Carbodies
Carbodies is a British company based in Holyhead Road, Coventry, that started as a coachbuilder but is now best known for its Taxicab production business.
1919 The company was founded when Robert Jones bought the vehicle body making business from Gooderham and Co and set up in Old Church Road. Rather than make bespoke bodies to individual designs, Carbodies set out to produce production runs of coachwork for makers that did not have their own bodyshops or were short of capacity. Typical companies supplied were Alvis Cars, the Rootes Group and MG.
1928 Moved to Holyhead Road
1939 See Aircraft Industry Suppliers
WWII During World War 2 the company made bodies for military vehicles and aircraft components. Manufactured parts for the De Havilland Mosquito.
1943 Private company.
After the war Carbodies got a major contract from Austin to make taxi bodies as well as work from Ford, making the bodies for the convertible Consul, Zephyr and Zodiac. They also supplied prototype bodies and tooling, projects including the Jaguar E-type bonnet.
1954 Robert Jones sold the company to the BSA group.
The classic FX3 taxi, predecessor to the FX4, was built by Carbodies in partnership with Mann and Overtons and Austin.
In 1959 Carbodies concentrated on producing complete taxis, starting with the FX4.
1961 Motor car body builders. 1,200 employees. [1]
1963 Motor Show exhibitor. Showed bodywork for Humber, Singer and Austin. [2]
1973 BSA was bought by Manganese Bronze Holdings. The company is now called LTI Ltd, an abbreviation of London Taxis International.
See Also
Sources of Information
- Wikipedia
- Mosquito by C. Martin Sharp and Michael J. F. Bowyer. Published by Crecy Books in 1995. ISBN 0-947554-41-6