Tag Archives: Sherbourne

Faster Than A Ferrari – Cadillac Coupe de Ville

In 1971 Cadillac introduced the forth generation Coupe de Ville with hitherto record braking 62 inches of front shoulder room and 64 inches rear shoulder room. Novel features included windscreen wiper blades that were hidden from view belw the bonnet / hood line when not in use.

Cadillac Coupe de Ville, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

A 375 hp 7.7 litre / 472 cui V8, carried over from the third generation Coupe de Ville, with three speed automatic transmission powered the 4,900lb vehicle that measured 225.8 inches from stem to stern.

Cadillac Coupe de Ville, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

Legend has it that the third placed Cadillac Coupe de Ville of Ron Herisko in the 1971 Cannonball Run, by dint of traveling a further distance between New York City and Redondo Beach, California had manged to average 82 mph for the journey as against the 80 mph Dan Gurney and Brock Yates averaged in their Ferrari 365 GTB/4 Daytona. In 1972 Steve Behr, Bill Canfield and Fred Olds won the Cannonball out right driving a Cadillac Coupe de Ville.

Thanks for joining me on this “Faster Than A Ferrari” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Jewel In The Crown – Daimler Majestic Major DQ450

In 1958 Daimler introduced it Majestic saloon with a six cylinder engine, three speed Borg Warner automatic transmission, power steering, and the first use of vacuum servo assisted disc brakes on a saloon car. However the by now antiquated separate chassis and bodywork construction meant that for all the cutting edge technology the car did not perform to the highest order.

In 1959 Daimler announced an addition to the range in the form of the Majestic Major which featured a 220 hp version Edward Turners V8 that first saw the light of day in the Daimler SP250 earlier in 1959 and a larger boot / trunk area than the standard Majestic.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The new motor raised the top speed from 112 mph to a for the time sizzling 120 mph plus, there was no maximum speed restriction in force at the time, and acceleration from rest to 60 mph was achieved in just 9.7 seconds. Note the V in the air intake chrome trim differentiates a Majestic from a Majestic Major.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

In 1960 Jaguar took over Daimler and Jaguar founder William Lyons had one of the Majestic Major compact V8’s fitted to a forthcoming Jaguar Mk X and his ego was dissapointed to discover that the Daimler powered Mark X raised the cars top speed from 120 mph to 130 mph. Most might have turned this to their advantage but Sir William Lyons decided to let the jewel in the crown of the Jaguar Daimler empire wither away over the next nine years.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

Like it’s lesser Majestic sibling the Majestic Major was equipped with disc brakes on all four wheels, it also had a 42′ turning circle, power steering was initially only optional.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The Majestic Major bodies were built by hand by Carbodies with old school cellulose paints covering the zinc phosphate protected steel panels which were supplied by Park Sheet Metal. The zinc phosphate protection proved to be less successful than anticipated.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

According to the owner of the model seen here at last years Classics at the Castle in Sherbourne in the Owners Manual specifies three different tyre pressures for normal motoring, over 90 mph and (unrestricted) Autobahn.

Daimler Majestic Major, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

Between 1960 and 1968 1187 Daimler Majestic Majors are thought to have been manufactured of which 30 are thought to still exist outside private collections and museums.

Thanks for joining me on this “Jewel In The Crown” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres”, I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t for get to come back now !

Hydra-matic – Nash Airflyte Ambassador

The 1950 Nash Airflytes offered 23 detail improvements of the short wheel base 600 and long wheel base Ambassador models.

Nash Airflyte Ambassador, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The Ambassador seen here is powered by a 115 hp 3.8 litre / 231 cui overhead valve straight 6 motor, 3hp more powerful than the 1949 model and more fuel efficient, according to the manufacturer.

Nash Airflyte Ambassador, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The Airflyte body, first seen in 1949, was developed in a wind tunnel by Nils Wahlberg. The design was so cutting edge it was considered alarming by some.

Nash Airflyte Ambassador, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The closed front wings / fenders benefited aerodynamic efficiency at the cost of a larger turning circle than it’s competitors.

Nash Airflyte Ambassador, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

New options included aircraft style reclining front seats and seat belts for the “Super Lounge” interior, the latter a first for US built cars.

Nash Airflyte Ambassador, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The top of the range 1950 Ambassador models also offered Hrydra-matic transmission which was developed by General Motors, which contributed to the cars legendary comfortably smooth ride and annual sales of over 130,000 in 1950.

Thanks for joining me on this “Hydra-matic” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !

Built In Jacking – Daimler Consort

The ancestry of today’s featured 1950 Daimler Consort can be traced back to Daimler New Fifteen first seen in 1937 which was powered by a 2166 cc / 132 cui six cylinder pushrod motor with overhead valves.

Daimler Consort, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

In 1939 the engine was enlarged to 2,522 cc / 153 cui and the model was renamed Daimler Eighteen, also known as the DB/18. The ’39/’45 war interrupted production but the 2.5 litre motor along Daimler Fluid Flywheel and Wilson pre selector box were used as part of the drive train for the Daimler “Dingo” Scout Car built during the hostilities.

Daimler Consort, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

With the cessation of hostilities production of the Daimler Eighteen resumed and in 1948 an upgraded version with wing integrated head lights and hydraulic front brakes was introduced as the Daimler Consort which was aimed primarily at the US market.

Daimler Consort, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

A further upgrade in 1950 saw improved ground clearance thanks to the replacement of the hitherto worm drive to the rear axle with a more conventional hypoid bevel drive to the rear wheels. In keeping with a car of this weight the car has built in jacking to facilitate the replacement of the wheels in the event of a puncture.

Daimler Consort, Classics at the Castle, Sherbourne

The car seen here at last years Classic at the Castle in Sherbourne has only clocked up 46,000 miles, and is absolutely standard apart from additional repeating indicator lights which were not available in 1950. 4250 Consorts were built from 1948 to 1953.

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Last Rear Engined Dubs – Volkswagen Type 2 (T3)

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The Type 2 (T3) was the last all new rear engined design from Volkswagen who’s reputation had been founded on the rear engined Beetle stretching back to 1945. By 1979 the water cooled Golf was already rewritting Volkswagen history when the Type 2 (T3) with it’s distinctive squared features appeared on the market.

The Scooby Doo Mystery Machine above belongs to RRElite Ltd and has been kitted out with customised ‘Scooby Doo’ seats for six passengers, flat panel TV screens for the DVD player, state of the art sound system and LED ambient lighting. Of course ‘Scooby Snacks’ can be ordered when hiring this vehicle.

German production of the Type 2 (T3) came to a halt in 1992, above is #2494 of the Last Limited Edition of which 2500 were produced in Hannover. This vehicle now boasts a handy 230 hp Subaru flat six motor coupled to a Porsche gearbox and fitted with Porsche brakes to keep it under control.

Variations of the Type 2 (T3) include one fitted with a Porsche Carrera motor to support the Porsche 959 Paris Dakar entry, and a water cooled fuel injected alloy six cylinder version which started as a Volkswagen Project but was completed by the German Tuning Firm Oettinger known as the WBX6.

In 1990 production of Type 2 (T3)’s started in South Africa, these were powered by the famous Volkswagen Audi Group fuel injected 5 cylinder Audi motors. The last South African Type 2 (T3) rolled off the assembley line in 2002.

Back in 1992 my then girlfriend and I acquired a 1983 vintage Type 2 (T3) that had served as a builders van and had been fully insulated and paneled inside. We bought it for £950 with one years MOT and tax drove it over 12,000 miles in a year and had so much fun with it we never had time to take a photo and sold it one year later for £1200 with no MOT or Tax and an exhaust that needed repair !

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Improving The Breed ? – Lotus Elite Type 75

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A couple of weeks ago I went to a Q&A session hosted by the voice of British motor sport Murray Walker with Formula One designers Frank Dernie and Niel Oatley, one of the questions was about the carry over of Formula One technology to road car production and both vigorously nodded in the negative. However that does not mean if you win on Sunday you will not sell on Monday anymore than winning on Sunday will guarantee selling on Monday either. If there is any benefit to manufacturers racing on Sunday it is in the commodity of Brand awareness. Similarly by the 1970’s road car manufacturers like Lotus and Ferrari had found that road car manufacture was never going to meet all the expenses of racing in the sports top table, though Enzo Ferrari did his best to keep the toothpaste manufacturers off his cars for as long as possible while Colin Chapman bit the commercial sponsorship bullet at the earliest opportunity in 1968.

Either way in 1974 Lotus launched it’s new 2+2 Lotus Elite, it is not recorded how or if Ronnie Peterson’s three wins in the ageing Lotus 72 during 1974 aided sales or not. The 907 aluminium bloc motor for the new car was partly developed on the track by the noisy 1969 Lotus 62 sports car which I looked at a couple of months ago.

The chassis of the Type 75 Elite was the latest development of the back bone type first seen in the Lotus Elan in 1962 with independent suspension front and rear.

The only time I have come close to speaking to Mario Andretti was in 1979 while I was ambling along from the pits at Silverstone to the campsite on a beautiful summers evening with a large crowd of people during the 1979 British Grand Prix meeting. Behind me I felt something touch my leg, when I looked round to see what it was there was a blue Lotus Elite and at the wheel was none other than reigning World Champion Mario Andretti at the wheel, I was speechless as I stood aside to let him pass.

The Lotus Elite Type 75 was phased out in 1982 with 2,820 units built. A second variation, Elite Type 83, was built between 1980 and 1983 with just 153 units built. It is thought that less than 100 Elite type 75’s like this 1976 example are to be found on British roads today.

Thanks for joining me on this “Improving The Breed ?” edition of “Gettin’ a li’l psycho on tyres” I hope you will join me again tomorrow. Don’t forget to come back now !