Daimler DS420

Daimler
Front view of the Daimler DS 420
DS 420
Production period:	1968-1992
Class :	Upper class
Body versions :	Pullman limousine
Engines:	Petrol engines : 4.2 liters (123-137 kW)
Length:	5740 mm
Width:	1995 mm
Height:	1620 mm
Wheelbase :	3580 mm
Empty weight :	2140-2160 kg
Previous model	Daimler DR450

Daimler DS 420 with chauffeur in London (1974)

The Daimler DS 420 , also known as the Daimler Limousine , is a four-door Pullman limousine with five seats and two folding emergency seats in front of the back seat, which Daimler launched on the Jaguar basis in 1968. A total of 5043 vehicles had been produced by the end of production in 1992 (official total number according to Jaguar). The British coachbuilder Vanden Plas produced 4116 vehicles, the rest were produced by Jaguar itself.

Model history

This top model from the Daimler Motor Company was introduced in 1968 as the successor to the Daimler DR450 , a Pullmann version of the Majestic Major . The DS 420 is technically based on the Jaguar Mark X (more precisely on its facelift 420 G) including its complex rear axle construction. It is driven by a six-cylinder in - line engine from Jaguar with two overhead camshafts ( DOHC ) and a displacement of 4235 cm³, which initially produced 137 kW (186 DIN PS). This is the same variant of Jaguar's XK engine range that was used in the XJ 6 4.2 liter. The DS 420 was only available with a three-speed automatic transmission from General Motors . The vehicle thus reaches a top speed of 180 km / h.

The body of the DS 420 was designed conservatively. The design was developed by Daimler itself. The rear end, however, made reference to earlier luxury bodies from Hooper Coachbuilders .

The DS 420 had a total of 7 seats (2 of which were folding emergency seats). A shorter, five-seat “close-coupled” version was planned, but not implemented. A landaulette with a convertible top that could be folded back over the rear seats was presented in 1973, but only two copies were produced. However, there are a number of subsequent modifications that were not carried out by the factory itself. A number of DS 420 sedans have been converted into funeral vehicles by independent body builders such as Startin in Birmingham or Woodall Nicholson in Halifax .

Of this large and heavy car (empty weight: 2100 kg), 250 pieces per year were custom-made to order. Vanden Plas did the painting and interior fittings until 1979 . After the end of Vanden Plas, the vehicles were completely manufactured by Jaguar in Coventry from 1980. When this model was discontinued in 1992 after 24 years of construction, exactly 5043 pieces (4116 sedans and 927 special bodies) were built. In the last vehicle, the last copy of the XK engines produced by Jaguar since 1948 was installed.

Famous owners

Daimler / Coventry is the only brand that has supplied all five monarchs of the United Kingdom since 1901. This fondness for the brand was shared by monarchs around the world. For a long time, Rolls-Royce was only the second choice for royalty. Rolls-Royce was only able to gain a foothold in the British royal family through the intervention of Queen Elizabeth II's husband. With the post-war "Straight Eight" model, Daimler was still ahead of the Rolls-Royce Phantom IV among royal families worldwide. The Daimler was ruled by six ruling monarchs (King George VI of the United Kingdom, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, King Mohammed Zahir Shah of Afghanistan, Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia, Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands and Prince Rainier of Monaco), the Rolls-Royce only by three (the Shah of Persia, the Emir of Kuwait and the King of Iraq). In the next generation of sedans, however, Rolls-Royce was more successful with the Phantom V model than the Daimler DR 450. In 1968, the two manufacturers again competed against each other with new models for the favor of ruling monarchs - Rolls-Royce with the revision called the Phantom VI the Phantom V and Daimler with the completely new DS 420. With this model, Daimler was to regain supremacy in royal families.

King Frederik IX von Denmark made the start; on a visit to London he was allowed to use the very first pre-production copy, which he apparently remembered fondly, because in March 1970 he received a demonstration car from the factory in a classic black paintwork. This first delivery to a king was worth a presentation for Daimler. The limousine played a special role until recently and, after King Frederik, served his successor Queen Margarethe II, the widow and ex- Queen Ingrid , Crown Prince Frederik at his wedding in 2004 with Mary Donaldson and subsequently Prince Joachim and Princess Marie . This first DS 420 limousine that went to a royal family is still part of the Queen's fleet today - so it has been in the service of the royal family for around half a century!

Prince Rainier III. from Monaco even flew to England to personally pick up his Daimler limousine on a cargo plane in November 1970. His DS 420 was painted in the color combination "silk" (a color mixture of gold, silver and pale green) and black and had a small blue light on the roof. It served him as a state limousine until his death in 2005 and can be viewed as part of the automobile museum he founded in Monte Carlo.

The mother of the Queen of England Queen Mother Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon ( Queen Mum ) was probably the greatest lover of this model, because she even visited the Vanden Plas factory to inspect the model for her while it was still in production and brought her final personal design requests on. Between 1970 and her death in 2002 she served no less than five copies of the Daimler sedan in a row (delivered in 1970, 1978, 1983, 1986 and 1992), each with the license plate “NLT 2” and all in the two-tone paintwork “Black over royal Wine red ". She bequeathed the last copy to the “Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust”, which presents it to the public in its collection in Gaydon or at events.

King Hussein of Jordan also decided in 1970 for a Daimler limousine, which was kept in the color "sand". With her, today's King Abdullah was once brought to school. This limousine can also be viewed - in the Royal Automobile Museum in Amman.

Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg chose a Daimler DS 420 as his state limousine in 1970 and took over the one in "Westminster Blue" in 1971. It served him until 1988 when he took over a new one in the same color scheme.

Sultan Quabus ibn Sa'id Al Sa'id of Oman was the next royal customer, in January 1972 two limousines in black paint were delivered to him.

After the death of your father, King Frederik IX, in 1972, his daughter, Queen Margarethe II, took over the fate of the oldest monarchy in Europe as well as the black Daimler limousine that went into service in 1970. Since this also served the widow and ex-queen Ingrid, there was a need for another copy, which was also delivered to her in black paint in June 1974. She combined private and professional obligations with him, for example accompanying her sons to school and then attending public appointments.

King Yahya Petra Ibni Almarhum Ibrahim of Malaysia was the first monarch from the Far East to order a Daimler DS 420 sedan and take it over in the second half of 1977.

He was followed by Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei , who registered his 1981 Daimler limousine in England, where he has several places of residence.

1984 was to be a very important year for Daimler, because after eight monarchs from all over the world had opted for the Daimler limousine, the first order was finally placed by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. The model was mainly used as a befitting means of transport for Prince Charles and his young wife Lady Diana . Like the limousine of the Prince of Monaco and the models of the Queen Mother before, it had a blue light on the roof.

In 1986 the time was ripe in Denmark to order a new model to replace one of the two sedans that were in frequent use. However, the younger and not the older model was replaced, with which Queen Margaret II probably had too much in common with her father King Frederik IX. In a departure from the previous tradition, the new model was kept in "Westminster Blue".

1987 marked the 35th anniversary of the throne of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom and thus an occasion for the renewal of her vehicle fleet. Two Vanden Plas Princess were replaced by a Daimler DS 420 sedan and a Rolls-Royce Phantom VI - a Solomonic solution in the competition between the two British premium brands. In active use, the Daimler was clearly ahead and was often seen in action with the entire family of the Prince of Wales - Prince Charles, Lady Diana and their two sons Prince William and Prince Henry ("Harry") , for the little ones Folding seats looked like they were tailor-made. Of course, Sarah Ferguson , the Duchess of York, attended appointments most often . Even the Queen herself was on the move when the occasion did not require the use of the State Car. Who uses the car can be recognized by the coat of arms on the roof, which was positioned behind the blue light. The queen's coat of arms is only used when she personally uses the carriage, such as on the 40th anniversary of her accession to the throne. When other family members use the car, either their personalized coat of arms is used, which differs in details from that of the queen, or in the vast majority of cases the coat of arms with the “Vice Regal Crown”. This is also on the car when other / civil dignitaries are promoted. The spectrum is wide - it includes the queen's private secretaries , her ladies-in-waiting , her mistress of the robes and of course the spouses of state presidents who, with Prince Philip in the Daimler, follow the state car with the queen on a state visit . The 1987 limousine was the first of the latest (and at the same time last) generation of models that went to a royal family.

This revised form also found favor with the Swedish royal family, where a Daimler was also chosen as the state limousine in 1950, which, of course, could use a little more recent relief. The black painted DS 420 limousine for King Carl XVI. Gustav of Sweden was completed in October and subsequently handed over.

The revised form of the limousine was also very popular in Luxembourg, and Grand Duke Jean ordered a model to replace the 1971 model, again in “Westminster Blue”. The takeover took place in September 1988.

By this time, the Queen had already received her third sedan a few days ago, which was to replace the first one from 1984 in August 1988. It was visually identical to the sedan from 1987, with the exception of a small interior detail. In 1992, this story of royal preference for a certain automobile model would usually have come to an end, as production was discontinued that year. On this occasion, the queen was given two of the last four copies produced by Daimler as a gift, the third copy went to the queen mother, the fourth to the factory museum.

Queen Margarethe II of Denmark would have liked to have had another copy, but where to get it from? She was lucky, because the Daimler importer for Sweden had ordered another model in addition to the one for the König in 1987, which he kept in reserve and which had almost no mileage. Even better, "Westminster Blue" was exactly the color you were looking for! In view of the close family ties between the Swedish and Danish royal houses, the export approval was also secured in higher places and Queen Margarethe II has had a third limousine since 1994! However, it did not automatically and immediately became number 1. At the wedding of the heir to the throne in 2004, this coveted role was assigned to the oldest Daimler in the vehicle fleet. Most of the time, however, the latest model was used for the queen's daily trips to representation appointments. Around 2010, the 1986 sedan was officially ceded to the heir apparent.

Grand Duke Jean's Daimler limousine was also passed on to his son and successor in office, Grand Duke Henri , who has used it as a state limousine to this day. The license plate changes depending on the purpose. When receiving state visits and on national holidays, there is a crown on the license plate, in "everyday use", however, only the number "1". At the wedding of the heir to the throne of His Royal Highness the Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume with Stephanie de Lannoy in October 2012, the Daimler limousine wore a license plate in the colors orange and blue, which stand for the house of Weilburg-Nassau. At the wedding of the grand duke's nephew, who belongs to the Habsburg family, the Daimler wore the corresponding colors black and yellow on the license plate. When the Daimler limousine is on the road outside of Luxembourg, it has a diplomatic license plate.

With these deliveries to no fewer than ten ruling monarchs, the Daimler limousine overshadowed not only the Phantom VI, which was only supplied to the King of Thailand and the Sultan of Brunei, but also all other models in automotive history. It testifies to the special importance of this model that it ranks at the top of the favor of the royal family to this day and has thus survived the Daimler brand, which was discontinued in 2008 - this is also unique in automotive history. Against this background, the DS 420 sedan can be described as the most important model from Daimler / Coventry.

gallery

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  Daimler DS 420 (1968)

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  Daimler DS 420

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  The " Hooper tail"

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  Rear view

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  Chauffeur's seat

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  Engine compartment

Technical specifications

literature

• Austro Classic 5/2019, Daimler DS 420 - The limousine of kings and queen of limousines
• Austro Classic 2/2011, Her Majesty's Carriages - 85 Years of Royal Mobility
• The Driving Member Vol.49 No. 9, Royal Daimler in the Heart of Europe
• The Driving Member Vol.51 No.8, Royal Daimler in Sweden
• The Driving Member Vol.52 Nr.2, 45 Years of Royal Daimler in Denmark
• Automobil Revue , catalog number 1987 (data)
• Halwart Schrader: Jaguar type compass - passenger cars since 1931. Motorbuch-Verlag, Stuttgart, 2001, ISBN 3-613-02106-4
• Heiner Stertkamp: Jaguar - The complete chronicle from 1922 to 2006. 2nd edition, Heel-Verlag, 2006, ISBN 3-89880-337-6
• Nigel Thorley: Jaguar - The Complete Works . Bay View Books Ltd., Devon (UK), 1996, ISBN 1-870979-69-9

Web links

Commons : Daimler DS420  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• http://www.myds420.info/articles_ne2.html#austro_classic
• Sales brochure for the Daimler DS 420 from 1979 (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Nick Walker: A – Z of British Coachbuilders 1919–1960 . Shebbear 2007 (Herridge & Sons Ltd.) ISBN 978-0-9549981-6-5 , p. 173.
2. ↑ Jaguar Heritage Trust: Six Cylinder XK Engine (English), with a picture of this dark red sedan