Mors tourer.
A little asking around confirmed that the vintage motor-car in this photo is a French Mors tourer, built circa 1911 or 1912, and is probably an example of the Mors NX. A hatted gentleman is behind the wheel of this RHD car, with a young lad alongside. His mother, and his sister no doubt, are ensconced in the Mors' rear compartment. The only forward illumination on this example was courtesy of two scuttle-mounted lamps. The toolbox on the car's running board has been joined by a 2-gallon Shell Motor Spirit fuel tin, and an RAC members' badge is fitted just ahead of the windscreen.
|
| (Please click the thumbnail to view full-size image.) |
|
|
|
The Mors was a French-built car, built by the company founded by Monsieur Emile Mors. In 1897 they were already heavily involved in the early motor racing scene, regularly battling wheel-to-wheel with rival companies' products such as those built by Panhard. Racing continued until 1908. It was in that year that Andre Citroen took over the running of the firm. Citroen bought the company outright in 1925, ceasing production of the Mors and enabling Citroen to increase production of their own vehicles.
|
A second example of the French Mors, in Lancashire.
John Woolley emailed over this photo on behalf of his neighbour, Stephen Cox, whose photo this is, in the hope that the car might be identifiable. Fortunately, the collective genius of the OCC Forum members (myself not included) identified this handsome tourer as a circa 1912 Mors. At the time they just had a poor copy of this photo available to work with, but this better scan has turned up and my thanks to Stephen for permitting me to share it here. He adds: "The owner of the car was my grandfather, Fred Wilkinson, of Great Harwood in Lancashire, and the photo was probably taken in Great Harwood about 1920, and the other people are his relations".
|
|
My thanks to Stephen and John for providing this fabulous old photo. Note the two horns fitted to it, and also that the motoring association badge isn't fitted
to the radiator cap as usual, but to the cap just forwards of the windscreen - was this the fuel tank cap? The same arrangement can also be seen on the Mors in the first photo.
|
|
|
|
Return to Page 11 of the vintage motoring gallery.
|
