Cadillac

US, 1903 to date

(1) Cadillac Automobile Co, Detroit, Mich., 1903 – 1905

(2) Cadillac Motor Car Co, Detroit, Mich., 1905 to date

The ‘Standard of the World’ started humbly as a single-cylinder car selling for $750. Henry M. Leland, its creator, had been associated with Henry Ford and has also built engines for Oldsmobile. The Model-A Cadillac was markedly similar to the early Fords in having a horizontal underfloor engine, 2-speed planetary transmission and central chain drive via a spur-type differential, but Cadillac’s 1½-litre inlet over exhaust power unit had one cylinder where Ford used two. There was no bonnet on the early Cadillac models. This very successful design remained in production until 1908, later improvements including rack-and-pinion steering, transverse front suspension and a dummy bonnet. The Cadillac marque was introduced to Britain by F.S. Bennett, who in 1908 conducted a ‘standardization test’ at Brooklands. Three single-cylinder Cadillac cars were dismantled and the parts mixed up – they were then reassembled and the vehicles run on the track. The R.A.C. awarded Cadillac the Dewar Trophy for this achievement.

A 30hp 4-cylinder Cadillac car with separate cylinders and copper jackets was announced for 1906 and 75.000 of this type Cadillac were sold before it was discontinued in 1914. The original planetary transmission gave way first to a conventional 3-speed box, and finally in 1914 to a 3-speed box with 2-speed back axle. Cadillac was one of the firms organized into the General Motors group in 1909 by W.C. Durant, and in 1910, when a 4-cylinder Cadillac tourer could be bought for $1600, the company was claiming that tolerance on 112 parts of the car were accurate to one-thousandth of an inch. 1912 saw a most important Cadillac innovation: the standardization of the Delco system of electric lighting and starting on the Cadillac, now of 5½-litres capacity and capable of 60mph. The first left-hand drive Cadillac of 1915 was also the first of the company’s V8s, to become as much a hallmark of the breed as were Buick’s overhead valves. Inspired by the De Dion Bouton of 1910 it had 5.1-litre engine and sold for $2700. 13.000 V8 Cadillac  cars were sold in the first year of production and the model was widely used by the U.S. Army in World War 1. Cylinder heads were detachable from 1917 on, and 1924 Cadillac versions had Duco cellulose finish and front wheel brakes.

In 1927, when 47.000 Cadillac cars were sold, a less expensive companion make, La Salle appeared, and the cars were restyled in 1928. The synchromesh gearbox made its world debut with the 1929 Cadillac models, which also featured chromium plating and safety glass, with a price range from $3.295 to $5.995. 1930 saw the advent of the ohv Cadillac V16 of 7.4-litres, which gave 185bhp and had a wheelbase of 12ft 4in. This sold at an average rate of 500 Cadillac cars a year for eight seasons in the $6.000-$9.000 price backet. It was joined in 1931 by an equally impressive ohv 6-litre V12 Cadillac for sale. Improvements over the next few years included power brakes (1931), ride control (1932), no-draught ventilation (1933), Dubonnet type independent front suspension (1934) and ‘turret-top’ all-steel bodies (for sale in 1935). 1938 Cadillac models had column change as standard, a year ahead of other GM products, while the V12 and V16 were dropped in favour of a side-valve short-stroke Cadillac 16-cylinder model which was made until 1940. Another new model for Cadillac in 1938, the 8-cylinder Cadillac Sixty Special, anticipated GM’s 1940 styling with its absence of running boards and 4-light sedan bodywork. 5.7-litre side-valve V8s in three wheelbase lengths made up the 1941 Cadillac range, on which Hydramatic transmission was optional for the first time.

The post-war era was to see Cadillac outstrip all its competitors in the top-price class and become an international symbol of wealth. Sales climbed from 66.000 cars in 1941 to 103.857 Cadillac cars in 1950, and to a new record of 165.959 Cadillac cars in 1964. Tail fins made their first appearance on Cadillac’s 1948 fastback coupé, and in 1949 Cadillac, along with Oldsmobile, adopted overhead valves and oversquare cylinder dimensions, their new 5.4-litre engine developing 160bhp. Cadillacs were raced at Le Mans in 1950 by Briggs Cunningham and the Cadillac engine was also used in export editions of Britain’s J2. Allard. Power output increased steadily: 190bhp in 1952 (by which time manual transmission was no longer offered), 210bhp in 1953 (when a 12-volt electric system was standardized), and 230bhp in 1954, the year when panoramic wrap-around windscreens and power-assisted steering became standard on the Cadillac for sale.

The expensive Cadillac Eldorado Brougham of 1957 (it cost over $13.000) was the first car to have air suspension (dropped after a few seasons) as standard equipment, while Cadillac, along with Lincoln, started the fashion for four headlamps, that later became universal in the USA. 1966 Cadillac cars featured GM’s perimeter-type chassis frame, a 340bhp 7-litre engine, variable-rate power steering, full air conditioning, electric door locks and seat controls, a time switch for the headlamps and a six-position steering wheel. Prices started at $4.650. In 1967 Cadillac set a new sales record of 213.161 cars, bettered in 1969 with 266.798/ They introduced a fwd car on Oldsmobile Toronado lines, the Fleetwood Cadillac Eldorado with torsion-bar ifs, self-levelling suspension, and front disc brakes, these last being applied to the more expensive Cadillac Fleetwoods with conventional drive, and to all the 1969 Cadillac range. Capacity of the Cadillac V8 engine was increased – to 7.735cc in 1968 and to 8.2 litres in 1970, but otherwise there were no major changes. In 1973 Cadillac were one of the few firms offering a nine-seater limousine: the Cadillac 75 with a wheelbase of 12ft 7½in and an overall length of 20ft 8in.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; MCS

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com

Triumph

US, 1900 – 1901

Triumph Motor Vehicle Co, Chicago, Ill.

The Triumph car company made an electric Stanhope known as the Ellis, and announced that they would accept orders for petrol or steam Triumph cars, for delivery in 90 days.

US, 1906 – 1909

Triumph Motor Car Co, Chicago, Ill.

These Triumph cars were open cars in four- and five-seater models. The engines of the Triumph cars were 4-cylinder units of 30hp and 45hp. In 1907 this Triumph car used ‘the only self-contained, automatic, self-starting motor in the world’. The starting method of the Triumph car stored exhaust gases in a tank under the seat, at a pressure of 125psi. This gas could be bled back into the cylinders for starting.

GB, 1923 to date

(1) Triumph Cycle Co Ltd, Coventry, Warwickshire, 1923 – 1929

(2) Triumph Motor Co Ltd, Coventry, Warwickshire, 1930 to date

This famous motor-cycle factory Triumph made a tricar in 1903, but 4-wheeler Triumph cars were not offered until 1923, when a 1.4-litre sv 4-cylinder 10/20 Triumph car with a Ricardo-designed engine and 4-speed gearbox was listed at £430; production of Triumph cars was undertaken in the factory formerly occupied by Dawson. This gave way in 1925 to a 1.9-litre 13/30 Triumph car at £495, the first British car to have Lockheed contracting-type hydraulic brakes. Neither this Triumph car nor its 15hp successor made much impression, but in 1928 Triumph car company introduced the 832cc sv Triumph Super 7, with unit gearbox, hydraulic brakes, and worm final drive, which Triumph car sold well both at home and overseas. There was a supercharged sports version Triumph car listed at £250 in 1929-1930, and the manufacture of small family saloon Triumph cars of superior quality was pursued until 1933-1934. Ribbon-type radiators were featured on Triumph cars in 1930, and in 1931 came a 1.2-litre small six Triumph car, the Triumph Scorpion, really a Super 7 Triumph car with 2 extra cylinders, and endowed with very low gearing. Ioe Coventry-Climax power units made their appearance in the Triumph Super 9 of 1932, when Triumph car saloons had pillarless doors, and 4-speed gearboxes were adopted. The bigger 1933 models Triumph cars had electric fuel pumps, and during the season a 1.122cc ioe Triumph Ten joined the Triumph car range at £225.

Though these family models Triumph car were still being made in 1934, there were also the more sporting Triumph Glorias with 1.100cc 4-cylinder and 1½-litre 6-cylinder ioe power units, cruciform-braced frames, and free wheels, which in open form could exceed 70mph: one of these Triumph cars, driven by Donald Healey (responsible for the design of 1936 – 1939 Triumph cars) won the light-car class of the 1934 Monte Carlo Rally. An abortive and very Alfa Romeo-like 2-litre twin-ohc supercharged straight-8 Triumph car was listed at £1.225 in 1935, but that year’s Gloria-Vitesse models  were far more successful, especially in 2-litre, 6-cylinder form. Metallic finish was available on Triumph cars, and the saloon models Triumph cars were sold with screenwashers as standard equipment.

In 1936 the Triumph car and motorcycle businesses were divorced, and from 1937 onwards the Triumph cars became heavier; synchromesh was adopted, Triumph-built engines with full overhead valves supplanted the ioe Coventry-Climax units, and Triumph cars ranged from a 1½-litre, 4-cylinder Triumph Gloria saloon at £288 up to the 1.8-litre 4-cylinder and 2-litre 6-cylinder Triumph Dolomites, with ugly fencer’s mask radiator grilles at £348 and £368 respectively.

The Triumph Dolomites were comprehensively equipped, with centralized chassis lubrication and radio as an factory extra, and the handsome if rather American looking roadster coupés Triumph cars of 1938-1940 were regular concours winners.

From the summer of 1938 only Triumph Dolomites were catalogued, the smallest Triumph car model being a compact 1½-litre Triumph car (actually 1.767cc) on a 9ft wheelbase at £313, but during 1939 a conventionally-styled 12hp sports saloon Triumph car appeared at £285. Only 50 Triumph cars were made since Triumph went into receivership just before World War 2, and when the Triumph cars reappeared after VJ Day they were products of Standard, the new 1800 Triumph car having the 65bhp 1.8-litre ohv 4-cylinder unit made for the 1½-litre Jaguar. Other features of these Triumph cars were Girling brakes, and an unusual right-hand column change for the 4-speed gearbox. Both the roadster at £799 and the saloon at £831 were traditionally styled, the latter Triumph car having a razor-edge body of the type favoured by British specialist coachbuilders in the later 1930s.

By 1949, 2.1-litre Standard Vanguard engines and 3-speed gearboxes had been adopted on Triumph cars, and 1950 brought a curious little razor-edged 2-door saloon, the Triumph Mayflower, with a 10hp sv engine, which Triumph car persisted until 1953.

In that year the first of a successful line of sports Triumph cars appeared, descended from an abortive 1950 design with retractable headlamps, fully aerodynamic bodywork with power top, and overdrive gearbox, which had been a casualty of the Korean War. The new Triumph TR2 weighed only 1.888lb, had a 2-litre, 90bhp development of the Vanguard engine, independent coil-and-wishbone front suspension, 2LS Lockheed brakes, hypoid final drive, and the useful combination of over 100mph and 25mpg in regular service. The Triumph car distinguished itself in competition, early successes including an outright win in the 1954 RAC Rally and the team award in the 1956 Alpine Rally, as well as being an outstanding dollar-earner. The Triumph TR3, its successor, acquired front disc brakes in 1956, and this Triumph car was made until 1962. The power unit of Triumph cars was adopted by Morgan (1954), Swallow Doretti (1954), Peerless (1958), and its successor Warwick (1960).

After the discontinuation of the razor-edged 2.1-litre Renown saloon early in 1955, the TR was the staple Triumph car until mid-1959, when the Triumph Herald saloon appeared, using a development of the 948cc Standard 10 engine in a separate chassis. This Triumph car had all-round independent suspension (the first small British family saloon to be so equipped), a collapsible steering wheel, and Michelotti styling. The Triumph car could be bought in 38bhp single carburetor and 50bhp twin-carburettor versions for prices starting at £702. This model Triumph car did not really prosper until Standard-Triumph cars was taken over by Leyland in 1961, when a more powerful 1.147cc development Triumph car with the option of front disc brakes appeared, followed two years later by the 12/50 with disc brakes as standard, and a sunshine roof. A 1.6-litre 6-cylinder Triumph car with four headlamps, the Triumph Vitesse came in 1962, and the Triumph Spitfire sports two-seater was a further Herald derivative announced for 1963. 4-cylinder Triumph car engines are used by Amphicar, Bond, and Fairthorpe.

In 1962 the Triumph TR4 with restyled bodywork, a 2.1-litre engine, rack-and-pinion steering, and all-synchromesh box, was introduced, acquiring independent rear suspension as the Triumph TR4A in 1965, while the Triumph car features were also incorporated in a 90bhp 2-litre 6-cylinder saloon Triumph car, the Triumph 2000, which was a successful introduction in 1964. Triumph’s new car in 1966 was the 1300 Triumph car, still with all-synchromesh gearbox, all-round independent suspension, and front disc brakes, but this Triumph car also featuring front-wheel drive and a 61hp development of the basic Herald engine. 1967 Triumph Vitesses had the 2-litre engine, also used in the new GT6 hardtop coupé, a Spitfire derivative. A Triumph TR5 sports car, with a 2½-litre 6-cylinder fuel injection engine at last replacing the tough old Vanguard unit and a 75bhp TC version of the 1300 saloon, were introduced in 1968. It was also announced that sohc 4-cylinder engines of Triumph cars were being manufactured for SAAB’s new 99 model, though all the new 1969 Triumph cars retained push-rod engines. These included revised versions of the GT6 and Vitesse with wishbone rear suspension, and a more expensive companion for the 2000 Triumph car, the 2.5 PI using a detuned Triumph TR6 fuel-injection unit; this Triumph car was rallied by the works, the Culcheth and Syer car coming 2nd in the 1970 World Cup event. In 1970 Triumph cars introduced the Triumph Stag, a luxury sporting 2+2 powered by a 3-litre dohc V8 engine of their own design developing 145bhp. This Triumph car featured alternator ignition, a choice of synchromesh and overdrive or automatic transmission, all-independent springing, power-assisted rack and pinion steering, and vacuum servo brakes with discs at the front. A big and heavy Triumph car weighing 3.020lb, this Triumph car carried semi-convertible coachwork with built-in rollbar.

In the 1971 range of Triumph cars was a Herald replacement, the Triumph Toledo 2-door saloon. This Triumph car combined the 1300 structure with the 1.296cc Herald 13/60 engine driving the rear wheels. Rear suspension was by live axle and coils, and all-drum brakes were standard, though front disc brakes, four doors and a 1.500cc engine were used on an export-only model. The Triumph 1300 was replaced by a more powerful 1500, and in August 1971 4-door Triumph Toledos in basic form reached the home market. That summer the Herald/ Vitesse range of Triumph cars was finally phased out (apart from Indian production of ‘Standard’ Heralds) and after many delays Triumph cars medium-sized luxury Triumph Dolomite was finally launched at the beginning of 1972. This Triumph car followed Toledo lines with front disc brakes, but the Triumph car was powered by a 91bhp twin-carburettor edition of the 1.854cc ohc engine as supplied to SAAB. Principal 1973 improvements were the standardization of front disc brakes on the Toledo, and of overdrive on manual versions of the 2.5 PI and Stag.

D, 1933

Triumph Werke AG, Nuremberg

This well-known motorcycle manufacturer built a few 3-wheeled coupés Triumph cars powered by 350cc engines driving the single rear wheels.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; GNG, GMN, MCS 

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com