1920 Vauxhall D-Type

History

Alexander Wilson founded the company in Vauxhall, London in 1857. Originally it was named Alex Wilson and Company, then Vauxhall Iron Works. The company built pumps and marine engines. In 1903, the company built its first car, a five horsepower model steered using a tiller, with two forward gears and no reverse gear. In 1925, Vauxhall was bought by GM for $2.5 million.

The performance era of Vauxhall really came into form when L.H Pomeroy was made chief engineer. He had a passion for racing and was able to convince his bosses that they should try their luck in the racing area. By 1910, the company had built its first hand-built sporting vehicle and raced in the German Prince Henry trials. The cars endured amazing success. To commemorate, a series of road-going cars, dubbed the 'Prince Henry', were created.

In 1913, the Vauxhall 30/98 was introduced. Within time, it evolved into one of the fastest road-going cars available, with a large and powerful engine that was able to carry the vehicle to speeds reaching 100 mph. The car came with an expensive price tag, making it very exclusive and rare.

After World War I, the 30/98 E-Type model was introduced. During the pre-War era, the company had produced the B, C, and D-Type versions of the 30/98. The E-Type had a side-valve engine that produced around 90 horsepower. The performance was good and the car was well constructed; the main drawbacks was its weight.

Production of the E-Type continued until 1922, with around 270 examples being constructed. Vauxhall introduced the OE-Type; the main changes were improvements to the engine. The 'O' represented the new overhead-valve operated engine, which helped boost horsepower output to 115. Later, power was increased again, now to 120 bhp.

Production continued until 1927, with a total of 312 examples being constructed.

By Daniel Vaughan | Jul 2008