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The 4.5 Daimler Majestic Major V8 saloon.This old colour photo dates to early 1969, and shows one of my favourite classics, the Majestic Major, from Daimler. Despite its understated demeanour, this handsome old girl had a superb, Edward Turner-designed, V8 hemi of some 4.5 litres hiding under the bonnet. The ooommphh from this engine was sufficient to propel the Major to speeds topping 120mph, and was quite a departure for Daimler, who hitherto had stuck with producing quality, stately, but not overly thrilling, saloons up until this point.The Major entered production in 1960, 1959 already having seen the launch of the SP250 sports, a two seater that featured another new V8 engine, smaller in capacity, and one that would go on to also featured in the 250 V8 (Mk2 Jaguar shape Daimler) in 1962. The Major was based on the six cylinder Daimler Majestic 101, and looked similar to the smaller-engined version. Up front, the only real identifier for the Major was a 'V' cast into the front grilles, hinting at the V engine burbling away beneath it's skin. Around the back, the boot area was different in profile. Many years ago I stumbled across a pair of semi-derelict Majestics, one a standard 3.8 litre car, and the other a 4.5 litre Majestic. Both were rather rusty, although much of the interior, and the folding picnic tables set into the rear of the front seats, were like new. 
The Majestic Major was launched in 1960, and sold alongside the smaller car. The block was made in cast iron, with the heads in alloy, enabling it to weigh somewhat less than the slower car's older engine. Power output for the V8 Daimler was quoted as 220bhp, quite a figure in 1959. Unlike smaller Daimlers, such as the Conquest for instance, transmission came via a Borg Warner auto gearbox, as opposed to a pre-selector 'box. Production of the Majestic Major ended in 1968, by which time Daimler was now part of Jaguar, the latter being underwhelmed at the stately Daimler offering more pace than their own uber-saloon, the Mk10/420G. If the 'standard' Major was a bit on the tight side inside (hard to imagine), then a stretched limousine variant also became available, model code DR450, and sold well alongside the normal version. The car shown here is registered 510 SFK, a Worcester number. There is no sign of this car on the DVLA database, so sadly it has probably gone the way of most big old limos, to the car dealership in the sky. This one looks particularly grubby, and the angle of the front bumper suggests that it may have made contact with something solid, although is that an Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM) badge on the front grille, left hand side? Many other interesting cars can be seen in the car park behind the Daimler. Parked behind, dwarfed somewhat by the Majestic, is a Hillman Imp, with not one but two Triumph Herald estates seen behind. A VW Beetle is to the extreme right, the only foreign car that I can make out. From the left, is a Jaguar Mk2, a Hillman Hunter or Minx, a P6 Rover 2000, and a BMC Farina. In the background are some old factory buildings, with a clock tower (time: 12:15pm) with the company name H.A. Saunders on it. Return to the old transport photos - Page 5. |
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