1930s Vauxhall 12-Four (12-4) - the best 12hp pre-war car?!

The Vauxhall 12-Four

The Vauxhall 12-Four was made from September 1938 until May 1940 and was produced in Luton, England. You might see other countries claim to have built these, but these were CKD kits not manufactured from scratch.

The car, whilst not in production until 38, was part of a Vauxhall grand plan to overhaul the entire range and be market leaders. The 10-Four which launched in 37 at the London Motor Show heralded what Vauxhall thought was going to be their new era: the 10-4 gave the buying public a car which was completely unmatched in its class and the second phase of this ambitious move forward was the 12-4 as we’re testing today expanded upon that.

Sadly, a lot of this hard work and excellency was suddenly squashed with the commencement of the Second World War.

The new 12-Four represented an exciting new offering in the 12hp class - it was underpinned by the learnings from the 10-4 and the goal was simple: undercut the competition in tech, performance and value for money.

Unlike many manufacturers who started taking big risks, Vauxhall leaned on what they knew and they lifted the gearbox from the 10-4, a three speed design with synchro on second and third and paired it up with a 1442cc engine. This engine was an enlarged version of the 1203cc overhead valve engine which was fitted to earlier Vauxhalls. It is worth noting of course as we speak of the synchro gearbox that Vauxhall pioneered this way back in 1931 and their Vauxhall synchromesh was said to offer a perfect, silent change no matter how fast or slow you did it.

For those wondering about performance, it achieved around 65mph and buyers were assured of getting 35 miles per gallon when driven in normal conditions - which was positively thrilling for the time. Remember of course, this is more than two decades before anyone is venturing onto a motorway, anything above 60 miles hour on tiny country roads must’ve been unimaginable to many.

And if you’re wondering, the brochures state the car can go from zero to 50 miles per hour in a mere 21.5 seconds.

The car featured torsion independent front suspension, special engine mountings to dull potential vibration and an integral body and chassis construction. Rear suspension, a 1940s brochure boasts, has Harris rubber bushes to the spring eyes and shackles which is said to give improved lateral control. The doors also opened wide for maximum comfort when getting in and out of the vehicle. It wasn’t just the ride and performance which was considered, maintenance was also thought about and the grease nipples were limited to 13 and well-placed for less faff for the home mechanic.

It’s also worth noting that originally this would’ve been on 6 volt electrics, but has now been upgraded to 12 volt.

I talk about the drum brakes when we go out for a drive - but here’s the thing - the biggest problem with older brakes is on some older cars even into the 60s you’re on a single circuit braking system which means if one cylinder goes pop and you lose all your fluid, you’re stuffed. You have no brakes. Vauxhall fitted dual circuit to these - which may be unseen to the passing observer, but for a buyer, would’ve been an enormous safety plus point.

Now you might be thinking all of this came at a premium price, but here’s the thing, Vauxhall priced this car so keenly it was said to be cheapest in its class and came in at £189 for the standard saloon and £198 for deluxe. It’s worth noting in 1940, this price was reduced to £185, which I can only assume was down to the reduced appetite for the purchase of new vehicles in wartime Britain, not the car losing favour with buying public on its own merit alone.

A car like this deserved more and I am certain if the war hadn’t broken out, we’d see the 12/4 remembered in the same way we see many bread and butter classics remembered. It is pleasing on the eye, well designed and as you’ll see in not too long, a pleasurable drive to boot.