From 1948 to 1953 the Australian automaker General Motors-Holden’s Ltd (GMH) produced the Holden 48/215 also known as Holden FX.
The design of the car based on a post WW2 design by Chevrolet which was rejected because it was thought of to be too small for the American market. Development on the car began in 1944 when the government asked car manufacturers to submit proposals for an Australian car.
And the Holden became the nation’s first mass produced car. Even though it was far from luxurious, it became a real success and the people loved the Australian car made for Australians.
The car only had a single rear light and no turn indicators as security wasn’t much thought of at that time and with so few cars on the roads. But it had a locking petrol cap and was available in four colours: Convoy Grey, Seine Blue, Gawler Cream and Black. The car had a 6-cylinder engine with 2160 cc and 60 bhp and a three-speed manual.
It had a top speed of 80.4 mph (129km/h). From 1948 to 1953 120,402 cars were produced.
Further specifications:
Length – 172.0 in (4.370 metres)
Width – 66.9 in (1.702 metres)
Height – 61.8 in (1.568 metres)
Kerb weight – 2230lb (1012kg)
Brakes – front and rear: Hydraulic 9 inch (229 mm) drums
This is a list of classic car museums in Germany that might be of interest for you:
Motorrad-Museum in Augustusburg – Schloss (Palace), Saxony: Here you can see a collection of classic DKW and MZ motorcycles. On October 3, 2010 there will be a vintage car meeting. www.die-sehenswerten-drei.de
August Horch Museum in Zwickau, Saxony: The museum is the place where August Horch had his car factory for decades. Here the Horch, later the Audi and the East German Trabant were produced. www.horch-museum.de
Autostadt Wolfsburg in Wolfsburg, Lower-Saxony: In the Autostadt you do not only see new Volkswagen cars but classic cars too. This is a place for lovers of old and new cars. www.autostadt.de
Feuerwehr- und Technikmuseum in Eisenhüttenstadt, Brandenburg: Firefighting from the 16th to the 20th century, with old fire engines and tools, is what you can see here. www.museen-brandenburg.de
Fahrzeugmuseum Suhl in Suhl, Thuringia: Here you can see the legendary “Greifzu” racing car. And you can learn about the long vehicle manufacturing tradition of the town. www.fahrzeug-museum-suhl.de
Auto- und Technik-Museum in Sinsheim, Baden-Württemberg: Here you can not only see the old Concorde but also classic cars from different countries, racing cars, vintage race cars, and much more. A visit will really be worth it. www.technik-museum.de
Porsche-Museum in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, Baden-Württemberg: Here you can see 80 Porsche cars and learn about the history of Porsche car manufacturing. www.porsche.com
Deutsches Museum in Munich, Bavaria: In the Verkehrszentrum (traffic centre) local branch of Deutsches Museum, you can see lots of vintage cars, motorcycles, and more. Also see the main museum and the Oberschleissheim airfield. www.deusches-museum.de
The Scootacar was a small car built by Scootacars Ltd, a division of the Hunslet Engine Company.
According to the wishes of the wife of one of the directors, who wanted a car that was easier to park than her Jaguar, Henry Brown designed the car by sitting on a Villiers engine and making an assistant to draw an outline around him.
The first car was the Mk 1fitted with a Villiers 197 cc two –stroke engine. It was a 3-wheeler (two front wheels and one rear wheel) with a steel floor, a fibre-glass body and a top speed of 50 mph (80 km/h). It was roomy enough for two people, one in the front the other one in the rear.
The car only had one large door on the left side. In 1959 the model was totally redesigned to improve it. The body shell of the Mk 2 was larger, the engine was placed under a rear bench and the driver’s seat could be tipped forward. It had room for three people now and a top speed of 55 mph (89 km/h). In 1962 a few Mk 3 were sold with a 250 cc engine and a top speed of 68 mph (109 km/h) The car didn’t sell too well and after a total of about 1000 Scootacars were manufactured the production ended in 1964.
Before Sir Alec Issigonis became famous for having created the Mini, he had designed the Morris Minor.
The Morris Minor was to be a good motor car with a certain amount of luxury and a price suitable even for working class people. From 1948 to 1971 over 1.6 million cars were manufactured. The rear-wheel drive cars (4-door saloon) had a kerb weight of only 1,708 lb (775 kg).
The cars were produced in Cowley, Oxfordshire and later in Birmingham. The very last Morris Minor was assembled in 1974 in New Zealand.
1948-1952: The original Minor MM series included a 4-seat saloon ( 2-door and 4-door) and a convertible 4-seat Tourer. The engine was an 0.9 L (918 cc/56 in³) side valve straight-4, 27.5 hp (21 kW), top speed 64 mph (103 km/h).
1952-1956: Minor Series II. In 1952 the Traveller, an estate version was first sold. It had an external wooden (ash) frame for the rear bodywork and two side-hinged rear doors. The engine now was an 0.8 L (803 cc/49 in³) A-Series overhead valve straight-4, 30hp (22 kW), top speed 63 mph (101 km/h).
1956-1971: Minor 1000. The two-piece split windscreen was replaced with an one-piece one and the rear window was enlarged. In 1961 the Morris Minor became the first car in Britain to sell over 1 million units. For this event 350 two-door saloons were manufactured with lilac paintwork and white interior.
The engines were an 0.9 L (948 cc/57 in³) A-Series straight-4, 37 hp (28 kW) from 1956 to 1962, and an 1.1 L (1098 cc/67 in³) A-Series straight-4, 48 hp (36 kW), top speed 77 mph (124 km/h).
The van version used to be very popular with the British Post Office and even today there are a great number of restored and improved Morris Minor still running in Britain.
When Ernst Heinkel first saw the Isetta in Italy in March 1954, he wanted to build a car to compete with it.
Back in Germany his design engineers designed a car and the first design drawings were shown in May the very same year. The Heinkel Kabine (Heinkel Cabin Cruiser) was designed to have a 200 cc engine and 8“ wheels. It was to have a kerb weight of no more than 175 kg and a maximum speed of 75 km/h.
In August the same year the so far final design drawings were made. It was a three wheeler with a front door.
The production though didn’t start before March 1956 due to many changes that had to be made. And due to engine problems only 54 of the 96 cars produced then were sold.
The production first started with a 175 cc engine which was shortly afterwards upgraded to a 204 cc engine due to tax reasons. But as the result of a tax law change it was reduced to a 198 cc engine again. This car was a four wheeler with narrow rear track. The four wheelers never got to the UK though, because it was much cheaper to drive a three wheeler, they paid not even half as much road tax as the four wheelers.
During the next 1.5 years 11,000 cars were produced the production went up to 700 cars per month.
From 1956 car kits were sent to Ireland for assembly. Tax wise it was cheaper than to send the whole cars. In 1958 the production started in Dundalk, but the engines and axles still came from Germany. Form October 1958 to August 1961 about 5000 cars were build. From 1961 to 1964 6100 cars were manufactured in England at Trojan and from then on were called Heinkel Trojan. From 1957 to 1961 also 2000 cars were produced in Alejo in Argentina. They also got the engines and axles from Germany.
The 1970 Lincoln Continental Mark III. Elegance and luxury and a real beauty and certainly one of the most distinctive cars on the road.
The vinyl top, with optional power sliding sun roof, was now standard, as well as the Michelin steel belted radial ply tires.
The new upholstery was less old fashioned and the instrument panel and trim panels were upgraded to genuine walnut veneer. The new Three Spoke Rim Blow Steering Wheel made it possible to operate the horn just by squeezing the inner rim. The ignition key was in the steering column and also had a locking device. With this not only the steering wheel was locked but also the transmission selector lever.
The windshield wipers were now hidden from view underneath the back edge of the hood. Red reflectors were added to the rear bumper as well as yellow reflectors to the sides of the front parking lamp assemblies. High quality was used to build this car.
Lifting up an old car with a post car lift means having to be extra careful, not to cause damage.
Especially if you happen to have an old British car with lots of woodwork.
It is really important that the points of the car lift are underneath the framework and not underneath an edge of the body or any fairly soft wooden parts. You have to raise the pads so that the car goes up level and save.
Before you lift up the car though, you have to make sure that the doors are open.
If not the lifting can cause damage to the door locks not only of cars with woodwork but of all classic cars. It might be difficult to find the right points for the pads because every old car is different and you have to make sure not to damage any parts like e.g. the main brake cylinder.
Lift the car up a little bit and then try if it is save before you lift it up completely and start to work.
The Triumph Roadster 1800/2000, designed by Frank Callaby, certainly was a very special car.
First sold in 1946, it was to combine luxury and sportiness and was one of the first cars produces after World War II. A soft top convertible. It was far from being sportive though, with only 65 bhp (68 bhp for the 2000) and a pretty high kerb weight of about 1200 kg.
Even though it was a beautiful car, just by the way it looked, only 2501 of the 1800 and 2000 of the 2000 were sold. Only 184 of these were exported.
