Makes › Vauxhall › 30-98 OE Wensum · Coachbuilt Ultra Rare
Vauxhall
30-98 OE Wensum
Boat-shaped Wensum factory body on the OE
Still being researched: full specifications. Everything shown is checked against the cited sources. Know more? Send us a source.
Photo: MrWalkr · CC BY-SA 4.0
Contents
01Overview
At a glance
- Built
- 12 Built
- Years
- Not yet verified
- Engine
- four-cylinder, overhead-valve · 4,224 cc / 4.2 LFactory: 4,224 cc
- Power
- 82 kW / 112 PSFactory: 110 hp · converted
- Top speed
- 161 km/hFactory: 100 mph · converted
- Body
- Not yet verified
- Designer
- Not yet verified
- In this archive
- Not yet verified
- Surviving
- Not yet verified
Sources and any conflicting figures are in the sections below.
Why it matters
The Wensum was the lightest and sportiest body style offered on the overhead-valve OE-type 30-98, a car sold with a factory-warranted 100 mph. Only about a dozen were built, which makes it far rarer than the four-seater Velox tourer, and Sports Car Market calls the coachwork extremely sporting and elegant.
How rare is it?
Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.
Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.
Photos
Exterior, interior and detail photos with their licences.
Vauxhall 30-98 OE Wensum (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: MrWalkr · CC BY-SA 4.0
Vauxhall 30-98 OE Wensum (Wikimedia Commons search)
Photo: Calreyn88 · CC BY-SA 4.0
02Production & history
Production
Every figure says what it counts.
| What is counted | Figure | Basis | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total model productionapproximately 12 of the 313 OE-type chassis delivered with Wensum coachwork (SCM text also says 12 or 13 depending on source) | 121 | Factory production | Registry reported |
Independent counts (e.g. engine and colour) are never combined into a calculated figure. Surviving examples are never presented as original production.
History
The OE-type replaced the side-valve E-type in early 1923. It had a smaller 4,224 cc engine than its predecessor but more power, a three-inch wider track and a four-inch longer wheelbase. Front-wheel brakes arrived in late 1923 and hydraulics only in 1926. Of 313 OE chassis, about 12 or 13 received Wensum bodywork.
The name is said to come from the river Wensum in Norfolk, where Vauxhall works manager A. J. Hancock kept a fast motorboat. The boat-tailed body was nominally a three-seater and cost 150 pounds more than the standard 1,200 pound tourer.
Variants
How each version differs from the standard 30-98 OE Wensum.
No variants documented yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
03Specifications
Technical specifications
Engine
| Engine family | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Engine code | Not yet verified |
| Layout | four-cylinder, overhead-valve1,2 Independently researched |
| Displacement | 4,224 cc / 4.2 LFactory: 4,224 cc1 Independently researched |
| Bore | Not yet verified |
| Stroke | Not yet verified |
| Compression ratio | Not yet verified |
| Fuel system | Not yet verified |
| Power | 82 kW / 112 PSFactory: 110 hp · converted1 Independently researchedSupercars.net gives 112 bhp for OE-types and Classic & Sports Car 'c112bhp'. |
| Power at | Not yet verified |
| Torque | Not yet verified |
Transmission & drivetrain
| Gearbox | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Gears | Not yet verified |
| Driven wheels | Not yet verified |
Chassis, body & dimensions
| Chassis | Not yet verified |
|---|---|
| Front suspension | Not yet verified |
| Rear suspension | Not yet verified |
| Brakes | front-wheel brakes from late 1923, with the transmission brake operated by foot pedal via cable; hydraulics from 19261 Independently researched |
| Steering | Not yet verified |
| Body construction | Not yet verified |
| Wheelbase | Not yet verified |
| Length | Not yet verified |
| Width | Not yet verified |
| Height | Not yet verified |
| Front track | Not yet verified |
| Rear track | Not yet verified |
| Kerb weight | Not yet verified |
| Dry weight | Not yet verified |
Performance
| Maximum speed | 161 km/hFactory: 100 mph · converted3 Independently researchedFactory warranty for high-axle-ratio, minimal-coachwork OE cars such as the Wensum. |
|---|---|
| 0–100 km/h | Not yet verified |
| Fuel tank | Not yet verified |
“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.
04Colours & options
Factory colours & interiors
Original paint and trim, with the number of cars in each where a source gives it.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Factory options & codes
Codes are shown exactly as written by the manufacturer.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
05Individual cars
Chassis register
Every documented car, with its colours, history and where it is now. Open a row for the full record. Known chassis are not automatically authenticated originals.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Competition history
Every race result of the individual cars, in date order. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
Auction & sale history
Documented public sales of the individual cars. Click a chassis number to open its full record in the register.
Not yet documented. Have a source? Contribute it.
See one in person
Museums where an example of this car can be seen.
No example is documented on public display yet. Have a source? Contribute it.
06Reference
Identification guide
How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.
A Wensum has a boat-tailed, doorless body with a vee windscreen, nominally for three with one passenger seat behind. Early OE chassis such as OE183 have the low-radiator design. Many surviving 30-98s have changed engines or bodies; SCM notes that OE183 no longer has its original engine, so body and chassis history should be checked against the 30-98 Register.
Sources
Each number links to the exact facts it supports.
-
1
1924 Vauxhall 30-98 OE-Type Wensum Tourer Level B Paul Hardiman · Sports Car Market · 2020-10-14
- approximately 12 were delivered with the extremely sporting and elegant Wensum coachwork
- overhead-valve OE-Type chassis
- a little smaller at 4,224 cc
- the power went up to 110 hp
- Front-wheel brakes appeared in late 1923
- 2
-
3
12 brilliant Vauxhalls Level B Classic & Sports Car
- good for a factory-warranted 100mph
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