1931 Invicta Model S

When manufacturers used the unconventional front-wheel-drive configuration, cars could sit about 10 inches lower than the traditional rear-wheel-drive counterparts. The Invicta 4.5-liter S-Type employed an under-slung chassis with similar results to the FWD configuration, allowing it to sit lower than most sports cars of its era. This not only enhanced its sporty persona but greatly improved its performance pedigree.

The history of the Invicta Company dates back to 1924 when former racing driver Captain Noel Macklin and Oliver Lyle began building cars that offered performance and quality. Both of these individuals had backgrounds in motorsports and, like the contemporary Bentley, understood the need for high-quality manufacturing and the need to test its product through racing. With prices being a secondary consideration, the firm was unable to weather the Depression years of the early 1930s, with the final car leaving the factory on October 13th, 1933. Although Invicta's existence was rather brief, the impact it left on the automotive marketplace and the motorsports arena was profound.

The company finished its first Invicta model in 1925 and equipped it with a Coventry Climax 4-cylinder engine. Later cars utilized a 2.5-liter straight-six Meadows engine that offered lots of torque. Displacement sizes eventually grew to 3 liters and ultimately to 4.5 liters.

Invicta's most famous model was the S-Type designed by Reid Railton. It was introduced in 1930 at the Motor Show at Olympia and featured an all-new 'under-slung' chassis that had a much lower center of gravity due to positioning the rear axle above the frame rails instead of below as was normal practice at the time. Power was from a 4.5-liter Meadows engine which it shared with its stablemates, the 'NLC' and 'A' types. The low-revving engine with a relatively high 3.2:1 final drive ratio offered ample torque in the lower and middle-speed ranges while also being able to accelerate rapidly. In racing trim, the S-Type could achieve a top speed of around 116 mph.

Invicta offered standard Tourer coachwork by Carbodies of Coventry or as rolling chassis to be built to customer's needs and specifications.

Approximately 75 examples of the S-Type were built, with roughly 68 examples remaining.

by Dan Vaughan

Coupe by Carbodies
Chassis number: S57

Invicta Cars produced about 1,000 models overall. Former racing driver Captain Noel Macklin established the Invicta Car Company in 1924 to build the finest British sports cars. Powered by a Coventry Climax 4-cylinder engine, the first Invicta was finished in 1925. Later cars had a 2.5-liter straight-six Meadows engine that produced a lot of torque, and over time the engine grew in size, first to 3 liters and ultimately to 4.5 liters. Invictas were well-loved and very successful on the track and in road rallies. The company's most famous model, the S-type with its underslung chassis designed by Reid Railton, was launched at the 1930 Olympia Car Show. This configuration lowered the car's center of gravity, greatly improving its performance. Some S-Types were sold as rolling chassis, but Invicta offered standard Tourer coachwork by Carbodies of Coventry.

This coupe is one of the most unusual S-Type Invictas, having a unique fixed head body by Carbodies. The car has had just two owners since 1945, and both have used the car on an almost daily basis.

Tourer by Carbodies

This car is one of only 26 Invicta Sports Tourers with coachwork by Carbodies left in the world. Its early history is not known, but it was purchased secondhand by a Mr. Richards for £700 and regularly used until 1952. In 1985 the car was repainted and re-trimmed as it is today. The car remained with the same family until 1995, when it was sold to an American buyer who restored it mechanically in 1997. This restoration retained all of the original parts and the body was left untouched. The car was driven very little until it was sold in 2000. During recent years the emergency hand brake was moved to the outside of the car as on a few other Invictas owned by 'larger' men.

Sports Tourer by Vanden Plas
Chassis number: S102
Engine number: 12371

This Invicta is chassis number S102, wears Vanden Plas body number 1711, and is powered by engine number 12371. This LeMans Type 4 Seater was originally registered on the U.K. roads in 1931 and owned by an individual living in the Reading area of the U.K., south of London. Later owners include Rowland Smith and F.R. Walker. It is believed that its original crankcase for engine number 7515 was replaced with the current unit, numbered 12371.

It is listed as having left the factory as a left-hand drive car but currently has right-hand drive configuration.

By 1956 the car was in the care of Frederick Stahl and later given a restoration (while in his care) by Russ Sceli of Hartford, Connecticut. In 1971 ownership passed to Mark Gibbons of Cambridge, Mass. In November of 1982, it was sold to Dean Edmonds. He later commissioned RM Auto Restorations in Chatham to perform a restoration, lasting from 1991 and continuing through 1994. Upon completion, he brought the Invicta to the Pebble Beach Concours in 1995, where it won a First in Class award. The car was also shown at the Concours d'Elegance at Cranbrook, Michigan, on occasion, the 1996 Eyes on Classic Design, among other events.

The car has remained in the Edmonds Collection for nearly four decades.

The car is powered by a 4.42 liter, single overhead cam, inline 6-cylinder Meadows engine fitted with twin SU carburetors. It develops 103 horsepower at 3,000 RPM and is backed by a four-speed manual transmission. There are leaf spring suspensions in the front and rear, and four-wheel drum brakes.

by Dan Vaughan