Hillman 1907-1976 - when a racing driver builds family cars
Summary
There were around 10,000 car brands and designers - most of them have disappeared. One of these vanished brands is Hillman. Founded by a racing driver and an experienced French designer in 1907, the company built on the success of its own car in the 1906 Tourist Trophy. Soon it was building successful family cars and later an anti-Mini with the Imp. Hillman was taken over by Humber in 1928, both were then bought by Rootes. In the end they were part of the Chrysler empire and the name disappeared in 1977.
Estimated reading time: 3min
Preview (beginning of the article)
In 1906, the English racing driver William Hillman and the experienced French designer Louis Coatalen developed a racing car with a 9654 cc six-cylinder engine suitable for the Tourist Trophy. The resulting Hillman-Coatalen Motor Car Company in Ryton-on-Dunsmore near Coventry derived a 6436 cc four-cylinder engine from this and soon also built small models. In 1909, Coatalen switched to Sunbeam, and from 1910 the company was called Hillman Motor Car Co. Family cars were built with growing success after the First World War. From 1925 to 1928, production concentrated on the Type 14 HP, while a 2.6 L eight-cylinder model was a (failed) prestige exercise. In 1928 Hillman was taken over by Humber, and in 1931 both brands came under the ownership of the Rootes car dealership.
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