Lot Ended
Description
NEW VIDEO; Stunning polished aluminium coachwork; lusty 4-litre
four-cylinder on twin-SUs; loads of space; full weather equipment; ex-New
Zealand car with history; the ultimate Vintage Tourer of the period; driven 35+
miles to the sale
At the turn of the last
century, Vauxhall’s reputation as a builder of cars for the top echelons of
society was well understood, the Vauxhall being considered somewhat more
sporting in nature than its competitors. Indeed, Vauxhall are often credited
with producing Britain’s first sportscar – the Prince Henry, or C-type
model.
The Prince Henry’s spiritual successor, the 30-98 made its debut
as early as 1913, although very few left the factory before war broke out.
Vauxhall’s popular 25hp model became the transport of choice for staff officers
during the War and when hostilities ceased, Vauxhall soon introduced their new
models, the D-type 23-60 which was an updated 25hp and the E-type which was a
mildly revamped pre-war 30-98 model.
Both shared many features, the
D-type having a longer and heavier chassis than the overtly sporting E-type, the
former proving particularly popular with outside coachbuilders who often fitted
formal closed coachwork rather than the elegant open offerings from the
factory.
The D-type 23-60 used a four-cylinder monobloc 3,969cc fixed
head engine, producing about 60bhp at 2,000rpm, driving through a four-speed
gearbox. It was good for over 60mph with factory open coachwork. Front brakes
were initially considered sissy and retardation on the 23-60 was supplied by the
two rear brakes and a transmission brake. However front-wheel brakes were
offered as an option and from 1924 onwards they became standard which no doubt
saved a few cars from ending their days in a ditch.
As early as 1922, the
D-type 23-60 had been given overhead valves, the 30-98 having to wait until
early 1923 to be similarly upgraded. They were known from then on as the OD and
OE respectively. More bhp was on offer but it came at the expense of some of the
extraordinary flexibility of the earlier cars due to a shorter stroke, although
they were still strong performers by any measure.
Prices were generally
slightly below those of the comparable Rolls Royce, although Vauxhall began to
drop their prices in response to the recession of the early 1920s. The 23-60 was
in production from 1922 and was eventually dropped by General Motors shortly
after their takeover of Vauxhall in 1925. Around 1,300 examples were produced
with fewer than 10% thought to survive today, although there is a very active
club/Register.
OD775
was specifically built up for Ian McKnee of Victoria by Max Houston of The
Vintage Garage at Central Mangrove north of Sydney. It was the intention of
McKnee to use the car in the Paris to Peking rally, however this never happened
and he passed away with his dream unfulfilled.
It is thought that the
mechanical work was done by Gavin Sandford-Morgan in Adelaide, the car ending up
in Grant Cowie’s workshop ‘Up The Creek’ where it was given an overhaul which
included a new camshaft to 30-98 spec which cheered up performance no
end.
It
has a new body built along the same lines as OD233 and has an upgraded engine
with twin-carbs, Alvis brakes grafted onto the original unbraked 23-60 axle and
the footbrake operating the four wheels with the handbrake on the transmission
brake.
The car was sold to the late David Skyrme who lived on The Bay Of
Islands at the top of the North Island in NZ. The car got little use before it
was subsequently purchased by our vendor and shipped to the UK and
registered.
OD775 having spent its formative years in Australia
was registered in NZ with a new local VIN, which is what currently shows on the
V5C now that it is back here – not that it matters. The car is well-known to the
23-60 Register.
The car has had further work to the handbrake just
recently and was driven some 35 miles to the sale. It has been running onsite
exhibiting the typical Vauxhall smoothness for which they were famed, the
Lanchester balancer aiding this, masking the fact that despite its four-litres,
it only has four-cylinders.
On offer at a very realistic price level for
a quality Vauxhall, it comes with a good hood, full set of sidescreens, tonneau
covers and lots of nice period fittings, including CAV lighting and a period
Wyvern radiator mascot.
For those who can’t quite stretch to a 30-98,
this well-presented 23-60 looks super value.
Contact
[email protected]
* All charges are subject to VAT