VETERAN CAR GUIDE four-cylinder options . The company enjoyed royal patronage from Edward VII and underlined its desire for premium market in positioning in 1904 with the launch of a 5.7 litre 28 / 36hp model .
1897 Daimler .
in 1901 , which was a lightweight runabout with a 2hp single cylinder , air-cooled engine mounted ahead of a straight dash , with chain drive to the rear wheels and tiller steering . Later in the year , there was a Model B with a 3.5hp engine , and a Model C with a 5hp engine located under a small bonnet . Shaft drive was adopted in 1903 , when the company claimed to have made 1000 cars , and by 1904 the engine was quoted at 8.5hp . For 1904 and 1904 , there was also a 15hp , twocylinder option available .
Daimler Gottlieb Daimler was at the forefront of the development of single cylinder petrol engines , and in conjunction with Wilhelm Maybach , the first experimental vehicle was tested in 1886 . By 1889 a V-twin engine of 565cc had been installed in tubular steel frame with steel wheels which was exhibited at the 1889 Paris World ’ s Fair . The Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft was formed in 1890 and over the next seven years the design of a vertical , twin cylinder engine evolved for use in rail cars and motorboats , assisted by Maybach ’ s invention of the spray carburettor . The Daimler-designed engines were the basis for the engines produced by Panhard Levassor and they were also used in the early Peugeot . During 1891 , Richard Simms acquired a licence to sell Daimler engines in Great Britain , which led to Harry Lawson acquiring manufacturing rights in 1895 . The first British-made Daimler was on the road at the end of 1897 , although French-made engines were initially installed . Early machines with tiller steering and full elliptic springs were made in small numbers , as the company experienced a lack of investment and poor management . A new range appeared in 1902 with 8hp , twin cylinder vehicles , as well as 12 , 16 and 22hp
Darracq Alexandre Darracq ( 1855 – 1931 ) became a prominent and successful bicycle manufacturer following his decision to create a partnership with Jean Aucoc to make Gladiator-branded cycles in 1891 at a factory in north-east Paris in Pré-Saint-Gervais . In 1896 , a British consortium that included Ernest T . Hooley , M . D . Rucker , H . H . Lawson and Harvey du Cros purchased Darracq ’ s company , which led to him building a new factory called the Perfecta works , in Suresnes , where he manufactured a wide range of cycle components as well as four-wheeled cars under licence from Léon Bollée . Following Paul Ribeyrolles ’ s arrival at the company in 1900 , a light car was produced with a 6.5hp , single cylinder engine , 3-speed gearbox and shaft drive . Two- and four-cylinder cars were added to the range in 1903 , and in 1904 , and pressed steel frames were adopted . Darracq had a long involvement with motor racing , which established both a healthy profile and a very profitable business .
De Dietrich The De Turkheim family became involved in the Lorraine-based De Dietrich ironworks business in 1806 , following which large factories were established in both French and German territory . Both the French and the German parts of the business initially made cars and commercial vehicles under licence from Amédée Bollée in 1897 with tube ignition and a complex transmission system involving primary belt drive and final drive by two sets of bevels . The French concern began production of the Turcat-Méry , with its two- and four-cylinder engine options , tubular radiators , flitch plate frames , and chain drive . The German business , at its Niederbronn factory , initially made a version of the single cylinder , belt-driven Belgian Vivinus under licence , before Ettore Bugatti arrived to design a four-cylinder , chain-driven car . There were two engine sizes : a 5305cc unit , variously called 20hp or 24hp , and a 7430cc , 24hp option . After Bugatti left the company in 1904 , no further cars were made in Niederbronn .
De Dion Bouton The partnership between the Comte de Dion , Georges Bouton and Charles Trépardoux was forged in the summer of 1882 , leading to the production of a wide range of steam vehicles . Motor tricycles and quadricycles followed , and by 1900 , ensconced in new premises on the banks of the Seine in Puteaux ,
48 The London to Brighton Veteran Car Run