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Enfield 8000 Restoration


Will on Syros

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On 2/9/2022 at 7:42 AM, Will on Syros said:

Ένα όραμα πολύ φιλόδοξο, τρελό, θα έλεγε κανείς, είχε κι ένας άλλος σημαντικός άνδρας της ελληνικής ναυτιλίας, ο Γιάννης Γουλανδρής, όταν αποφάσισε τη δεκαετία του ’70 να κάνει την Ερμούπολη τόπο παραγωγής ενός ηλεκτροκίνητου αυτοκινήτου. Σε ένα εργοστάσιο κοντά στο Νεώριο φτιάχτηκαν μόνο 112 τέτοια αυτοκίνητα. Και πρόσφατα, ένας Άγγλος μαθηματικός που έχει μετοικήσει μόνιμα στο νησί με τον  Έλληνα σύντροφό του, οδηγεί στους δρόμους της Ερμούπολης ένα από αυτά. Όταν τον πετυχαίνουμε τυχαία στον δρόμο, έχει παρκάρει το γοητευτικό, φευγαλέο ηλεκτρικό όχημα δίπλα στην αναμνηστική πλακέτα που έχει τοποθετηθεί μπροστά από το εργοστάσιο που κατασκεύαζε αυτό το αυτοκίνητο. «Απλώς το πάρκαρα εδώ όσο ο φίλος μου είναι στο σούπερ μάρκετ», λέει γελώντας, αναγνωρίζοντας με αυτοσαρκασμό τη θεατρικότητα της κίνησής του. Είναι όμως μια κίνηση συγκινητική, καθώς προδίδει την αγάπη του, το πάθος γι’ αυτό το όχημα και την τόσο παράδοξη και ιδιαίτερη ιστορία του. Δεν μοιάζει παράξενο, όμως, πως η συνηθισμένη σε ιστορίες πρωτοπορίας Ερμούπολη αποτέλεσε και θέατρο παραγωγής ενός ηλεκτροκίνητου οχήματος, δεκαετίες πριν αυτό γίνει τάση στην αγορά.

A very ambitious, crazy vision, one might say, was shared by another important man of the Greek shipping industry, Giannis Goulandris, when he decided in the 70's to make Ermoupolis a place for the production of an electric car. Only 112 such cars were made in a factory near Neorio. And recently, an English mathematician who has moved permanently to the island with his Greek partner, leads one of them to the streets of Ermoupolis. When we accidentally hit him on the road, the charming, elusive electric vehicle is parked next to the memorial plaque placed in front of the factory that made this car. "I just parked it here while my friend was at the supermarket," he says with a laugh, acknowledging with sarcasm the theatricality of his move. But it is a moving move, as it betrays his love, passion for this vehicle and its so paradoxical and special history. It does not seem strange, however, that the usual in avant-garde stories Ermoupolis was also a theater for the production of an electric vehicle, decades before it became a market trend.

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6 minutes ago, busmansholiday said:

Get an AC Electric Invac.......

technically I already do! or whats left of one! LOL

that trailer I own was at one point in time an AC Model 64, 72V electric invalid tricycle 

(in fact the main part of it that survives and forms the base of the trailer is what used to be the battery tray and rear half of the chassis :) )

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5 hours ago, Will on Syros said:

The sound an Enfield 8000 makes.

 

Absolutely love it. 

I spent a lot of my childhood at Amberley museum down in Sussex, there's an Enfield there in a  excellent Southern Electric sponsored museum-within-a-museum, it always fascinated me. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/austin7nut/48881310872/#

I think the model on top was the van version that never made it, is that right? 

 

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2 hours ago, MR SCRUFF said:

Absolutely love it. 

I spent a lot of my childhood at Amberley museum down in Sussex, there's an Enfield there in a  excellent Southern Electric sponsored museum-within-a-museum, it always fascinated me. 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/austin7nut/48881310872/#

I think the model on top was the van version that never made it, is that right? 

 

The one on the roof is the prototype 465 designed by John Samuel...only about 10 were ever made on the Isle of Wight. Wikipedia is incorrect to say there were 3...the club knows of more than 3 existing today and at least 5 others were sent to the USA and destroyed there. Kostantinos Adraktas near-completely redesigned it and had 2 of the new 8000 model made. He drove one himself for some years in London and its in a museum today in the UK somewhere. Production of the other 112 that were made started on Syros two years later. Mine is one of the later ones.  They're great little cars.

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16 hours ago, Will on Syros said:

The sound an Enfield 8000 makes.

 

That's awesome, thank you for sharing that.  There's a lot of character in those whirrs and clicks, are some of the noises contactors opening and closing?

Syros looks absolutely beautiful from the background of the footage as well!  It looks like somewhere I'd love to explore

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11 hours ago, CaptainBoom said:

That's awesome, thank you for sharing that.  There's a lot of character in those whirrs and clicks, are some of the noises contactors opening and closing?

Syros looks absolutely beautiful from the background of the footage as well!  It looks like somewhere I'd love to explore

The clicks are the solenoids changing the wiring of the batteries in 6 stages. At each stage, all the batteries are online, but the serial/parallel wiring changes, together with switching inside the motor. As you go through the stages you get a series of clicks as solenoids engage and release. It's all very clever and beyond me, tbh, but it sounds lovely.

Syros is lovely. You should visit. If you ever do, you can take the Enfield for a spin.

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3 hours ago, Will on Syros said:

This weekend, this little car built on Syros got to star in a car rally of historic cars here on Syros.  My co-driver was a lovely old guy who worked in the factory making them 50 years ago. Lots of media attention, even a TV spot for my ugly mug to chatter away in a Norfolk accent :)

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Validation, surely? Heroic IMHO.

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On 10/05/2023 at 00:06, Alusilber said:

Speaking of Enfield 8000s, I found this one in the Hellenic Motor Museum in Athens the other week…

IMG_8710.jpeg

Yes...formerly with number plate "HTC 222N"

Sold at auction in 2005...made its way to Greece and stripped bare...

https://www.christies.com/lot/lot-1975-enfield-8000-two-door-saloon-4532777/?lid=1&sc_lang=en

 

 

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23 hours ago, Will on Syros said:

Yes...formerly with number plate "HTC 222N"

Sold at auction in 2005...made its way to Greece and stripped bare...

https://www.christies.com/lot/lot-1975-enfield-8000-two-door-saloon-4532777/?lid=1&sc_lang=en

 

 

Yes, I can report that the number plate is still in place!

 

IMG_8711.jpeg

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