Saab Automobiles
When in 1937 the Swedish “AB Svenska Järnvägsverktäderna” and “Svenska Flygmotor AB” merged into “Svenska Aeroplan Aktie Bolaget” (Swedish for Swedish Aeroplane Ltd), it was to manufacture airplanes for the Swedish Air Force. After WW2 the company sought ways in which to diversify its business. In the late 1940s the automobile production started with the first car, the Saab 92001 in June 1947. The cars were soon looked upon as safe and reliable cars that also had a notable competition history. In 1969 Saab and Scania, the heavy vehicle manufacturer, became partners and the Saab 99 was presented. It was a larger model and the last one designed by Sixten Sason, the designer of the earlier models. This car looked totally different though and its design stood for the next 20 years. The Saab 99 also was the first turbocharged model. In 1970 the 1,000,000th Saab was built. At the end of 1989 General Motors bought 50 % of Saab’s automobile division and the “Saab Automobile AB” was created. Not surprisingly the new Saab 900 produced in 1994 used the same platform as the Opel Vectra. A new crossover SUV that will share the platform with the platform with the new Cadillac SRX is expected to go on sale in 2010.
Innovations:
- 1958 – The Saab GT 75o was fitted with seatbelts as standard
- 1970 – Saab introduces headlamp wipers and washers
- 1971 – Heated front seats are fitted as standard
- 1981 – Saab introduces the split field side mirror
- 1982 – Asbestos-free brake pads
- 1983 – 16-valve turbocharged engine
These are of course only a few innovations made by Saab.
Jaguar, A Short Story
In 1922 William Lyons and William Walmsley founded the Swallow Sidecar Company in Blackpool. The company was producing motorcycle sidecars and coachwork. In 1928 the factory moved to Coventry to meet the demands for the Austin Swallow. In 1931 the first car was presented with a chassis manufactured by Standard, exclusively for Swallow. This was the beginning of the S.S. cars. The first models were the S.S. I and the S.S. II. In the following years they were the basis for several successors. In 1934 William Walmsley left the company and William Lyons started to cooperate with Harry Weslake. Harry Weslake started to improve the engines and founded a construction department under the responsibility of William Heynes. The S.S. 90 was introduced in 1935. It was a Roadster on the basis of the S.S. I. In 1935 the name Jaguar was first use for a car. It was the S.S. Jaguar, a 4-door saloon with 2.5 L engine. The smaller version was the 2-door S.S. Jaguar 1.5 L and the successor of the S.S I and S.S. II. During WW2 the company again produced motorcycle sidecars for military use. After WW2 and due to the unfavourable connotations of the SS initials the name was changed to Jaguar Cars Ltd. In the 1950s Jaguar produced a series of elegantly-styled sports cars and saloons. After several changes of the ownership the Ford Motor Company acquired the company in 1989. In 2008 Jaguar was sold to Tatra Motors in India.
Ford Köln and Ford Eifel
In 1931 the people in charge of the Ford Motor Company in Dearborn, Michigan found it necessary to produce a smaller car for the European market. The Ford Model Y was designed. It was first presented in 1932 on the Ford Motor Exhibition in London’s Royal Albert Hall. In August of that very year the production in started in England and in 1933 in Germany. Here the car was named Ford Köln, as Köln is the German name of the city of Cologne, where the cars were manufactured. The Ford Köln had a 4-cylinder engine, 21 hp (16 kW), with a top speed of 85 km/h (53 mph). The cars built in Germany were more luxurious than those produced in England. A saloon and a convertible were available. But the Ford Köln wasn’t a great success due to the competition with the Opel, DKW and Adler. In 1935 it was replaced by the bigger Ford Eifel. The Ford Eifel was produced in Germany from 1935 to 1940. It was available as 2-door saloon and 2- and 4-seat convertible, 2-sear roadster and light truck, with a 4-cylinder engine, 34 hp (25 kW), with a top speed of 105 km/h (65 mph). This car was a real success with more than 61,000 units sold. The Ford Eifel was derived from the Ford Model C platform and related to the Ford Anglia and Ford Perfect.
Old Car City
A video I like, simply from the artistically point of view:
Mercedes-Benz W 120/121
From 1953 to 1962 442,963 Mercedes-Benz W 120/121 Ponton Cars were manufactured. The model names were 180 and 190. The 180 was a fairly small car that can be compared with nowadays C-class, and the 190 with the E-class. The models looked very similar but the 180 still had the pre-war four-cylinder 1.8 L engine, whereas the 190 had a new four-cylinder 1.9 L engine with a top speed of 140 km/h. The cars were a totally new series of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars produced after WW2. Both models were also available with a diesel engine. They were sold as 4-door saloons. The mid size cars had a wheel base of 104.3 in (2,649 mm) and a kerb weight of 2,690 lb (1,220 kg). From 1955 a convertible model was also available, the 190 SL.
The Mercedes-Benz SSK
As loud as an angry wild beast and even faster than that is the Mercedes-Benz SSK. SSK stands for Super Sport Kurz (Super Sports Short) due to the short wheel base of 116 in. This was to make the car more agile for racing. The car was designed by Ferdinand Porsche before he founded his own company. From 1928 to 1932 only 33 cars were built, about half of them as racing cars. With a top speed of 120 mph the Mercedes-Benz SSK was the fasted car of its time. The engine was a supercharged seven litre straight-6 engine producing 200-300 metric horsepower. Not only in the hands of racing driver Rudolf Caracciola, was the car driven to victory in numerous races. Many cars were crashed during those races and the parts used for over 100 still existing replicas. Only four or five original cars still exist. As you can imagine they are some of the most sought after cars in the world. A replica of the SSK is now built in Uruguay.
Specifications:
- Manufacturer – Mercedes-Benz
- Production – 1928-1932
- Engine – 7069 cc straight-6
- Wheelbase – 116 in (2,950 mm)
- Length – 167 in (4,240 mm)
- Width – 67 in (1,700 mm)
- Height – 68 in (1,730 mm)
- Kerb weight – 3,750 lb (1,700 kg)
A 1941 Buick Series 50 Super Convertible Coupe
The Buick Motor Car Company was founded in 1903 by David Dunbar Buick and soon became very successful. Production rose from over 725 cars in 1907 to more than 8,800 the following year.
The Buick Series 50 Super Convertible Coupe had an overhead-valve straight-eight “Fireball” engine and 3-speed transmission. Due to high compression pistons and Compound Carburetion the horsepower were increased from 107 to 125. The Compound Carburetion consisted of two dual-barrel carbs of which most of the times only one was in operation. The second one provided extra power at high speeds or under hard acceleration. As each of the dual-barrel carbs were smaller than the old single ones it was said that petrol mileage was better in average driving. Many drivers even blocked the second carb in order to save petrol during wartime. As the boot could be opened to both sides by pulling out the Louvre-Lock, access to the engine was much easier. It could even be removed entirely. The cars had horizontal grille bars and headlights in the wings. Two versions of the convertible were available, the 4-door convertible saloon and the 2-door convertible coupe. The latter was one of Buick’s best-sellers of that very year.
The Opel Kapitän
The Opel Kapitän was the last Opel model produced before the outbreak of WW2. It was presented at the Geneva Motor Show in spring 1939. The pre-war Kapitän was available as a 2-door saloon, a 4-door saloon, and a convertible. The most popular though was the 4-door saloon. The Kapitän inherited the 2.5 L engine from the Opel Super Six with a maximum speed of 118 km/h (73 mph) and a 3-speed manual. Before the civilian Opel production stopped in 1940 25,371 units were produced, and in 1943 three more followed to make a total of 25,374 units. In 1948 after WW2 the Opel Kapitän was produced again with little changes and only as a 6 cylinder 4-door saloon, with a maximum speed of 126 km/h (78.3 mph). The design changes were round headlights and different bumpers and hubcaps. From 1948 to 1951 30,431 cars were built. The car produced from 1951 to 1953 had a slightly modernized design but was technically much the same. 48,563 cars were produced. At the end of 1954 a completely new Kapitän was introduced. It was longer and wider but still had a 6-cylinder engine. From 1957 on a 4-speed overdrive was optional.
In 1958 the P1 Kapitän came to market followed by the P2 in 1959, the Kapitän A in 1964, and the Kapitän B in 1969. Production ended in 1970.
Ford Model T
The first time I read about the Ford Model T was in my English book in school. It really impressed me, to read that the Tin Lizzy was able to pull a tractor out of a ditch. In September 1908 the first Ford Model T was sold in Detroit. By that time it was still handmade. The car had a front mounted engine and rear wheel drive. It became the first mass produced car on assembly lines ever, with interchangeable parts. With 15 million units it was the most sold car until in 1972 the Volkswagen Beetle took over. It was a middle class car and even though most of the cars were black, different colours were produced from 1908 to 1914 and from 1926 to 1927 when production ended. The Tin Lizzy not only was the first car built on assembly lines, but the first car produced world wide. From 1911 on the Ford Model T was assembled in Canada and Manchester, England and later in Germany, Argentina, France, Spain, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Brazil, Mexico, and Japan. Due to the efficiencies of assembly lines the prices of the Tin Lizzy fell and even more people were able to afford one.
Specifications:
- Class – Full-size Ford, economy car
- Body styles – 2-door touring, 2-door roadster, 2-door roadster pickup, 2-door ton truck, 2-door closed cab ton truck, 2-door coupé, 2-door wagon, 4-door wagon, Center door wagon, 2-door convertible, 4-door sedan
- Engine – 177 in3 (2.9 L) 20 hp I4
- Transmissions – 2-speed planetary gear, 3-speed planetary gear
- Wheelbase – 99.0 in (2515 mm)
- Kerb weight – 1,200 pounds (540 kg)
- Fuel capacity – 10 US gallons (38 L)
More about Classic Car Restoration
After having made up your mind about what way to restore your classic car is the best for you and of course your car, you should check what you got. An inventory about all parts of the car and what state they are in, is as important as one about the parts you will need, either because they are completely missing or need to be replaced. After this inventory you have to find out where and if you can get the missing parts. Sometimes this can mean a lot of research work on the car and its history, but it is very important. Some parts might be easy to get, others might not be available at all. Parts you can’t get, you might be able to reproduce yourself or maybe you can get them from special workshops. Getting these parts might be the most expensive and tedious part of the whole restoration of your classic car, and if it is getting too pricey you really have to think if your car is worth it. And you should find out as much as you can about manufacturing methods and materials used, too. The inventory can be the basis of a documentation of the whole restoration project. It is so easy to take photos and write down the main points of every step you take. You can use it in the end for further restorations or to find out where possible mistakes were made. And you can of course help others who are facing the same problems.
