Sheffield-Simplex

Sheffield-Simplex was a British car and motorcycle manufacturer operating from 1907 to 1920 based in Sheffield, Yorkshire, and Kingston upon Thames, Surrey.

The company received financial backing from aristocrat and coal magnate Earl Fitzwilliam. The first few cars were made by Peter Brotherhood and were a continuation of the Brotherhood-Crocker cars made in London in which Earl Fitzwilliam had been an investor. Stanley Brotherhood sold the London site in 1905 and moved his Peter Brotherhood business to Peterborough, near Fitzwilliam's second seat at Milton Park. He could not get permission to build a car factory in Peterborough so the Earl suggested a move to Sheffield where Stanley Brotherhood built a new factory in Tinsley a few miles south of Wentworth-Woodhouse.

In late 1906 Peter Brotherhood withdrew from the car venture and the former Brotherhood cars bore just the Sheffield-Simplex name. In 1908, the first proper Sheffield-Simplex cars appeared designed by managing director Percy Richardson, formerly of Daimler and Peter Brotherhood. The 45 hp LA1 had a six-cylinder 6978 cc engine and three-speed gearbox. It was joined in 1908 by the LA2, intended for lighter open bodies which did without a conventional gear system, having one forward gear and an emergency low and reverse gear in a small gearbox attached to the front of the differential housing. The only remaining example of a 45 hp LA2 is in private ownership and is seen frequently on rallies in Britain, Ireland and Belgium.

In November 1909 it was announced they had designed aero engines and were seriously considering their manufacture.

Four smaller cars joined the line up in November 1909. The 14-20 hp LA3 and long wheelbase LA4 were the babies of the family with a four-cylinder engine of 2882 cc, and Renault-style dashboard radiators, while the 20-30 hp LA5 and LA6 had six-cylinder 4324 cc power units. These cars lasted only one year and in 1911 were replaced by the 25 hp LA7 with a six-cylinder 4740 cc engine allowing the company to boast that only one other British maker made only six-cylinder cars. Sheffield-Simplex considered their only rival to be Rolls-Royce and even opened their London showroom very close by in Conduit Street.

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