Circa 1937 Hillman 14 saloon.
Most of the motoring photos that appear in this section of the site, are snapshots taken by families of their own motor-car(s). This though is a factory shot, taken by a Hillman employee in the mid/late 1930s. The subject of his camerawork is, I believe, a circa 1937 Hillman 14 saloon, or rather a 14hp Hillman's bodyshell, bootlid and sliding sunroof panel, possibly during its design phase. The un-painted body panels are accompanied by notes revealing their individual weights, the bodyshell for instance weighed in at 318 lbs (just under 23 stone, or ~144kgs). Similar photos of pre-war Minxes can be found, along with views of complete examples, on this page.
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I've yet to find a period snapshot of a complete Hillman 14, but I did turn up a copy of Practical Motorist for October 9th, 1937, that features a 14 on its cover and a roadtest within.
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The car on test was a Hillman "Fourteen" Saloon De-Luxe, for which 268 pounds was asked in late 1937. The testers were particularly impressed by its commodious interior, which could comfortably accommodate five people, with plenty of room to stretch out within its 9ft 6ins wheelbase. The ride too came in for great praise, thanks in no small part to the fitment of "Evenkeel" independent front suspension. Cruising at 55mph in top gear was well within the Hillman's abilities, and attention was drawn to its "rock-steadiness" at these speeds. The only slight criticism levelled at the car was that the nearside wing wasn't visible to the driver, which might make parking a little more difficult than it could be, otherwise the Practical Motorist roadtesters were full of praise for this new car. Two versions were on offer, the standard saloon (248 GBP) and the De-Luxe (268 GBP), although no mention is made of the differences in specification between the two.
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Return to Page 15 in the gallery of vintage cars and vehicles.
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