Humber Hawk

Infobox Automobile


name = Humber Hawk
manufacturer = Rootes Group
production = 1945-1967
predecessor =
successor =
designer =

The Humber Hawk was a large four cylinder saloon produced by the British based Humber car company, part of the Rootes Group.

Humber Hawk Mk I & II

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Humber Hawk MKI & II


production = 1945-1949
cite book |last=Robson |first=G. |title=A-Z of British Cars 1945-80|year=2006 |publisher=Herridge |location=Devon, UK |id=ISBN 0-9541063-9-3]
predecessor =
body_style = 4-door saloon
engine = 1944 cc Straight-4 side valve
transmission = 4 speed manual
length = 178 inches (4521 mm)cite book |last=Culshaw |first= |coauthors=Horrobin |title=Complete Catalogue of British Cars |year=1974 |publisher=Macmillan |location=London |id=ISBN 0-333-16689-2]
width = 69 inches (1753 mm)
height =
weight =
wheelbase = 114 inches (2896 mm)The Hawk was the first Humber car to be launched after World War II but was not really a new vehicle being heavily based on the pre-war Hillman 14. The engine dated back to the early 1930s when it was first used in the Hillman 12 and was a 1944 cc, side valve, four cylinder unit and it drove a live rear axle through a four speed gearbox with centrally located floor change.

The four door body was mounted on a separate chassis and was of the six light design (three windows on each side) with a sunshine roof as standard. Suspension was independent at the front using a transverse leaf spring and at the rear the axle had half elliptic springs.

The Mark II version of September 1947 was a very mild facelift, the main difference being a column gear change.

Top speed was around Auto mph|65|0.

Humber Hawk Mark III to V

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Humber Hawk Mark III-V


production = 1948-1954
production 10,040 (III)
6492 (IV)
14,300 (V)
body_style = 4-door saloon
Limousine (Mk V only)
engine = 1944 cc Straight-4 side valve (Mk III)
2267 cc Straight-4 side valve (Mk IV & V)
transmission = 4 speed manual
length = 174 inches (4420 mm)
width = 70 inches (1778 mm)
height = convert|64.75|in|mm|abbr=on
weight =
wheelbase = 105.5 inches (2678 mm)The Mk III Hawk was a completely new car and was first shown at the London Motor Show in October 1948 but it still retained the earlier engine and transmission. The new body was styled by the Loewy Studio and the separate headlights of the old model were gone, along with the separate front wings. The chassis was new with coil sprung independent front suspension. The rear axle was also a new design with hypoid gearing.

In 1950 the Mark IV version arrived with a larger, 2267 cc engine and larger 15 inch wheels.

The 1952 Mk V had a new treatment to the front and was also available as a luxury touring limousine"

A 2267 cc Mk IV car tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1951 had a top speed of convert|71.4|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 30.0 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|24.2|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £850 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Humber Hawk| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = February 21 1950]

Humber Hawk Mark VI and VIA

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Humber Hawk Mark VI-VIA


production = 1954-1957
production 18,836 (Mk VI)
9614 (MkVIA)
body_style = 4-door saloon
estate
engine = 2267 cc Straight-4 overhead valve
transmission = 4 speed manual with optional overdrive
length = 181 inches (4597 mm) (saloon)
width = 72 inches (1829 mm)
height = convert|65|in|0|abbr=on
weight =
wheelbase = convert|105.5|in|0|abbr=on

The main change with the Mk VI was the fitting of an overhead valve cylinder head to the engine. The rear of the body was slightly changed making the car longer and in 1955 an estate version with fold down tailgate appeared.

The April 1956 Mk VIA was a fairly minor upgrade with changes mainly to the interior. A de-luxe version was added to the range.

A Mk VI estate car with overdrive tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1956 had a top speed of convert|79.7|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 25.2 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|22.8|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1405 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Humber Hawk estate car| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = April 11 1956]

Humber Hawk Series I to IVA

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Humber Hawk Series I-IVA


production = 1957-1967
production 15,539 (I)
6813 (IA)
7230 (II)
6109 (III)
1746 (IV)
3754 (IVA)_
body_style = 4-door saloon
Estate car
limousine
engine = 2267 cc Straight-4 ohv
transmission = 4 speed manual
Overdrive and automatic optional
length = convert|185|in|mm|abbr=on
width = convert|70|in|mm|abbr=on
height = convert|61.5|in|mm|abbr=on
weight =
wheelbase = convert|110|in|mm|abbr=onThe 1957 Hawk had a completely new body with unitary construction which it would share with the 1958 Humber Snipe. The 2267 cc engine was carried over and an automatic transmission was now available. The body was styled in Rootes own studios and featured more glass than previous models with wrap around front windscreen, which gave it a considerable resemblance to a 1955 Chevrolet.

There were several revisions during the car's life, each resulting in a new Series number.

The 1959 Series 1A had changed gear ratios and minor trim changes.

The Series II launched in October 1960 had disc front brakes, servo assisted. The automatic option was no longer available on the home market.

The Series III of September 1962 had a larger fuel tank and bigger rear window. The export model automatic option was also dropped.

More significant changes came with the October 1964 Series VI. The roof was made flatter, the rear window smaller and an extra side window fitted behind the rear doors. Synchromesh was fitted to bottom gear. An anti-roll bar was fitted at the rear.cite book |last=Sedgwick |first=M.|coauthors= Gillies.M|title=A-Z of Cars 1930|year=1989 |publisher=Bay View Books |location=Devon, UK |id=ISBN 1-870979-38-9]

The final Series IVA of 1965 saw the automatic option re-introduced.

A Series I car without overdrive was tested by the British "The Motor" magazine in 1957 had a top speed of convert|83.9|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 19.7 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|22.5|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £1261 including taxes of £421. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Humber Hawk| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = June 12 1957]

After Hawk production ended, Rootes came to concentrate on sectors offering greater volume, no longer featuring as a UK provider of large family cars. It had, in particular, been unusual for UK manufactured cars of this size to feature a spacious station wagon / estate car version: following the demise of the Humber Hawk, the UK market for large estate cars quickly came to be dominated by the Volvo 145 and its successors.

References

External links

* [http://hometown.aol.com/crooksnipe/myhomepage/index.html Humber Enthusiasts Group] of New South Wales, with lots of scanned brochures.
* [http://www.philseed.com/hb-snipe-s1.html Some more brochures] .