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The Arab was a high-performance English automobile designed by Reid Railton and manufactured in
Letchworth Letchworth Garden City, commonly known as Letchworth, is a town in the North Hertfordshire district of Hertfordshire, England. It is noted for being the first garden city. The population at the time of the 2021 census was 33,990. Letchworth ...
, Hertfordshire, between 1926 and 1928. The factory had previously been used by the Phoenix car company.


History

The car came about following discussions between J. G. Parry-Thomas, design engineer at
Leyland Motors Leyland Motors Limited (later known as the Leyland Motor Corporation) was an English vehicle manufacturer of lorries, buses and trolleybuses. The company diversified into car manufacturing with its acquisitions of Triumph and Rover in 1960 a ...
, Reid Railton, his assistant and Henry Spurrier, chairman of Leyland Motors. Leyland had made 50 four-cylinder engine blocks intended to be used in fast delivery vans, but the project was not proceeded with. The three discussed what to do with the blocks, and the building of a 2-litre sporting car was agreed. A prototype was built to test the new engine using an Enfield-Allday chassis and the car taken to
Brooklands Brooklands was a motor racing circuit and aerodrome built near Weybridge in Surrey, England, United Kingdom. It opened in 1907 and was the world's first purpose-built 'banked' motor racing circuit as well as one of Britain's first airfields, ...
for the 1924 Easter Meeting. The engine had an overhead camshaft with the same unusual valve springing using leaf springs as those found on Parry Thomas's Leyland Eight. Drive was to the rear wheels via a Moss 4-speed gearbox and ENV spiral-bevel rear axle. It was one of the first English cars to use an electric fuel pump. Production of two variants was started in 1926 at the Letchworth works, a low-chassis sporting model and a high-chassis touring type. Two and four-seater bodies were available on the high-chassis at £525 and probably only the two-seater on the low-chassis at £550. Parry Thomas died in March 1927 attempting to break the World Land Speed Record in his car Babs, and with his death Railton lost interest in the Arab and the Letchworth works closed after only about 6 or 7 cars were made. The remaining components were bought by Thomson & Taylor, where Railton was working, based at Brooklands and a few more cars were assembled. This was something of a pity, as the car was an impressive performer with the two-seater high chassis good for 80 mph, and the Super Sports was said to have been capable of going . One high chassis is known to have been supercharged and is said to have achieved . Two cars are known to survive, both low chassis.


Specification


Engine

*1960 cc four-cylinder water-cooled monobloc. *Two bearing crankshaft *70 mm bore 127 mm stroke *Single overhead cam, leaf spring controlled valves with positive closing. *Single Claudel-Hobson carburettor *65 bhp at 4000 rpm


Gearbox

*Moss 4-speed


Chassis

*Wheelbase , track , overall length *Half-elliptical springs front and rear *Four wheel brakes (Perrot System)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Arab (Automobile) Vintage vehicles Cars introduced in 1926