Excelsior Motor Company
Encyclopedia
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, was a British bicycle, motorcycle and car maker. They were Britain’s first motorcycle
Motorcycle
A motorcycle is a single-track, two-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycles vary considerably depending on the task for which they are designed, such as long distance travel, navigating congested urban traffic, cruising, sport and racing, or off-road conditions.Motorcycles are one of the most...
manufacturer, starting production of their own ‘motor-bicycle’ in 1896. Initially they had premises at Lower Ford Street, Coventry, and 287-295 Stoney Stanton Road, Hillfields, Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
, Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
before moving to Kings Road, Tyseley
Tyseley
Tyseley is a district in the southern half of the city of Birmingham, England, near the Coventry Road and the districts of Small Heath and Yardley...
, Birmingham in 1921.
Originally a bicycle
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....
company making penny-farthing
Penny-farthing
Penny-farthing, high wheel, high wheeler, and ordinary are all terms used to describe a type of bicycle with a large front wheel and a much smaller rear wheel that was popular after the boneshaker, until the development of the safety bicycle, in the 1880s...
s in 1874 under their original name: Bayliss, Thomas and Co, they later sold bicycles under the names of Excelsior and Eureka and changed the company name to Excelsior Motor Co. in 1910. In the early years of motor-bicycle manufacture they used Minerva, De Dion, MMC and possibly a Condor 850 cc single but went on to produce a wide range of machines with engines from most major manufacturers. In 1914, they offered a JAP
JA Prestwich Industries Ltd
JA Prestwich Industries, was an English engineering company named after founder John Alfred Prestwich, which produced cinematographic equipment, internal combustion engines , and other examples of precision engineering.-History:J. A...
-powered twin. A deal to supply the Russian Imperial government with motorcycles ended with the Revolution and Excelsior wound up with an excess inventory as a result.
The Walker family (father Reginald and son Eric) took over after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. R Walker & Sons of Tyseley, Birmingham had started as makers of ships lamps but in 1919 had made a range of motorcycles under the Monarch name to be sold by the London Department store Gamages
Gamages
Gamages was a department store in Central London. It began in 1878 in a rented watch repair shop and, after quickly becoming a success amongst its customers, was established as a London institution. In time it was to grow large enough to take up most of the block on which it was situated...
. The company was re-registered as the Excelsior Motor Company Ltd, production moved to Birmingham and the Lower Ford Street factory in Coventry sold to Francis-Barnett
Francis-Barnett
Francis-Barnett was a British motorcycle manufacturer founded in 1919, by Gordon Inglesby Francis and Arthur Barnett, and based in Lower Ford Street, Coventry, England,...
.
They made a range of motorcycles from 98 to 1,000 cc, mostly powered by JAP, Blackburne
Blackburne (motorcycles)
Blackburne was a trade name of Burney and Blackburne Limited a British manufacturer of motorcycles from 1913 to 1922 at Tongham near Farnham, Surrey...
and Villiers
Villiers Engineering
Villiers Engineering was a manufacturer of motorcycles and cycle parts, and an engineering company based in Villiers Street, Wolverhampton, England....
engines, plus an 850 cc Condor engine. The new company put more effort in competition and racing. To avoid confusion with the American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
maker of the same name, they called themselves the "British Excelsior".
Racing Heyday
The Manxman was first raced at the 1935 Isle of Man Lightweight TT. The works bike had a left port aluminium head and barrel but had a very long stroke and was slow. The following year saw the first appearance of shorter stroke four-valve cammy racers. They raced again in 1937 TT in both 250 and 350 capacities but were retired in May 1938 before that year's TT. The TT bikes reverted to 2 valve heads but had plunger rear suspension. They were just as quick as the 4-valvers and much easier to set up. Excelsior did not officially contest the 1939 TT but a syndicate raced the previous year's machines as well as a prototype 500cc production racer. Although Excelsior Manxman did not win a TT before the war, they came 2nds in 36, 37 and 38 and 3rd in 1939. Perhaps their greatest success was winning the European GP in front of 200,000 people at Chemnitz in Germany in 1936.
World War II
Their major contribution to the war effort was the 98 cc (6 in³) WelbikeWelbike
The Welbike was a British single-seat motorcycle devised during World War Two at Station IX — the "Inter Services Research Bureau" — based at Welwyn, UK, for use by Special Operations Executive . It has the distinction of being the smallest motorcycle ever used by the British Armed Forces,...
(Corgi), a collapsible motorcycle delivered in a pod by parachute, intended to be used by paratroops for 'rapid' movement around a battlefield.
Post-war
But the company wasn't doing well and in the lean years following World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
racing and luxury machines were sidelined in favour of cheap two-stroke engines. After the war, they used Villiers engines to make the 250 cc Viking and in 1949 the Talisman, a smooth two-stroke with 180-degree crank. A later 328 cc twin-carb sports version, the S8, did not sell well, although the engine itself achieved some success in Berkeley
Berkeley cars
Berkeley Cars Ltd of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire, England produced small economical sporting microcars with motorcycle-derived engines from 322 cc to 692 cc and front wheel drive between 1956 and 1960.-History:...
microcars in both 328 cc twin and 492 cc triple versions.
Bayliss Thomas cars
In 1919 the company made an experimental 3 wheel car with air-cooled engine but this did not go into production. But, in 1920 Excelsior entered the car business with a range of 4 wheel models and used the name Bayliss-Thomas as there was already a Belgian car called the ExcelsiorCompagnie Nationale Excelsior
Compagnie Nationale Excelsior, more simply known as Excelsior, was a Belgian car manufacturer established by Arthus de Coninck in Brussels in 1903, The company first started to manufacture cars in 1904....
.
Around 1,000 were made.
Cars were still listed in catalogues until 1931 but it is likely that none were made after 1929.
Car models
| Type | Year | Engine | Body types | Wheelbase | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8.9 Junior (9/19 from 1924) | 1922–1924 | 1075 cc 4 cylinder side valve | open four seater, sports | 99 in (2,515 mm) | 3 speed gearbox |
| 10/20 (11/22 from 1925) | 1924–1927 | 1498 cc 4 cylinder side valve Coventry-Simplex | open four seater, sports | 99 in (2,515 mm) | 9/19 with 10.8 engine. Front wheel brakes from 1927. |
| 10.8 | 1922–1924 | 1498 cc 4 cylinder side valve Coventry-Simplex | sliding door saloon, two and four seat open tourer, coupé, sports | 102 in (2,591 mm) or 108 in (2,743 mm) | 3 speed gearbox |
| 12/22 (12/27 from 1925) | 1925–1931 | 1500 cc 4 cylinder side valve Meadows Henry Meadows Henry Meadows of Wolverhampton, England were major suppliers of engines and transmissions, to the smaller companies in the British motor industry... |
tourer, sports tourer, 4 light saloon, 6 light saloon, drophead coupé | 114 in (2,896 mm) | 3 speed gearbox. Front wheel brakes from 1927. |
| 13/30 | 1925–1926 | 1795 cc 4 cylinder side valve Meadows | tourer, sports tourer, 4 light saloon, 6 light saloon, drophead coupé | 114 in (2,896 mm) | 4 speed gearbox |
Closure
Excelsior last manufactured a motorcycle in 1964 and folded in 1965. BritaxBritax
Britax is a UK-based manufacturer of automotive safety equipment.-History:It began making automotive safety equipment and accessories in 1938, and to import car and motorcycle accessories...
, a car accessory company bought the name and produced limited numbers of Britax-Excelsior machines in the late 1970s.
The head office address was: The Excelsior Motor Co, Kings Road, Tyseley, Birmingham 11.
The Head Office and Works address according to a 1962 edition (4/9/62) of the Talisman Twin 244cc and 328cc Running and Maintenance Instructions was Redfern Road, Tyseley Birmingham 11.
Telephone: Alcocks Green 1677-8-9. "Telegrams: Monarch, Haymills"
External links
- http://www.britax.eu
- http://www.mchksyd.com/f1a84f66-77c2-4dbe-8504-a2827978deeb-29.html Svend Aage Sorensen
- Photograph of Bayliss Thomas vintage car
