GWR petrol-electric railcar
| GWR petrol-electric railcar | |
|---|---|
 From The Sphere, Saturday 9 March 1912 | |
| In service | 1912-1923 |
| Manufacturer | British Thomson-Houston |
| Designer | British Thomson-Houston |
| Assembly | Rugby, Warwickshire |
| Fleet numbers | 100 |
| Capacity | 44 |
| Operators | |
| Specifications | |
| Maximum speed | Almost 35 mph (56 km/h) |
| Weight | 14 long tons (14 metric tons) |
| Axle load | 7 long tons (7.1 metric tons) |
| Engine type | Maudslay petrol |
| Cylinder count | 4 |
| Cylinder size | 5 by 5 inches (130 mm × 130 mm) |
| Power output | 35–45 horsepower (26–34 kW) |
| UIC classification | Bo |
| Seating | 44 passengers |
| Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
The GWR petrol-electric railcar was a 4-wheel motorised coach ordered by the GWR in 1911 from British Thomson-Houston, who designed it and supplied the electrical fittings. It was powered by a 35–45 horsepower (26–34 kW) Maudslay petrol engine driving a dynamo which supplied two electric motors, one on each axle. It was provided with a driving position at both ends, and could carry 44 passengers at over 30 mph (48 km/h).[1][2] It was numbered 100.[3]
The first journey undertaken was on 28 January 1912 when the railcar ran from Leamington to Slough. It was then put through a series of tests on the line between Slough and Windsor.[4]
It was in use on the GWR until October 1919, when it was sold to Lever Brothers, who ran it at Port Sunlight until 1923.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ a b Kingdom, A. R. (1976). The Great Western at the turn of the century. Oxford: Oxford Pub. p. 28. ISBN 0-902888-93-5.
- ^ "A New G.W.R. Petrol-Electric Railcar. | 29th February 1912 | The Commercial Motor Archive". archive.commercialmotor.com. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
- ^ Haresnape, Brian (1978). Collett & Hawksworth locomotives : a pictorial history. London: I. Allan. p. 116. ISBN 0-7110-0869-8.
- ^ "Rail Motor Car on Great Western Railway". Railway Times. United Kingdom. 24 February 1912. Retrieved 4 May 2026 – via British Newspaper Archive.
Further reading
[edit]Robertson, Kevin (2004) [1999]. Odd Corners of the GWR From the Days of Steam (Pbk ed.). Stroud, Gloucestershire: Sutton Publishing. pp. 65–69. ISBN 0 7509 3458 1.