The Jowett Bradford was a British light van produced from 1946 to 1953 by Jowett Cars Ltd of

Idle Idle generally refers to idleness, a lack of motion or energy. Idle or ''idling'', may also refer to: Technology * Idle (engine), engine running without load ** Idle speed * Idle (CPU), CPU non-utilisation or low-priority mode ** Synchronous ...

, near

Bradford Bradford is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Bradford district in West Yorkshire, England. The city is in the Pennines' eastern foothills on the banks of the Bradford Beck. Bradford had a population of 349,561 at the 2011 ...

, England. It was also available as an

estate car A station wagon ( US, also wagon) or estate car ( UK, also estate), is an automotive body-style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door ( ...

from 1947 to 1953. The vehicle was based on the pre-war Jowett Eight and was the first Jowett to be re-introduced after the Second World War. Although it was very basic, the Bradford's economy and availability appealed to the post-war market.

Design features

The chassis featured half-elliptic leaf springs front and rear with beam axles. The front-mounted

flat-twin engine A flat-twin engine is a two-cylinder internal combustion engine with the cylinders on opposite sides of the crankshaft. The most common type of flat-twin engine is the boxer-twin engine, where both pistons move inwards and outwards at the same ti ...

produced and drove the rear wheels through a three-speed non-

synchromesh A manual transmission (MT), also known as manual gearbox, standard transmission (in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States), or stick shift (in the United States), is a multi-speed motor vehicle transmission system, where gear changes ...

gearbox. In 1950 the engine was updated to give and

was fitted to the top ratio. This improved the top speed to . The drum brakes were operated mechanically using a Girling system.

Body variants

Initially only a 10 cwt van version was made but in 1947 it was joined by an

, the Utility. This was little more than the van with side windows and rear seats. By 1951 the Utility was offered in two versions: Utility and Utility De Luxe, with the latter having better trim, including a rear bumper and side footsteps.''4 famous Bradfords'', Jowett sales leaflet (1951) Both utilities were also offered as a '4-light van', with windows but no rear seats, to avoid the high purchase tax on private cars. The Bradford was also manufactured as a light

lorry A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

, as would later be described as a

pickup truck A pickup truck or pickup is a light-duty truck that has an enclosed cabin, and a back end made up of a cargo bed that is enclosed by three low walls with no roof (this cargo bed back end sometimes consists of a tailgate and removable covering) ...

. Driveaway-chassis and cab-chassis versions were made for outside

coachbuilder A coachbuilder or body-maker is someone who manufactures bodies for passenger-carrying vehicles.Construction has always been a skilled trade requiring a relatively lightweight product with sufficient strength. The manufacture of necessarily ...

s, in which form it sold in large numbers at home and abroad.

Performance

A Utility de-luxe tested by the British magazine ''The Motor'' in 1952 had a top speed of and could accelerate from 0– in 47.6 seconds. A fuel consumption of was recorded. The test car cost £740 including taxes. The de-luxe specification, which included

trafficators Trafficators are semaphore signals which, when operated, protrude from the bodywork of a motor vehicle to indicate its intention to turn in the direction indicated by the pointing signal. Trafficators are often located at the door pillar. Histor ...

, dual windscreen wipers,

running board A running board or footboard is a narrow step fitted under the side doors of a tram ( cable car, trolley, or streetcar in North America), car, or truck. It aids entry, especially into high vehicles, and is typical of vintage trams and cars, w ...

s, a rear bumper and some chromium plating, added £38 to the total cost.

Development

A saloon and a pickup with inlet-over-exhaust cylinder heads was being developed when Jowett stopped making cars and vans. Culshaw & Horrobin, ''The Complete Catalogue of British Cars 1895–1975'', "Bradford", p. 373

Gallery

File:Jowett_Bradford_Truck.jpg, 1951 10 cwt (½ ton) lorry File:Jowett Bradford Van (cropped).jpg, 10 cwt (½ ton) van registered October 1948 File:Jowett Bradford next to Javelin.jpg, van to "station wagon" private conversion registered March 1952 File:Bradford (1854452421).jpg, standard 6-light van or Utility Car either 2 or 4 seats registered March 1948 Stondon Museum File:Bradford.jpg, de luxe Utility Car with three rows of two seats and like the standard model 8 cwt springs File:Jowett Bradford Van - Rolling Chassis (4989808574).jpg,

Rolling chassis A rolling chassis is the chassis without bodywork of a motor vehicle ( car, truck, bus, or other vehicle), assembled with suspension and wheels. Heavy vehicles Separate chassis remain in use for almost all heavy vehicles ranging from pickup tru ...

of a 1948 van File:Jowett Bradford ice cream van (LKM 226).jpg, ice cream van in Liverpool File:Jowett Bradford badge.jpg, badge File:Bradford Badge Blue.JPG, badge

References

External links

{{Commons category, Jowett Bradford
Jowett Car Club Limited siteJowett North West Section
Cars powered by boxer engines

Cars introduced in 1946 1950s cars