Rootes group

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rootes Motors Limited

logo
legal form Limited Company
founding 1935
resolution 1967
Reason for dissolution Acquisition by Chrysler
Seat London , UKUnited KingdomUnited Kingdom 
Branch Automotive industry

Rootes Motors Ltd preferred share dated May 17, 1951

The Rootes Motors Limited , better known as Rootes Group , English Rootes Group was a British automobile - Group , the Hillman , Humber , Sunbeam , Commer , Karrier , Singer and the English portion of Clement Talbot belonged.

history

The group of companies was founded in 1935 by William Rootes , a former car salesman who gradually bought up the individual manufacturers. The Rootes parent plant was located northwest of Ryton-on-Dunsmore and was built in 1940 to build aircraft engines and bombers. In 1978 it was taken over by Peugeot and closed at the end of 2006.

The badge engineering under the group brands was noticeable . The 18 car types offered in 1962 were based on just three different basic engine types, three floor assemblies and two slightly different chassis. The entry-level brand was Hillman; Sunbeam was responsible for sporty vehicles and Humber and Singer for luxury vehicles . Rootes was never represented in the automotive top class. The attempt to construct a state car with the Sunbeam Thirty failed in 1936 after three or four prototypes were built.

After economic difficulties, triggered among other things by the problems with the less successful Hillman Imp , the company was taken over by the US Chrysler group in 1967 and part of Chrysler Europe together with Simca (France) and Barreiros (Spain) . In the mid-1970s, all brands of the Rootes Group were given up in favor of the Chrysler name . In 1978 Chrysler sold its European business to Peugeot, which initially continued the Chrysler Europe models under the brand name Talbot . However, since Talbot was not able to operate economically, the brand was abandoned in 1986 and merged with Peugeot.

Even after the end of the Rootes Group, two vehicles of this group remained in production with licensees for a long time: the Hillman Avenger , built in Argentina as the Dodge 1500 from 1971 , was used from 1982 - after Volkswagen took over the South American Chrysler / Dodge plants in 1980 - Sold as VW 1500 until the end of production in 1990 (not related to the German VW model of the same name Type 3 ). The Hillman Hunter was built in Iran by Iran Khodro as Paykan  1600 with a different engine until 2005.

The Rootes group in Germany

Headquarters of ROOTES AUTOS DEUTSCHLAND GMBH

Rootes Autos Deutschland GmbH was based in Düsseldorf, once on Emmastraße, then with the expansion of the workshop and sales area on Oberhausener Straße 17 in Düsseldorf-Rath. This was also the importer and maintained a fenced area for the storage of vehicles that had not yet been cleared. This was all the more important because the Rhine Army of the English occupation troops was based in Düsseldorf with barracks at the end of Oberhausener Strasse. Former officers of the Rhine Army also worked in the company.

In the course of the association (ROOTS and SIMCA), it was agreed with effect from July 1, 1967 that Deutsche Simca Vertriebsgesellschaft mbH would be responsible for importing, distributing and servicing Rootes products for the German market. The facility at Oberhausener Strasse 17 in Düsseldorf-Rath continued to be operated to look after and maintain the Simca, Rootes and Chrysler vehicles.

Entrance to the service workshop ROOTES Autos Deutschland.jpg

It was not until December 31, 1969, that operations at Oberhausener Strasse 17 in Düsseldorf were completely stopped.

gallery

  • Commer Lambourn

  • Career bantam

  • Hillman Minx

  • Hillman Super Minx

  • Hillman Imp

  • Humber Scepter

  • Singer Gazelle

  • Sunbeam Tiger

  • Talbot Ten Tourer

Timeline

Timeline of the Clement Talbot / Automobiles Talbot / Talbot (PSA) / Chrysler Europe / Simca / Rootes / Matra models from 1945 to 1986
Type SIMCA until 1957 ,
Rootes Group independent until 1967		 Entry of Chrysler , formation of Chrysler Europe Part of PSA (Peugeot) from the end of 1978
40s 50s 60s 70s 80s
5 6th 7th 8th 9 0 1 2 3 4th 5 6th 7th 8th 9 0 1 2 3 4th 5 6th 7th 8th 9 0 1 2 3 4th 5 6th 7th 8th 9 0 1 2 3 4th 5 6th 7th 8th 9
Small car Imp / Imp Californian / Husky 4 Sunbeam 5 Sunbeam 5
Chamois 4
Stiletto 4
... 5/6 1000/900/1005/1006 Samba 8
Compact class Avenger 5 Avenger 5 Avenger 5
... 8 / 8/1200 1100 7 1100 7
Horizon 7 Horizon 7 Horizon 7 Arizona
Middle class ... Minx (Mk I-Mk VII) / Husky Mk I Minx / Husky (SI-SIII) 1 Minx / Super Minx / Husky 2 New Minx / Hunter 3 Hunter 3 Hunter 3
SM 1500 Hunter Gazelle 1 Gazelle / Vogue 2 New Gazelle / Vogue 3
... Ten / 2L 80 / 90 (MkI) 90 (MkII) Mk III Rapier (SI – V) 1 New Rapier / Rapier H120 3
Scepter I + II 2 New Scepter 3 Solara 6 Solara (GB: Minx / Rapier) 6
Hawk (Mk I-III) Hawk (Mk IV – VI) Hawk (SI-IV) Alpine 6 Alpine 6 Minx / Rapier 6
9 Aronde Aronde Aronde (P60) 1300/1500 1301/1501 1301/1501 1307/1308 6 1510 6 1510 6
upper middle class ... Snipe / Super Snipe (I-III) Super Snipe (VI) Super Snipe (SI – V)
infant Ariane 160/180 160/180 / 2L 1610 / 2L 1610 / 2L Tagora 9
Upper class Pullman / Imperial (Mk I IV) Imperial
Record Vedette
Coupé / convertible Imp Sport 4
1000 coupe 1200 p
Alpine MkI / III Alpine SI – IV / Tiger New Alpine 3
Comète America
Sports car T26 Grand Sport / Saoutchik Sports Djet jet 530 Bagheera Bagheera Murena
SUV Rancho Rancho
Box van 1100 VF2 / VF3 City truck City truck
Talbot-Lago , sold to Simca in 1959 SIMCA: Fiat production under license SIMCA: 1954 by Ford France SA hinzugekauft SIMCA: partially developed on the basis of Fiat or Ford Chrysler-Simca Humber, a brand of the Rootes group, is discontinued in 1976 Sunbeam Talbot, a brand of the Rootes Group until 1953 Sunbeam, a brand of the Rootes Group from 1953, is discontinued in 1976 Singer, a brand of the Rootes Group since 1956, is discontinued in 1970 Hillman, brand of the Rootes group Chrysler Automobiles René Bonnet sports car Matra Matra-Simca Talbot Matra Talbot- Simca Talbot, brand discontinued in 1986

1 common platform of the Rootes group based on the Hillman Minx 1956
2 common platform Audax of the Rootes group based on the Hillman Super Minx
3 common platform Arrow of the Rootes group
4 common platform of the Rootes group based on the Hillman Imp
5 common platform - Chrysler Avenger, Project 424
6 shared platform - Chrysler Project C6
7 shared platform - Chrysler Project C2
8 shared PSA platform with Peugeot 104 and Citroën LN
9 Chrysler Project C9, technology largely from Peugeot 504/505/604

Web links

Commons : Rootes Group  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Rootes car. In: Motor vehicle technology 08/1962, pp. 338–341.