Associated Daimler 314 H

Attached is a photo which has been in my possession for at least 30 years. I know nothing of its origin.
I suggest the site as Cheddar Gorge in Somerset as 'It can't be any where else'.
It may be of passing interest to you and your contributors.

03/06/15 - 15:29

Given the posters in the side windows, and the fact that it's numbers in front of letter on the plate, I wonder if this is a 'promotional' shot, with the vehicle using a Middlesex trade plate.

Pete Davies

314 H was one of a series of trade plates used by Associated Daimler, and subsequently AEC. It looks to be a 416 (or related family) type chassis, dating from about 1927, and would appear to be on a test or demonstration run (with Associated Daimler in the blind box and posters in the side window).

Peter Delaney

03/06/15 - 15:32

When I saw this picture I had to go to my bookcase and get down an Album of photographs which I have had in my collection for a number of years.
I thought that this was the same vehicle as in there, but no. The Album is of a similar Associated Daimler on an 6 day, 1830 mile test run. The road test took place from 15th February and finished on 20th February 1928. The vehicle involved was an Associated Daimler type 416A/2 saloon In the 6 days it went from (Day 1) Southall to Lands End (Day 2) Lands End to Shrewsbury, (Day 3) Shrewsbury to Glasgow, (Day 4) Glasgow to Aberdeen, (Day 5) Aberdeen to Newcastle, (Day 6) Newcastle to Southall. Unfortunately it is not the same vehicle because mine is running on Trade Plates 319 H, and only has the letters 'ADC' in the destination box.
I think though that the vehicle shown above must have been undertaking a similar road test.
Further investigation is required. I will try and get some images from the album scanned and sent off to you. I am sure somebody more knowledgeable than me, on here, will have the answer.

Stephen Howarth

03/06/15 - 15:32

I haven't been to Cheddar Gorge for years, but it does seem a likely venue. Presumably the bus is on a demonstration run for someone, as the indicator displays "Associated Daimler", there's a card in the rear off-side window, and the registration is a trade plate (reversed registrations did not come into being until the early 1950s). I think a single "H" was a Middlesex mark, so it's likely that the machine came from AEC at Southall. They were part of the ADC partnership with Daimler which only lasted from c.1926 to c.1928/29.

Michael Hampton

05/06/15 - 06:30

There are a couple of what I see as anomalies in respect of the 'trade plate'. A trade plate is presumably what it is, but didn't trade marks always contain five characters? I would have expected that the one featured would have been 0314 H, rather than 314 H. Or did that 'rule' come in later?
It is also the first example I have come across of a mark being used for both trade and general issue - remember the AEC Regent III demonstrator, 7194 H, which later went to Mayne's? I suspect that contributors will, however, come up with other examples.
Of course, very few single-letter marks featured in reversed general issue registrations - off the top of my head I can only think of D, E, F, H, K, N, R, U, and W.

David Call

07/06/15 - 06:30

David Call mentions Trade Plates having 5 characters.
Trade Plates were regulated by The Motor Vehicles (Regulations and Licensing) Regulations of 1921. The first plates had a 2 line format, the upper line comprising a numeral commencing at 0001, the lower a one or two letter index mark indicating the Council.
Complaints were received from traders concerning the huge size of the plate (14˝" x 10ž approx), so the one line version was introduced, and serial numbers (initially 001-099, increased later in 1923 to 001-0999, and again altered in 1925 to 001-999), followed by a one or two letter mark was introduced.
So as can be seen by 1926 to 1929 when this photo was taken no '0' would have been used.
David you are correct about only those 9 licensing office reversed marks being issued.

Stephen Howarth

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