Northern Type L

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Northern

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Northern Type K (30 HP)
Northern Type L (40 HP)
Production period: 1906-1908
Class : Upper class
Body versions : Touring car , roadster , limousine
Engines:
Gasoline engines : 5.3–7.1 liters
Length:
Width:
Height:
Wheelbase : 2844-3023 mm
Empty weight : 1000-1590 kg
Previous model without
successor without

The American motor vehicle manufacturer Northern Manufacturing Company , founded in 1902 and from 1906: Northern Motor Car Company , first offered a luxury class model with a four-cylinder engine from 1906. It came onto the market as Type K and was replaced by the enlarged successor Type L in the following year .

Northern Manufacturing

Northern logo (1905).

The company was founded by Detroit investors who brought in two well-known designers: Jonathan D. Maxwell (1864–1928) as plant manager and designer and Charles Brady King (1868–1957) as chief engineer. Both came from the Olds Motor Works in Lansing ( Michigan ); Maxwell was there involved in the development of the Oldsmobile Curved Dash . He left Northern Manufacturing in 1904 and co-founded Maxwell-Briscoe . King became his successor as a designer at Northern . In 1908 Northern and the Wayne Automobile Company in Detroit merged. The Everitt-Metzger-Flanders Company (EMF) emerged from this in 1909 . King left as early as 1908 and two years later founded the King Motor Car Company .

Maxwell-Briscoe subsequently became one of several forerunners of the Chrysler Corporation , EMF was taken over by the Studebaker Corporation and formed one of the foundations of the Studebaker automobile.

Model history Northern Model K and L

Northern Chief Engineer Charles Brady King.

These four-cylinder models were the brand's top models and their last new development. With the runabout , Maxwell succeeded in establishing the Northern brand and establishing the company's reputation as a manufacturer of seriously designed and solidly built automobiles. The slightly larger 15 HP with unconventional solutions cemented this reputation. King was probably solely responsible for the four-cylinder models that followed. As with the two-cylinder series, which continued to be built in parallel, the new four-cylinder series also received a front-mounted engine and rear-wheel drive using a cardan shaft . There was an annual model upgrade that led from the designation Type K 1906 to L 1907 and 1908. Each model year had its own engine, the one from 1907 with 7.1 liter displacement being the largest of all Northern used. The engine output was also increased several times and the wheelbase and the body variants available ex works varied. Of course, the chassis was also available on its own, so that it could be clad by specialized coachbuilders according to customer requirements. Even after a second plant in Port Huron (Michigan) became available in 1907 , the production of the Type L remained in Detroit.

A simplified operation was aimed at with the two-cylinder models. Northern continued these efforts with the large series and introduced air brakes and an air pressure operated clutch based on patents owned by Charles B. King.

technology

From 1904, King was the company's chief engineer. Only incomplete data is available on the technology of the vehicles. Unless otherwise stated, the following data refer to the Type K from 1906 as the best-referenced model. As far as known, all Northern were right hand drive .

King brought some innovative ideas to the brand's new top models, including a pneumatic clutch, brakes and an air pump for the tires. One of the innovations of the vehicle was a simplified operation, which however required a complex system. There was a brake pedal for the mechanical brake; the pneumatic one was operated with a combination lever which was also used "interactively" for acceleration. There were no accelerator or clutch pedals; The forward gears were operated with a small lever probably attached to the steering column, which apparently also triggered the clutch process. A pedal was available for reverse gear. Instead of the usual, but not harmless to use, starter crank, there was a ratchet lever .

The vehicles weighed

  • Type K (1906): 2,100  lb (953  kg ) or 2,200  lb (998  kg )
  • Type L (1907): 3,300  lb (1,497  kg )
  • Type L (1908): 3,000  lb (1,361  kg )

engine

It is known of the four-cylinder engine that it was an in- line engine that was housed upright at the front. It was water-cooled with the radiator on the front of the vehicle and a "gear-driven" water pump. Type K had a bore of 4 inches and a stroke , resulting in a cubic capacity of 318.1 ci , whereby it should be noted that the initial dimensions are probably rounded and thus an apparent accuracy results. According to this, the engine would have had a volume of around 5.2 liters. The specified power of 30 HP probably refers to the calculated value according to the usual ALAM rating (32.4 HP for four-cylinder with 4 inch bore).

Type L in 1907 had a 5 inch bore and a 5½ inch stroke, making 432.0 ci or approximately 7.1 liters. The performance is named with 50 HP (5 inch bore results in an ALAM rating of 48.4 HP). In the 1908 version of the L , a slightly smaller motor with a square ratio of bore and stroke was used (5 × 5 inches; ALAM rating 40 HP).

These vehicles had a manually operated ratchet starter instead of the usual crank and battery ignition . There is no information on the type of engine lubrication .

Power transmission

Unlike the one- and two-cylinder models equipped with planetary gears , the four-cylinder got conventional three-speed gears . Their operation has been simplified by the aforementioned pneumatic coupling. The models K and L had a cardan drive ; the gearbox was blocked with the rear axle.

Chassis and suspension

Since nothing else is mentioned, a conventional ladder frame can be assumed which, at least in the case of Type K, was made of angle iron . The vehicle has leaf springs all around; According to a work recording, double elliptical springs were used at least at the front. Also known wheelbase : 112 inches (2844 mm) at K and 119 inches (3023 mm) when L . The track of the type K was the usual 56 inches (), no information is available for the type L. The wheels of the K were 32 × 4 inches, those of the L in both model years 34 × 4½ inches. The well-known pictures of such vehicles show artillery wheels .

The vehicle had two independent braking systems. The mechanical system was operated with the foot pedal, the pneumatic with a combination lever that also served to accelerate. The manufacturer just noted that both worked independently.

The gas tank held 18 gallons (approximately 68 liters).

body

The superstructures were made of wood. Type K was only available from the factory as a Touring with 5–6 (factory specification) or 5 seats. The customer received a paint finish of their choice for the list price of US $ 3000. Various hoods were offered as accessories as weather protection.

Type L was available from the factory in three versions in 1907: as a touring and sedan with 6 seats each and as a two-seater runabout . In 1908 the sedan was discontinued. A name change meant that the runabout became a roadster . What is stranger is that last year's Touring was now called the Tonneau , which, according to a single source, was now equipped with 7 seats. From 1904 to 1906 there were actually tonneaus with rear entry on the two-cylinder chassis. It is very unlikely that the designation tonneau , which was also adopted for the Type C in 1908, refers to such an old-fashioned design; a side entry to the rear is more likely. In fact, a Type C from 1908 that has survived has such side access to the rear and a conventional rear seat. Tonneau with side entry is therefore a description for touring .

Model overview

model Bj. engine
Cubic capacity c.i. / cm³		 ALAM rating Wheelbase
inches / mm		 body Prices
US $		 Remarks
Type K 1906 4 sv 318.1 / 5313 30 HP 112/2844 Touring , 5 pl. 3000, -
Type L 1907 4 sv 432.0 / 7079 50 HP 119/3023 Runabout , 2 pl. 3500, -
Type L 1907 4 sv 432.0 / 7079 50 HP 119/3023 Touring, 6 pl. 3500, -
Type L 1907 4 sv 432.0 / 7079 50 HP 119/3023 Chauffeur-Lim., 6 pl. 4500.00
Type L 1908 4 sv 392.7 / 6435 40 HP 119/3023 Roadster , 2 pl. 3500, -
Type L 1908 4 sv 392.7 / 6435 40 HP 119/3023 Touring, 7 pl.
Manufacturer's designation: Tonneau 		3500, -
see. Body .

Due to rounding in the sources, the calculation of the cubic capacity can lead to apparent accuracy . The information in this table has been compiled from several sources and partially converted. They are based on the ALAM rating developed by the Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers .

literature

The NACC rating corresponds to the ALAM formula of the predecessor organization.
  • Beverly Rae Kimes (ed.), Henry Austin Clark Jr.: Standard Catalog of American Cars 1805-1942. Krause Publications, Iola WI, 1996; ISBN 978-0-87341-428-9 .
  • Beverly Rae Kimes: Pioneers, Engineers, and Scoundrels: The Dawn of the Automobile in America. Ed. SAE ( Society of Automotive Engineers ) Permissions, Warrendale PA, 2005; ISBN 0-7680-1431-X .
  • James J. Flink: America Adopts the Automobile - 1895-1910. MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), 1970; ISBN 0-262-06036-1 .
  • GN Georgano (Ed.): Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars, 1885 to the Present. Dutton Press, New York, 2nd Edition, 1973; ISBN 0-525-08351-0 .
  • Thomas E. Bonsall: More Than They Promised: The Studebaker Story. Stanford University Press, 2000; ISBN 0-8047-3586-7 .
  • Robert D. Dluhy: American Automobiles of the Brass Era: Essential Specifications of 4,000+ Gasoline Powered Passenger Cars, 1906-1915, with a Statistical and Historical Overview. McFarland & Co Inc. publishers, Jefferson NC, 2013; ISBN 0-78647-136-0 .
  • Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers (Ed.): Handbook of Gasoline Automobiles / 1904–1905–1906. Introduced by Clarence P. Hornung, Dover Publications, New York, 1969.
  • National Automobile Chamber of Commerce (Ed.): Handbook of Automobiles 1915–1916. Dover Publications, 1970.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Kimes: Pioneers, Engineers, and Scoundrels. 2005, p. 111.
  2. ↑ Kimes: Pioneers, Engineers, and Scoundrels. 2005, p. 339.
  3. ^ Kimes, Cark: Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1523 (Wayne).
  4. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l Kimes, Cark: Standard Catalog of American cars, 1805-1942. 1996, p. 1046 (Northern).
  5. ^ Georgiano: Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars, 1885 to the Present. 1973, p. 515 (Northern).
  6. ^ Automotive Hall of Fame: Inductee Charles B. King.
  7. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m Dluhy: American Automobiles of the Brass Era , 2013, p. 102 (Northern).
  8. ↑ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n A.LAM: Handbook of Gasoline Automobiles 1906 , p. 79 (Northern Type K).
  9. ↑ conceptcarz.com: 1908 Northern Model C # 3226th
  10. ^ Dluhy: American Automobiles of the Brass Era , 2013, p. 35 (ALAM).
  11. ^ British Motor Car Red Book 1908: Horse Power Rating Formulas.

Remarks

  1. ↑ However, another source, Kimes (p. 1046 in the 1996 edition) also mentions left-hand drive.
  2. ↑ The ALAM ( Association of Licensed Automobile Manufacturers ) was the first US standards organization. The power is calculated: cylinder bore² × number of cylinders; the result is divided by 2.5. The problem with this calculation method was that the factor 2.5 became more imprecise with increasingly higher speeds, which is why the formula for SAE-PS was later derived from it.
  3. ↑ The ALAM existed from 1903 to 1912. The formula is also known under the name "NACC formula" of the successor organization National Automobile Chamber of Commerce . It was also used by the British Royal Automobile Club and is explained under RAC Horsepower and in the British Motor Car Red Book of 1908 on page 4 . A NACC table can be found at the end of this article.