Power About ABC
ABC Motors Limited (All British (Engine) Company) of Hersham, Surrey, England was a manufacturer of cars, aircraft, motor scooters, and engines for road and air. Established by Ronald Charteris in Byfleet, Surrey in 1912, it was bought by Sopwith in 1919 as that company attempted to diversify its activities following World War I. Sold again in 1921 when Sopwith was bankrupted, it continued its activities until it was absorbed into Vickers in 1951. Its chief designer was Granville Bradshaw.
The ABC radial aero engines of the WW1 period were extremely advanced for their time, and were initially thought to be very promising indeed. Unfortunately they were all more or less plagued by problems - and although a number of types for the Royal Air Force were designed around ABC engines (especially the ill-fated Dragonfly) none of these types were to see squadron service with the RAF.
ABC also made a large number of engines for electrical generators and other purposes - mostly with a flat twin cylinder layout and unusual exhaust-over-inlet valve configuration. One of these holds the distinction of being possibly the first airborne APU when installed to power the searchlight of the Supermarine Nighthawk 'Zepplin killer'.
Products
- Aero engines
- ABC Dragonfly (aero engine, and an engineering disaster)
- ABC Gnat (aero engine)
- ABC Hornet
- ABC Scorpion (aero engine)
- ABC Wasp (aero engine)
- Aircraft
- ABC Robin (light aircraft)
- Automotive
- ABC (1920 automobile)
- ABC Supersports (light sports car)
- ABC Skootamota (motor scooter)
- ABC Motorcycle
