VETERAN CAR GUIDE
Delaugère built its own two-cylinder engines , and , by 1902 , four-cylinder engines . The cars were along Panhard lines , with automatic inlet valves and double chain drive . The 20hp four-cylinder cars had a fourspeed gearbox .
Dennis John and Raymond Dennis manufactured ‘ Speed King ’ bicycles initially , and then turned their attention , in 1899 , to motor tricycles and quadricycles , and then Dennis-branded motor cars from 1901 . The Dennis company , despite its expressed focus on technical development , procured its chassis in complete form from Lacoste et Battmann . Along with Speedwell and Brush , it was one of the earliest adopters of complete vehicles from Paris that it simply re-badged . The company offered a single cylinder shaft-driven vehicle with a De Dion Bouton engine of 8hp , and from 1903 there was a twin cylinder 12-14hp option , or the larger , four cylinder 16-20hp model , both made by Aster . Dennis cars from 1904 were characterised by their overhead worm-drive transmission .
English Mechanic A magazine called English Mechanic and World of Science and Art was launched at the turn of the century and featured design templates and construction instructions for cars that could be built at home . The originator was T Hyler White . The series started in May 1899 with a tricycle featuring a 1.75hp De Dion Bouton engine . In January 1900 , the first of 56 weekly parts on ‘ A small car and how to build it ’ appeared . To keep costs down , amateur engineers were encouraged to use second-hand materials , or to purchase components from the writer ’ s friend , David J . Smith , who had a workshop in the East End of London . The number of vehicles that were successfully completed , is unknown but four vehicles survive : a Benz-type two-seater , a steam dog cart , an 8hp tonneau , and a two-cylinder car of 1907 date .
1904 Ford
Fiat Fiat ( Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino ) was incorporated in 1899 , and the first vehicles appeared that year , starting with a 3.5hp horizontal-mounted , twin cylinder engined vis a vis . Engine capacity increased to 6hp before the company launched a front-engined vehicle with an 8hp vertical , twincylinder power unit . By the end of 1901 , there was a four cylinder , 12 / 16hp model with a 3768cc engine , supplemented by a 4181cc 16 / 20hp version in 1903 . By this time Vincenzo Lancia was working as a driver , and he drove the Fiat entry in the ill-fated 1903 Paris to Madrid Race . The influence of Panhard was readily apparent with the Fiat output , but by 1904 when there was a 75hp motor car on offer , the marque had begun to focus on emulating Mercedes .
Flint Made in Flint , Michigan , USA , by ABC Hardy . In 1902 , he began to make a two-seater , 8hp , single-cylinder roadster with left- or right-hand tiller steering for $ 850 . He made 52 of these but ceased in 1902 because he was unwilling to pay the Seldon patent fee .
Ford Henry Ford started the Ford Motor Company in Detroit , USA in 1903 . The first production car – the Model A – used a two-cylinder horizontally opposed 1645cc engine in a Runabout-type body and was initially assembled from parts supplied by Dodge Brothers and others . The model A was discontinued in October 1904 when 670 had been made , according to the company ’ s records . This model was replaced by three new ones : the larger-engined AC ; the C with the same engine and a bonnet and vertical radiator , and the Model B , which was a completely new car , with a front-mounted , vertical four-cylinder engine of 4646cc , developing 24hp . Unlike the smaller Fords , it had shaft drive and a side entrance tourer body . In 1904 , the company moved to a new factory and by 1905 300 employees were making 25 cars a day . By 1906 , it was making 100 cars a day .
Franklin The H . H . Franklin Manufacturing Company , located in Syracuse , New York , made motor cars between 1902 and 1934 . The first cars were designed by John Wilkinson . From the outset , air-cooled four-cylinder engines were preferred that were transversely mounted in a wooden chassis . Engines for 1903 and 1904 cars were of cast iron design including the base and cylinders . Aluminium was not used in the engine for these early cars . The early cars had a simple twospeed planetary transmission system and semi-elliptic suspension front and rear . There were 219 cars made
48 The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run