An American Passenger Chassis for Foreign Markets.
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THE Willys-Knight Export Corporation of America has just designed a new passenger chassis which is, we gather, expressly intended for overseas -markets and, in view of this fact and for the reason that it may possibly appear, at a later date, on the British market, we think that some details of its outstanding features will interest our reader.
The new chassis is intended to take 17-seater bodies. It is equipped with a Knight six-cylindered sleeve-valve engine, having a bore of Si ins, and a stroke of 41ins., which develops 70 h.p.
at 2,600 r.p.m. The drive is taken through a single dry-plate dutch, having two 11-in. asbestos fabric rings and it is mounted in unit form with the engine and gearbox. The gearbox pro vides four speeds, the ratio of the low gear being 4.8 to 1 and the direct drive being in high gear.
A three-piece tubular propeller shaft is employed and this has four metal Universal joints; double-row, self-aligning bearings support the shaft at two points. The rear axle is of the doublereduction, full-floating type, giving a final reduction of 6 to 1, although other ratios are obtainable.
The pressed-steel frame members are Si ins, deep and they are upswept over both the front and rear aeries. Adequate use is made of cross-members, and not only is there a cross-member in the centre of the chassis, but several channel members and a tubular member connect the frame sides. Semi-elliptic springs are used, those at the front being 46 ins, long and 21e ins, wide, and those at the rear.60 ins. long and 3 ins. wide. In keeping with the trend of modern design, ,fenr-wheele brakes are fitted, these being operated by foot, but the hand brake also takes effect on the rear wheels.
The wheelbase of the new chassis is 15 ft. 10 ins., its overall length being 23 ft. 0i ins. From the back of the dashboard to the centre of the rear axle measures 12 ft. 7e7e ins., and from the back of the dashboard to the end of the frame 17 ft. 41 ins. The frame height from the ground when the vehicle is under load is 1 ft. 9 ins.
Illustrations which we have seen of the new chassis show that it possesses an impressive appearance. It is claimed to be capable of a speed of 45 m.p.h.