In its day the unorthodox rear-engined twin-cylinder Crouch had many admirers, and was a most successful competition car. A racing edition, piloted by J. Cocker, was surprisingly speedy, and performed with distinction at Brooklands in the early 'twenties. The Crouch of the 1912 - 1921 period was powered by a 1022-c.c. (85 x 90-mm.) water-cooled o.h.v. Vee-twin engine. The rear drive was taken from a three-speed gearbox through a cone-type clutch (Ferodo), by a single roller chain to the solid rear axle. A novel feature was the use of full-elliptic springing at the rear, and cantilever at the front. Rack-and-pinion steering was used.
In 1922, the engine was moved to the front, a normal shaft-and-bevel drive adopted, and quarter-elliptic springs substituted. In fact, with the exception of the power unit, the car was completely redesigned. Chief interest in sports Crouches centres round the fine Anzani-engined cars which made their appearance in 1924. These speedy machines were fitted with a specially tuned version of the famous 1496-c.c. side-valve unit, and were capable of nearly 70 m.p.h., with first-rate steering and road-holding. Bodywork was reminiscent of Continental practice, as was the dual colour scheme. The Crouch concern continued the production of cars until 1928, and gained an enviable reputation for the construction of
hard-wearing vehicles. Many people regretted their passing, but they could not survive the difficult depression period which was responsible for the demise of so many fine hand-built motor-cars. |
