VETERAN CAR GUIDE transverse crankshaft and the flywheel was positioned between the cylinders , there was a four-speed gearbox and chain final drive . This car and a 18hp four-cylinder model had conventional bonnets , but the engine was placed under the front seat . Later the company installed four-cylinder vertical engines at the front of the chassis .
1903 Knox
Humber and Humberette Humber was one of the earliest cycle manufacturers , initially located in Nottingham , and later in Coventry and Wolverhampton . Plans to make the Léon Bollée three-wheeler were interrupted when a fire destroyed the Coventry factory , but the Coventry Bollée and the Coventry Motette did appear at the end of 1896 , making Humber the first maker of series-production cars in England . Numerous prototype four-wheeled motor cars appeared at shows , but it was 1901 before the first conventional vehicle arrived , powered by a 4.5hp De Dion Bouton engine , with shaft drive , and a rear entrance tonneau body . Single spoke steering wheels were a feature of Humbers until 1910 , and cars with four-cylinder engines of 12hp and 20hp appeared in 1902 and 1903 . The latter was pivotal for the company ; it introduced a lightweight Humberette with a 6hp De Dion Bouton engine , a two-speed gearbox , a tubular frame and shaft drive . A larger engine and three-speed gearbox arrived in 1904 .
Hurtu The company was founded in 1880 as Hurtu , Haution et Diligeon , as a maker of sewing machines and bicycles . The first car , a version of a Leon Bollee tricar , was made in 1896 , followed by a version of the German Benz the following year . In 1900 , the Benz was replaced by a new model powered by a 3.5hp De Dion Bouton engine with shaft drive . Two- or fourseater bodies were available , the latter a rear entrance tonneau . The company also used Aster engines with one , two or four cylinders .
James & Browne James & Browne Ltd of Hammersmith , London , England was registered in January 1902 . The earliest motor car had a 9hp twin cylinder engine with a
Knox The Knox Automobile Co . of Springfield , Massachusetts began production in 1900 with a 3-wheel car , the model A , which was powered by a 1562cc , 5hp , horizontal air-cooled single cylinder engine that drove the rear axle by a single chain . The engine used cooling rods rather than fins , leading to the nickname ‘ Old Porcupine ’. In 1902 the 4-wheel model B was introduced , and then the model C , all single cylinder cars . The Type D , launched in 1904 , had a two-cylinder engine of 16 / 18hp .
Lacoste et Battmann Lacoste et Battmann had their beginnings in 1897 when Jacques Lacoste founded a business at Levallois , Paris under the name of J . Lacoste & Cie . Emile Battmann joined the concern in 1900 at which point there was a change of name to Lacoste et Battmann . Mechanical components were manufactured as well as complete cars usually equipped with De Dion or Aster engines . These were re-badged by scores of ‘ manufacturers ’ around Europe . Standard configurations of 6hp and 8hp engines were available . Later , larger engined vehicles were available bearing the Lacoste et Battmann brand .
Lambert Lambert & Cie offered 8hp De Dion Bouton-engined cars , or alternatively with 10hp and 12hp two-cylinder engines by Abeille or Aster . All had shaft drive , artillery wheels and two- or four-seater bodies . These vehicles were all procured from Lacoste et Battmann .
Lanchester Frederick William Lanchester built cars in Birmingham and was considered one of the finest engineering minds of his time . His cars owed nothing to the prevailing influence of Benz and Panhard . His first prototype vehicle was powered by a 1306cc single cylinder horizontal engine which had two overhanging balanced cranks , each with its own flywheel and connecting rod . The cranks revolved in opposite directions giving a smooth-running unit . One of eight children , his brothers George and Frank joined him . Six cars were completed during 1900 , and production began in earnest in 1901 when the model was equipped with a mid-mounted , horizontally opposed
50 The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run