Daimler Majestic Major

Daimler Majestic Major, DQ450
1960 car in May 2010
Overview
Manufacturer	The Daimler Company Limited
Production	1960–1968 1180 produced
Body and chassis
Class	Full-size luxury car
Body style	4-door saloon
Related	Daimler Majestic DF316 3.8-litre 6-cyl. Daimler Limousine DR450
Powertrain
Engine	4½ litre V-8
Transmission	BW DG12[1] 3-speed automatic with torque multiplier on 1st and 2nd
Dimensions
Wheelbase	114 in (2,900 mm)[2]
Length	202 in (5,100 mm)[3]
Width	73.75 in (1,873 mm)[3]
Height	62.75 in (1,594 mm)[3]
Kerb weight	4088 pounds 1854 kg
Chronology
Predecessor	Daimler One-O-Four DF310
Successor	Daimler Sovereign

The Daimler Majestic Major DQ450 is a large luxury saloon produced by Daimler in Coventry, England between November 1960 and 1968. It was fitted with a 4,561 cc V8 engine and was offered as a much more powerful supplement to their then current Daimler Majestic.

A substantially lengthened limousine version of the same chassis and bodyshell, the Daimler DR450, was available from 1961 until the V8 engine ended production.

Introduction

Rear view, showing a Majestic Major's boot, which was larger/longer than its Majestic counterpart

Though the Major was announced and displayed on 20 October 1959^[4] at the London Motor Show, the car on the show stand was a prototype and production did not get under way until November 1960. It was offered as a supplement alongside the slightly shorter 3.8 litre Majestic released in 1958. Both cars used the same chassis and bodyshell, the Major having an extended boot as well as the new engine which was lighter and much more powerful.^[1]

The engine transformed the staid Majestic into a high performance car capable of 120 mph (190 km/h).^[5] Motor Sport magazine described the Major as having "sports car performance",^[5] while The Autocar stated that it appeared "almost as a sports saloon"^[5] and that it was stable directionally at high speeds the car and could be cornered safely very fast for such a large car.^[6]

It is faster than a Mark X Jaguar up to 80 mph (130 km/h) despite its 1880 kg bulk and it has been said that Jaguar tried a Daimler 4.5 motor in a Mark X and it did 135 mph (217 km/h).

External differences from the Majestic included a D motif on top of the bonnet, cast-in V symbols on the ventilation air intakes, six inches added to the length of the car which gave it a longer boot and longer bumper returns, and twin exhaust pipes.^[6] Front seats could be supplied as individual adjustable seats or as a bench.^[5]

Engine

Daimler 4½-litre V8
Overview
Manufacturer	The Daimler Company Limited
Production	1960-1968[1]
Combustion chamber
Configuration	90° V8[7]
Displacement	4,561 cc (278.3 cu in)[8]
Cylinder bore	95.25 mm (3.750 in)[8]
Piston stroke	80.01 mm (3.150 in)[8]
Cylinder block alloy	cast chrome iron[3] aluminium alloy pistons[3] crankshaft in five bearings[8]
Cylinder head alloy	high tensile aluminium alloy,[3] sand cast[6]
Valvetrain	2 valves per cylinder, OHV, Hemispherical Head[3]
Compression ratio	8 : 1[8]
Combustion
Fuel system	twin SU semi-downdraught HD8 carburettors[6]
Fuel type	petrol[8]
Oil system	submerged pump, full flow filter[3]
Cooling system	water-cooled with thermostatic control, pump, and fan[3]
Output
Power output	220 bhp (160 kW; 220 PS) @ 5,500 rpm[8]
Torque output	283 lb·ft (384 N·m) @ 3200 rpm[3]
Dimensions
Length	31.25 inches (794 mm)
Width	25.5 inches (650 mm)
Height	31 inches (790 mm)
Dry weight	226 kilograms (498 lb) (dry)[6]

Turner's engine produced a conservative 220 bhp (160 kW) at 5500 rpm and 283 pound force-feet (384 N·m) of torque at 3,200 rpm.^[3] By comparison a Jaguar Mark X also claimed 220hp but used a different scale of measurement.

Chassis and body

The chassis of Majestic Major was an evolution of the design introduced in 1937 with the Daimler New Fifteen.^[9] As with the New Fifteen and several derivatives in between,^{[note 1]} the Majestic Major had a cruciform-braced box-section frame with conventional coil-sprung independent front suspension and a live rear axle on semi-elliptic leaf springs.^[1] As with the Majestic, there were four-wheel Dunlop disc brakes with a vacuum servo.^[3]

The combination of an imported Borg-Warner DG (Detroit Gear) 12 automatic transmission, power steering and Dunlop's power disc brakes on all wheels made the Major in those respects a mechanically advanced car for its time. Its body, however, was originally designed for the Majestic by Daimler subsidiary, the old coachbuilding firm Carbodies and they provided the bodies in conjunction with Park Sheet Metal. They were finished in cellulose paints allowing a selection of colours not available in the new synthetic finishes used by Jaguar. They were built at Browns Lane on separate hand-moved lines.

The Majestic Major's turning circle was 42 feet (12.8 m).^[3] The car was not one for manoeuvering in tight spaces; 4.5 turns lock to lock were required. Power steering, initially optional, became standard after October 1964.^[6]

Late versions were supplied with a limited slip differential and an alternator.^[10]

The bodies were of all steel construction. Despite being coated with zinc phosphate, they rusted more rapidly than expected of coachwork on a Daimler chassis.^[10]

Performance

The British The Motor magazine tested a Majestic Major with power steering in 1961 and recorded a top speed of 122.3 mph (196.8 km/h) and acceleration from 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 9.7 seconds. A "touring" fuel consumption of 16.9 miles per gallon(imperial) was recorded. On the home market, as tested, the car cost £3166 including taxes of £955.^[11]

Jaguar, which had taken over Daimler in 1960, announced their similarly equipped if less powerful new Jaguar Mark X saloon the following month priced at exactly 75% of this Daimler, £2,393 including taxes of £753.^[12]

In the spring of 1963 The Times' Motoring Correspondent tested the Daimler and found its top speed to be 123 mph. Acceleration times (with the Jaguar Mark 10 results in brackets) were 0-30 mph, 3.8sec., (4.3), 0-60, 10sec. (12.1), and 0-100, 30.8sec. (31.1).^[13]

• 1965 car en route to Goodwood September 2010
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Notes

1. Other models with these features include the Eighteen, the Consort, the Regency, the One-O-Four, and the Sportsman.(Smith 1972, p. 295)

References

Citations

1. Brian E. Smith The Daimler Tradition, Transport Bookman, Isleworth 1980. ISBN 0851840140
2. Smith 1972, pp. 295,297.
3. Smith 1972, p. 297.
4. New Version of Majestic in Daimler Range, The Times, Tuesday, 20 October 1959; pg. 16; Issue 54596; col F
5. Smith 1972, p. 299.
6. Smith 1972, p. 296.
7. Smith 1972, p. 302.
8. Smith 1972, pp. 296, 297.
9. Smith 1972, p. 295.
10. Smith 1972, p. 300.
11. "The Daimler Majestic Major". The Motor. 27 September 1961.
12. New Big Jaguar. The Times, Thursday, 12 October 1961; pg. 8; Issue 55210.
13. Motors And Motoring. The Times, Tuesday, Apr 23, 1963; pg. 8; Issue 55682

Sources

• Smith, Brian E. (1972). The Daimler Tradition. Isleworth: Transport Bookman. ISBN 0851840043.

External links

• Daimler Majestic Major
• Neo Scale Models have produced (2011) a 1:43 resin molded model of the Majestic Major.