Triumph's 1800/2000 Roadster: Not a Total Failure

Standard Motor Company's managing director Captain John Black supplied motors to Jaguar and its predecessor SS Cars since the beginning, and for a short while after World War 2.  By the end of the 1930s it was clear that Jaguar was becoming more a competitor than a client.  So Standard bought the ruins of the Triumph firm in 1944 with the idea of using the brand with its sporting image to provide sporty cars to help compete with Jaguar in that market segment.

The German bombing of Coventry, England in 1940 destroyed Triumph's facilities along with much else in the city.  So postwar Triumphs had to start from scratch, using motors and other material from Standard.

Besides a sedan (saloon), a Triumph sports car line was planned -- what became the Triumph Roadster, the subject of this post.

Postwar United Kingdom was in a bad way economically, and the socialist government rationed carmaking materials based on the cars' export potential, so as to bring home (especially) U.S. dollars.  Black clearly had his eye on the export market when the Roadster was developed.  Yet the production Roadster was far more English than American.

Given that Triumph 1800 Roadster production started in 1946, the ability of the American market to absorb English sports cars was unknown.  As it happened, the MG TC that entered production in 1945, sold well, despite having right-hand steering along with many prewar English details carried over from the TA and TB models.  This was unknown in 1945 while the Roadster was under development; in retrospect Black's gamble was reasonable despite the low sales of British sports cars in the USA prewar.

What the Roadster was likely not, was intended competition for the famous Jaguar XK120 sports car that did not enter production until 1948.  Perhaps car industry scuttlebutt gave Standard hints of the coming XK, but by the time it was introduced, the Roadster was on its way out.

Nevertheless, it's interesting to compare the two cars because they were in the same general market segment.

Production: 4,501 Roadsters made 1946-1949; XK120s (1948-1954),  open 7,606, drop-head 1,767 -- total 9,373 (fixed-head Jaguars not counted because Triumph did not use that body style).  On a per- production year basis: Triumph 1,125, and XK120 1,339.  Not a large difference considering the reputations of the two cars.

The link above notes that the Roadster was wide, providing three-abreast seating that required a non-sporty steering column-mounted gear shift lever.  This contributed to the Roadster's chunky overall appearance.  But note: its wheelbase was 100 inches (2540 mm), width 64 inches (1626 mm), and the XK120s wheelbase was 102 inches (2591 mm, width 61.5 inches (1562 mm).   Not great differences.   Where the Jagiar shined was its performance due to its new, powerful inline-six cylinder engine that made it one of the fastest production cars in the world at the time.  Meanwhile, Triumph Roadster top speeds were less than 80 miles per hour (about 130 KPH).

In many ways, the Triumph 1800 and 2000 Roadsters were attractive cars in the late-1930s context.  They were styled by Frank Callaby.

Gallery

1948 Triumph 2000 Roadster - HandH Auctions photos
Front fenders are bulbous.  I've always been fond of grilles being set at or behind the front axle line (I blame that on 1936 Cord 810s).

The trunk zone is large, heavy-looking.

That's because it houses what the British call a "dickey" seat ("rumble seat" in Yank talk).  Prewar Triumph Dolomite roadsters had this feature, and it was carried over to this design.  There's even a raisable windscreen, something seldom or never seen on 1920s and '30s American cars.  The spare tire is mounted on the after lid.  I'm not sure where luggage space might be.

Profile view with the dickey open.

1949 Triumph 2000 Roadster - HandH Auctions
General view with the top raised.  Though the front fenders are large, the engine compartment is narrow -- an interesting contrast.

1948 Triumph 1800 Roadster - for-sale-car photos
Now for a scaled-down walkaround.  The supports for those wonderfully-large English headlights are a bit crude-looking.

A nice, low look.  The wide, flat windshield has three wipers.

That high aft area spoils the design.

The front fenders look fine from this perspective.  I don't consider their shape a defect, though their size might be.

That dickey seat is the real problem.  It wasn't something most potential American buyers wanted or needed.  It added to the price of the car, something that usually hinders sales volumes.  The lack of trunk space was another item Americans wouldn't much like.  As for styling, lower, more tapered rear fenders echoing the front fender shape, along with a trunk lid profile to essentially match, would have made the Roadster a much more attractive and successful car.

1970 Lancia Stratos Zero Concept

The competition was tough, but I think the most extreme of the circa-1970 Italian wedge-front concept cars was the Lancia Stratos Zero built by Carrozzeria Bertone and designed by Marcello Gandini.

Some other wedge-front concept cars were the 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo by Bertone (also designed by Gandini), the 1970 Ferrari Modulo by Pininfarina, and the 1972 Maserati Boomerang by Italdesign (Giorgetto Giugiaro).

The Stratos Zero was so extreme that it would be barely marginal as an everyday sports or grand touring car due to entry-egress difficulties and outside visibility limitations for the driver.  I imagine that little thought was given to the possibility that it would ever enter production.

That said, I think it was the most interesting sculptural composition of the bunch noted above.

In the Gallery below, images of the Stratos Zero with bronze paint might be via RM Sotheby's.  I'm not sure of the image source of the silver-finish paint scheme variation.

Gallery

The Stratos Zero as it would appear if you encountered it parked.

Its layout is mid-engine.  Rear wheels are considerably larger than the front wheels.

Being a concept car, trivial matters such as bumper protection are ignored.

Besides the large, nearly-flat windshield, there are small side windows.  The lower one is essentially useless functionally, but helps the design composition a little.

Left side view.

This is where one can enter or leave the car.  The steering wheel would have to pivot to allow entry.

All movable panels are open.  The large, triangular one is for engine access.

1964 Alfa Canguro - Early Giugiaro Concept Car

According to this Wikipedia entry, famed designer Giogetto Giugiaro's second concept car design was the 1964 Alfa Romeo Canguro, built by Bertone.

This was shortly after his work on the classic early 1960s Alfa Romeo sport coupes.  These designs have a different character, possibly because, as mentioned here in my post about the 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Testudo concept car, the Testudo was the first car where Giugiaro had a totally free hand in the design.  The coupes carried over influence from earlier designs, this potentially limited what Giugiaro could produce.

That said, it's likely that the Canguro was mostly or entirely Giugiaro's work, given his independence on the Testudo.

Most images in the Gallery below are probably via Bertone.

Gallery

The Canguro has flowing lines, unlike production Alfa Romeo coupes.  Its most distinguishing feature is the stack of air vents on the front fender.

Publicity photo.  As with many concept cars, front bumper protection is absent.

No rear bumper either.  The back is the sliced body profile at that point: no shaping or blending.

The Alfa shield on the grille has black egg-crate bars.  The general feeling is organic, rather than structural.

Photo taken at an auto show, the people standing behind the Canguro providing scale.  Also note the woman in an above image.  The car's really quite small.

1948 Hudson, Five Facelifts Later: A Softer Look

The Hudson Motor Car Company, Wikipedia entry here, was in business for 55 years (1909-1954).   In 1954, Hudson merged with Nash-Kelvinator to form American Motors.  The final Hudson-branded cars were marketed for the 1957 model year, but were based on Nash bodies.

Hudsons were completely redesigned for model year 1948.  That basic body was continued with minor face-lifting through 1953.  As I wrote here, 1954 Hudsons received a major facelift -- '55 models being redecorated Nashes.  Today's post compares the 1948-vintage design with 1953, the final model before the big, pre-Nash facelift.

The post- World War 2 Hudson design had a streamlined appearance, heavily influenced by prewar thinking regarding future shapes cars might take.  As it happened, by around 1950, American car styling fashion changed from visual streamlining to more squared-off, "bustle-back" shapes.  So Hudsons were becoming seen by potential buyers as being out-of touch, almost old-fashioned.

Interestingly, in light of that fashion change, Hudson facelifts became increasingly softer, less angular, in defiance of that fashion trend, as is apparent in the images below.  The 1954 facelift mentioned above was a sad attempt to bring the 1948-vintage body into line with what other American carmakers were selling.

(If Hudson styling during that era interests you, I also wrote about Hudson grille designs over 1948-1954 here.)

Gallery

1948 Hudson Commodore - for-sale car photo
The original postwar redesign's grille was simple and rather geometric aside from its upper frame.

1953 Hudson Hornet - photos via RM Sotheby's
This grille shape first appeared in 1951. The major detail change was subordinating the central inverted-V element for '53.  The faux hood air scoop was added for '53.

1949 Hudson Commodore - Barrett-Jackson photos
1949 Hudsons were identical in appearance to 1948 Hudsons.  Side trim was in the form of a wide chrome strip along the lower edge of the car, probably intended to draw viewers' eyes downwards, thus making an already-low car seem even lower.

The middle side chrome strip mounted along the sheetmetal character crease appeared on 1952 Hudsons.

This shows the initial backlight window.

The backlight window's size was increased in 1950 and again in 1952 to what is seen here.

The other change evident by 1953 is the heavy chroming around all the windows on top-of-the-line Hudson Hornets.

American 1941 Designs: Leaders and Laggards

By around 1940, American car makers had digested post-1929 glass-forming and all-steel car body component stamping technologies to the point where resulting designs generally lacked the awkwardness found so often during the 1930s.   Chrysler Corporation introduced such new designs across its brand range for the 1940 model year.

Model year 1941 saw even more new designs from both major and second-tier manufacturers.  I wrote about the '41 General Motors B-body sedans here, and the redesigned 1941 Nashes here.

Today's post presents examples of redesigned 1941 sedans along with a few 1941 sedans that lagged behind the styling times because those bodies had been in production for a while.

Images below are of cars listed for sale unless otherise noted.  All are of four-door sedans for comparison consistency.

Gallery

1941 Buick Century
The Century used GM's new B-body.

B-body sedans were fastbacks.  As can be seen, the design is well-integrated with little or no awkwardness.

1941 Nash Ambassador
Nash's senior line styling was similar to that of GM's B-bodies, though notch-back bodies were also available.

The Nash fastback roofline seems more graceful than that of the Buick shown above.

1941 Studebaker Commander
Studebaker's lower body is in line with the above designs.  However, the passenger compartment greenhouse carries a late-1930s aspect.

1941 Ford Super DeLuxe Fordor
Here is the redesigned senior Ford for 1940.  Mercurys shared this body, so aren't illustrated here.

The Ford's comparatively short wheelbase dictated its fastback roof curve that's not as attractive as Nash's.

1941 Hudson DeLuxe
Now for the laggards.  Hudsons were redesigned for the 1936 model year, the basic body remaining in production through 1947.  Over time, modifications were made in attempts to keep that body in line with styling fashions.  Therefore, this '41 model looks different from the 1936.  However, traces of the 1936 design can be seen on the doors and windows.

The rear-end design features post-1936 reshaping.  Forward of the cowling is also post-1936.  Despite these efforts, Hudson's were looking somewhat dated in 1941.

1941 Packard 120 - Auctions America photo
The 120's body was new for the 1938 model year, so it retains a 1930s cast.  Packard's traditional tall grille and its details also differ from 1941's horizontal grille orientation fashion.

1941 Packard Clipper
But in the spring of 1941 Packard introduced its new Clipper design, a very handsome one in line with the times, aside perhaps, from the vertical grille.