A SPORTS THREE-LITRE
A SPORTS THREE-LITRE
THE MOVEO WITH MEADOWS ENGINE AND SEVERAL INTERESTING FEATURES
HE designer of a new car is in the happy position of not being hampered in his search for the best by trying to avoid having to scrap old jigs, and similar manufacturing considerations, and the sports-car manufacturer usually has further scope because the potential purchasers are prepared to pay a good price for something which is good and out of the ordinary in lay-out and performance. This is exemplified in the case of the Moveo car, which has been built as the result of two years’ experiment by its designers, Messrs. Haythornthwaite and Houlding, and which is now in production.
There are some unusual features about this car. For instance, the front ends of the chassis sidemembers are straight and not curved to form the dumb-irons. The frame is swept downwards and outwards to the rear spring anchorage, and then is curved over the back axle. The centre part of the frame is 6in. in depth, and the whole makes an exceptionally sturdy structure. The side members are braced together by tubes, one joining the forward extremity of the dumb-irons and another behind the radiator, while a third situated behind the gear-box is 3in. in diameter. Two tubes brace the chassis at the rear spring bracket, and there is another at the top of the upsweep, and the rear end of the chassis is tied by yet another tube. Cast iron brackets are not used and no bolts larger than j inch pass through the chassis. Hitensile bolts are used throughout, a large number, of course, being fitted where great strength is required, and all are secured with special locking washers. The power unit is the well-known Meadows engine of three-litre capacity, having six cylinders (72.5 by 120 mm.) and overhead valves operated by push-rods. It gives 74 h.p. at 3,800 r.p.m. Coil ignition is used, the units being mounted accessibly on the off-side. Two Amal carburettors fed from a 14 gallon rear tank by
two Morriscot Petrolifts comprise the fuel system.
A single plate clutch transmits the drive to a Moss four-speed gear box fitted with a silent third, thence through a tubular propellor shaft fitted with Hardy Spicer couplings to a spiral bevel final drive. Unit constru.ction is used for engine and gear-box, and the former is silentbloc suspended from three points, one being a cross member in front of the engine, the other two being sturdy brackets bolted on to the side-members below the dash.
Suspension is by flat semi-elliptic springs fitted with shackles at their outer ends and the other ends moving on slides. Braking reaction is taken by cables, as on the Aston Martin, and spring damping is adjustable from the dash by means of a hydraulic Telecontrol. The brakedrums are 17 inches in diameter, and are made of chrom ium steel, with finned aluminium cooling rings attached thereto by a taper and setscrews. The brakes operate on the Lockheed system. Instead of a ratchet, the hand brake is held in the “on ” position by means of lambing rollers, and is instantly released by a touch in the opposite direction.
The radiator, often the Achilles’ heel of the sports car, should give no trouble on the Moveo. It consists of top and bottom tanks connected by gilled tubes. These tubes have tapered ends fitted with rubber washers, which in turn fit into tapered holes in the tanks, the whole being held together by four long bolts. This construction has been tested successfully at 70 lbs. pressure, but if a tube were to fail, replacement can be carried out easily by separating the two tanks. The front is protected by a honeycomb grid which enhances the appearance of the whole. The designers have made a great point of easy maintenance, and there are only three oil nipples on the chassis—one for each king pin and one for the front
universal. The engine is well silenced by two exhaust pipes opening into four earbjectors arranged in tandem. With the power unit at present used, the manufacturers claim a speed of 80-85 m.p.h. They also state that it is hoped to supply the three-litre engine super
charged later, while there is room in the chassis for the 41 litre Meadows if required.
The makers’ address is Moveo Car & Engineering Co., De Lacy Street, Preston, and the three litre chassis is priced at £575.