Vauxhall D-Type Staff Car readied for WW1 commemorations

Vauxhall D-Type Staff Car readied for WW1 commemorations

To commemorate World War One this year, Vauxhall  Britain's oldest car manufacturer  is preparing its D-Type Staff Car to attend related events over the summer.

The Luton company produced more than 1,500 D-Type Staff Cars for military use during the 1914-1918 conflict  often referred to by historians as the 'First Automobile War'.

Saved from a London scrapyard in 1946, the car was restored to its original condition and has resided at Vauxhall HQ ever since. 'IC-0721'  its military number  also appeared in the Steven Spielberg film War Horse.

The D-Type, derived from the A-Type model, is currently on its first outing as part of Brooklands Museum's display stand at the Farnborough International Airshow, which is on until 20th July.

It will then be at Brooklands Museum until the Brooklands Great War 100 event on 3rd August  a prelude to the Great War Centenary Parade in London on 4th August, which will be 100 years to the day that Britain declared war on Germany.

The Morning Post summed up the importance of Vauxhall's D-Type soon after hostilities had finished: 'The four-cylinder Vauxhall cars have proved to be the most generally satisfactory of any British make for Staff service.'

by: Danielle Bagnall