Universal Power Drives was a British

truck 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 constructi ...

manufacturer which branded its trucks with the ''Unipower''

marque A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

History

''Universal Power Drives'' was founded in 1934 with a factory in

Perivale Perivale () is an area of Greater London, west of Charing Cross. It is the smallest of the seven towns which make up the London Borough of Ealing. Perivale is mostly residential, with a library, community centre, a number of parks and open ...

and its head office in

Aldwych Aldwych (pronounced ) is a street and the name of the area immediately surrounding it in central London, England, within the City of Westminster. The street starts east-northeast of Charing Cross, the conventional map centre-point of the city ...

, London. During the 1930s, 40s and 50s it specialised in producing

4x4 Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer case ...

forestry

logging truck A logging truck or timber lorry is a large truck used to carry logs. Some have integrated flatbeds, some are discrete tractor units, and some are configured to spread a load between the tractor unit and a dollied trailer pulled behind it. Ofte ...

s. In 1972 it launched the 4x4 Unipower Invader suited to fire-fighting and construction use. Todd Motors in New Zealand produced the TS3 Commer Truck, in the early 1970s, with a Unipower tandem drive assembly as a factory option. In January 1966 they exhibited a sports car, the Unipower GT at the Racing Car Show. Another car they produced was the Quasar-Unipower which was built in 1967 and 1968. In 1977 the company was acquired by Caterpillar Inc and production was moved to

Thames Ditton Thames Ditton is a suburban village on the River Thames, in the Elmbridge borough of Surrey, England. Apart from a large inhabited island in the river, it lies on the southern bank, centred 12.2 miles (19.6 km) southwest of Charing Cross ...

, Surrey. In 1988 the company started a new enterprise in

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, and ...

to provide continuity of support for

Scammell Scammell Lorries Limited was a British manufacturer of trucks, particularly specialist and military off-highway vehicles, between 1921 and 1988. History Scammell started as a late- Victorian period wheelwright and coach-building business, G Sc ...

trucks following the closure of the

Leyland DAF Leyland DAF was a commercial vehicle manufacturing company based in Leyland, United Kingdom, and a subsidiary of DAF NV. In February 1993, Leyland DAF was placed into receivership. History Leyland DAF was formed in February 1987, when the ...

(formerly

British Leyland British Leyland was an automotive engineering and manufacturing conglomerate formed in the United Kingdom in 1968 as British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd (BLMC), following the merger of Leyland Motors and British Motor Holdings. It was partl ...

) owned

plant that year. In the 1980s it launched the C-series heavy-haulage tractor and a range of military trucks. Alvis plc acquired the company in 1994 and named their new subsidiary ''Alvis Unipower Limited'', the trucks began to be branded as ''Alvis-Unipower''. Following their elimination from the bidding process for the UK Ministry of Defence's Heavy Equipment Transporter (HET) project, Alvis announced their intention to seek a new owner for ''Alvis Unipower''.

References

Bibliography

*{{cite book , first=Peter J. , last=Davies , title=The World Encyclopedia of Trucks , publisher=Lorenz Books , year=2000 , isbn=0-7548-0518-2 Defunct truck manufacturers of the United Kingdom Motor vehicle manufacturers based in London Vehicle manufacturing companies established in 1934 Former defence companies of the United Kingdom 1934 establishments in the United Kingdom