Tamplin

Tamplin was an English automobile brand associated with Tamplin Motors, a small manufacturer of cyclecars operating during the early post-First World War period. Its cars were produced first at Kingston Road in Staines, Middlesex, from 1919, and later at Malden Road in Cheam, Surrey, from 1924. The company occupied a niche in Britain’s light-car market, where cyclecars offered relatively simple construction, low weight, and reduced running costs compared with conventional automobiles. The business was established by Edward Alfred Tamplin, who ran the Railway Garage in Staines. Tamplin had acted as an agent for the Carden cyclecar and, in 1919, acquired the rights to manufacture it after contracting to take the model’s entire output. The resulting Tamplin retained the compact, narrow configuration associated with cyclecars but developed its own identifiable engineering and body arrangements. The first Tamplin used a 980 cc JAP air-cooled V-twin engine mounted alongside the body. Power was transmitted through a chain to a Sturmey-Archer three-speed-and-reverse gearbox and then by an exposed belt to the rear wheels. Because the rear drive was sent to only the left-hand wheel, the design avoided the need for a differential. The engine could be started from the driver’s seat using a kick starter. A fully depressed clutch pedal also operated the brakes, reflecting the car’s compact and mechanically economical design. The early car had a very narrow track and tandem seating, with two occupants positioned one behind the other. Its open body was made from fibreboard treated with linseed oil to make it waterproof, while the body tub itself served as the chassis. Independent front suspension used coil springs, and the rear suspension used quarter-elliptic leaf springs. Although the JAP engine was central to the model, some examples were fitted with Blackburne engines. In 1924 Tamplin introduced a more conventional redesign. The newer version had a front-mounted engine, a substantially wider body, and seating for two people side by side. Its drivetrain used a centrally mounted chain in place of the earlier exposed belt arrangement, and the body was mounted on a separate chassis rather than functioning as the structural base. This revision represented an attempt to make the car more practical and familiar to buyers as the cyclecar market matured. Production totals remain uncertain. Tamplin claimed that 1,896 cars had been built, but surviving chassis-number evidence does not substantiate that figure. At the company’s busiest periods, output may have reached approximately 14 cars per week. The broader British cyclecar market declined sharply by the middle of the 1920s as buyers increasingly favored more conventional small cars. By 1925 Tamplin had left automobile manufacturing, returned to garage operations, and became a truck dealer. The brand is therefore remembered as a small British cyclecar manufacturer rather than as a continuing automotive company.

Tamplin’s origins were connected with the Railway Garage in Staines, Middlesex, operated by Edward Alfred Tamplin. Although Tamplin came from a Sussex brewing family, he was not directly involved in that family business. His automotive work began with the agency for the Carden cyclecar. In 1919, after agreeing to take the entire production output, he acquired the rights to manufacture the car himself. This created the basis for Tamplin Motors and the Tamplin marque. Manufacturing began on Kingston Road in Staines. The early Tamplin was a highly compact cyclecar with a 980 cc JAP air-cooled V-twin engine mounted at the side of the body. The engine drove through a chain to a Sturmey-Archer gearbox providing three forward speeds and reverse, followed by an exposed belt drive to the rear wheels. Drive was transmitted to the left rear wheel only, eliminating the weight and complexity of a differential. A kick starter could be operated from the driver’s seat, while the clutch pedal also actuated the brakes when fully depressed. The car’s narrow track and tandem seating reflected the space-saving conventions of the cyclecar category. Two occupants sat one behind the other in an open body. The body tub was made from fibreboard waterproofed with linseed oil and also served as the chassis. Independent front suspension used coil springs, while quarter-elliptic leaf springs were fitted at the rear. Some cars used Blackburne engines instead of the principal JAP installation. These features enabled a relatively light and inexpensive vehicle, but they also made the Tamplin notably different from larger and more conventional small cars. A major redesign was announced in 1924, by which time production had moved to Malden Road in Cheam, Surrey. The revised car had a front-mounted engine and a wider body that allowed the occupants to sit side by side. The drive layout was also altered: a centrally positioned chain replaced the earlier belt drive to the rear axle. In addition, the new model used a separate chassis, departing from the structural body tub of the original design. The changes made the car more conventional and potentially more usable, while retaining its light-car character. The exact number of Tamplins built is unresolved. The company claimed production of 1,896 vehicles, but known chassis numbers do not support that total. At peak periods, production may have reached about 14 cars per week. Such output was significant for a small specialist maker but remained modest compared with the larger British automobile manufacturers. By 1925 the British cyclecar market had largely collapsed. Customers increasingly preferred small conventional cars, and the commercial environment became difficult for makers whose products depended on the cyclecar formula. Tamplin ended car production that year and returned to the garage trade, subsequently operating as a truck dealer. The Tamplin automobile is consequently a defunct marque associated with Britain’s short-lived cyclecar era, with its historical interest lying in its unusual construction, compact drivetrain, and transition from tandem-seated experimental design to a more conventional side-by-side model.

• 1925

  Automobile production ends

  [1]Tamplinen.wikipedia.org

  The decline of the British cyclecar market led Tamplin to stop making cars and return to garage operations and truck dealing.

• 1924

  Redesigned Tamplin announced

  [1]Tamplinen.wikipedia.org

  A wider and more conventional version appeared with a front-mounted engine, side-by-side seating, central chain drive, and a separate chassis. Production moved to Cheam, Surrey.

• 1919

  Tamplin begins automobile production

  [1]Tamplinen.wikipedia.org

  Edward Alfred Tamplin acquired manufacturing rights connected with the Carden cyclecar and began producing Tamplin cars at Kingston Road in Staines, Middlesex.

A lightweight, mechanically simple British cyclecar intended to provide relatively affordable personal transportation during the early 1920s.

• Cyclecar · 1919

  Tamplin cyclecar

  The original Tamplin was a narrow, open two-seat cyclecar with tandem seating. It used a 980 cc JAP air-cooled V-twin mounted beside the body, a Sturmey-Archer three-speed-and-reverse gearbox, and chain-and-belt final drive. Its fibreboard body was treated with linseed oil for water resistance and also served as the chassis. A limited number of cars were fitted with Blackburne engines.

• Cyclecar · 1924

  1924 Tamplin

  The 1924 revision adopted a more conventional layout. It placed the engine at the front, widened the body for side-by-side seating, replaced the earlier belt arrangement with a centrally mounted chain drive to the rear axle, and used a separate chassis. The redesign was intended to improve practicality while retaining the light-car principles of the original model.

1. 1Tamplinen.wikipedia.org