A LUXURIOUS SHOOTING BRAKE.
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Designed for a Particular Purpose, This Vehicle Presents Many Points of Considerable Interest.
rpm originator of some particularly 1 interesting typos of sleeping-ear body, which were described in the Travel by Road Number of The Com mercial Ai Nor published towards the end of last year, Colonel B. S. Millard,
recently turned his attention to the pre paration of a luxurious type of shooting brake intended to accommodate seven people in absolute comfort, in addition to the steward and driver, the seats being convertible to give easy night travel.
This has been designed to his requirements by Duple Bodies and Motors, Ltd., Edgware Road, The Hyde, Hendon, London, N.W.9.
The vehicle has not 5,et been finished, but
we include ionic" draw ings showing the general layout. We may add that the chassis• upon which it will be mounted is the Star Flyer V.B.4, with a load line of only 1 ft. 9-1 ins.
The driver's compartment has been kelvt to approximately the same width as that of an ordinary car, so that better vision is pro vided at the sides, this being particularly use ful on wet nights, avoiding, so far as possible, the reflection of the street lights.
The entrance doors are of special design, so as to give access either to the passenger compartment or that for the driver. These doors are hollow and anyone with long legs can place them inside the doors when sitting in either of the two outer front seats.
All the seats are made to slide and the angles of the cushions and squabs are adjustable. When desired, they can be arranged to form three full-length berths, in addition to a particularly com fortable lounge seat at the rear. All the seats are detachable, so that, if required, the interior can be used entirely for luggage.
Between the passengers' compartment and that for the driver is a door, a canvas-bottom scat at this part folding up by means of a 'spring so soon as the person sitting on it rises. The rear portion of the body has a sunk well at each side of the frame. This gives a headroom of approximately 6 ft. 4 ins, in the lavatory and that forming the buffet or luggage compart rnent. A spare wheel is carried vertically between the two compartments and above it are the hot and cold water tanks for supplying the folding washbasin and the buffet. The water for the hot tank is heated in a jacket around the silencer, this silencer being of the marine type instead of that ordinarily employed.
Fitted into a small insulated cabinet "
over the off-side wheel-arch is an Electrolux refrigerator and ice-making unit, the heating part of the apparatus being in the buffet. These. machines can be heated by means of a small oil lamp, but water is ,required for the cooling apparatus, the consumption being from two to three gallons per hour. • This water is fed by gravity from the cold tank and after flowing through the condenser it falls into tank C. When the water in the tank reaches a certain level an Oberdorfer automatic electric pump (marked P in the plan) returns it -quickly to tank 73.
A warm-air duet leading from the top part of the radiator serves to beat the vehicle, the warm air being bypassed into the bonnet when not required for this purpose. This system has the advantage of supplying fresh, warm air instead of heating stale air.
All the side windows of the body, imluding that for the driver, are fitted with eaves so that the windows can be dropped to allow for extra ventilation without rain entering. An air ejector is provided in the floor of the lavatory.
At the off side of the chassis is fitted an additional 20-gallon tank. Wheri utilized for water, it is connected to, the tank (C), the automatic pump (PY being changed over to hand control when it is required to fill the gravity tank (B).
The overall length of the vehicle is approximately 23 ft. over the bumpers, and the width 7 ft.