NER Autocar Restoration
Posted: Mon Mar 16, 2009 1:47 pm
As some of you may have heard, there are plans to restore the surviving NER petrol-electric autocar in the near future. We think this vehicle is rather important in heritage terms as it was the first in the world to use an internal combustion engine to generate electricity for its traction motors and is the forerunner of most of todays passenger trains.
A trust has been formed to restore and operate this pioneering vehicle, together with a trailing autocoach, and we invite any interested members of the forum to join us. (Further details are at www.electricautocar.co.uk) We currently have a small but growing membership and are seeking other interested people to join us. To restore 3170 to service will require a variety of skills, from woodwork and mechanical engineering to web-site expertise and hard-copy clerical administrative work. Financial contributions would not be unwelcome either!
Details of the autocars are available elsewhere on this web-site, so I won't try to repeat that information. To give you the current situation, the autocar is in storage whilst we draw up detailed plans for restoration. Many of the bits we need have been sourced and we have taken advice on motive power issues. Because of safety issues and severe problems in sourcing a suitable petrol engine, we intend to use a new-build diesel to maximise efficiency and minimise emissions. The Lottery Fund have encouraged us and we have passed the first stage (of two) in our application for a sizeable grant. The NER coach group at the NYMR have kindly agreed to donate their autocoach to the [Autocar] Trust, allowing us to contemplate running a unique two car 'DMU' - actually a DEMU - in a few years time. Other groups and individuals have been supportive and helped us in a variety of ways.
The project is being led by Stephen Middleton, the owner of 'Stately Trains', based on the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway in Yorkshire. Stephen has restored seven vintage carriages from the Victorian and Edwardian period, including a couple of GER six wheelers and an East Coast Joint Stock carriage. The autocar is wooden-bodied with large windows, giving passengers superb visibility, and contemporary accounts suggest they were very popular with passengers.
This is the first time I've posted on the forum (though I have used the information elsewhere on the web-site and found it very helpful) so I hope I've posted in the right place. As well as appealing for assistance with the restoration, I thought I would try to keep you informed and hope members find the news of interest. If there is the interest and my technical skills are up to it, I may post some pictures of our progress later.
Time for lunch!
A trust has been formed to restore and operate this pioneering vehicle, together with a trailing autocoach, and we invite any interested members of the forum to join us. (Further details are at www.electricautocar.co.uk) We currently have a small but growing membership and are seeking other interested people to join us. To restore 3170 to service will require a variety of skills, from woodwork and mechanical engineering to web-site expertise and hard-copy clerical administrative work. Financial contributions would not be unwelcome either!
Details of the autocars are available elsewhere on this web-site, so I won't try to repeat that information. To give you the current situation, the autocar is in storage whilst we draw up detailed plans for restoration. Many of the bits we need have been sourced and we have taken advice on motive power issues. Because of safety issues and severe problems in sourcing a suitable petrol engine, we intend to use a new-build diesel to maximise efficiency and minimise emissions. The Lottery Fund have encouraged us and we have passed the first stage (of two) in our application for a sizeable grant. The NER coach group at the NYMR have kindly agreed to donate their autocoach to the [Autocar] Trust, allowing us to contemplate running a unique two car 'DMU' - actually a DEMU - in a few years time. Other groups and individuals have been supportive and helped us in a variety of ways.
The project is being led by Stephen Middleton, the owner of 'Stately Trains', based on the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway in Yorkshire. Stephen has restored seven vintage carriages from the Victorian and Edwardian period, including a couple of GER six wheelers and an East Coast Joint Stock carriage. The autocar is wooden-bodied with large windows, giving passengers superb visibility, and contemporary accounts suggest they were very popular with passengers.
This is the first time I've posted on the forum (though I have used the information elsewhere on the web-site and found it very helpful) so I hope I've posted in the right place. As well as appealing for assistance with the restoration, I thought I would try to keep you informed and hope members find the news of interest. If there is the interest and my technical skills are up to it, I may post some pictures of our progress later.
Time for lunch!