Description

1923 Standard 14hp Warwick Tourer

From a deceased estate; current owner 40+ years; last driven in 2016 and in need of recommissioning; transferable number; exceedingly rare Vintage tourer that needs an enthusiastic new owner to bring her back to life

If you were launching a new make of car today, you might think twice about calling it Average but back in 1903 the word Standard had very different connotations – a height to be maintained, a flag to be flown.
True, there was nothing fancy about the brand RW Maudslay established in 1903, but his Coventry-based firm proved so successful at turning out durable, well-engineered machines at modest cost that they were soon among the top six manufacturers in the UK, their trademark being a distinctive shouldered radiator adorned with a Union Jack badge.
In fact you get the impression that Maudslay didn’t put much stock in names – there was no Nippy, Rapier or Vitesse in his catalogue, and Standard’s best-selling model of the early Twenties was actually called the SLO. Whatever the name, the quality was not in doubt, a fact not lost on William Lyons who seized on the excellent Standard Nine of 1928 and clothed it in his own Swallow body to lay the foundations of what would soon become one of the most exalted names in motoring: Jaguar.
Supplied new in February 1923 by The South Devon Carriage Company, whose brass plaque is still affixed to the bulkhead, this Standard SLO4 is fitted with Warwick five-seat tourer coachwork with plenty of room for all the family. Although the chassis plate says 11hp, the SLO4 was actually rated at 13.9hp and a letter on file from the Standard Motor Club confirms that TA 5267 is indeed a 13.9hp model.
The letter goes on to say: "This particular model is very rare. The Club knows of the remains of three in New Zealand plus the remains of one in the UK converted into a playing field roller. Only three others survive and this particular one [TA 5267] is the most complete and original". The letter is dated 1987 but it is unlikely that much has changed since then.
Correspondence and two buff and green logbooks on file show that the car was first owned by a Dr Reynolds of Devon who was to keep it for 36 years, ownership then transferring to a Derek Adams of Okehampton in 1959. Originally Fawn, it had been repainted in its current red some time before Adams acquired it, the engine being rebuilt at around the same time. With 22 other vintage cars in his fleet, Adams never found time to give the Standard the attention it required so in 1962 he sold it to a Mr C Penkethman of CP Motors in Cheshire by which time it was still in running order but somewhat dilapidated.
Our vendor acquired it in 1970 to join his collection of cars but it seems that he then briefly sold it to a John Hewitt of Kineton, Warks, in 1972 only to buy it back again a few years later. He then tidied the car up before using it regularly, a copy of the Standard Motor Club newsletter showing him, his wife and the car at the Sandwell Show in 1987 where they were awarded first prize for their period costume and car. Eight old MOTs show that the car covered some 2,600 miles from 1987 to 1999, the odometer indicating that it has only covered another 700 miles since then. Last driven in 2016, it will doubtless benefit from some precautionary recommissioning before venturing forth once more and no doubt other jobs will also be required such as refitting the front passenger door and the headlamps.
Well-known to the Club, this exceedingly rare Warwick Tourer has a well-documented ownership history and now needs an enthusiastic new custodian who can tidy it up and give it the more regular exercise it deserves. On offer here from a deceased estate, it comes with a good hood, an interesting file of correspondence and retains its original Devon-issued number, TA 5267, which is transferable.
For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email [email protected]