New Imperial

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New Imperial

logo
legal form Ltd.
founding 1887
resolution 1939/1940
Reason for dissolution takeover
Seat Birmingham
Branch vehicle construction

Light Tourist with 300 cm³
New Imperial 19XX.jpg
500 cc from 1937

New Imperial was a British manufacturer of motorcycles .

history

The company was founded in 1887 as New Imperial Cycles Ltd. Founded by Norman Duckwood Downes as a supplier for the booming bicycle production in Birmingham . The company has been designing motorcycles since 1903. New Imperial used built-in engines from JAP until they developed their own engines in 1925. The designs were initially quite simple with a motor mounted behind the handlebars that drove the front wheel via a transmission belt . In 1911 a motorcycle with a 292 cm³ engine followed, which was manufactured in three versions until 1916. Occasionally, drivers on the New Imperial took part in races. At the beginning of the company's history, these attempts were still quite unsuccessful. For example, a driver named AS Jones was unable to finish the race at the Isle of Man TT in 1913 .

In 1914, the Light Tourist with a 300 cc engine came on the market and generated a lot of interest. Due to its small displacement, it had a weight advantage over many competitive models with larger engines. Towards the end of the First World War , the models were available for around 50 pounds sterling . A comparable Excelsior hovered around 90 pounds. After the war, the company relocated to a larger production site and expanded the model range. At the beginning of the 1920s, the first racing successes ensured increasing production numbers. Around 300 machines left the factory every month. In 1927, shortly before the start of the global economic crisis , the company moved into new premises again and renamed New Imperial Motors .

From 1932 New Imperial came up with some innovations. The gearbox and crankcase, for example, were manufactured in one cast and not flanged on as usual. The company also did not rely on the usual rigid frames . In 1938 the founder died and the company was bought by Jack Sangster with the aim of combining production with Triumph in Coventry . The naming rights changed hands several times before production was finally stopped at the end of 1939 / beginning of 1940 and the company was liquidated.

Race successes (excerpt)

year class driver run
1923 Lightweight Jock Porter Isle of Man TT
1924 Ultra-lightweight Jock Porter Isle of Man TT
1924 Lightweight Edwin Twemlow Isle of Man TT
1924 Junior Kenneth Twemlow Isle of Man TT
1924 350 cc Fred Andrews Ulster Grand Prix
1924 over 600 cm³ Stanley Woods Ulster Grand Prix
1925 Lightweight Edwin Twemlow Isle of Man TT
1932 Lightweight Leo Davenport Isle of Man TT
1932 250 cc Ted Mellors Ulster Grand Prix
1933 250 cc Charlie Dodson Ulster Grand Prix
1933 250 cc Charlie Dodson European Grand Prix
1934 500 cc Ginger Wood Brooklands *
1936 Lightweight Bob Foster Isle of Man TT
1936 250 cc Ginger Wood Ulster Grand Prix

* Record speed

Automobile manufacturing

In 1914 the company also made some light automobiles. The four-cylinder engine with 64 mm bore , 85 mm stroke and 1094 cm³ displacement was classified as 10 HP , corresponding to 10  tax horsepower . It drove the rear axle via a cardan shaft . The transmission had three gears.

literature

  • Paul Collins: British motorcycle brands , Motorbuch Verlag Stuttgart. 1st edition 2000, ISBN 3-613-02036-X
  • Harald H. Linz, Halwart Schrader : The International Automobile Encyclopedia . United Soft Media Verlag, Munich 2008, ISBN 978-3-8032-9876-8 , chapter New Imperial.
  • George Nick Georgano (Editor-in-Chief): The Beaulieu Encyclopedia of the Automobile. Volume 2: G – O. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, Chicago 2001, ISBN 1-57958-293-1 , p. 1111. (English)
  • David Culshaw, Peter Horrobin: The Complete Catalog of British Cars 1895-1975. Veloce Publishing, Dorchester 1997, ISBN 1-874105-93-6 .

Web links

Commons : New Imperial  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Motor, Marine and Aircraft Red Book 1913-1917. Grace's Guide To British Industrial History, accessed January 10, 2016 .
  2. ^ 1913-1917 Motor, Marine and Aircraft Red Book: Cars (accessed January 17, 2016)