Silver Hawk
Silver Hawk was a short-lived British sporting-car manufacturer active in Cobham, Surrey, from 1920 to 1921.
Last updated August 27, 2026
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Overview
Silver Hawk Motors was a small British motor manufacturer established in Cobham, Surrey, in 1920 by Sir (Albert) Noel Campbell Macklin. The company occupied an important but brief place in Macklin’s sequence of automotive ventures. He created Silver Hawk after separating from his earlier Eric-Campbell project and before going on to establish the better-known Invicta and Railton marques. Unlike a mass-market manufacturer, Silver Hawk operated on a very small scale: the cars were constructed in a garage at Macklin’s private home rather than in a substantial industrial plant. The Silver Hawk was conceived as a stylish, high-performance sporting car. Its design drew on Macklin’s earlier Eric-Campbell work and combined a lightweight aluminium body with an externally mounted exhaust. Power came from a tuned and lightened 1,498 cc Coventry-Simplex side-valve engine rated at 10/35 horsepower. The engine drove the rear wheels through a cone clutch and a three- or four-speed transmission. Semi-elliptic leaf springs were used at the front, while the rear suspension employed cantilever springs. This specification placed the car within the sporting and light-car market of the early post-First World War period, where low weight, competition exposure, and distinctive styling could help a small manufacturer attract attention. Silver Hawk also gained limited visibility through motor competition. In 1920, Violette Cordery drove a Silver Hawk in the 1,500 cc light-car class at the South Harting hill climb. She won the ladies’ race at the Junior Car Club May meeting in 1921 at a reported speed of 49.7 mph, probably using a Silver Hawk. The marque’s most significant international competition appearance came at the 1920 Coupe des Voiturettes at Le Mans, where a team of three cars was entered and two finished, in sixth and seventh places. The business nevertheless lacked the industrial backing and production capacity needed to establish a sustainable volume model. Its narrow sporting focus, garage-based manufacturing arrangement, and absence of a standard model capable of generating regular sales limited its commercial prospects. Approximately twelve cars were built. Silver Hawk Motors ceased operating after roughly two years, making it a rare and historically notable but short-lived British marque. Its principal significance lies in its connection to Macklin’s wider career and in the surviving evidence of early British specialist-car development rather than in a lasting product range or continuing corporate organization.
History
Silver Hawk Motors was founded in 1920 at Cobham in Surrey by Sir (Albert) Noel Campbell Macklin. The marque emerged after Macklin parted company with his Eric-Campbell project and represented an intermediate stage in his career as an automotive designer and entrepreneur. He later became associated with the creation of the Invicta and Railton marques, but Silver Hawk itself remained a small and short-lived undertaking. Production took place in a garage at Macklin’s private home. This unusual arrangement reflected the company’s limited industrial resources and helped define the scale of the enterprise. Silver Hawk did not develop the manufacturing infrastructure, financial backing, or broad standard model range associated with established British car producers. Instead, it concentrated on a single sporting design intended to appeal through appearance, performance, and competition potential. The Silver Hawk was related technically and stylistically to Macklin’s earlier Eric-Campbell design. It used a lightweight aluminium body, an external exhaust, and a tuned and lightened 1,498 cc Coventry-Simplex side-valve engine producing a stated 10/35 horsepower. Rear-wheel drive was transmitted through a cone clutch and either a three- or four-speed gearbox. The chassis used semi-elliptic leaf springs at the front and cantilever springs at the rear. These features reflected the engineering priorities of specialist light cars during the period: keeping weight low while providing responsive road and competition performance. Competition formed an important part of the marque’s limited public profile. In 1920, Violette Cordery drove a Silver Hawk in the 1,500 cc light-car category at the South Harting hill climb. A team of three Silver Hawks was also entered for the 1920 Coupe des Voiturettes at Le Mans. Two cars finished the event, placing sixth and seventh. Cordery subsequently won the ladies’ race at the Junior Car Club May meeting in 1921 at a reported speed of 49.7 mph, although the available account identifies the car as probably being a Silver Hawk rather than confirming it unequivocally. The business did not achieve the production scale needed for longevity. Its lack of industrial backing and failure to offer a volume-selling standard model restricted its commercial base. Approximately twelve cars were produced. Silver Hawk Motors ended operations in 1921, leaving behind a very small surviving production record but a meaningful connection to the development of British specialist and competition-oriented automobiles. The marque is best understood as a brief sporting-car experiment within Macklin’s broader automotive career, rather than as a continuing automobile company or a diversified product brand.
- 1921
Reported Junior Car Club ladies’ race victory
[1]Violette Cordery won the ladies’ race at the Junior Car Club May meeting at a reported 49.7 mph, probably in a Silver Hawk.
- 1921
Production ends
[1]Silver Hawk Motors ceased operations after producing approximately twelve cars.
- 1920
Silver Hawk Motors is established
[1]Sir (Albert) Noel Campbell Macklin founded Silver Hawk Motors in Cobham, Surrey, after separating from the Eric-Campbell project.
- 1920
Silver Hawk appears at South Harting
[1]Violette Cordery drove a Silver Hawk in the 1,500 cc light-car class at the South Harting hill climb.
- 1920
Three-car Le Mans entry
[1]Silver Hawk entered three cars in the Coupe des Voiturettes at Le Mans; two finished sixth and seventh.
Products and positioning
A low-volume British sporting-car marque positioned around lightweight construction, performance, distinctive styling, and competition use rather than mass production.
Sporting car · 1920
Silver Hawk
The Silver Hawk was a lightweight British sporting car with a stylish aluminium body and external exhaust. It used a tuned and lightened 1,498 cc Coventry-Simplex side-valve engine rated at 10/35 horsepower, rear-wheel drive, a cone clutch, and a three- or four-speed transmission. Its suspension combined semi-elliptic leaf springs at the front with cantilever springs at the rear. The model was built in very small numbers, with approximately twelve cars produced, and was promoted partly through competition appearances.
Recent events
- 1921
Silver Hawk achieves a reported ladies’ race victory[1]
Other
At the Junior Car Club May meeting, Violette Cordery won the ladies’ race at a reported 49.7 mph, probably driving a Silver Hawk.
- 1920
Silver Hawk enters the 1920 Coupe des Voiturettes at Le Mans[1]
Other
A three-car Silver Hawk team competed in the Coupe des Voiturettes at Le Mans. Two entries completed the event, finishing sixth and seventh.
- 1920
Violette Cordery competes in a Silver Hawk at South Harting[1]
Other
Violette Cordery drove a Silver Hawk in the 1,500 cc light-car class at the South Harting hill climb.
Sources1 sources
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