
The Whitley 18's brakes were a genuine hybrid — hydraulic drums up front, but old-fashioned cable-operated drums at the rear.
Lead trim: Whitley 2309 cc six
Armstrong Siddeley Whitley 181949–1954
- 0spots by members
- Unclaimednobody has spotted one yet
- 0sets it belongs to
Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Armstrong Siddeley Whitley 18 yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactThe Whitley 18's brakes were a genuine hybrid — hydraulic drums up front, but old-fashioned cable-operated drums at the rear.
The Armstrong Siddeley Whitley is a large post-war sports saloon, a version of the 16/18 hp series, the last of the range to enter production (first appearing in 1949; 4,321 made until 1954), successor to the Lancaster and predecessor of the Sapphire. It used only the larger 2309 cc overhead-valve engine with an 18 hp tax rating that had first appeared on export versions of the Tempest, with a choice of synchromesh or pre-selector gearbox, independent torsion-bar front suspension and a live rear axle on leaf springs, with Girling hydro-mechanical brakes. Most were 4- or 6-light saloons, but limousines were made on a long-wheelbase chassis from 1950 to 1952, and the Utility Coupe and Station Coupe were coupé-utility versions for export, particularly Australia. Wheelbase 115 or 122 in (2,920 or 3,100 mm), length 185 in (4,700 mm), width 68 in (1,730 mm).
Collectors Spotted in the Armstrong Siddeley Whitley Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Armstrong Siddeley Whitley yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
One published trim in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whitley 2309 cc six | 1949–1954 | 2.3 L Inline-6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs

Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.

Simca beat Fiat to market by three months with what was essentially Fiat's own Topolino design.

The Simca 1000 began at Fiat: Simca boss Henri Pigozzi picked one of six boxy clay models from Fiat's "Project 122".

The last Simca 1000 ever built, the 1978 Rallye 3, was also the rarest — just 1,000 were made in the model's final year, a quiet send-off for a car that had sold nearly two million.

To drum up buzz at launch, Simca briefly swapped 50 of its Paris taxi fleet's Ariane sedans for tiny new 1000s, making the little car a familiar sight on the capital's streets.

The PL 17's name is a sum: 5 fiscal horsepower, 6 seats, 6 litres per 100 km, kept a digit below the Citroën DS 19's.

The humble Tagora spawned a one-off concept, the Présidence, decked out with Connolly leather and electronics way ahead of 1981 — a built-in telephone, dictaphone, text-message receiver and a TV with VCR.

Talbot fed the Tagora's V6 old-fashioned triple carburettors instead of fuel injection — and the extra power briefly made it the most powerful French car on sale. Only 1,083 were ever built.

Switching the 96 from a two-stroke to a Ford V4 was such a closely guarded secret that Saab invented a fake company, Maskinverktyg AB, just to buy the new engine's parts without its own purchasing department finding out.