Humber Super Snipe Mk IV Touring Limousine Look Around

[@neilgordon1034]

This was the second car that owned in 1971 I bought from a chap in Wimbledon he said that it belonged to a judge . £35 with the clutch needed replacing , great car , reg was ROY **** . I was 21 years old in 1971 , still looks a great car . thanks for the putting the video up memories of some good old times....

[@deanosah]

My Father owned a 1953 Humber Super Snipe MIV Touring Limousine. It had the Blue Ribbon 4 litre engine 4138.8 cc. I still have the Handbook that was issued by Rootes Group in 1952.

[@blacknight1003]

Oh wow! This was a trip down “Memory Lane” for me. Dad worked in West Africa in the early 60’s and had 18-month tours with 3 months a home. He managed to get one of these through a relative who had a garage in Nottingham, England. It did 14 miles to the gallon, until dad patched it up to give 16 miles to the gallon. He passed this car to another ex-pat returning home where it went to St. Helens, Lancashire. Lost track of it after that but what an opulent motor car. Thanks for sharing.

[@vernonmatthews181]

Thanks Colin for the walk-around the Mk4 Super Snipe 253ci, love that glass partition, incidentally I drove taxi's in my native New Zealand decades ago. After this I did apply for a limo vocation which I unfortunately was not selected. A late neighbour of my mother years ago had his father in London would drive cars like yours, for dignataries, paliamentary ministers & H.R.H. The one thing I remembered was not the gloves worn, but the no eye contact for the entire journey, whether it be for A to B, or sightseeing for several hours. Thanks for the narration, 👌 👍 ❤ Regards Vernon.

[@johnthelwell3244]

This brought back memories. My dad had several super snipes the last one new in 1964. He had a black one like this in the late 50s. We all used to go out every Sun for drives and picnics around North Wales where we lived.

[@alanb5370]

A lovely motor car. Humber's always had something about them which set them apart. I knew a medic in the 1970's who ran Humber Pullman limousine, as he had a large famy. A potato factor in Hull UK, hadthelargestcollectio of Humber cars this side of the hemisphere. The collectionstarted because his father could get nearly a ton of potatoes in a Pullman limousine, for distribution. Thank you again.

[@jasontroy4723]

It's a bloody ripper . Fantastic old motor in splendid condition . A collectors dream

[@colinharrison5093]

Thanks Jason.

[@doctorhugocat]

THANK YOU!! For some reason I've always been a bit obsessed by these MkIv Humbers and I've never actually seen one 'in the flesh'.

[@AllenORourke1954]

A marvelous old beast, thanks for posting. From the UK...

[@colinharrison5093]

Thank you for your comment.

[@thrunsguinneabottle3066]

The transverse leaf front suspension of the earlier Super Snipes was designed to share suspension travel between the front wheels. It was called: the "Evenkeel" system, and promoted as the last word in suspension design. The name sounded as if it was a hugely ingenious and sophisticated idea. But since it was designed out of the Mark IV, it clearly left much to be desired.

[@golden.lights.twinkle2329]

The Fiat 600 had the same front suspension.

[@paulbroderick8438]

I learned to drive in a !950's Humber Hawk down country lanes in England, near Coventry. Easy engine to work on even though it has side valves. Those were the days.

[@colinharrison5093]

Tank you for your comment Paul. I too learned to drive in 1976/77 in my Father's 1956 Humber Super Snipe. At that stage the car was 20 years old and still going strong. Previous to the snipe my father owned a 1951/2 Humber Hawk with a side valve engine. He said it was the best car he ever owned.

[@jamesatkinson6480]

The Humber 'Super Snipe' was the 'Flagship' of the Rootes Group cars. I think the last one rolled off the production line in 1963. At that time in Australia, Ford had their Falcon, Chrysler had their Valiant, and General Motors Holden had their Holden (EJ - EH). For the time in which Humbers were made, many miles of comfortable travel was enjoyed in them, as good value motoring compared to Rolls-Royce, Bentley, and Jaguar...

[@colinharrison5093]

Hi James, the super snipes went through to 1967 with the Series V. I have a photo somewhere of my Fathers 1956 Mk IV Super Snipe alongside my Granfathers EJ holden wagon.

[@golden.lights.twinkle2329]

Made in Coventry, England. Humbers were at one time used by royalty in the UK and for overseas tours. It's odd that the early dashes were so poorly designed. Later models had specific LHD and RHD versions so drivers could clearly see the gauges. Looks like it could use a new fan belt.

[@andrewallen9993]

Utterly amazing! A garage that isn't full of assorted crap, how does he do it?

[@colinharrison5093]

I wish I could take the credit however not my garage, one I was borrowing to park the Humber.

[@davidhynd4435]

Lovely. Another beautifully made, dependable Rootes machine. Would this have been assembled in the Port Melbourne factory or imported complete? I'm fairly certain that they were assembling a range of the more humble Rootes products at the Port Melbourne factory by the early fifties - Hillman and Commer, and, I would guess, probably Singer or Sunbeam. I have a lot of time for Rootes vehicles. My feeling is that they always represented better value than similarly priced Austin, Morris, or Standard cars of the time. Your Humber looks like a well-preserved and un-fiddled-with example. Very nice.

[@simonworte6357]

I have just been looking at a Commer Superpoise truck with a coach built body and using the same engine as the Super Snipe. It was used as a race car transporter. In Britain Humbers were used as official cars by Prime Ministers and members of government until the mid 1960's. Sir William (Lord) Rootes always saw to it personally, that Winston Churchill had a Humber at his disposal when in government.

[@colinharrison5093]

Although a lot of Humbers were exported to Australia in knocked down form and assembled at Port Melbourne, this particular car was fully assembled in the UK and exported to the Australia. It is one of the few Mk IV's in Australia that has the 3.7:1 differential ratio.

[@colinharrison5093]

Hi Simon, yes, the same engine was used in Commer trucks. The previous owner of my car said it was also used as a Government Ministers vehicle.

[@regd.2263]

Looks like the Humber Hawk

[@jimervin1637]

If anyone is missing the word Super from their Super Snipe script, I believe I have it here.

[@richardsmith3585]

Gorgous car but camra is to close

[@johnhetherington8830]

Congratulations enjoy