Britain's First Commercial Vehicle?
Page 37
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
WHAT was probably the first "horseVI' less carriage" used for commercial purposes in Britain has recently been undergoing examination in the Manchester works of Joseph Cockshoot and Co., Ltd.
This machine is a single-cylinder Lutzmann which has been stored in the Manchester area for something like half a century and may well have been the second or third car to be imported into England, As early as 1896 Mr. Charles Goodwin, who is still the owner, was taking the Lutzmann to northern markets with a companion. dressed as Mother Shipton, who sold or gave away samples of Mother Shipton soap, which was made by Messrs. Goodwin and Son.
After Mr. Goodwin's ear had been in use in the Manchester district for a little while, improvements were effected to the front suspension by incorporating a form of double-wishbone springing and Ackerman-type steering, but otherwise the machine appears to have been little altered.
The engine is located beneath the rear seats and has a pulley driving a belt to a cross-shaft which is bolted to the main longitudinal members amidships. The cross-shaft then drives a heavy block chain to the rear wheels.
In the accompanying illustration the louvres of the side radiators can he seen behind the rear wheels. A drip-type system of lubrication operates over the single cylinder. The hand brake works a band making contact with a drum attached to the rear wheels, whilst the foot brake is a spoon type working on the tread of the solid tyres of the real wheels. It is understood that the machine is shortly to be presented to the Veteran Car Club.
Lutzmann is believed to have been the first manufacturer to build a motorbus of any kind, hismachine having a carrying capacity of 16 and being capable of a top speed of about 15 m.p.h. This vehicle is stated to have served for many years at a Polish
In about 1897 Lutzmann sold his patents to the Opel brothers at Russelsheim and, after improving the design, they marketed his car i:s the " Patent Opel Motorwagen." Lutzmann, who started work as a locksmith, was a poor man when he died in 193C and his wife was givers a pension by the German motor industry