HISTORY
The Jaguar takeover of Daimler brought not only the name, but the factory and workforce. We look into why a failing asset was deemed worthy and how Jaguar assimilated the brand
THE 1950s had been a good time for Jaguar. The XK120 had evolved from a sharp sports car into the longdistance, comfortable XK150. Its big saloons were selling well, the latest MkIX model was becoming a force to be reckoned with and the 2.4 and 3.4-litre saloons were stealing clientele from marques such as Riley and Humber with their sporting demeanour and high quality trimmings.
Business was booming for Browns Lane, and Sir William Lyons wanted to expand his manufacturing base. But there was no room in the existing factory to do what he wanted to do – and having approached the government to seek planning permission for redevelopment of Browns Lane to accommodate, he was turned away with an outright refusal. Lyons needed to find more space if Jaguar was to expand, and he thought he knew where he could find it.
While the 1950s had been good to Jaguar, it had been a bad decade for the company’s Coventry neighbour, Daimler. Owned by the Birmingham Small Arms company, Daimler had entered the 1950s in an enviable position, with entry level brand Lanchester catering for the slightly less affluent and Daimlers appealing to the wealthy – including the British royal family, for whom Daimler held the warrant.
However, Daimler was to find itself the subject of excess in the decade. Chairman of BSA, Sir Bernard Docker, was living something of a playboy lifestyle funded by company expenditure and his former showgirl wife Lady Norah Docker indulged her somewhat lurid tastes with a new Daimler show car every year. These “Docker Daimlers”, built from 1948 to 1955, were altars to extravagance; costing upwards of £7000 each to produce when an average house was yours for £1500, in the post war era such profligacy was seen as undesirable.
The aristocracy backed away from the company in disgust, the royal family changed allegiance to Rolls-Royce, and Daimler was left catering for the jet set that found the Docker show cars appealing – usually friends of Lady Norah, who was banned from Monaco by Prince Rainier for tearing up the flag.
By 1956 the board at BSA had had enough, Jeremy Sangster staging a boardroom coup. Sir Bernard Docker resigned his position on the board in a fit of pique, taking Lady Norah and the patronage of many influential customers with him. Daimler’s sales dropped drastically as the loss of the Docker connection made them less desirable in high society.
With Rolls-Royce re
