Grace's Guide To British Industrial History

Registered UK Charity (No. 115342)

Grace's Guide is the leading source of historical information on industry and manufacturing in Britain. This web publication contains 162,357 pages of information and 244,505 images on early companies, their products and the people who designed and built them.

Grace's Guide is the leading source of historical information on industry and manufacturing in Britain. This web publication contains 147,919 pages of information and 233,587 images on early companies, their products and the people who designed and built them.

S. S. Cars

From Graces Guide
February 1935.
February 1935.
May 1935.
October 1936. 2.5 litre saloon. Largest in the SS range.
October 1936. SS-Jaguar
October 1937.
October 1937.
December 1937.
October 1938.
January 1939.
April 1940.

Holbrook Lane, Coventry.

1933 William Lyons founded S. S. Cars Limited, which acquired the business carried on by Swallow Coachbuilding Co[1] manufacturing S. S. cars as well as motorcycle sidecars[2].

By the end of 1934 1,800 cars a year were leaving the factory.

1935 Public company, shares launched on the London Stock Exchange. The company acquired the business previously carried on by Swallow, producing the S. S. car as well as the Swallow motorcycle sidecar. Business had doubled in the past 6 months[3].

1935 Swallow Coachbuilding Co was put into voluntary liquidation, and was replaced by the Swallow Coachbuilding Company (1935) Limited which continued to make sidecars.

1935 Introduction of the Jaguar name for the cars[4]

WWII Car production halted; the company repaired bombers and manufactured other military products.

1945 The company name was changed to Jaguar because of the unfavourable connotations of the initials "SS" in the war.



See Also

Loading...

Sources of Information

  1. The Times, Jan 10, 1935
  2. The Times, Oct 28, 1933
  3. The Times, Jan 10, 1935
  4. The Times, Oct 30, 1936