1923 Vauxhall 23/60 Tourer

Description

The Vauxhall 23/60 is a four or five-seater touring car manufactured by Vauxhall of Luton pre-General Motors that was launched in July 1922. The 23-60's standard tourer Kington body was described as "preserving that greyhound look so characteristic of the Vauxhall car". It shared many parts with Vauxhall's much more powerful 30-98. The 23/60 replaced the Vauxhall 25 which had given sterling service during World War I and from which the 23/60 was developed. The engine is essentially the four-cylinder engine of the preceding 25 hp car with an added overhead valve head and, because such largish engines by-then usually had six-cylinders for smoothness, the harmonic balancer invented by Dr F W Lanchester at the centre of its crankshaft. The hand-operated gear and rear-wheel brake controls are on the driver's right but there was a door for the driver which had not been fitted to the 30/98 or 25. The spark and throttle levers are on the steering wheel together with an air lever working a valve in the induction pipe (after the throttle). There is also a mixture control (choke) on the dash. The hood is the all-weather type and its door sections are carried in an envelope stored behind the rear seat squab. Large tools are kept in the footrest and there is a specially fitted tool cupboard in the near-side running board. The 23/60’s reliability made Vauxhall's name for dependability. It remained in production until the introduction of the six-cylinder Burt-McCollum type single-sleeve-valve Vauxhall 25/70 in October 1925.