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Hillman Husky

Hillman Husky

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	Hillman Husky can refer to several different vehicles produced by British United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe.... car manufacturer, the Rootes Rootes The Rootes Group was a British automobile manufacturer, which was based in the English Midlands and south of England. Rootes was the parent company of many well-known British marques, including Hillman, Humber , Singer , Sunbeam Car Company, Talbot, Commer and Karrier.... group, under their Hillman Hillman Hillman was a famous British automobile marque, manufactured by the Rootes. It was based in Ryton-on-Dunsmore, near Coventry, England, from 1907 to 1976.... marque. Original Hillman Husky ("Mark 1") The first (or "Mark 1") Hillman Husky, introduced in 1954, was a small estate Station wagon A station wagon in American English, Australian English, Canadian English and New Zealand English usage and an estate car in British English usage, is a passenger automobile with a car body style similar to a sedan but with the roofline following the full, sometimes extended rear cargo area, i.e. ending with a more vertical door... based on the contemporary "Mark VIII" Hillman Minx Hillman Minx The Hillman Minx was a series of middle-sized family cars produced under the Hillman marque by the Rootes between 1932 and 1970. There have been many versions of the Minx over the years, as well as various badge-engineered versions which were sold under the Humber , Singer , and Sunbeam Car Company marques.... . The two-door Husky entered the range alongside an existing Minx estate car, which had a longer wheelbase. The Husky was not a hatchback, having instead a single side-hinged rear door. While the new Mark VIII Minx DeLuxe saloon, convertible and "Californian" hardtop used a new OHV 1390 cc engine, the Husky continued to use the older 1265 cc sidevalve engine with single Zenith carburettor which it shared with the Minx "Special" saloon and estate. Unlike the Minx with its column change, the gear lever for the Husky was floor mounted. There were individual seats in front and a bench seat in the rear which would fold flat to increase load area. The trim material was leathercloth. Both the heater and radio were optional extras. The car was available in blue, grey, green or sand paint (1954 colours). The Husky was badge engineered Badge engineering Badge engineering is a term that describes the badge of one product as another. Due to the high cost of designing and engineering a totally new model, or establishing a new brand , it is often more cost-effective to rebadge a single product multiple times.... and slightly modified to form the Commer Commer Commer was a British manufacturer of commercial vehicles which existed from 1905 until 1979. Commer vehicles included car derived vans, light vans, medium to heavy commercial trucks, military vehicles and buses.... Cob – basically the same vehicle but with the rear side windows removed to create a panel van. 42,000 of this Husky were sold until the model was replaced in 1958 (a year after the "parent" Minx was itself replaced). 159,960 produced. The Motor The Motor (magazine) The Motor - not to be confused with an Australian magazine with the same name - was a United Kingdom weekly automobile magazine founded on 28 January 1903.... magazine tested a Husky in 1954 and found it to have a top speed of and acceleration from 0- in 24.3 seconds. A fuel consumption of was recorded. The test car cost £564 including taxes. "Audax Series" Hillman Husky Series I In 1958 the new "Series I" Husky appeared. It followed the same formula as its predecessor, but was based on the new "Audax" or "Series" Hillman Minx. This time the engine was the new Minx’s 1390 cc overhead valve unit but de-rated to an output of . . As before, there was also a four-door "Minx estate", and the Husky had two doors (plus the side-hinged rear door) and a shorter wheelbase (by ). It was, however longer than its predecessor. Again Commer sold a panel van version of the same vehicle as the Commer Cob. Series II A "Series II" Husky followed in 1960 with a four speed gearbox, slightly lowered roof, a deeper windscreen, and altered seats. The engine compression ratio was raised to 8:1 and the carburettor changed to a Zenith 30 VIG type. Testing the Husky in 1960 The Motor magazine recorded a top speed of , acceleration from 0- of 26.9 seconds and a fuel consumption of . The test car cost £674 including taxes. Series III The final iteration of the "Audax" Hillman Husky, the "Series III", made its debut in 1963, along with a face-lift for the whole Minx range (and its badge-engineered derivatives). The face-lift bodywork changes were applied to the Husky, but the reduction in wheel size from to , which was applied to the saloons, was not applied to the Husky in order to maintain its ground clearance. In addition, whilst the contemporary Series V Minx got front disc brakes, the Husky continued with four-wheel drum brakes. While the 1390 cc engine continued to be used in most markets, for the USA the Husky adopted the 1592 cc engine used in the contemporary Minx Series V. From 1964 the Husky gained an all-synchromesh gearbox and changes to the clutch and suspension. Production of the Series III ended in 1965. Hillman Imp van derivative No further Huskies were made until a new model based on the Hillman Imp Hillman Imp The Hillman Imp is a compact, rear-engined sedan that was manufactured under the Hillman marque by the Rootes from 1963 to 1976. An estate version known as the Hillman Husky was produced from 1967.... appeared in 1967. This new Husky shared the Imp's rear-mounted 875 cc overhead camshaft engine, and had slightly better performance than the Imp. This was also the engine adopted by the Bond 875 Bond 875 The Bond 875 was a small three wheeled car, made by Bond Cars Ltd in Preston, United Kingdom from 1965-70. There was also a van version from 1967, known as the Ranger.... . Like the earlier van version, the "imp estate" was based on the two-door car, with the roof raised by 4 inches (100 mm) to provide a large carrying space above the engine bay, giving the car a square boxy look. Loading access was by a vertical top-hinged rear tailgate with the bottom of the opening level with the floor, making it easy to load without stooping down. Sliding windows gave ventilation and a view out from the rear bench seat. The top part of the back seat squab folded forward forming a useful horizontal loading platform with a ribbed rubber surface, and of capacity. To take the increased load, this was the first Hillman derivative to have radial-ply tyres Radial tire A radial tire is a particular design of automobile tire . The design was originally developed by Michelin in 1946 . Because of its advantages, it has now become the standard design for essentially all automotive tires.... . It also had uprated rear shock absorbers and rear springs were fitted along with a strengthened rear suspension. These gave the Husky more sporty handling that the standard Imp, and looked surprising when this tall vehicle went quickly round a corner with very little roll. Once more Commer Commer Commer was a British manufacturer of commercial vehicles which existed from 1905 until 1979. Commer vehicles included car derived vans, light vans, medium to heavy commercial trucks, military vehicles and buses.... sold a commercial version of the same car, the van version which was launched in 1965 and had the engine in low-compression form. The last Husky was built in 1970, at which point Chrysler Europe Chrysler Europe In the 1960s, Chrysler Corporation sought to become a world producer of automobiles. The company had never had much success outside North America, contrasting with Ford Motor Company's worldwide reach and General Motors Corporation' success with Opel, Vauxhall Motors, Holden and Bedford Vehicles.... , new owners of Rootes, engaged in a major rationalisation of their products.