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Henry Meadows, usually known simply as Meadows, of
Wolverhampton Wolverhampton ( ) is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands of England. Located around 12 miles (20 km) north of Birmingham, it forms the northwestern part of the West Midlands conurbation, with the towns of ...
,
England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, were major suppliers of
engines An engine or motor is a machine designed to convert one or more forms of energy into mechanical energy. Available energy sources include potential energy (e.g. energy of the Earth's gravitational field as exploited in hydroelectric power gen ...
and transmissions to the smaller companies in the British motor industry. Founded in 1920 in Park Lane, Wolverhampton, as a car gearbox maker, they expanded into
petrol engine A petrol engine (gasoline engine in American and Canadian English) is an internal combustion engine designed to run on petrol (gasoline). Petrol engines can often be adapted to also run on fuels such as liquefied petroleum gas and ethanol blends ...
s in 1922 and in the 1930s built a large factory in Fallings Park, Wolverhampton.


Products


Petrol engines

Early production was connected with the move from W.H. Dorman & Co of the Dorman works manager (W.H. Dorman's son, John E. Dorman) in August 1921, and a design engineer Mr R.S. Crump. Dorman had been producing engines from 1903. The early Meadows engines and gearboxes were produced with Meadows-Dorman on the castings. This resulted in a court case between Dorman and Meadows, claiming that this was a misuse of the Dorman name and reputation. Dorman won the case One of the most popular petrol engines was the 1½-litre four-cylinder Type 4ED engine (following their less powerful 4EB and 4EC engines, used by several makers in the pre 1931 period), widely used by Frazer Nash and
Lea-Francis Lea-Francis was a British motor manufacturing company that began by building bicycles. History Richard Henry Lea, R. H. Lea and Graham Francis, G. I. Francis started the business in Coventry in 1895. They branched out into car manufacturing i ...
during the 1920s and 30s, and in the H.R.G. light car from 1936 to 1939 which was sold with a guaranteed top speed of 90 mph. Another successful product, the 4½-litre 6-cylinder engine is best remembered as the power unit for Invicta and
Lagonda Lagonda is a British luxury car brand established in 1906, which has been owned by Aston Martin since 1947. The trade-name has not had a continuous commercial existence, being dormant several times, most recently from 1995 to 2008, 2010 to 20 ...
cars. Meadows also produced marine engines after a visit from
Hubert Scott-Paine Hubert Scott-Paine (11 March 1891 – 14 April 1954) was a British aircraft and boat designer, record-breaking power boat racer, entrepreneur, inventor, and sponsor of the winning entry in the 1922 Schneider Trophy. Early life Hubert Paine w ...
in 1931 who was looking for some better engines for his prototype seaplane tender (RAF200) which was fitted at that time with Brooks engines. After some modification to allow the engines to be angled at 17 degrees, the British Power Boat Company selected Meadows 6-cylinder petrol engines for the high-speed seaplane tenders, each having two engines rated at 100 bhp, and being capable of 29 knots. In the 1930s, Meadows developed a flat-12 type-MAT/1 engine of 8858cc for military applications including the Tetrarch Light Tank. Later they built a 16litre 300 bhp flat-12 type-DAV petrol engine used in the
Covenanter tank The Cruiser tank Mk V or A13 Mk III Covenanter was a British cruiser tank of the Second World War. The Covenanter was the first cruiser tank design to be given a name. Designed by the London, Midland and Scottish Railway as a better-armoured rep ...
This engine was also used in the prototype A20 tank, although this weighed more than twice the Covenanter and so was considered underpowered. The later, and widely used, A22
Churchill tank The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple Bogie#Tracked vehicles, bogies, its ability to ...
was a development of the A20. Partly to provide more power, and also to improve production time, this was instead powered by a
Vauxhall Vauxhall ( , ) is an area of South London, within the London Borough of Lambeth. Named after a medieval manor called Fox Hall, it became well known for the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. From the Victorian period until the mid-20th century, Va ...
flat-12 engine termed the "Twin-Six", as it was based on two pre-existing
Bedford Bedford is a market town in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 Census, the population was 106,940. Bedford is the county town of Bedfordshire and seat of the Borough of Bedford local government district. Bedford was founded at a ford (crossin ...
six-cylinder lorry engines. This engine was slightly more powerful, but only to a rated 350 bhp. The Guy armoured car, made in 1939–1940, used the Meadows 4-cylinder 4-ELA petrol engine. Meadows also made the 600 bhp
Rolls-Royce Meteor The Rolls-Royce Meteor later renamed the Rover Meteor is a British tank engine that was developed during the Second World War. It was used in British tanks up to 1964. It was a result of co-operation between Leyland Motors and Rolls-Royce who bet ...
V-12 petrol tank engine from 1944. This came about because
Rolls-Royce Merlin The Rolls-Royce Merlin is a British Coolant#Liquids, liquid-cooled V12 engine, V-12 Reciprocating engine, piston aero engine of 27-litre (1,650 cu in) Engine displacement, capacity. Rolls-Royce Limited, Rolls-Royce designed the engine an ...
engines came under the Ministry of Aircraft Production, but tank engines came under the
Ministry of Supply The Ministry of Supply (MoS) was a department of the UK government formed on 1 August 1939 by the Ministry of Supply Act 1939 ( 2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 38) to co-ordinate the supply of equipment to all three British armed forces, headed by the Ministe ...
, and the huge demand for the Merlin engine was causing Meteor production to falter and this was in turn affecting
Cromwell tank The Cromwell tank, officially Tank, Cruiser, Mk VIII, Cromwell (A27M), was one of the series of cruiser tanks fielded by Britain in the Second World War. Named after the English Civil War–era military leader Oliver Cromwell, the Cromwell was ...
production. Meadows was already involved with the Ministry of Supply, so they were brought in from 1944 to manufacture Meteor engines to cover the shortfall. The
Rover Company The Rover Company Limited was a British car manufacturing company originally founded in 1878, beginning car manufacturing in 1904. It primarily operated from its base in Solihull, Warwickshire. Rover also manufactured the Land Rover series from ...
also produced Meteor engines in this period.


Diesel engines

Meadows started developing diesel engines in the 1930s, and a 5-litre 4-cylinder diesel developing 75 bhp at 2000rpm was launched at the 1935 Olympia Motor Transport Show.The Modern Diesel, 11th Edition, G.G. Smith, Iliffe & Sons Ltd, 1949 They introduced a 6-cylinder 100 bhp version in 1938. Both of these engines used a Lanova combustion chamber design, CAV injector pumps, and they were listed both for road transport and marine use. In 1938, they supplied
diesel engine The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...
s for the New Zealand Railways
Standard Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object ...
class railcars. After
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, they resumed making diesel engines, but with a completely new design this time with direct injection and toroidal cavity pistons. The 6.9 litre 4-cylinder unit gave 85 bhp at 1800rpm, and the 10.35 litre 6-cylinder unit developed 150 bhp at 1800rpm. These were aimed at both vehicle, marine, and stationary markets, and there was a horizontal version of the 6-cylinder unit for flat underfloor mounting. The same two engines were rated at 60 and 90 bhp for continuous marine use at 1600rpm, and a larger engine of similar design rated at 130 bhp and of 15.5 litres capacity was also listed. One of the unusual features of these engines is the ability to swap the utilities from side to side and from end to end, which also allows for making handed-engines for twin-engined marine craft. For marine use helical reduction gears of different ratios, and epicyclic reversing gears were also available. Many engines were supplied to their neighbour in Fallings Park, Guy Motors for use in their buses and trucks. A small number of diesel engines was supplied for
British Rail Railbuses British Rail produced a variety of railbuses, both as a means of acquiring new rolling stock cheaply, and to provide economical services on lightly used lines. Terminology Railbuses are a very lightweight type of railcar designed specifically ...
in 1958. They also powered the Fowler Challenger crawler tractors, the 6DC-630 in the Mk III, and the 6DJ-970 in the Mk IV. Meadows adverts show they were also used in plant like rock-crushers, ditch diggers, compressors and other equipment used in road building. They were also used to power military FV2502 27.5kVA generator sets. Engine Models (list incomplete), the letter after the 'D' varies according to application (e.g. M = marine) : * Pre-War four cylinder. Bore 105mm, Stroke 150mm. * Pre-War six cylinder. Bore 105mm, Stroke 130mm. * 4DC-330 Four cylinder diesel. Bore 120mm, Stroke 120mm, 331 cu. in. - 5.43 litres capacity * 6DC-630 Six cylinder diesel. Bore 130mm, Stroke 130mm, 630 cu in - 10.35 litres capacity * 6HDC-500 Six cylinder horizontal diesel. 500 cu.in. - 8.14 litres capacity * 6DJ-970 Six cylinder diesel. 970 cu.in. - 15.5 litres


Gearboxes

Meadows had started by making gearboxes in 1920, initially for lorries made by the Vulcan Motor & Engineering Co and then
Coventry Climax Coventry Climax was a British manufacturer of forklift trucks, fire pumps, racing engines, and other speciality engines. History Pre WWI The company was started in 1903 as Lee Stroyer, a joint venture by Jens Stroyer and Pelham Lee. In 1 ...
Ltd. After engines were introduced in 1922 they sold complete engine, clutch, and gearbox packages, initially with either 3 or 4 speed gearboxes, and later with 4 or 5 speed gearboxes. During the early 1950s, Meadows supplied gearboxes for the Jowett Javelin car.


Cars

They were also responsible for making the Meadows Frisky
microcar Microcar is a term often used for the smallest size of cars, with three or four wheels and often an engine smaller than . Specific types of microcars include bubble cars, cycle cars, invacar, quadricycles and voiturettes. Microcars are ofte ...
between 1957 and 1961.


Merger and closure

In 1965, Henry Meadows was purchased by
Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...
.Jaguar Acquires Meadows ''
Railway Transportation ''Railway Transportation'' was a Sydney-based monthly trade magazine covering rail transport in Australia. It was regularly used for promotion and advertising by railway organisations and businesses. Overview ''Railway Transportation'' was e ...
'' March 1965 page 8


References


External links


Information from Wolverhampton Local History
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meadows, Henry Engine manufacturers of the United Kingdom Diesel engine manufacturers Motor vehicle engine manufacturers Manufacturing companies based in Wolverhampton Manufacturing companies established in 1920 Defunct manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom 1920 establishments in England