1913 Argyll
The Scottish firm of Argyll operated from a vast terra-cotta factory at Alexandria, just north of Glasgow, although their output never matched the building’s potential. Their 1912 models offered technological refinements unique to this marque: single-sleeve valve engines and efficient four-wheel brakes. The 1913 15/30hp Streamline Limousine carries Argyll’s own coachwork.
1913 De Dion-Bouton
A direct competitor of the Renault FK was this little De Dion-Bouton, with a 12hp four-cylinder engine, selling at a chassis price of of £283 in 1913. Already De Dion were past their peak, however, and Renault were in the ascendant. In 1913, Renault sales passed the 10,000 mark for the first time, giving the company 20% of the French market. Well built though the De Dion was, it could not meet that kind of competition.
1913 T Ford
This 1913 variant of the Model T Ford was known as the Commercial Runabout in America. as its rear seat hinged forward into its footwell to form a flat luggage deck. That rear seat’s solitary isolation earned it the nickname ‘Motherlaw seat’.
1913 GN
This lethal-looking device is a 1913 Grand Prix GN cyclecar, the ancestor of the vintage Frazer Nash. It has a 900 GN vee-twin engine (whose elegant induction pipes were adapted cycle handlebars) set in an ash chassis and driving the rear wheels via a twospeed chain-and-dog transmission, through belts and pulleys. It also has cable-and-bobbin steering, a feature which, combined with rather nebulous braking, made the 60mph top speed an exciting prospect.
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