A JOWETT-BASE SPORTS CAR
A JOWETT-BASE SPORTS CAR
Alt N I fAM, pleasant ifooneested town at one dit«I et` the 1 liee’s Back road, is noted for quite a number or inditoring activities. It is here Hutt the Tourist Troplty Garage Itas its beitie. as WC described not long ago at (11t rest tilt the very successful I fa wthorw., I. Riley to MIT readers. In Farnham, too. u. see yew/eget-in is producing the minicar, and rebuilding divers: Bentleys and an “30 ¶18 ” Vauxhall, while
Baladeur ” would no doubt remind us that it was in this town that one of the earliest British ears saw the liglti of day, in 1895.
Coming back to the present, by way of the past, Barnard and Small have rim a Jowett agency in Farnham for matty years, and so well-fitted is this finn to keep these sturdy two-cylinder cars on the road that people are apt to remark on how many old Jowetts you see in this part of Surrey !
It was to this garage that we drove the Morgan Plus Four early in November to inspect David Small’s own idea Of an enthusiast’s sports car: Not surprisingly, when building it he decided ta employ mainly .lowat components. -and certainly his is net the first sports car to be based on the long-lived ” turf-turf” from Idle.
The chassis of Small’s stark, doorless two-seater is eut-down Bradford, braced at the front by a tubular cross-member made from a discarded propeller-al aft• The wheelbase is 6 ft, 3 in. and suspension is by an adaptation of Bradford and Jowett 1-elliptic springs all round. To these springs are mated W.D. Austin Eight axles, retaining the Austin Girling brakes. Damping is by Annstrong shockabsorbers. Bradford steering with an extended column is employed, the draglink being neatly coupled by a straight rod to the Austin steering arm. The engine is a Vie Jowett flat-twin generator-driving unit, retaining the high.compreasioll tV.1). heads. A separate* 30 VEFI I Zenith horizontal carburetter feeds cacti cylinder via a fabricated inlet pipe, with which a water off-take to the radiator is incorporated so as to warm the mixture. The engine is rubber-mounted, has a lightened flywheel, coil ignition with a Lucas sports coil, and is over-bored
60 ” thou. from its original 046 c.c.
To the engine is mated a four-speed ” crash-type ” -lowett gearbox, and from that an open shalt with Layrub joint at the front and a ‘lardy-Spicer joint at the back conveys the drive to the Austin Eight back axle.
The radiator was specially made and is covered! by a modified Jupiter grille, while the front ” dumb-irons ” are neatly cowled by a fairing which carries a Jowett Eight badge. le the roomy compartment behind the front seats is a 3k-gallon fuel tank, with S.U. pump feed, and above this there is ample space for battery, hood, tools, luggage and an occasional third passenger. The handbrake is on the right, there is a wooden instillment board with small -dial instruments, and the front wheels carry 5.00-16 tyres, the rear wheels 5.50-16, which may in due course be replaced by 6.00I 6, covers.
Originally a twin-pipe exhaust system was used, but a single pipe is now employed, with a considerable imprevemetit in silencing. The axles ere tide lowest part of this interesting spevial, trials no doubt being in wind_ and. with full tank, battery, halls mid Nalco radio it weighs oely it little inore titan 1 (‘wt.
A slturt run showed the engine to be quiet, very reasonably smooth, and to display excellent low-speed torque. While the steering is very high-geared and the suspension comfortable tied firm in spite of lacking front independence. The engine beat when pulling is typically and fascinatingly Jowett. Before leaving we inspected a Jupiter with Abbott body (E. D. Abbott’s coachworks are another of Farultain’s motoring facets) built to the order of Barnard and Small. The frontal aspect, with
scoop in the bonnet top. is superior to that of the standard Jupiter, while a proper luggage boot, with lift-up lid, is provided, of very counnendable capacity. The side screens are stowed in a pocket above the luggage Sluice, and the spare wheel is accommodated in a separate coinptirtritent beneath the boot.