Competition cars had plied their ton-up wares at tracks such as Brooklands since the Edwardian era, but they were pared-down beasts making no concessions to road use. Replicating such high speeds in a car wearing number plates and full bodywork would be quite another thing.
Vauxhall was a company at the forefront of performance engineering, its C-10 Prince Henry model of 1911 already acknowledged as the first true production sports car. And it was because of that reputation that businessman Joseph Higginson approached company seniors in late 1912, asking them to build an unbeatable roadgoing car to compete in hill climbs. Using a development of the A10 engine, famed Vauxhall technical director Laurence Pomeroy created a car with the lightest-possible running gear and bodywork. Known as the 30-98 E-type and rated at 85mph - an extraordinary speed, pre-WW1 - the car was delivered to Higginson in 1913, and soon afterwards he set a 55.2 secs time at Shelsley Walsh, a record that stood for eight years.
The potential for still more performance was evident, though. Pomeroy's post-war successor at Vauxhall, CE King, was soon to develop an overhead-valve pushrod engine for the 30-98, reducing its capacity by 301cc to 4224cc, but increasing power from 98 to 115bhp. The origins of the model's name are always debated, with both its initial output and bore size being 98bhp and 98mm respectively. However, the Vauxhall-published book Vauxhall 1857-1946 suggests 30' was for the projected bhp at 1000rpm, and '98' for the original output, the name retained even after it increased.
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Denne historien er fra April 2022-utgaven av Classic & Sports Car.
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A Breath of Fresh Air- Alfa Romeo's exotic, V8-powered Montreal was like nothing the marque had made before, but can it compare with a Porsche masterpiece, the 911S 2.4?
The stereotype of the ItaloGermanic automotive rivalry is that the Latin car will be brilliant to drive, but poorly built and ergonomically flawed, while the Teutonic will be the opposite. Yet these 2+2 sports coupés both ran against orthodoxy. In the Montreal, Alfa Romeo created an outlandish-looking two-door more comfortable, more powerful and more refined than anything it had produced for decades. Meanwhile, Porsche continued to refine its back-to-front, austere and increasingly aged 911. Neither took a traditional development path, but both created thrilling and individual cars that have echoed through the decades.
Daring to be diminutive
AMC's Gremlin and Pacer, and Ford's much-derided Pinto, led America's response to the threat of imported European compacts
THE LONG WAY ROUND
There is a great tradition of overland trips by Land-Rover, but the tale of this 70s Aussie epic and the car itself was discovered by chance
Handsome cab
The Phantom V limousine marked the beginning of the end for coachbuilder James Young, but this Rolls-Royce represents the craft at its very best
DOING IT FOR THEMSELVES
Racing for their own F1 teams brought some drivers success and an enduring legacy. For others, it turned into a nightmare
20 30 LITRES CYLINDERS, 400BHP......AND MORE THAN A CENTURY OLD
Thunderous torque, flame-spitting stub-exhausts, white-knuckle thrills - and hopefully no spills - aboard a trio of Edwardian racing titans
ICON.
The three top-selling vehicles in the USA in 2023 were pick-ups, topped by the Ford F-Series. This is the truck that started it all
Blurred Lines
lan 'Del' Lines blended the V8 burble of Triumph's open GT with real practicality in his Stag V8 saloons and estates
Home of the brave
The innovative Silverstone proved a hit with keen amateur drivers. To mark its 75th, Healey's club racer returns to the circuit for which it is named
PLAYING ALL THE ANGLES
Alfa Romeo's wild RZ eschewed the jellymould styling of the period to offer a striking, wedge-shaped take on open-topped performance motoring