Ford Thames 400E
| Thames 400E | |
|---|---|
Thames 15 cwt Minibus (400E)
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| Overview | |
| Manufacturer | Ford UK |
| Also called | Thames 10/12 cwt Thames 15 cwt Thames 800 Thames Freighter |
| Production | 1957-1965 |
| Assembly |
Dagenham, United Kingdom Australia New Zealand |
| Body and chassis | |
| Class | Light commercial vehicle (M) |
| Body style |
van pickup minibus chassis cab |
| Powertrain | |
| Engine |
|
| Chronology | |
| Predecessor | Ford E83W |
| Successor | Ford Transit |
The Ford Thames 400E is a commercial vehicle that was made by Ford UK and introduced in 1957. Production of the range continued until September 1965, by which time a total of 187,000 had been built.
By the mid 1950s, Ford lagged well behind the competition in the light commercial market. The model still on offer until 1957 was the trusty but antiquated Fordson E83W, released in 1938. Studies were therefore made of the competition in this sector, with the Morris Commercial 10 cwt and 15/20 cwt models, of prewar design; Austin 10 cwt, and later their 25 cwt; Trojan 15 cwt van; and the Bedford 10/12 cwt model all coming in for scrutiny.
Taking a design lead from the US parent, a well overdue new 10/12/15 cwt range was therefore decided upon, to be of the forward control type all based on the same 'outrigger' chassis. With regard to this 'outrigger chassis', Cab and chassis windscreen variants, (subsequently described as 'open' back) differed from the van, estate car, and express bus body models, (subsequently described as 'closed' back) models by the addition of an extra rear crossmember to support the spare wheel carrier and to close the rear ends of the chassis horns. On the 'closed' back models the nature of the rear bodywork meant the rear crossmember could be omitted for this purpose.
Another subtle difference between the 'open' back models Vs. 'closed' back models was the method of body attachment to the chassis.
On 'open' back models the rear chassis outriggers were designed to accept customers' own coachwork either attached via welded cleats or bolted directly. This bodywork be it a pickup buck or say an ambulance body typically added extra stability to the rear chassis however should not be considered essential because the chassis design is constructed so as to be sturdy enough without. To promote ease of conversion, 'open' back models had cab bodywork that bolted to the chassis and could therefore be removed easily during the conversion process giving better access to the chassis under.
On 'closed' back models this flexibility for conversion was not considered necessary as customers buying an enclosed van type vehicle were unlikely to require access to the chassis in a similar fashion as 'open' back purchasers. More likely modification of the bodywork undertaken by 'closed' back purchasers would constitute removal of roof panels for elevating sections or the addition of windows as can be seen in many motor caravan conversions for example. As a result, it was decided that steel bodywork and cab sections could be welded directly to the chassis in places mainly for ease of construction and consequently adding additional stability to the chassis in a similar fashion to that of a coachbuilder converting an 'open' model. It should be stressed that this welded bodywork was not essential for maintaining acceptable levels of torsional chassis strength, the chassis design of the 'closed' back models should not be considered as 'unitary' for this reason. The correct definition in this case is a 'body reinforced separate chassis'.
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Wikipedia