NTM #69 - What's the story?: Photo claimed to be a "1921 Owen"

Started by ftg3plus4, March 02, 2018, 11:54:49 AM

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ftg3plus4

March 02, 2018, 11:54:49 AM Last Edit: March 06, 2018, 10:03:37 AM by ftg3plus4
Things aren't always what they seem...

This needs more than just a make name. What's the (strange) story behind this picture?
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

jimjarron

#1
March 02, 2018, 11:28:23 PM
It looks like an early 1920s Ruston Hornsby 16/20.  Is the story you refer to the one about the company's chairman visiting Melbourne in 1952, spotting the car still in use as a taxi, and having it shipped back to England for restoration?

ftg3plus4

#2
March 03, 2018, 09:31:15 AM Last Edit: March 03, 2018, 09:55:51 AM by ftg3plus4
Nope, that's not it. The correct story does involve England though.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

ftg3plus4

#3
March 12, 2018, 09:17:34 AM
Pros?
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#4
March 12, 2018, 09:21:33 AM
So was the car made in UK ?

ftg3plus4

#5
March 12, 2018, 09:41:31 AM
The only way I can answer that is that it was said to have been made in the UK.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

Fёdor

#6
March 12, 2018, 01:53:22 PM
Was it produced in another country, except England?

ftg3plus4

#7
March 12, 2018, 02:04:59 PM
The car as seen in the picture was not actually produced.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#8
March 12, 2018, 04:29:05 PM
Was the car made in USA ?

ftg3plus4

#9
March 12, 2018, 05:31:53 PM
The car as seen in the picture was not actually made.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#10
March 12, 2018, 05:36:48 PM
Was it a scam ?

ftg3plus4

#11
March 13, 2018, 07:12:21 AM
I wouldn't call it a "scam" because the person involved didn't scam anyone out of anything. A better word would be "fake."
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

Paul Jaray

#12
March 13, 2018, 07:20:48 AM
Is the name Lord Montagu de Beaulieu?

ftg3plus4

#13
March 13, 2018, 07:24:04 AM
Nope.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#14
March 13, 2018, 09:32:25 AM
So it's a fake British car imagined by a US citizen ?

ftg3plus4

#15
March 13, 2018, 10:00:26 AM
No, the person involved was British.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#16
March 13, 2018, 10:54:37 AM
Was it an April's Fool ?

ftg3plus4

#17
March 13, 2018, 10:57:11 AM
No, the only motivation seems to have been wishful thinking.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#18
March 14, 2018, 06:47:31 PM
Was this fake car imagined between 1920 and 1925 ?

ftg3plus4

#19
March 15, 2018, 07:00:15 AM
Yes.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#20
March 15, 2018, 07:49:29 AM
Was it published in a British car magazine of that era ?

ftg3plus4

#21
March 15, 2018, 10:57:45 AM
The information I have says it was published in the "Buyers' Guide." If that's a magazine, then yes.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

ftg3plus4

#22
March 28, 2018, 07:22:59 AM Last Edit: March 28, 2018, 07:29:18 AM by ftg3plus4
Well, it looks like I need to throw a hint out there to try to get this one going again.

Hint: The picture of the one car isn't the whole story. It represents a much longer story, in which the existence of any related photo is notable.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel

oko94

#23
March 28, 2018, 07:36:50 AM Last Edit: March 28, 2018, 07:39:18 AM by oko94
1921 Owen Eight

"The granddaddy of the "shadowy" makes was the Owen, a make with at least six different names, listed on and off for 36 years, no press descriptions after 1902, no road tests, advertisements or even a photo to show that even just one Owen was built."

"The car was actually illustrated in the "Buyers' Guide", (picture below) but the side view is suspiciously like the American Kenworthy, with slight retouching. The Kenworthy was never offered for sale in Great Britain and would be thus sufficiently obscure to be unknown to most British readers – another example of Owen's cunning."

ftg3plus4

#24
March 28, 2018, 07:38:05 AM Last Edit: March 28, 2018, 07:45:47 AM by ftg3plus4
That's it, but can you elaborate on the story?

EDIT: Thanks.
"May I submit 'Utopian Turtletop'? Do not trouble to answer unless you like it."
-- Marianne Moore, suggesting a name for what would become the Edsel
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