Date |
Frame Number |
Details
of modifications and changes in specification |
SEPT. 1957 |
A/9/1 |
 P1 Scooter production started, ready for announcement
in January 1958. It had an all-welded tubular frame
of 2½" and 1¼" dia. tubes. Bodywork
was glass fibre with a lockable container behind the
steering head and detachable rear side panels for maintenance.
The engine was the Villiers 31C, 148 cc with a 3 speed
foot change gearbox, fan cooling and a 12 volt Siba
Dynastart electric starter. Suspension on the front
leading arm and rear trailing arm was by Armstrong coil
spring units, hydraulically damped. Rear chain adjustment
was carried out by means of an eccentric spindle through
the rear trailing arm. Wheels were 10" on 4"
section tyres with 5" brakes. A dual seat, hinged
on the right hand side, revealed the fuel filler cap
to the 2¼ gallon glass fibre fuel tank.
Overall length 7' 8", width 2' 4", saddle
height 2' 4" and ground clearance 5½".
The Wheelbase was 4' 4" and the weight 262 lb.
Colours available: Two-tone Blue, Green and
Fawn or Maroon and Fawn. Optional extras included a
windscreen, spare wheel and tyre, luggage carrier and
a waterproof cover. Price was £184 12s 6d (£184.62½p). |
JUNE 1958 |
B/6/459 |
The
P2 Scooter was introduced. Identical to the P1 except
that it used the Villiers 9E, 197 cc engine with a 4
speed foot change gearbox, fan cooling and a Siba Dynastart.
Weight 272 lb. Price £199 12s 0d (£199.60p). |
SEPT. 1958 |
B/9/904 |
Design
changes to the P2: Front mudguards were painted two-tone,
a lifting handle was fitted to the rear body and the
rear brake pedal was redesigned to be toe operated instead
of heel operated. A new type of handlebar cowl was introduced,
a moulded mat replaced the plastic strips on the footboard
and the handlebar control cables were enclosed in rubber
tubes. |
SEPT.
1958 |
B/9/937 |
The
P2 design changes were incorporated into the P1. |
OCT. 1959 |
B/10/940 |
Glass’s
Motorcycle Check Book lists this frame number but gives
a date of June for the last P2 produced. It is highly
likely that the frame number is correct, as the coding
system used follows previous known modifications. The
June date, however, has been ignored. |
OCT.
1959 |
B/10/943 |
The
last P1 produced? The explanation is the same as for
the P2. |
SEPT. 1959 |
C/9/1001 |
 The P3 (148 cc) and P4 (197 cc) production
started ready for the October announcement. Generally
the same specifications as the previous Scooters but
with the following changes: A redesigned front bodywork
which also included the mudguard, the lockable front
container was deleted and the rear bodywork was made
as a complete one-piece moulding hinged at the rear.
The steering head angle was altered and the engine unit
lowered 2¼" to improve handling. Other changes
included the deletion of the chain guard, the fuel tank
was made in steel whilst aluminium styling flashes decorated
the sides of the rear bodywork.
Overall length was
reduced to 7' 3" with a shorter wheelbase of 4'
2" and a ground clearance increased to 7".
Weight was reduced to (P3) 252 1b and (P4) 264 1b.
Colours available: Red/Fawn and Dark Green /Fawn. The
P3 was priced at £178 10s 6d (£178.52½p)
with the P4 at £193 0s 0d (£193.00p).
|
FEB. 1960 |
D/2/1120 |
Improvements
to rear braking included a new foot brake pedal, rear
cable, drop arm and operating arm. Different O/S and
N/S front engine mounting plates were also fitted. |
MAY 1960 |
D/5/1237 |
A
new handlebar assembly was introduced. One of the improvements
was a locknut on the twist grip adjuster screw! |
JULY
1960 |
D/7/1367 |
A
new light switch was fitted. |
AUG. 1960 |
D/8/1377 |
The
last P4 produced. Again, this frame number is taken
from Glass’s Motorcycle Check Book but the final year
is listed as 1962. This has been dismissed as wrong
because it would have meant that just under 400 scooters
were produced in a three year production run, i.e. less
than 2½ per week! |
AUG.
1960 |
D/8/1386 |
The
last P3 produced. |
