The Xtra was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

three-wheel

cyclecar A cyclecar was a type of small, lightweight and inexpensive car manufactured in Europe and the United States between 1910 and the early 1920s. The purpose of cyclecars was to fill a gap in the market between the motorcycle and the car. A key c ...

launched at the Olympia show in November 1921The Olympia Show, The Motor Cycle, 1st Dec 1921, p742 and built until 1924 by Xtra Cars, Ltd., of London Road,

Chertsey Chertsey is a town in the Borough of Runnymede, Surrey, England, south-west of central London. It grew up round Chertsey Abbey, founded in 666 CE, and gained a market charter from Henry I. A bridge across the River Thames first appeared in t ...

, Surrey. A very basic machine, it was designed by Cuthbert Clarke and resembled a three-wheeled

sidecar A sidecar is a one-wheeled device attached to the side of a motorcycle, scooter, or bicycle, making the whole a three-wheeled vehicle. A motorcycle with a sidecar is sometimes called a ''combination'', an ''outfit'', a ''rig'' or a ''hack''. ...

in most respects. The car was powered by a 3.75 hp single-cylinder, two stroke, 270 cc Villiers engine and had a friction drive two-speed

transmission Transmission may refer to: Medicine, science and technology * Power transmission ** Electric power transmission ** Propulsion transmission, technology allowing controlled application of power *** Automatic transmission *** Manual transmission ** ...

, using two cork covered wheels of different sizes, chain driven by the engine. These wheels ran within a drum which was mounted on the single rear wheel and one would make contact to provide drive at the appropriate ratio. They were controlled by a lever which could be pushed or pulled to engage drive and had a central neutral position. There was no reverse gear. Rear suspension was by a coil spring on the engine frame. There was no front axle, the wheels were controlled by two transverse leaf springs. Steering was by

rack and pinion A rack and pinion is a type of linear actuator that comprises a circular gear (the ''pinion'') engaging a linear gear (the ''rack''). Together, they convert rotational motion into linear motion. Rotating the pinion causes the rack to be driven i ...

. Braking was on the rear wheel only and used shoes operating on the outside of the transmission drum. The first Xtra was a single seater (monocar) with a light

plywood Plywood is a material manufactured from thin layers or "plies" of wood veneer that are glued together with adjacent layers having their wood grain rotated up to 90 degrees to one another. It is an engineered wood from the family of manufacture ...

on ash frame body with an occasional seat behind the driver on top of the engine. It featured

acetylene Acetylene ( systematic name: ethyne) is the chemical compound with the formula and structure . It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in its pure ...

lighting. A top speed of above 30 mph (48 km/h) was claimed. The monocar was joined in November 1922 by a "Sociable" two seater with side by side seats and an option of having an 8 hp, V-twin JAP engine in place of the Villiers. Xtra went into voluntary liquidation in May 1924 and was finally wound up in July 1926. It is not known how many cars were made.

References

{{Reflist

External links

* http://3wheelers.com/xtra.html Cyclecars Three-wheeled motor vehicles Defunct motor vehicle manufacturers of England 1920s cars Defunct companies based in Surrey

See also

References

External links