track The Wolseley Hornet is a six-cylinder twelve fiscal horsepower lightweight automobile which was offered as a saloon car, coupé and open two-seater as well as the usual rolling chassis for bespoke coachwork.

Their overhead camshaft engines were so good that cars built on their Hornet Special chassis developed an outstanding reputation on the road and in club competition.

[10] Announced at the end of April 1930 — though ownership was quite separate from Morris Motors — the first Wolseley Hornet was in effect a 2-door 4-seater Morris Minor saloon fitted with an extended engine bay to make room for a small six-cylinder engine in place of the four-cylinder unit that was normal for this size of car.

One month before the Motor Show agents from all over the country were called to Birmingham to see the new Hornet four door saloon.

Autocar's testers were pleased with the result of the engine being moved 8 inches (20 cm) forward, weight distribution was better and the ride more comfortable for all passengers, no tossing them about over appalling surfaces and no pitching at all.

Weight and wind resistance were increased but at 64 miles per hour this car was faster than the last Hornet tested.

It offers a very high degree of comfort and convenience, possesses an excellent performance, yet runs with complete refinement.

This is a matter of small consequence, for the reason that the gear change is extraordinarily easy to accomplish between top and third without paying much attention to the use of the accelerator pedal.

All the same the gear change responds just as readily to the more orthodox style of handling, and a little practice with double-clutching and finding the right pauses soon gives a quiet mastery.

[11] The display at Olympia was two four-door six-light saloons with soft leather upholstery and sliding roofs.

New Hornets were shown at Olympia in the autumn beside the continuing 7 ft 6½ins wheelbase four-door saloon and occasional four coupé which were not fitted with freewheel but did have the quiet-third four-speed gearboxes with new synchromesh on all but first gear.

[6] New more powerful, roomy and pleasing in design Hornet (and Wasp) models with special easy clean wheels were shown to the motor trade at a Birmingham gathering on 29 April 1935.

When launched in 1930 the Hornet came with a UK retail price of £175 and could be seen as a competitively priced small saloon with unusually brisk performance but the saloon gained in overall weight and lost the well judged weight distribution that gave the early Hornets much of their market-place appeal.

When Wolseley Motors Limited was transferred to Morris Motors Limited on 1 July 1935 this part of its business was set aside by W. R. Morris (Lord Nuffield) and put in the ownership of a newly incorporated company, Wolseley Aero Engines Ltd, and remained his personal property.

The overhead camshaft followed the Wolseley custom begun by their 2-litre 16/45 6-cylinder engine announced in September 1926 — just before the change of ownership.

[2] For the new four-door saloon announced in September 1931 the engine was modified to make it shorter and it was moved forwards on its chassis.

[3] Hornet Special chassis were made available with the same long stroke and with a larger bore — increased from 57mm to 61.5mm — and a swept area of 1604 cc.

[2] The standard specification includes twelve volt lighting, electrically operated dip and switch headlamps and combined stop and tail lamps, single wiper with provision for a second blade, chrome finish on all bright parts, petrol gauge, bumpers etc.

[2] Although from September 1931 the saloon was supplied with a four-speed gear box the two-door cars remained available but with three-speed gearboxes.

"[3] The Times reported the Duke of Gloucester had taken delivery of a 1934 saloon model Wolseley Hornet, earlier examples of which he had had for the past two years.

Later cars had a large S mounted on the radiator cap with a small H for hornet in its lower section, the S shaped to be like a striking snake or a preening swan.

It had twin carburettors, higher compression (domed pistons) and numerous smaller modifications including a revised exhaust system (triple-piped manifold —2 inch pipe to the straight-through silencer), duplex valve springs, metal universal joints in the propeller shaft, three inches wider front track and specially large 12-inch brake drums.

Special front (3 inches wider track at 3" 9") and rear axles were supplied with the saloon's large-hub stud-fixed Magna wire-wheels.

[21] In the autumn of 1933 to improve its breathing the engine was given a cross-flow head with inlet and exhaust manifolds on opposing sides.

The block casting was redesigned to increase its stiffness and the Special received the long wheelbase underslung chassis and other modifications of the saloon including freewheel.

[21] The Special chassis was supplied to various specialist coachbuilders particularly Swallow, Whittingham & Mitchel, Jensen and, now also part of the Morris group, Cunard.

[14] London and suburbs sole Wolseley distributor, Eustace Watkins Limited, designed and sourced their own E W Specials[29] probably from Abbey.

Sir Malcolm, holder of the World's Land Speed Record, reported that the Daytona, one of the latest Hornet Specials was fitted with a sporting two / four seater body.

lively, vibrationless and exceedingly quiet, does its work without fuss or bother, quickly reaches 5,000 rpm and a road speed in third gear over 60 mph."

He also regretted there was no external adjustment to the hydraulic shock absorbers which he considered necessary when dealing with such a light and fast little car.