1924 Humber 8/18hp Tourer

Lot details
Registration No: MB 7188
Chassis No: L1913
Mot Expiry: July 2004

Humber was one of the oldest cycle marques, Thomas Humber making his first bikes in Nottingham in 1870 before opening factories to mass-produce the then new-fangled 'Safety Bicycles' in both Coventry and Wolverhampton in 1886. Having built their first 3-wheeler in 1896, Humber became the very first manufacturer of series -production motor cars in England. Humber also opened an aircraft engine manufacturing division in 1909 and made motorcycles until 1930. The marque was eventually absorbed into the Rootes Group which, in turn, was taken over by Chrysler before being off-loaded to Peugeot.
The little Humber 8/18 with its new motor incorporating inlet over exhaust valves joined the range in 1923, the example being auctioned here dispatched by the factory to Woodbridge and Sons of Crewe in December 1924. The open tourer was purchased by the present Leicestershire owners in May 2002, since when magneto and dynamo have been refurbished.
The open body and paintwork are described as being good and the 2/3-seater interior trimmed in brown leather as original. Both electrical equipment and 3-speed manual gearbox are said to be in very good order and, following some recent work, the 4-cylinder 985cc engine fair. Just 31,389 miles are displayed on the odometer.
Complete with weather equipment, sidescreens and tools, this characterful 1920s motor car was last successfully tested in July, so the MOT from then and tax-exempt disc will be current until next July.