What Car?

This car was used on a tour of
 the north of Scotland in 1938

 

Hillman, 1937

 © Reproduced with acknowledgement Bryan Gourlay, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

 

Comments

1.

Bryan Gourlay
Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

-  1938 Tour

-  More Cars

2.

Bryan Gourlay
Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Question A

-  What model of car?

3.

John Robins
Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Answer 1 to Question A

Hillman

SSII

4.

Roger Learmonth
West Sussex

Answer 2 to Question A-  SS1

-  New in 1933

5.

Roger Learmonth
West Sussex

Question B

-  SS100

6.

Bryan Gourlay
Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

-  1938 Tour

-  More Cars

 

Comments

1.

Bryan Gourlay

Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

1938 Tour

Thank you to Bryan Gourlay for sending me this photograph of a car used by his dad for a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938.  Bryan tells me that the lady in the photo is his Aunt Jean, his dad's older sister.  She died a couple of years ago.  She would have been 100 in January 2009.

More Cars

Please click on the link below to read more about the cars used by Bryan Gourlay's family.

Bryan Gourlay's gran and his dad on a trip to Blairgowrie by Hillman ©

Acknowledgement:  Bryan Gourlay, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland:  December 6, 2008

 

Comments

2.

Bryan Gourlay

Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Bryan Gourlay asked about the car that was used on the 1938 tour of the north of Scotland:

Question A

"Does anybody recognise what model this car is?"

1933 SS1 on a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938 ©

Bryan Gourlay, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland:  December 6, 2008

 

Comments

3.

John Robins

John Robins replied to Question A above:

Answer

Hillman

"The sports tourer with the young lady is a fish from a very different kettle to Bryan Gourlay's photos of his family's 1937 Singer."

©

Commenting on the sports tourer, John wrote:

SSII

"I've had to resort to the books, but after eliminating the AC 16/60 I am pretty sure (90%) that what we have here is an SS II (that's a Roman Two) four seater tourer from between 1934 and 1936.  The bonnet louvres and the shape of the mudguards are an exact match.

1933 SS1 on a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938 ©

 SS Cars Ltd was formed in 1933 as the car building section of the Swallow Sidecar Co of Blackpool.  Under the astute direction of William Lyons, they went on to move to Coventry and changed their name to Jaguar in 1945,  as the connotations of SS after the war were less than good.

The SS II used a Standard Ten or Twelve 4 cylinder side valve engine of 1343cc or 1608cc and was sporty rather than sporting. I do not have an exact figure for the price but would guess at just under the £300 mark as one of the company's strengths was always in the clever marketing and pricing of its cars.

Competition would have been from Riley and Triumph, hand-built cars like the AC and the Invicta being much more expensive, and MG being much more sporting."

John Robins:  December 7, 2008

 

Comments

4.

Roger Learmonth

West Sussex

Thank you to Roger Learmonth who wrote:

Another Answer

SS1

    1933 SS1 on a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938 ©

"The car used on the 1938 tour of Scotland is in fact an SS1, and not an SS2 which was a very much smaller, less powerful affair.

It was the first really sporty car produced by William Lyons' SS Car Company (Swallow Sidecars) which later became Jaguar.

It had a Standard Motors 2.7 litre side valve, six cylinder engine and reasonable performance for its day. It was superseded by the legendary 100 mile-an-hour SS 100 (after a few SS 90s were produced).

is most likely to be a 1933 model based on the Glasgow registration mark.

Roger Learmonth, West Sussex, England:  April 24, 2009

Roger added:

New in 1933

"This car used on the 1938 tour is most likely a 1933 model, based on its Glasgow registration mark. I own US4923, a Rover tourer which was registered in Glasgow in February 1934, so 1933 for the SS is a pretty safe bet.

    1933 SS1 on a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938 ©

 I'll try and see if the car is still around, and report back.

Roger Learmonth, West Sussex, England:  April 25, 2009

 

Question

5.

Roger Learmonth

West Sussex

After providing 'Answer 2' above to Bryan Gourlay's question, Roger asked a question about his own car, a 1938 SS100.

1938  SS100 in original condition ©

Roger Learmonth, West Sussex, England:  April 24+25, 2009

 

Comments

6.

Bryan Gourlay

Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland

Thank you to Bryan Gourlay who wrote again, saying:.

"I’m sure Roger Learmonth’s description of the car (5 above) is spot on. My dad used to call it an SS Jag which is perhaps not strictly true. My aunt, who was aged about 12 at the time, remembers the car very well and says it was an SS Swallow.

She can’t remember whether the family owned the car, or more likely, it belonged to my dad’s best friend John Brown the founder of the Eastern Motor Company. My dad apparently often used to borrow a car from John, who I remember had premises in Lochrin Place, Tollcross after the war – before moving to a showroom right next to the Assembly Rooms in George Street.

Here is another photo of the car.  My dad is sitting on the bumper, wearing the obligatory leather coat.

1933 SS1 on a tour around the north of Scotland in 1938 ©

 

Bryan Gourlay, Biggar, Lanarkshire, Scotland:  May 10, 2008

 

1930s cars and motorcycles

Edinburgh Transport - full index

 

Cars used by Bryan Gourlay's Family

Edinburgh Transport:  cars, vans, lorries

  

 

__________________