Biographical Data - B

Bache, David

David Bache studied at Birmingham University and the College of Art. He completed an internship at Austin and was hired there in 1948.
At the age of 26 years old, [ ⇒ Maurice Wilks] brings him to ROVER, he is entrusted with the styling department. He works with [ ⇒ Gordon Bashford] on new large sedans.
1956 he becomes Chief Styling Engineer / Chief Engineer Shaping. The first major task is to follow the P5. spä ter, following designs from [⇒ Spencer King] and {⇒ Gordon Bashford]
1968 together with [⇒ Tony Poole] he is responsible for the design of the driver's cab of the Leyland gas turbine truck.
1975 Bache becomes head of design at British Leyland Limited.

Bannock, Graham

Graham Bannock works in the ROVER marketing department. He recognizes the trend towards recreational off-road vehicles in the USA. He suggested that ROVER management develop such a vehicle. However, this impetus will not be the reason for the development of Range Rover.

Barber, John

John Barber is in leading position at Leyland in 1967. He approves with [⇒ Sir Donald Stokes] the preliminary plans for the Rover project P8.1968 he and [⇒ Sir Stokes] decide to develop the P8 as a "flagship".

Barker, Major H. E.

Major H. E. Barker is in 1925 in discussion at ROVER as chief designer. [⇒ Peter Poppe] is however preferred to him. The reasons are not known.

Barton, Tom

This man is commonly known as Mr. Land-Rover.
In Chesford Grange (near Kenelworth) he works on ROVER tank engines.
After World War II, Tom Barton designed the first left-hand drive system for ROVER export cars at the Helen Street plant: "Up to that time, not a single left-hand drive rover had been built, and we have been building cars ever since 1904".
Subsequently, he develops a transmission for the Range Rover.
In 1969 he enforces that the Range Rover is labelled "by Land Rover".

Bashford, Gordon

Gordon Bashford is one of the names that have a special sound at ROVER.
In 1930 he was employed as an apprentice in the construction department. His weekly wage is 10 shillings.
1933 he leaves ROVER and goes to Alfred Herbert Ltd, a renowned manufacturer of machine tools in Coventry.
In 1935 he returns to ROVER on the basis of an offer from [⇒ Roland Seale]. From 1940 until the 1970s - with a break from 1943 to 1945, which he spends with other ROVER engineers at Rolls-Royce in engine development - he was responsible for the implementation and realisation of the ideas of [⇒ Spencer King]..

He
• designs the "M1";
• designs the first independent front suspension for ROVER;
• is very much involved in the development of the "Land-Rover";
• developes with [⇒ Maurice Wilks] the prototype of the Road-Rover and its second prototype in the mid 1950s;

In 1956 he is subordinated to [⇒ Robert Boyle] and [⇒ Roland Seale]; he is responsible for design research. He stands for the basic design of the P6 and implements [⇒ Olaf Poppes] idea of the basic bodywork with attached body parts.
1960 he is subordinated to [ ⇒ Spencer King]. Together with him he developed the gas turbine car and the "P6BS", 1966/67 the later "Range Rover" and the "P8".
1968 he is appointed deputy of [⇒ Peter Wilks].
At British Leyland Technologies he becomes chief designer for advanced vehicles.
1981 he retires.
 
"Immediately after the V-Day (May 8,1945) let me [⇒ Maurice Wilks] come to tell me that he wanted to send me to Chesford Grange to think about post-war cars. Except for the fact that he informed me about the M-model, I had a free hand. I received a drawing board - just one, mind you!, a model workshop and a photographer."
 
"I started to work on a new "P3" which was basically a "P4", but only halfway."

Baxter, Raymond

Raymond Baxter was an automobile correspondent for BBC.
In 1962 he drove the RAC-Rallye with him (3rd place in the team classification).

Bell, Frank

Frank Bell was a turbine developer at Rolls Royce. As part of the personnel exchange, he joined ROVER and became head of gas turbine development for automobiles in 1943. From 1946 he joined the project department "C" and together with [⇒ Spencer King] he was responsible for the development of gas turbines, diesel engines and hollow slide motors. Together with King he develops the turbine T4, later the turbine T8, which is first installed in King's boat and later in the P4.
Bell leaves Rover in 1952, where the sources contradict each other; while one source claims he went to Blackburn Aircraft in Yorkshire as an engine engineer, another source says he has returned to his home country New Zealand.

Bengry, Bill

Bill Bengry joined the ROVER-Rallye-Team in 1962. He leads the rally Lü lü tich-Sofia-Lü l; tich. He falls far behind as he helps a team mate on the track. Nevertheless, with his co-driver [⇒ David Skeffington] he reaches an honourable 18th place. In the same year he achieved 3rd place in the RAC-Rallye.
In 1963, together with the local driver [⇒ Gordon E. Goby], he carries out the East Africa safari on a P5 3-Litre Mark IIB (registration number 677 DNX). He comes in 7th place (out of 84). It's the same car he used in 1962 for Lü ttich-Sofia-Lü ttich and the RAC-Rallye.

Bertodo, Roland

Roland Bertodo heads the working team that developed the famous "K"engine in 1984.

Bettman(n), Siegfried

Siegfried Bettman (n), born 1863 in Nuremberg, went to Coventry/England in 1885. Initially, he worked for Kelly & Co., and after only 6 months he switched to White Sewing Machine Co as a translator and salesman for Northern Europe. He spoke several languages fluently. He married Annie "Millie" Meyrick and was granted British citizenship.
He founds the company S. Bettmann & Co in London and sells bicycles under the trade name "Triumph". 1886 The company is renamed Triumph Cycle Company. One year later, the company was renamed New Triumph Co. Ltd. , in which Dunlop Pneumatic Tyre Company is involved. In the same year, Bettmann accepted a Nuremberg engineer named Moritz ("Maurice") Schulte as a partner. This encourages him to make his own bicycles. 1888 Bettmann buys a factory in Coventry with money from his and Schultzes family. The following year the first "Triumph" bicycles are produced. In 1896 a subsidiary company, Orial TWN (Triumph Werke Nürnberg), is founded in Nuremberg, which also builds bicycles.
From 1902 onwards, motorcycles were also built in the main factory - a reinforced bicycle with a Minerva engine of 2.25 hp, which was replaced by its own engine as demand increased. 1907 the company moves to bigger buildings.
Two weeks after the outbreak of World War I, the company was commissioned to supply 100 bikes for BEF, which are to intervene in France. The order is received on a Saturday afternoon, work is carried out around the clock and the machines are delivered to Coventry station for loading on Sunday evening. Captain C. V. Holdsworth, who placed the order, later became director of Triumph. Subsequently, the British Army ordered large quantities of the 550 cc model "H" in particular. End of the war was Triumph the largest motorcycle manufacturer of Britain.
In 1921 Bettmann began car manufacturing. He bought the Dawson Car Company. From 1930 onwards, the company was renamed Triumph Motor Company.
 
In the same year, [⇒ Spencer Wilks] and [⇒ Colonel Claude Holbrook] of ROVER hold unofficial merger talks with Siegfried Bettmann. He was offered the chairmanship, while Holbrook and Wilks were to become managing directors with joint power of representation. The conversations were unsuccessful.
 
A few years later, Triumph - like ROVER - experienced financial difficulties. In 1936 the bicycle and motorcycle divisions were sold, the latter was sold to [⇒ Jack Sangster] from Ariel Motorcycles and traded as Triumph Engineering Co Ltd. .

Black, Sir John

Sir John Paul Black, *February 10,1895 in Kingston upon Thames, +December 24,1965 in Cheadle, Cheshire, came to Hillman after World War I as Sales Manager. In 1921 he married the Hillman daughter Margaret Verena. Soon after, William Hillman dies, he and his brother-in-law [⇒ Spencer Wilks], who is married to the Hillman daughter Kathleen Edith, become joint deputy directors.
From 1928 onwards, he also sits on the board of Humber and Commer. In 1929 he went to Standard Motor Co. , where he became CEO in 1933. During the II. After World War II he is chairman of the Aero Engine Commitee and is ennobled for this in 1943. Towards the end of the war, he initiated the takeover of Triumph. In 1953 he became chairman of Standard-Triumph, where he is feared for his dictatorial leadership style. Alick Dick is responsible for day-to-day business. At the end of 1953 he was seriously injured in an accident during the presentation of Swallow Doretti. He is disempowered by a "palace revolution", Alick Dick becomes his successor.
After his death in 1965, Black is rejected by his successor as a "controversial personality". On the occasion of the recall of cars built under Black's regiment - such as the Triumph TR2 - he explains that the narrow footwell combined with too much headroom was typical, since Black was a tall man with short legs. Not a very friendly obituary.

Boyden, Norman

Norman Boyden in 1958 is assistant of [ ⇒ Jack Swaine] in engine development at ROVER.

Boyle, Robert

Robert Boyle was involved in the "Scarab"project in 1930. In the same year he goes to Morris Engines to return to ROVER later.
He is significantly involved in the land rover development.
In 1956 he is appointed to succeed [⇒ Maurice Wilks] as Chief Engineer Development, becomes Technical Director in the same year and becomes, together with [⇒ George Farmer], the head of the company.
1963 he dies shortly before his retirement.

Brabham, Jack

1966 Jack Brabham achieves his third Grand Prix World Championship title with Repco engines. These engines are based on the Buick-V8 with one camshaft per cylinder row. They showed clearly that there was more in these engines than ROVER thought possible at the time.

Brown, David

David Brown is the head of David Brown Corporation in Huddersfield, which manufactures tractors and agricultural machinery.
In 1957 he approaches ROVER and offers to take over the production by ROVER; the talks fail although (or because?) two Land Rover people switch to Brown and develop their own 4x4 car (which is never built).

Brown, Douglas

Douglas Brown is the son of Isle of Man Times publisher. In 1914 he participated on a ROVER at the TT race on the Isle of Man. Together with [⇒ Bush Newsome] and [⇒ A. J. Lindsay] he will be team winner.