Elva (car manufacturer)
Elva was a British manufacturer of automobiles.
Company History
The company Elva Engineering Co began in 1955 in Bexhill -on-Sea and Hastings with the production of automobiles. In parallel, from 1961 in the Rye Elva Cars ( 1961) Limited. In 1966 the amalgamation under the name Elva Cars ( 1961) Limited and the move to Croydon. 1968 production ended.
Rolling stock
Various models
Were produced in addition to racing cars and street sports cars that were offered as kit cars. Between 1958 and 1963 there were the models Courier I, II and Courier Courier III as the open two-seater, latest model called as a coupe. For use came four-cylinder engines with 1489 cc, 1588 cc and 1622 cc capacity, which contributed 72, 78 and 90 hp. Between 1962 and 1967 there was the model Courier IV, which on the MGA based in the first year and only available as a coupe was, and from 1963 as a roadster and coupe optional on the MGB or Ford Motor from the MGA made from 1622 cc 90 hp, which from the MGB 1798 cc, 98 hp, and the Ford engine from 1498 cc 83.5 hp.
A Elva Courier is to visit the Haynes International Motor Museum at Sparkford in Somerset.
Elva GT 160
In 1964 there was the Coupé GT 160, of which only three vehicles were produced. It had a four-cylinder engine from BMW with 1991 cc, 182 hp at 7200 rpm which carried and was built as a mid-engine. The underlying synchronized five-speed transmission should be available with different translations, as well as optionally a self-locking differential.
The car had a tubular frame. The wheels were front double wishbone, rear suspended on trailing arms. The car was 3450 mm long and 1480 mm wide; Wheelbase 2260 mm track gauge 1250 mm. The curb weight ( ready to ride ) was reported to be 428 kg.
Because of the engine, the model also Elva - BMW was called.
Elva - Porsche
Around 1960 came from the U.S. request for a lightweight racing car with a Porsche engine. Porsche subsequently developed for Elva the so-called Fuhrmann- engine (type 547) with four overhead camshafts, which received, among others, a horizontally lying on the crankcase cooling impeller made of plastic. With 1.7 liters Haubraum and a compression ratio of 11: 1, this engine made 183 hp at 7800 rpm.
Porsche delivered 15 of these engines to be installed in the appropriately adapted Elva chassis Mk VII belonged to this adaptation as changes in the placement of gasoline and oil tanks, the cockpit and the rear portion of the tubular frame. The Porsche five-speed gearbox was adapted to the 13 -inch wheels (front 6, rear 7 inches wide ).
The first vehicles were completed in late 1963. They accelerated in about 5 seconds from standstill to 100 km / h and reached a top speed of 260 km / h A car cost about $ 10,000.
1964, Porsche an Elva Mark VII chassis with the 8- cylinder racing engine type 771 in the European Hill Climb Championship in. This car only weighed about 520 kg, and was so much lighter than the Porsche RS 61 Spyder Mountain (type 718), or on the Porsche 904 Spyder based. Edgar Barth won the Ross box - mountain race with the Elva - Porsche. Because of the worse driving characteristics of Elva, the frame may have been too heavily burdened by the 8- cylinder engine, Barth started in the following race, but again with the old RS and won 61 of the previous year the championship of the class for sports cars. With the Elva - Porsche drove occasionally even the Swiss Herbert Müller.
The 8- cylinder engine was in two versions: with a displacement of 2195 cc ( bore x stroke = 80 × 54.6 mm), 270 hp at 8600/min, maximum torque 230 Nm at 7000 rpm, compression ratio 10, 2: 1 and ³ 1981 cm ( bore × stroke = 76 × 54.6 mm), 260 hp at 8800/min, 206 Nm at 7500 rpm, compression 10.5: 1 wheelbase of the car: 2286 mm gauge: front 1270 mm, rear 1350 mm, length of the vehicle: 3500 mm