The MG K-type Magnette was produced by the MG

MG (car)

The MG Car Company is a former British sports car manufacturer founded in the 1920s by Cecil Kimber. Best known for its two-seat open sports cars, MG also produced saloons and coupés....

 Car company from October 1932 to 1934.

Launched at the 1932 London Motor Show, the K-Type replaced the F-Type Magna

MG F-Type

The MG F-type Magna was a six cylinder engined car produced by the MG Car company from October 1931 to 1932. It was also known as the 12/70.Looking for a car to fill the gap between the M-Type Midget and the 18/80, MG turned to another of the engines that had become available from William Morris's...

 but having at first a slightly smaller capacity engine it took the name Magnette. The chassis was similar to the Magna but strengthened and had the track increased by 6 inches (150 mm) to 48 inches (1200 mm) and was available in two lengths with a wheelbase of either 94 inches (2388 mm) or 108 inches (2743 mm). The steering was modified with a patented divided track rod which was claimed to reduce kick back at the steering wheel. The brakes were cable operated with 13 inch (330 mm) drums made of "Electron", a light alloy, with shrunk in steel liners. Suspension by half elliptic springs and Hartford friction shock absorbers all round with rigid front and rear axles. Wire wheels with 4.75 x 19 tyres and centre lock fixing were used.

The engines were based on a Wolseley

Wolseley Motor Company

The Wolseley Motor Company was a British automobile manufacturer founded in 1901. After 1935 it was incorporated into larger companies but the Wolseley name remained as an upmarket marque until 1975.-History:...

 overhead camshaft

Overhead camshaft

Overhead cam valvetrain configurations place the engine camshaft within the cylinder heads, above the combustion chambers, and drive the valves or lifters in a more direct manner compared to overhead valves and pushrods...

 design used first in the 1930 Wolseley Hornet

Wolseley Hornet (1930)

thumb|right|275px|1932 Wolseley Hornet EW SpecialThe Wolseley Hornet was a lightweight saloon car produced by the Wolseley Motor Company from 1930 to 1936...

 and subsequently used by MG in the F-Type but subject to a major re-design. The stroke was reduced from 83 mm to 71 mm to reduce the capacity from 1272 cc to 1087 cc and a cross flow cylinder head fitted. Fitted at first with triple SU carburetors it produced 39 bhp at 5500 rpm. In early 1933 a modified version of the engine was announced that had improved valve timing and only two carburettors but the output was up at 41 bhp. This engine was called the KB and the previous version, which continued in use, the KA. In late 1933 they were joined by the KD with a larger 1271 cc capacity by returning to the F-Type stroke of 83 mm but with the improved cylinder head and timing power was up to 48.5 bhp. (The F-Type had only been rated at 37 bhp.) In addition there was the KC engine for the racing cars. This retained the 1087 cc capacity but with the aid of a supercharger

Supercharger

A supercharger is an air compressor used for forced induction of an internal combustion engine.The greater mass flow-rate provides more oxygen to support combustion than would be available in a naturally aspirated engine, which allows more fuel to be burned and more work to be done per cycle,...

 power was up at 120 bhp at 6500 rpm.

Drive was to the rear wheels through either a four speed non-synchromesh gearbox or ENV made pre-selector

Preselector gearbox

A preselector or self-changing gearbox is a type of manual gearbox used on a variety of vehicles, most commonly in the 1930s...

 type.

All the road cars were capable of reaching 75 mi/h.

K1

This was the original K having the long chassis and was first shown with the saloon body, KA engine and pre-selector gearbox all costing £445, quite expensive at the time. It was soon joined by a tourer with KB engine and manual gearbox. Later the saloon could also be had with KD engine and pre-selector.

54 K1s with KA engines, 74 with KB engines and 53 with KDs were made. Not many of the saloons were sold and surplus bodies/chassis were later fitted with MG "N" type engines and sold as the MG KN Magnette

MG KN

The MG KN Magnette was produced by the MG Car company between 1933 and 1934 and was designed to use up surplus bodies made for the MG K-type saloons that were not sold. These bodies were fitted to the K1 chassis but had the more powerful MG N-type 1271 cc engine.The body had no pillar between...

.

K2

The K2 was the open 2 seater and so had the shorter chassis. It had at first the KB engine and manual box but later cars could have the KD with pre-selector.

16 were made with KB engines and a further 4 with KD engines.

K3

The K3 was the racing variant and used the short chassis. The KC engine at first used a Powerplus supercharger

Powerplus supercharger

The Powerplus was a design of supercharger used to boost the performance of car engines in the 1930s. It is a mechanically-driven positive displacement pump, operating on the sliding-vane principle.- MG cars :...

 replaced later by a Marshall

Marshall Aerospace

The Marshall companies have been internationally associated with aerospace engineering for nearly a century. The company employs over 1,800 people and is based on an site with of covered hangar space...

-made one. They were prominently mounted in front of the engine below the radiator. Pre-selector gearboxes were used. They were successfully raced in 1933, winning the 1100 cc class in the Mille Miglia

Mille Miglia

The Mille Miglia was an open-road endurance race which took place in Italy twenty-four times from 1927 to 1957 ....

 driven by Capt. George Eyston and Count Lurani and scoring an outright vistory in the Ulster RAC Tourist Trophy

RAC Tourist Trophy

The International Tourist Trophy is an award given by the Royal Automobile Club and awarded semi-annually to the winners of a selected motor racing event each year in the United Kingdom. It was first awarded in 1905 and continues to be awarded to this day, making it the longest lasting trophy in...

 (TT) race where the car was driven by Tazio Nuvolari

Tazio Nuvolari

Tazio Giorgio Nuvolari was an Italian motorcycle and racecar driver, known as Il Mantovano Volante or Nivola. He was the 1932 European Champion in Grand Prix motor racing...

at an average speed of 78.65 m.p.h. The K3 attracted the great names of the racing world - Sir Tim Birkin of Bentley fame, Whitney Straight and 'Hammy' Hamilton. Only 33 were made and as well as the works cars they could be bought for £795 but subsequently quite a few replicas have been made often from the K1 and K2 models.