2004 Event
2003 Site
|
|
Trivia:
A
green Napier? This
green color henceforth became known as "British Racing
Green".
Trivia: What
was the first automobile to have a 6 cylinder engine?
A
Napier!
Trivia: What
was the first automobile to break 100 mph on the beach?
A
Napier! Trivia: Where,
and when was the first drag
race held,
and what won?
In 1905 at Ormond Beach, Fl., A
Stanley Steamer, outran 2 Mercedeses and a Napier.
This
1902 Napier Racer of 6.5 litres, with 5
valves per cylinder, and shaft drive was built especially for racing. It was entered for the Gordon Bennett Trophy
with Selwyn Francis Edge and Mr. Napier. After many problems, the car
left the Napier factory on June 19th, this was only seven days before
the start, in the small hours at 3:00 am. on June 26th , , and
his cousin Cecil riding as mechanic, had various troubles before the
start, a cracked cylinder head on the way to the boat, another head was
sent by train, and fitted on the journey; the second gear which had not
been hardened properly bent all it's teeth. On arriving in Paris, S. F.
Edge found a stable, got the gear out, contacted his friend Monsieur
Clement, borrowed his factory, hardened the gear, reassembled
everything, and made it to the International Race for Great Britain start on time! After a grueling Vienna to Paris race win, the car was
taken back to London, the coachwork modified, and sold to an old friend of S.F. Edges, a Mr. Brown from
North London. Mr. Brown did not keep the car for many months before part
exchanging it. The next owner was the Marquis of Anglesea who employed a
Mr. H. M. Bater to look after his cars. When Mr. Bater left to open a
Napier factory outside Boston in the U.S.A. he took the Napier with him,
he modernized it over the next twelve years, the car was last raced at
Providence Rhode Island in 1910 by Lt. Col. Clarence A. Glentworth. The car was bought from H. M. Bater by Mr. Wentworth
Erickson of Swamscott Massachusetts who owned a 1906 American Napier. In
the 1920's the car was taken apart and in the 1950's Mr. George Wingard of
Oregon managed to collect the major parts together, some of these which came
over to England in the 1970/80 period. In 1989 the present owner
Johnny Thomas (see below left) managed to buy the major items, then he
and his wife went to the USA to try to find anything left behind. The
last part of the jigsaw was the carburetor on some one's mantelpiece! This car is restored from the major parts of the
oldest British racing car in the world. It was the first car
to win an International Race for Great Britain. This is why the
Gordon Bennett race was held in Ireland in 1903, To this day the Irish
run a Gordon Bennett Rally each year to commemorate this cars win in
1902 and the race there in 1903.
The unique 1904
Napier 'Samson' from the
The highly respected West Australian Car Club will be
conducting the Sprints for AEM under CAMS regulations.
Contact the WA Car Club for Classic Quarter Mile Sprint
entry details - tel: 9523 2214, email:
forestrally@bigpond.com
NAPIER HISTORY: David Napier, whose family were
originally from Scotland, moved south in 1808 and founded D Napier & Son
in Soho London producing printing machinery. Fleet Street newspapers and
Westminster's Hansard used his machines. His son James joined him in
1845 at their new works at Vine Street Lambeth were they produced
hydraulic hoists and other machinery.
The chairman James Murdoch Napier allowed the company to decline, and on
his death in 1895 his youngest son Montague Stanley Napier took control
at the age of 25. They continued making printing machines along with
coin sorting equipment for banks. Montague experimented with his own car
in 1898 until Selwyn Francis Edge asked him to modify a Panhard et
Levassor, originally only planning to convert it from tiller steering,
Napier soon had made many other improvements and eventually made his own
engine.
SF Edge and the Honorable Charles Rolls drove a 16 hp Napier in the
Paris-Toulouse race. Later Edge had a victory in the 1902 Gordon Bennett
Cup, which resulted in Napier Green becoming the official British racing
colour.
Success led to the purchase of land in Acton in 1904 and soon Napier was
employing 500 men.
In 1905 Napier built three cars as
Hutton's.
Napier acquired the Cunard Motor and Carriage Company (set up in 1911 at
Lower Richmond Road, London SW15) to be their in-house coachbuilder.
Cunard made bodies for Napier up to 1924 and were also allowed to
continue building bodies for makes such as Sunbeam,
Crossley and
Sheffield-Simplex.
In 1913 AJ Rowledge joined as Chief Designer and began work on new car
designs. At the outbreak of the War Napier started to produce aero
engines on behalf of other companies before developing the famous
"Lion"
12-cylinder engine in 1918. In the 1920's turbocharged versions of this
engine powered the Schneider Trophy winning Supermarine aircraft. Sir
Malcolm Campbell and John Cobb both used
"Lion" powered cars in World Land
Speed Record cars. Napier also designed and built the
"Sabre" aero
engine that went on to be fitted to aircraft such as the Hawker Typhoon
and Tempest.
Although car production had ceased in 1924, in 1931 the Napier board bid
£103,675 for
Bentley Motors and started work on a 6.5 litre Napier-Bentley.
However
Rolls-Royce outbid Napier with a bid of £125,175 and acquired
Bentley in
October 1931. Special Thanks to British Motors Manufactures website
www.britishmm.co.uk
Join Us January 27-29, 2005
1902
Original Gordon Bennett Napier
with S. F. Edge and Mr. Napier
(from
http://www.aaca.org/siraaca/doyounow.htm)
Present '02 Napier Owner Johnny Thomas - A Priceless Car!
1900 Napier G20 Double Phaeton
1904 Napier Tonnea
1904 Napier Touring
1903 Napier E61 Racing Two-Seater
1904 Napier L48 "Sampson" (Replica)
1904 2-Seater
Touring Model Car
Shannons Classics in the Park postponed to
February 2005
Incorporating Celebration
of the Motorcar & The Classic Quarter Mile Sprints
Fremantle
Motor Museum will be star of the show, competing in the
Sprints almost exactly 100 years from when it set several
world records. This amazing 15-litre car was the world's
first 6-cylinder racing car.
1904 Napier D50 Gordon Bennett Racing Two-Seater
An agreement was soon made where Napier would build a specified number
of cars for Edge to sell through his Motor Power Company. The contract
was for 6 cars with a further 396 to be supplied in batches up to 1904.
and help us Re-Live and Re-Make History
----------------------------------Thank You to Our Sponsors--------------------------------
