 motorfietsen ging maken, nadat al eerder driewielers met De Dion-motor werden geproduceerd.

De merknaam Riley is in handen van BMW.

Motorfietsen

De motorfietsen werden aangedreven door motorblokken van Minerva en MMC. Die laatste waren overigens in licentie geproduceerde De Dions. In 1903 probeerden William’s zoons Percy, Victor en Allan hun vader en hun oom te overreden een bedrijf te kopen waar men zelf motorblokken kon bouwen. William en zijn broer wilden er niet aan beginnen, maar de zoons kregen toch financiële steun en richtten de Riley Engine Company op. Zodoende beschikte Riley vanaf 1904 over eigen 2-, 2½- en 2¾ pk eencilinders en V-twins. In dat jaar waren er fietsen, twee- en driewielers in productie. In 1908 werd de productie beëindigd en Riley ging automobielen maken.

Automobielen

• 1907-1911 Riley 9
• 1907-1907 Riley 12
• 1909-1914 Riley 10
• 1908-1914 Riley 12/18
• 1915-1916 Riley 10

• 1913-1922 Riley 17/30
• 1919-1924 Riley Eleven
• 1925-1928 Riley Twelve
• 1926-1937 Riley Nine
• 1927-1931 Riley Brooklands
• 1928-1937 Riley Six
• 1929-1934 Riley 14/6
• 1933-1935 Riley 12/6
• 1934-1935 Riley Imp
• 1934-1935 Riley MPH
• 1935-1938 Riley 15/6
• 1935-1938 Riley 1 1/2 litre
• 1936-1938 Riley Sprite
• 1936-1938 Riley 8/90
• 1937-1938 Riley Big Four
• 1938-1938 Riley Victor
• 1939-1940 Riley 12
• 1939-1940 Riley 16

• Roadster
  • 1948-1951 RMC
  • 1949-1951 RMD
• Mid-sized
  • 1945-1952 RMA
  • 1952-1955 RME
  • 1957-1965 One-Point-Five (Wolseley 1500)
  • 1959-1961 4/Sixty-Eight (Wolseley 15/60)
  • 1961-1969 4/Seventy-Two (Wolseley 16/60)
• Large
  • 1946-1952 RMB
  • 1952-1953 RMF
  • 1953-1957 Pathfinder (Wolseley 6/90)
  • 1958-1959 Two-Point-Six (Wolseley 6/90)
• Mini
  • 1961-1969 Elf (Mini)
• Compact
  • 1965-1969 Riley Kestrel/1300 (Morris 1100)
  • 2007-2008 De Engelsen laten het niet over hun kant gaan dat Jan en alleman er met hun automobiele historie vandoor gaat. Op de plek waar vroeger TVR zat, wordt nu weer een oud merk nieuw leven ingeblazen.

William Riley, een nakomeling van de oprichter van het merk, wil in Blackpool, op de plek waar vroeger TVR’s werden gebouwd het merk Riley opnieuw gaan stichten. Riley kwam in 1907 voort uit een bedrijf dat fietsen maakte. In 1969 ging het onder de vleugels van British Leyland ter ziele. Aanvankelijk wilde William Riley zijn auto’s gaan bouwen op de basis van TVR-modellen. Nu is het plan de auto te baseren op de MG SV. Die sportauto was nauwelijks op de markt toen in 2005 MG Rover failliet ging. Van de SV zouden zeshonderd exemplaren worden gebouwd, maar uiteindelijk is het gebleven bij een handjevol. Riley is inmiddels druk bezig in Blackpool de weg te plaveien voor een wedergeboorte. Als alles goed gaat, worden in 2010 1.800 auto’s gebouwd en werken er honderd mensen.

Heropleving

William Riley, een nakomeling van de oprichter van het merk, wil in Blackpool, op de plek waar vroeger TVR’s werden gebouwd het merk Riley opnieuw oprichten. Aanvankelijk wilde William Riley zijn auto’s gaan bouwen op de basis van TVR-modellen. Nu is het plan de auto te baseren op de MG XPower SV. Deze sportauto was nauwelijks op de markt toen in 2005 MG Rover failliet ging. Van de SV zouden zeshonderd exemplaren worden gebouwd, maar uiteindelijk is het gebleven bij een handjevol. Men wil in 2010 1.800 auto’s bouwen.

#######

ROVER

Rover Company

The Rover Company Limited

Industry	Automotive industry Motorcycle industry (until 1925) Bicycle industry (until 1925)
Fate	Merged into Leyland Motors(1967) Assets separated as Land Rover (1978) Rover brand defunct (2005)
Successor	SAIC MG Motor TATA Land Rover
Founded	1878
Founder	John Kemp Starley & William Sutton
Defunct	2005
Headquarters	England: Coventry, West Midlands (1904–47) Solihull, West Midlands (1947–1981) Gaydon, West Midlands (1981–2000) Longbridge, West Midlands (2000–2005)
Key people	Spencer & Maurice Wilks (Management & Engineering, 1929–63) John Towers
Products	Rover Automobiles Motorcycles (until 1925) Bicycles (until 1925) Land Rover All terrain vehicles
Subsidiaries	Alvis Cars (1965–67)

Rover is a former British car manufacturing company founded as Starley & Sutton Co. of Coventry in 1878. It is the direct ancestor of the present day Land Rover company, which is a subsidiary of Jaguar Land Rover, in turn owned by the Tata Group.

The company traded as Rover, manufacturing cars between 1904 and 1967, when it was sold to Leyland Motor Corporation, becoming the Rover marque. The Rover marque was used on cars produced by British Leyland (BL), who separated the assets of the original Rover Company as Land Rover in 1978 whilst the Rover trademark continued to be used on vehicles produced by its successor companies – the Austin Rover Group(1982–1986), the Rover Group (1986–2000), and then finally MG Rover (2000–2005). Following MG Rover’s collapse in 2005, the Rover marque became dormant, and was subsequently sold to Ford, by now the owners of Land Rover, a move which effectively reunited the Rover trademark with the original company.

After developing the template for the modern bicycle with its Rover Safety Bicycle of 1885, the company moved into the automotive industry. It started building motorcycles and Rover cars, using their established marque with the iconic Viking Longship, from 1904 onwards. Land Rover vehicles were added from 1948 onwards, with all production moving to the Solihull plant after World War II.

The Polish word now most commonly used for bicycle – rower originates from Rover bicycles which had both wheels of the same size (previous models usually had one bigger, one smaller – see Penny-farthing, and were called in Polish bicykl, from English bicycle).

History

Before cars

The first Rover was a tricycle manufactured by Starley & Sutton Co. of Coventry, England, in 1883. The company was founded by John Kemp Starley and William Sutton in 1878. Starley had previously worked with his uncle, James Starley (father of the cycle trade), who began by manufacturing sewing machines and switched to bicycles in 1869.

 J. K. Starley & Co. Ltd ‘Rover’ bicycle advertisement

In the early 1880s, the cycles available were the relatively dangerous penny-farthings and high-wheel tricycles. J.K. Starley made history in 1885 by producing the Rover Safety Bicycle—a rear-wheel-drive, chain-driven cycle with two similar-sized wheels, making it more stable than the previous high-wheel designs. Cycling Magazine said the Rover had “set the pattern to the world”; the phrase was used in their advertising for many years. Starley’s Rover is usually described by historians as the first recognisably modern bicycle.

The words for “bicycle” in Polish (Rower) and Belarusian (Rovar, Ро́вар) are derived from the name of the company. The word ровер is also used in many parts of Western Ukraine.

In 1889, the company became J.K. Starley & Co. Ltd., and in the late 1890s, the Rover Cycle Company Ltd.

Rover motorcycles

Main article: Rover (motorcycles)

In 1899 John Starley imported some of the early Peugeot motorcycles from France in for experimental development. His first project was to fit an engine to one of his Rover bicycles. Starley died early in October 1901 aged 46 and the business was taken over by entrepreneur H. J. Lawson.

 1912 Rover 3-speed

The company developed and produced the Rover Imperial motorcycle in November 1902. This was a 3.5 hp diamond-framed motorcycle with the engine in the centre and ‘springer’ front forks which was ahead of its time. This first Rover motorcycle had innovative features such as a spray carburettor, bottom-bracket engine and mechanically operated valves. With a strong frame with double front down tubes and a good quality finish, over a thousand Rover motorcycles were sold in 1904. The following year, however, Rover stopped motorcycle production to concentrate on their ‘safety bicycle’ but in 1910 designer John Greenwood was commissioned to develop a new 3.5 hp 500 cc engine with spring-loaded tappets, a Bosch magneto and an innovative inverted tooth drive chain. It had a Brown and Barlow carburettor and Druid spring forks. This new model was launched at the 1910 Olympia show and over 500 were sold.

In 1913 a ‘TT’ model was launched with a shorter wheelbase and sports handlebars. The ‘works team’ of Dudley Noble and Chris Newsome had some success and won the works team award.

 1920 Rover 500 cc

Rover supplied 499 cc single cylinder motorcycles to the Russian Army during the First World War. The company began to focus on car production at the end of the war, but Rover still produced motorcycles with 248 cc and 348 cc Rover overhead valve engines and with J.A.P. engines, including a 676 cc V-twin. In 1924 Rover introduced a new lightweight 250cc motorcycle with unit construction of engine and gearbox. This had lights front and rear as well as a new design of internal expanding brakes.

Poor sales of their motorcycles caused Rover to end motorcycle production and concentrate solely on the production of motor cars. Between 1903 and 1924 Rover had produced more than 10,000 motorcycles.

Early Rover cars

 Rover, 1905.

 The Rover Six in a 1910 advertisement—£155.

 Rover 8HP Two-seater from 1904 inLondon to Brighton Veteran Car Run 2010

 Rover Tourer, 1926.

 1936 Rover 10.

In 1888, Starley made an electric car, but it never was put into production.

Three years after Starley’s death in 1901, and H. J. Lawson’s subsequent takeover, the Rover company began producing automobiles with the two-seater Rover Eight to the designs of Edmund Lewis, who came from Lawson’s Daimler. Lewis left the company to join Deasy in late 1905. He was eventually replaced by Owen Clegg, who joined from Wolseley in 1910 and set about reforming the product range. Short-lived experiments with sleeve valve engines were abandoned, and the 12hp model was introduced in 1912. This car was so successful that all other cars were dropped, and for a while, Rover pursued a “one model” policy. Clegg left to join the French company Darracq in 1912.

During the First World War, they made motorcycles, lorries to Maudslay designs, and, not having a suitable one of their own, cars to a Sunbeam design.

Restructure and re-organization

The business was not very successful during the 1920s and did not pay a dividend from 1923 until the mid-1930s. In December 1928 the chairman of Rover advised shareholders that the accumulation of the substantial losses of the 1923–1928 years together with the costs of that year’s reorganisation must be recognised by a reduction of 60 per cent in the value of capital of the company.

During 1928 Frank Searle was appointed managing director to supervise recovery. Searle was by training a locomotive engineer with motor industry experience at Daimler and, most recently, had been managing director of Imperial Airways. On his recommendation Spencer Wilks was brought in from Hillman as general manager and appointed to the board in 1929. That year, Searle split Midland Light Car Bodies from Rover in an effort to save money and instructed Robert Boyle and Maurice Wilks to design a new small car.

This was the Rover Scarab with a rear-mounted V-twin-cylinder air-cooled engine announced in 1931, a van version was shown at Olympia, but it did not go into production. During this time the Rover 10/25 was introduced, with bodies made by the Pressed Steel Company. This was the same body as used on the Hillman Minx. Prior to this time Rover had been a great supporter of the very light Weymann bodies that went suddenly out of fashion with the demand for shiny coachwork and more curved body shapes. Weymann bodies remained in the factory catalogue until 1933.

Frank Searle and Spencer Wilks set about reorganising the company and moving it upmarket to cater for people who wanted something “superior” to Fords and Austins. In 1930 Spencer Wilks was joined by his brother, Maurice, who had also been at Hillman as chief engineer. Spencer Wilks was to stay with the company until 1962, and his brother until 1963.

The company showed profits in the 1929 and 1930 years but with the economic downturn in 1931 Rover reported a loss of £77,529. 1932 produced a loss of £103,000 but a turn around following yet more reorganization resulted in a profit of £46,000 in 1933. The new assembly operations in Australia and New Zealand were closed.

Frank Searle left the board near the end of the calendar year 1931, his work done.

Building on successes such as beating the Blue Train for the first time in 1930 in the Blue Train Races, the Wilks Brothers established Rover as a company with several European royal, aristocratic, and governmental warrants, and upper-middle-class and star clients.

Second World War and gas turbines

Rover W2B-26 jet engine Welland

A Rover W.2B/26 on display at the Midland Air Museum This design was later to become the Rolls-Royce Derwent

In the late 1930s, in anticipation of the potential hostilities that would become the Second World War, the British government started a rearmament programme, and as part of this, “shadow factories” were built. These were paid for by the government but staffed and run by private companies. Two were run by Rover: one, at Acocks Green, Birmingham, started operation in 1937, and a second, larger one, at Solihull, started in 1940. Both were employed making aero engines and airframes. The original main works at Helen Street, Coventry, was severely damaged by bombing in 1940 and 1941 and never regained full production.

In early 1940, Rover was approached by Frank Whittle to do work for Whittle’s company, Power Jets. This led to a proposal from Power Jets in which Rover would put forward £50,000 of capital in exchange for shares in Power Jets. Rover contacted the Air Ministry (AM) regarding the proposal, which ultimately led to an arrangement between Rover and former Power Jets contractor British Thomson-Houston (BTH) to develop and produce Whittle’s jet engine. The Air Ministry had left Whittle and Power Jets out of these negotiations. Rover chief engineer Maurice Wilks led the team to develop the engine, improving the performance over the original Whittle design. The first test engines to the W.2B design were built in a former cotton mill in Barnoldswick, Lancashire which Rover moved into in June 1941 (along with Waterloo Mill in Clitheroe). Testing commenced towards the end of October 1941.

A need for greater expertise within the project, along with difficult relations between Rover management and Frank Whittle (not least because Rover under AM approval had secretly designed a different engine layout, known within Rover as the B.26, which they thought was superior), led to Rover handing over their part in the jet engine project and the Barnoldswick factory to Rolls-Royce in exchange for the latter’s Meteor tank engine factory at Ascot Road, Nottingham, the result of a handshake deal between Rover’s Spencer Wilks and Rolls-Royce’s Ernest Hives made in a local inn in Clitheroe. The official hand-over date was 1 April 1943, though there was a considerable overlap, and several key Rover staff such as Adrian Lombard and John Herriot, the latter being at Rover on secondment from the Air Inspection Department (AID) of the AM, moved to Rolls-Royce. In exchange for the jet engine project and its facilities, Rover was given the contract and production equipment to make Meteor tank engines, which continued until 1964. Although Rolls-Royce under Stanley Hooker were soon to be able to start producing the Whittle-designed W.2B/23 engine (known within Rover as the B.23, later named by Rolls-Royce the Welland), they evaluated the 4 Lombard/Herriot re-designed Rover W.2B/B.26 engines under test at the time of the takeover, and selected the Rover design for their own jet engine development (it became the Rolls-Royce Derwent engine).

After the Second World War, the company abandoned Helen Street and bought the two shadow factories. Acocks Green carried on for a while, making Meteor engines for tanks such as the Centurion and Conqueror, and Solihull became the new centre for vehicles, with production resuming in 1947. This was the year Rover produced the Rover 12 Sports Tourer. 200 cars were built for the export market but all had RHD so many cars stayed in the UK. Solihull would become the home of the Land Rover.

Experimental cars

 Rover JET Gas Turbine Experimental Car

Despite the difficulties experienced with the jet engine project, Rover was interested in the development of the gas turbine engine to power vehicles. In 1945, Rover hired engineers Frank Bell and Spen King away from Rolls-Royce to assist Maurice Wilks in the development of automotive gas turbines. By 1949, the team developed a turbine that ran at 55,000 rpm, produced more than 100 horsepower (75 kW), and could run on petrol,paraffin, or diesel oil. Rover’s early turbine engines consumed fuel at a rate much greater than piston engines, equivalent to 6 miles per imperial gallon (5.0 mpg_-US; 47 L/100 km). Although fuel consumption was later reduced by using a heat exchanger, it was never as low as that of contemporary piston engines.

In March 1950, Rover showed the JET1 prototype, the first car powered with a gas turbine engine, to the public. JET1, an open two-seat tourer, had the engine positioned behind the seats, air intake grilles on either side of the car, and exhaust outlets on the top of the tail. During tests, the car reached a top speed of 88 mph (142 km/h). After being shown in the United Kingdom and the United States in 1950, JET1 was further developed, and was subjected to speed trials on the Jabbeke highway in Belgium in June 1952, where it exceeded 150 miles per hour (240 km/h). JET1 is currently on display at the London Science Museum.

Four further prototypes were built, the P4-based front-engined T2 and rear-engined T2A saloons, the rear-engined four-wheel-drive T3 coupé, and the front-engined front-wheel drive T4 saloon.

Rover and the BRM Formula One team joined forces to produce the Rover-BRM, a gas turbine-powered sports prototype that entered the 1963 24 hours of Le Mans, driven by Graham Hill and Richie Ginther. It averaged 107.8 mph (173 km/h) and had a top speed of 142 mph (229 km/h).

Rover also ran several experimental diesel engine projects in relation to the Land Rover. The 2-litre, 52 horsepower (39 kW) diesel unit designed and built by Rover for its 4×4 had entered production in 1956 and was one of Britain’s first modern high-speed automotive diesel engines. Experimental projects were undertaken to improve the engine’s power delivery, running qualities, and fuel tolerances. British Army requirements led to the development of a multifuel version of the 2.25-litre variant of the engine in 1962, which could run on petrol, diesel, Jet-A, or kerosene. However, the engine’s power output when running on low-grade fuel was too low for the Army’s uses. Rover developed a highly advanced (for the time) turbodiesel version of its engine in the mid-1960s to power its experimental ‘129-inch’ heavy duty Land Rover designs. This 2.5-litre engine used a turbocharger built by Rover’s gas turbine division as well as an intercooler. This was one of the first times these features had been incorporated on such a small-capacity diesel unit, but they were not adopted.

After the Leyland Motor Corporation takeover, the Rover Gas Turbine was used in a number of Leyland trucks, including one shown at the 1968 Commercial Motor Show. Rover gas turbines also powered the first Advanced Passenger Train.

Golden years

 1962 Rover 80 (P4).

The 1950s and ’60s were fruitful years for the company. The Land Rover became a runaway success (despite Rover’s reputation for making upmarket saloons, the utilitarian Land Rover was actually the company’s biggest seller throughout the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s), as well as the P5 and P6 saloons equipped with a 3.5L (215ci) aluminium V8 (the design and tooling of which was purchased from Buick) and pioneering research into gas turbine-fueled vehicles.

As the ’60s drew to a close Rover was working on a number of innovative projects. Having purchased the Alvis company in 1965 Rover was working on a V8-powered supercar to sell under the Alvis name. The prototype, called the P6BS, was completed and the finalised styling and engineering proposal, the P9, was drawn up. Rover was also working on the P8 project which aimed to replace the existing P5 large saloon with a modern design similar in concept to a scaled-up P6.

When Leyland Motors joined with British Motor Holdings and Rover and Jaguar became corporate partners these projects were cancelled to prevent internal competition with Jaguar products. The P8 in particular was cancelled in a very late stage of preparation- Rover had already ordered the dies and stamping equipment for making the car’s body panels at Pressed Steel when ordered to stop work.

Rover continued to develop its ‘100-inch Station Wagon’, which became the ground-breaking Range Rover, launched in 1970. This also used the ex-Buick V8 engine as well as the P6’s innovative safety-frame body structure design and features such as permanent four-wheel drive and all-round disc brakes. The Range Rover was initially designed as a utility vehicle which could offer the off-road capability of the Land Rover, but in a more refined and car-like package.

 Rover 2000 (P6).

Mergers to LMC and BL

Main article: British Leyland

This Rover prototype for a midengined sports car was shown to the press in 1967, but politics in the wake of the BLMC merger got in the way, and the model never entered production.

In 1967, Rover became part of the Leyland Motor Corporation (LMC), which already owned Triumph. The next year, LMC merged with British Motor Holdings (BMH) to become the British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC). This was the beginning of the end for the independent Rover Company, as the Solihull-based company’s heritage drowned beneath the infamous industrial relations and managerial problems that beset the British motor industry throughout the 1970s. At various times, it was part of the Specialist Division (hence the factory designation SD1 for the first—and in the event, only—model produced under this arrangement), Leyland Cars, Rover-Triumph, and the short-lived Jaguar Rover Triumph. The Land Rover products however had flourished during the turbulent BLMC years, with the Range Rover in particular generating sizeable revenues for the company as it moved further upmarket. After the Ryder Report in 1975, Land Rover was split from Rover in 1978 as a separate operating company within British Leyland, and all Rover car production at Solihull ended and was switched to the Austin-Morris plants in Longbridge and Cowley for the rest of the marque’s existence. The Range Rover subsequently went on to become BL’s flagship product, after Jaguar was de-merged and privatised in 1984.

British Leyland entered into a collaborative venture with the Honda Motor Corporation of Japan, which resulted in a whole generation of Rover-badged vehicles which shared engineering with contemporary Honda models, which would sustain the beleaguered company and its successors until the mid-1990s.

Sale to BAe, and divestment

In 1988 the business was sold by the British Government to British Aerospace (BAe), and shortly after shortened its name to just Rover Group. They subsequently sold the business in 1994 to BMW. Honda, which had owned a 20% share in partnership with BAe, exited the business when BAe sold its share to BMW.

BMW, after initially seeking to retain the whole, decided only to retain the Cowley operations for MINI production. Land Rover was sold by BMW to Ford. The Longbridge production facility, along with the Rover and Morris Garages marques, was taken on by former Rover executive John Towers in April 2000 for a derisory sum under the marque MG Rover. The Towers administration of MG was declared insolvent in April 2005 and the business was later refloated under the ownership of Nanjing Automobile, who moved production to China.

Current Status

Legally the Rover marque is the property of Land Rover under the terms of Ford’s purchase of the name in 2006. The company is now known as Jaguar Land Rover Limited, Land Rover having been sold by Ford to Tata Motors in 2008. As part of the deal with Tata the Rover marque had to remain as property of Land Rover.

Models

 1938 Rover 16.

Launched under the independent Rover Company pre-merger (1904–67)

1904–12 Rover 81906–10 Rover 61906–07 Rover 10/12                   1906–10 Rover 161906–10 Rover 201909–12 Rover 12 2-cylinder                     1908–11 Rover 15

1911 Rover 12hp 4-seater torpedo sleeve-valve 1910-1912

1910–12 Rover 12 sleeve-valve

no info

1912–13 Rover 18

1914 Rover 12 Glegg tourer SV9486 (DVLA) first registered 24 January 1921

1914 Rover 12 glegg tourer (5870911466) 1912–23 Rover 12 Clegg1919–25 Rover 8

1922–23 Rover 6/21

1924–27 Rover 9/20

             1925–27 Rover 14/45

1926–29 Rover 16/50

1929–30 Rover Light Six

1930–31 Rover Light Twenty

1927–47 Rover 10

1927–32 Rover 2-Litre

1932–34 Rover Meteor 16HP/20HP

1931–40 Rover Speed 20

1932–33 Rover Pilot/Speed Pilot

1932–32 Rover Scarab

1934–47 Rover 12

1934–47 Rover 14/Speed 14

1937–47 Rover 16

1947–48 Rover 12 Sports Tourer

1948–78 Land Rover (I/II/III)—In 1978, BL established Land Rover Limited as a separate subsidiary; it took over Land Rover production.

1948–49 Rover P3 (60/75)

Rover 110 (P4). The unmistable profile of the Rover P4 with ‘suicide’ (rear-hinged) rear doors.

1949–64 Rover P4 (60/75/80/90/95/100/105/110)

1958–73 Rover P5 (3-Litre/3.5-Litre)

1963–76 Rover P6 (2000/2200/3500)

Launched under the Rover trademark as a British Leyland Motor Corporation (later BL plc) subsidiary (1967–88)

• 1970–78 Range Rover—In 1978, BL established Land Rover Limited as a separate subsidiary; it took over Range Rover production.

1976–86 Rover SD1 (2000/2300/2400/2600/3500/Vitesse)1983–85 Rover Quintent—Australian market1984–89 Rover 200-Series (SD3)1985–89 Rover 416i—Australian market                                    1986–98 Rover 800-series & Sterling

Launched by the Rover Group/MG Rover as a British Aerospace/BMW subsidiary (1988–2005)

1989–95 Rover 200/400-Series (R8)1993–98 Rover 600-Series1994-01 Range Rover Mk.2 (P38A)

1995-05 Rover 200/25 (R3)

1995-05 Rover 400/45 (HH-R)

1998-04 Land Rover Freelander1998-05 Rover 75

See also

Austin Rover Group

Rover Group

MG Rover Group

Nanjing Automobile Group

Rover – How it all began.

By Kevin Phillips

The history of the Rover Company goes back to 1881 when the Coventry Sewing Machine Company was founded. From sewing machines, they graduated to manufacturing bicycles in 1869. The first Rover machine was a tricycle which appeared in 1884 and a year later the new safety bicycle appeared and the company then became known as JK Starley & Co Ltd.

John Starley’s safety bicycle was the prototype of the modern pedal cycle and was developed to overcome the balancing problems of the common penny-farthing cycle. Tricycles had been easier to control than the high and ungainly “ordinaries as the penny farthings had come to be known, but were not as maneuverable and were much more expensive.

John Starley’s safety bicycle featured a rear wheel that was driven by a chain and gearing which would reduce the effort required by the rider and would enable the front wheel diameter to be dramatically reduced.

Once his safety bicycle had proved a success, Starley began experimenting with an electrically driven battery-powered tricycle. The batteries were placed in a wicker basket above and behind the rear axle with the electric motor fitted underneath. Unfortunately, it was not a success as the performance and range was pitiful and once the batteries had gone flat, the dead weight of the machine would have taxed even the strongest of riders.

Starley’s safety bicycles caught on rapidly and the business went from strength to strength with rapidly rising sales which made John Starley a wealthy man.

In June 1896, Starley formed the Rover Cycle Co Ltd which operated from the New Meteor Works. In its first year of operation, the new company built 11000 cycles and returned a profit of 21,945 pounds. At about this time, an entrepreneur by the name of Harry Lawson had arrived in Coventry and taken over a disused cotton mill in order to manufacture his license-built Daintier motor car. Lawson was a man who was going places and, expanding by acquisition, tried to induce Starley to join forces with him. Starley would have no part of it, but it did get him thinking about engines and their possibilities.

Starley imported several Peugeot motorcycles from France in 1899 for observation and experimental work. This was a natural progression as by the end of the nineteenth century the motor car phenomenon was taking the world by storm and Britain already had motor cars being built by Daim]er, Wolseley, Lanchester and Riley.

Rover’s first project was to motorise a Rover pedal cycle, something that Triumph was already working on.

John Starley died tragically early in October 1901 aged 46, while still the undisputed leader of Coventry’s bicycle industry, his business now producing 15,000 machines a year.

Harry Smith took over as Managing Director and made the decision to go motorised in 1902. The first public appearance of the 2% HP Rover motorcycle was made on 24th November 1902.

By now Britain’s fledgling motorcar industry was starting to show signs of stability and Daimler was turning out good cars and making good money. On 16th December 1903 the Rover directors decided to start development of a light car. It would be designed by Edmund Lewis who had been acquired from Daimler who were the acknowledged motorcar experts. Rover’s decision had been made just in time as by now Daimler and Riley in Coventry had been joined by Annstrong-Siddeley, Humber, Lea-Francis, Singer and Standard.

 

Keith Adams Austin Rover / Rover Group / MG Rover Resource

German Rover Company & Rover Cars Community

Portuguese MG-Rover Club

Polish MG Rover Club

Spanish site of MG-ROVER

Czech MG-Rover Community

Catalogue of the Rover archives, held at the Modern Records Centre, University of Warwick