Introduction of the S.S. Cars

Not content with pursuing a secondary, coachbuilding role, Lyons wanted to become a car manufacturer in his own right. Taking a cautious approach he arranged for the Standard Motor Company to build a chassis to Swallow’s design, but fitted with Standard engines. And so it was at the 1931 London Motor Show, Lyons revealed the S.S.1 coupé (exactly what the initials SS stood for is still open to conjecture, but it is often assumed they stood for Standard Special). With its low, very French lines and long bonnet the S.S.1 looked like a £1,000 car but only cost a very modest £310. Underpinning the coupé was a special Standard Ensign-derived chassis, and a choice of 2 or 2.5 litre engines.

The popular S.S.II, which appeared alongside the S.S.1 was simply a smaller version based on the Standard Nine chassis and fitted with a 1006 cc engine.

A much improved S.S.1 followed in 1933, with a number of revisions introduced to make the larger car a little more practical including lengthening the wheelbase by seven inches and widening the track by two, allowing two passengers to be carried in the rear.

In July 1933 the S.S.1 Tourer was introduced. This was the first open S.S. model and also the first to be entered in a serious competitive event – the 1933 Alpine Trial in Europe – and in 1934 they took the team prize on this event.

By the end of 1934 the company was producing about 1800 cars a year and S.S. Cars Ltd had been established as a public company. Lyons could now regard himself as a fully-fledged car manufacturer. It was also in late 1934 that William Walmsley, who did not share Lyons’ driving ambitions, severed his connection with the company at the first Annual General Meeting of S.S. Cars Ltd. He went on to pursue a low-key career in caravans and garage management.

S.S.90

In 1935 came the S.S.90 – Lyons’ first true sports car – so named to imply its anticipated top speed. The model’s chassis was essentially that of the revised S.S.1 with an underslung rear and 15 inches extracted from its central section. The engine, the 2.6-litre unit with a bore and stroke of 73 mm x 106 mm, had been mildly modified and now developed around 75 bhp. The side-valve cylinder head had been retained although the camshaft was peculiar to the model, and the aluminium cylinder head was an S.S. fitting.

Shortly after the introduction of the S.S.90, Lyons appointed William Munger Heynes, a gifted young engineer from Humber, as S.S.’s chief engineer. One of Heynes’ first tasks was a formidable: with the assistance of only one draughtsman he had to revise the by now complex S.S. range, designing a new chassis, suspension and steering for the new generation cars to be revealed in only six months time at the Motor Show. This included a new saloon range powered by the Weslake modified 2.5-litre engine, which was also to be used in the S.S. sports car.

At this time the SS name was altered, losing its full stops and being joined by Jaguar. It was Bill Rankin who was to come up with a list of animal and fish names, and Lyons “… immediately pounced on Jaguar because it had an exciting sound”. It was also Rankin who, as a keen amateur sculptor, was to design the famous leaping Jaguar mascot for the car’s radiator. An unimpressed Lyons said that it looked “like a cat shot off a fence”.

SS100

In 1935 the SS100 was introduced. Although the new SS100’s body and chassis looked virtually identical to the S.S.90, the suspension, brakes, and steering were shared with the new saloon range. The rear ends of the front leaf springs ran in sliding trunnions rather than being shackled and the Girling rod brakes were a great improvement on the previous Bendix cables. A Burman Douglas steering box replaced the earlier Marles Weller box.

The principal difference between the SS100 and the 90 was the 2663 cc Weslake modified Standard engine. Twin SU carburettors replaced the RAG units and helped the engine achieve 104 bhp at 4600 rpm. Car and driver together totalled 2800 lb and the SS100 was able to accelerate to 50 mph in 8.8 seconds, and to 60 mph in 12 seconds, covering the standing quarter mile in just 18.6 seconds.

All the SS100s were open two-seaters with the exception of the SS jaguar 100 Fixed Head Coupé. Reminiscent of the Bugatti Atlantique of the period, it was unveiled at the 1938 Motor Show. At £595 it was the most expensive of Jaguar’s pre-war cars and only one was manufactured before the outbreak of World War Two decreed an end to car production.

War Production

Whilst S.S. Jaguars continued to be made well into 1940, much of the company’s activity was by then centred around the production of materials of war, including three types of trailer (5 cwt., 10 cwt., and 6 ton) which were soon being produced for the War Department in large quantities – among them the special purpose trailers for Wingate’s legendary expedition. Even before the war had started, S.S. had begun the manufacture of wing components for the Stirling bomber, and this work was followed by a contract for the complete repair and modification of Armstrong Whitworth “Whitley” bombers; and when these were taken out of service, S.S. switched to repair work on the Wellington. Components were also made for many other aircraft, including the Spitfire, Lancaster, Mosquito, and the Oxford. When hostilities were drawing to a close, the company undertook the construction of complete Gloster Meteor centre sections.

War-time experimental work by S.S. included two technically interesting four-wheeled alternatives to the motor-cycle combination then used by airborn forces. These two lightweight prototypes (built in 1944) were very advanced in design, incorporating fully independent suspension and unit construction. They were shelved only because rapid development work enabled transport aircraft to carry heavier loads.

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