Crosley & Crosley Specials Road Test Limited Edition

Compiled by R.M.Clarke, Softbound, 93 Pages, A-CROX1, ISBN: 9781855204386

- The Story of Crosley production cars and the successful Crosley powered racing specials from their inception in 1939 up to the early sixties. Also reported on is the 1951 Le Mans entry 'Le Biplane Torpedo' -

FURTHER details of the new Crosley I. miniature car, introduced recently in the United States, are contained in the May issue of the American Motor. As we have already reported, this has a two-cylinder horizontally-opposed engine and weighs, complete with four-seater cabriolet-type body, only 8 cwt.
The chassis is of conventional design with channel side members and three cross members. Semi-elliptic springing is used at the front, whilst the rear suspension employs quarter elliptics. There are single-acting hydraulic shock absorbers all round and rubber bushes arc used in the shackles. The wheelbase is 7 ft. 6 ins., track 3 ft. 4 ins., overall length 10 ft.

The air-cooled engine has a bore and stroke of 76.2 mm. and 71 mm., giving a capacity of 655 c.c. It develops about 15 h.p. at 4,200 r.p.xn. with a compression ratio of 5 to 1. A single dry-plate clutch conveys the powet from the engine to the three-speed gearbox, whence an enclosed propeller shaft, without universal joints, continues to the spiral bevel rear axle. Roller bearings are used throughout.

The use of universal joints has been avoided in an ingenious fashion. The engine is mounted at the front on a synthetic rubber block supported by the front chassis cross-member. The entire power plant and transmission " floats " on this block, which is sufficiently flexible to allow for movement of the rear wheels, and yet, with the aid of internal steel reinforcements, is also capable of taking the driving load.

The cable-operated brakes are also unusual in that the linings are not riveted to the shoes, but float between them and the drums. Thus to reline the brakes merely involves slipoing our the old linings and inserting the new.

Two back axle ratios are available. 5.14 to I and 5.55 to 1; with the higher of these a maximum speed of about 50 m.p.h. can be attained. Petrol consumption is claimed to be 60 m.p.g. at 30-35 m.p.h. and 45 m.p.g. at maxi• mum speed. There are two body types, the two-passenger coupe at 325 dollars (about £70) and a four-seater coupe at 350 dollars (about £75). A specially designed Crosley push-button radio can be fitted for 24.95 dollars (about £5 extra).