WesWorld

Car Manufacturers

Altona Motors Antwerp
Car manufacturer based in Borgerhout, Antwerp , founded in 1937 by De Belder, formerly an engineer-designer at Minerva . In 1943, Altona exhibited an air-cooled 800 cc tricycle with chain drive. The body consists of sheet metal over a wooden frame and a canvas roof. The Altona Condor is another small tricycle car model.

Automobiles Astra
This manufacturer based in Liege has roots in Société des Automobiles Juwel founded in 1922 in Herstal. Astra manufactures the former Juwel TA-4 front wheel drive sports car with a 1131cc engine and a drive system based on that of the French Tracta. Since 1931, it also manufactures the Astra saloon with a 1,100cc S.C.A.P. engine and the Tracta drive system. The Astra was modernised with new suspension, hydraulic brakes and improved electrics in 1942. Projected 6- and 8- cylinder versions have so far not appeared.

Fabrique Nationale de Herstal
The famous armaments manufacturer founded at Herstal in 1889, began making cars from 1900.
The first FN car, the "Spider" was built in 1900. A 4,000cc four cylinder engined car followed in 1904 and the more luxurious FN Typ 30-40 in 1905. Customers included members of the Belgian Royal family and the Shah of Persia. The FN 6900 was developed from the Typ 30-40, powered by a lience-built Rochet-Schneider engine. The next models were the FN Typ 2000 with flexible engine mountings and the Typ 2700 with an FN designed engine. It was placed back into production in 1918 as the Type2700a with an electric starter, a tachometer and automatic chassis lubrication. New post-war models included; the FN Typ 1950, an improved FN Typ 1250A and the FN 1250T with a fully functioning electrical system, a 15 PS four cylinder engine producing and a three speed transmission. The Type 1250 was replaced by the Type 1300 with three differing wheelbases and equipment levels. Later, the FN Typ 1300D had an four speed transmission, followed by the Typ 1300E with a widened track and the sports FN Typ 1300Sp. At the top of the range was the FN Typ 3800 which also formed the basis of a small truck. The FN 10CV was introduced in 1927 and replaced by the FN 11CV in 1930, a car noted for its sporty driving characteristics. A delivery van based on the 11CV was also available. The 1931 version was the FN 11CV 1625 with a larger engine. In 1934, two revised versions with new bodywork were introduced, the 12CV saloon and the 12 CV Sp drophead coupe. In 1939, the 14CV large four door family saloon was introduced with a radio, heater and leather upholstery as standard, the engine was a new 40hp 1.2-litre engine. In 1945, an improved version of this engine and a revised 14CV chassis became the basis of the 15CV. This new design features modern styling, all-round coil sprung independent suspension. It is available in two and four door versions and an estate car and commercial van and pickup truck models based on this design became available during 1946.
FN also produces a range of motorcycle and commercial vehicles, including a successful range of trolleybuses.
In 1899, FN made shaft- and chain-driven bicycles and in 1900 experimented with a clip-on engine. The first production motorcycle was produced in 1903. In 1905, Paul Kelecom developed the 362cc shaft-drive in-line inlet-over-exhaust four-cylinder motorcycle. This was the world's first manufactured four-cylinder motorcycle. By 1907, the Four engine had grown to 412cc and production in America began the following year and the type became a huge sales success. After the Great War, production resumed in 1919 and new three-speed gearboxes and improved cylinder heads were added and the first racer, the Type VII was built in 1922. Since then a host of FN models and riders have scored many racing successes across Europe. In 1931, the Villiers 198cc two-stroke model appeared. In 1938, the M.12 992cc air-cooled sv flat twin was built for military use, and the all alloy M.11 was released in 350cc ohv, 500cc sv and 600cc sv models. An M.12 Tri-car was developed and produced for military use. In 1944, FN built released a new range of sv and ohv 249cc, 344cc, 444cc, and 498cc models, and two-stroke models from 49cc singles, to 248cc twins. The semi-unit engined Tri-car was converted for commercial use as the Tri-car T-8 in 1942 with a five-speed gearbox. In 1947, the M.XIII was available in 250cc ohv, 350cc ohv, 350cc sv, 450cc ohv, and 450 cc sv configurations. The first model used an unusual patented Swiss coil sprung girder front fork and a new rubber rear suspension. In 1948, the Swiss forks were replaced with an adaptation of the rubber rear suspension.

Société Anonyme Impéria
Founded in 1906 by the Ateliers Piedboeuf of Liège, the first cars were designed by the German Paul Henze. The following year the company moved to Nessonvaux and began production in the old Pieper factory. Impéria produced a monobloc 12hp engine in 1909 and in 1910, the company merged with Springuel. The Nessonvaux factory began producing Impéria-Abadals from about 1916. In 1921, it built three 5.6-litre straight-eight powered cars which was followed by a 3-litre 32-valve four-cylinder which was capable of reaching 90 mph (140 km/h). This was followed by an 1100 cc side-valve 11/22hp powered car designed by Couchard, which was one of the first cars built with a sunroof. In 1925, the company hired Louis de Monge as chief research engineer, his work included torsion bar suspension and automatic transmissions. De Monge left in 1937 to join Ettore Bugatti. In 1928, rebuilding works at the Nessonvaux works added a 1 km long test track on the roof which echoed that of Fiat's Lingotto plant. In 1937, a six-cylinder of 1624cc appeared which was fitted to the Imperia TA-9 BS sports car which replaced the earlier Super Sports.
Imperia acquired several of its rivals; Métallurgique in 1927, Excelsior in 1929 and Nagant in 1931. In addition to its production in Belgium, Impéria also made a number of cars in Britain at an assembly plant in Maidenhead which was sold to the Standard Motor Company Limited in 1945.
The majority of production since 1934 has been front-wheel-drive Adlers with Impéria
coachwork. The luxury Imperia-Abadel has many advanced features including a sunroof, transmission brake, an electric motor/generator and a 1100cc engine. It uses the electric motor to charge its batteries at cruise speed and uses both motors to accelerate or climb a hill. It is capable of 140km/h. A modernised version of the TA-9, the TA-9S, entered the market in 1943. In 1946, under an agreement with Standard Motor Company Limited which brought the Maidenhead assembly plant, Imperia began producing the Standard Vanguard for the Belgian and Dutch markets as the Imperia Vanguard.

Société Anonyme Minerva Motors
Founded by Sylvain de Jong in Antwerp, Belgium, Minerva started out manufacturing standard safety bicycles in 1897. In 1900, the company expanded into light cars and "motocyclettes", motorized bicycles which were a forerunner of motorcycles. From 1904, Minerva began focussing on car production, and while development and production of the Minerva motorized bicycles and motorcycles continued through to about 1909, they increasingly became a less significant part of the company. Minerva engines exported to Britain powered the very first Triumph and until motorcycle production ended in 1914, Minerva became one of the world's premier names in motorcycles and motorcycle engines.
In 1902, De Jong began production of a 6hp four-cylinder car and a year later he founded the Minerva Motors company in Berchem (Antwerp). Volume car production began in 1904 with a range of two-, three- and four-cylinder models with chain drive and metal clad wooden chassis and the Minervette cyclecar. The 8-litre Kaiserpreis won the Belgian Circuit des Ardennes race in 1907. Charles S Rolls (of future Rolls-Royce fame) was a Minerva dealer in England selling the 2.9-litre 14hp. The most important market for the manufacturer remained Britain, where at £105 the small 636cc single-cylinder Minervette was the cheapest car on the market, followed by the Netherlands and France. In 1908, Minerva obtained a worldwide Knight Engine license. This nearly-silent engine then powered all luxury Minerva and customers included the Royal families of Belgium and Nordmark, Henry Ford and the Impressionist Artist Anna Boch.
During the Great War, Sylvain de Jong and his engineers were based in Amsterdam where they maintained development of their automobiles and the war saw armoured-bodies placed on Minerva cars in Belgium and Northern France. In 1920, they returned to Belgium to restart the production of luxury cars with the 20CV 3.6-litre four-cylinder and 30CV 5.3-litre six-cylinder models. The Minerva had the same quality as the Rolls-Royce, but was slightly less expensive and exports boomed. In 1923, smaller models were introduced; the 2-litre four-cylinder 15CV and 3.4-litre six-cylinder 20CV with standard four-wheel brakes. In 1927, the 30CV was replaced with the 6-litre AK and also a new 2-litre six, the 12-14, was introduced. In 1930, the 6.6-litre AL and the 4-litre AP engines were introduced followed by the 2-litre M4 in 1934. Today the company produces the 2.5-litre M6 in four-door saloon and two-door coupe variants and the 4-litre M8 saloon, small numbers of the 6-litre M10 limousine have also been produced since 1942.
Minerva also manufacturers trucks and commercial vehicles. It also produces the 3T half-track artillery tractor with a 55hp V-6 engine for the Belgian Army. Another military type is the M-20 Off-road Car with four-wheel drive which was designed in response to a request by the Netherlands Army for an off road vehicle.
Minerva brought a controlling stake in Fokker-Avia’s aero-engine division in the mid-1930s and Avia now builds Minerva engines under licence. Radial engines are primarily built in Czechoslovakia, at Letňany (including licensed-built Bristol engines) and inline engines are built by Minerva in Brussels.

Brossel N.V.
Manufacturer of trucks, buses and trains. It was founded by the Brossel brothers in Brussels .The company took over rivals Bovy in 1930 and in 1931 Pipe. The Brossel division manufacturers heavy trucks (3 to 15 tons) and the Bovy-Pipe division manufacturers light trucks. Brossel builds the 4x4 TAL artillery tractor for the Belgian and Dutch armies.

D'Ieteren S.A .
Founded in 1805 by master coachbuilder Joseph-Jean D'Ieteren. The company started to manufacture car bodies during the 1910s, with production being exported across Europe. From 1921, the company moved into the assembly and importing of cars and trucks.

Jules Miesse S.A.
Truck manufacturer based in Buysinghen, Brussels and founded in 1900. First building steam cars and trucks, around 1925 the company built its first petrol-engined truck with a capacity of 5 tons. In 1929, after the merger with Usines Bollinckx, the company became Automobiles Miesse et Societé Anonyme Usines Bollinck. In 1939 the name was shortened to Auto Miesse. From 1932 began using Gardner diesel engines in their trucks. In 1939, a truck with a payload of 16 tons was put into production, followed by a 38 tonnes capacity truck in 1943.

SDS Automobiles N.V.
Truck manufacturer founded in 1938 in Merksem. It builds its own chassis and uses Hercules petrol or Garnder diesel engines and components from other manufacturers.

Vickers-Belge N.V.
Founded in 1930 with a factory at Familleureux, this subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrongs Ltd., manufactures light tracked tanks and infantry carriers under licence. It has developed a range of light anti-tank and assault vehicles based on the Carden-Lloyd series of tankettes. It current manufactures the Universal Carrier No.1 Mk IV and the Carrier Tracked No.2 Mk I Oxford as the VUC and VUC-2 respectively.

J.D. Bova N.V.
Founded by J.D. Bots in 1878 in Eindhoven as a timber business in Valkenswaard. When J.D. Bots died, he left the business to his eldest son Simon who first introduced the name Bova, which was derived from Bots Valkenswaard. In 1931, the company began building coach bodies.

Jonckheere
Founded in 1881 by Henri Jonckheere in Beveren to build horse-drawn carriages. The first car was produced by the company in 1902 and the company began building coachwork for Minerva and Rolls-Royce chassis. In 1922, Henri's son and successor Joseph Jonckheere, began building bus bodies which in 1932 became the sole output of the factory and today the company is one of biggest suppliers of buses in Belgium.

Van Hool N.V.
The company was founded in 1947 by Bernard Van Hool in Koningshooikt, near Lier. The company is a coachbuilder and manufacturer of buses, coaches, trolleybuses, and trailers and makes exports across Europe.

Claeys-Flandria N.V.
In the hamlet of Zedelgemsesteenweg, the forge in the 19th century was in the hands of the Claeys family. At the beginning of the 20th century, Leon Claeys founded an independent company that manufactured agricultural machinery. The family business was sold in 1910. Brothers, Jerome, and Aimé Remi Claeys took over the former forge, and reformed the company to a successful bicycle factory. By 1927, 250,000 bicycles had been produced. In 1933, Aimé Claeys built four motorcycle prototypes with a 500cc JAP engine, but it never went into production. Aimé retired in 1929 and started his own iron foundry. In 1943, the company started manufacturing mopeds with 40cc Rex engines in a new purpose built factory in Zedelgem under the Claeys-Flandria brand. In 1950, the engine was replaced with a 49cc Rex engine and a new two-gear transmission. In the same year, 125 and 175cc motorbikes with JLO engines were introduced.

Ets. Moto Escol
In 1914, mining engineer Jules Escol, founded the company, in Châtelet, Charleroi, to produce winches for the mining industry. Two of his sons, Felix and Maurice, built a motorcycle prototype in 1923. It was powered by an Anzani V-twin 1100 cc engine and the frame was made of sheet steel. It had a Malecet-Blin- transmission with three speeds and reverse, but the motorcycle weighed 330kg. Further development with sharp riveted plate frames reduced weight and in 1926 the brothers began selling motorcycles through their father’s Escol company. The name changed in 1930 to the current name to reflect this change. The range of Escol motorcycles includes; 150, 200, 250 and 350cc models with Villiers two-stroke engines; 350, 500, 600, 680, 750 and 1000cc models with JAP four-strok inline and V-twin engines and Python engines.
In 1926, Escol began assembling car components from other manufacturers and using Paquis and Fivet engines. They began racing their cars. In 1927, the used Chapuis-Dornier engines and hydraulic brakes on all four wheels. Their most expensive model was the Torpédo Grand Sport built from 1929. Car production had ceased by 1936, but motorcycles and products for the mining industry continue to be the mainstays of the business.

Gillet Herstal
A manufacturer of motorcycles and automobiles founded in 1919 based in Herstal. Between 1928 and 1929, Gillet Herstal produced a three-wheeled car with a motorcycle engine. On 22 September 1929m in Malle, one of these secured the land speed record in the Cyclecar 500 category with a speed of 117.647 km/h. Current models of motorcycle include the Gillett AB 35 in individual cycle and sidecars models and lightweight T600 which weighs only 155kg. A sidecar version is the T1000 which can reach 90 km/h.