Encountering this Rootes rarity elicited an audible “Woah!” from yours truly. The randomness (and awesomeness) of Tokyo’s CC fauna never ceases to amaze, especially the British stuff. Much as one can expect to see Bentleys, MGs and Jags, because everybody loves those, Humbers are a much more obscure proposition, only to be considered by serious Anglophiles. Doubly so when it’s a Super Minx in fancy dress like this one.
Judging by the license plate, this car was probably sold new in Japan back in 1966-67. I’m guessing it must have been restored at some point in the interim fifty-five-plus years, although when you see how pristine certain 30-year-old cars are around here, anything is possible.
It was hard not to (Humber) gawk, but then I tried going around the car and find more angles for photos, the options were very limited. Still, one must make lemonade out of all the lemons, even the ones stuck in a dark corner. Not that I’d ever call the Humber Sceptre a lemon; it’s zesty and full of appeal.
Yes, the Rootes boys did badge-engineer this small Humber into existence (and essentially killed off the marque with it, in the end, as they did Singer, Talbot, Sunbeam and eventually Hillman), but at least the Humber version kept the old Audax-esque mid-‘50s roofline going until it was way past its bedtime. That takes commitment.
I mean look at this car from the profile or the three-quarter rear. Of course I was not able to get a photo of this one in that position, but there’s always period literature to save the day – in the present case, the 1963 Sceptre Mark I’s superb artwork. The reverse-canted C-pillar / wraparound back light combo was all the rage circa 1954, but by the early ‘60s, that Googie-era stuff was seriously out of step.
The first iteration of the Sceptre, launched in 1963, wore quads and a separate grille and had as much chrome as possible, because HUMBER. It also had a rather antiquated 1.6 litre engine (because MINX), but that was not to last too long.
The rest of the car changed little, but when Rootes decided to give the Sceptre an improved engine, they also gave the car a new face. Now, instead of looking like a gussied-up Singer, it looked like a Hillman that went to public school. It seems some folks back then noted the Scepter’s vague resemblance with the 1964-65 Valiant and wondered whether Chrysler’s increasing participation in Rootes’ capital had anything to do with that. Coincidence? Most likely, yes.
The brand new five-bearing 1725 engine was such big news, it just had to be advertised on the Sceptre’s flanks. Well, it did give the aging range a shot in the arm, but still, when seeing the Humber in context – especially by 1966, when the new Arrows cars were being launched, both British and foreign rivals were nipping at the Rootes.
Interestingly, they opted not to bother with wood in this Humber. That shows a remarkable and laudable amount of restraint on Rootes’ part. Aside from the slightly passé horn ring, the Sceptre’s interior looks much more with it than its exterior, with that Jaguar-like battery of small dials and sporty-looking console-mounted gearstick.
The Humber’s lower roofline, as compared to other Super Minx derivatives, is apparently noticeable, especially at the rear, according to period road tests. But the rear legroom was deemed perfectly acceptable for this segment, i.e. the sports / deluxe compact four-door. Speaking of which, let’s do something I haven’t done in a long while and compare this Humber to a dozen of its British and European rivals.
Humber was not very well-known on the Continent, where Rootes cars were usually sold under the Sunbeam and Hillman marques, so I don’t think you could do a comparison table like this based on German or French data, as the Sceptre was probably not sold there. Even with the hefty import taxes levied by the British government on imported cars, there were a number of German, French and Italian rivals at the Humber’s price point. To be fair, a Simca 1500 or a Fiat 1500L would have seemed less special than the Sceptre, but then so would the Riley or the Corsair. And although the Humber’s body did look dated, it was not the only one – nor the ugliest…
In fact, compared to its fussy predecessor and its bland successor, this is probably the Sceptre to have, if one must be had. And it seems a handful of (doubtless well-heeled) Japanese connoisseurs thought the same way.
Rear end styling feels more ’58 Chevy than ’63 Valiant, in keeping with this Humber’s ‘50s flavour. But at least the capable engine, disc brakes and nicely appointed interior give this Sceptre something of an edge beyond mere tailfins.
At least, this Scepter is interesting to behold and seems to have had a fair amount of success: just shy of 12,000 units were made in two years, which considering how niche this car is, is a decent result. By contrast, the square-cut successor Mark III, which lasted for ten seasons with nary a change, was a powerful illustration of how Chrysler let their Rootes branch wither on the vine.
Related posts:
Curbside Classic: 1966 Hillman Super Minx – Rooting For Rootes, by Roger Carr
Cohort Pic(k) of the Day: Singer Vogue – Raised Eyebrows, by PN
Carshow Classic: 1975 Humber Sceptre Estate – The Ulitmate Arrow Is The Forgotten One, by Roger Carr
Ooh ah, the little Minx raises a Sceptre (not speaking personally, you understand, it’s about as effective as Ted ‘eath in that department, it is). Still an’ all, some like a nice good ‘Umber every now an’ again, ‘oo’s to deny ’em their pleasures?
The Super Minx really wasn’t one of life’s aesthic masterworks to begin with – clam down, Bryce, the wagon’s rather the exception – and by the time it had been Humbered, it looked like a solemn plain-faced child covered in his huge grandad’s war medals: over-decorated and mismatched.
Quite the rarity, though, Dr T., and I’ll concede they had a nice interior job. This must surely have been a British embassy car, though I don’t know how long after the Japanese had finished torturing Brits that their seemingly-incongruous Anglophilia began.
As a buyer in Japan in 1966, you could also make the point that Prince’s top-of-the-line Gloria sported a wraparound rear windscreen although not nearly as extreme as this.
With 4sp & electric OD and disc front brakes it probably makes a reasonable driver too. The tyres look brand new and it’s clean as a whistle so hopefully it gets out and about.
Back in the early/mid 80s my father (always on the lookout for another car, most Sundays were spent driving around seeing what the garages were offering) he had a choice of one of these or an Austin 1800, and this would have been my choice, but we ended up with the 1800 (which, in fairness, turned out to be a good, spacious and dependable steed). By the time I was a licenced driver we still had the 1800 and I drove it a lot. I think it replaced an MG Magnette, another piece of badge engineering! That (the MG) was the first car I ever drove (around a big, empty car park in South Wales!).
Another good post. Thank you. Notice that the car has the one driving / one fog arrangement that I only seem to notice in UK vehicles. Dont know if this is due to austerity, space, alternator output or legislation or even fashion. I would go for a pair each. In this example though the left and right are not optimally placed. Fog s/b nearside to see the curb and driving outboard to be more centered on road.
I imagine that the answer to your question is “generators”. Automotive generators didn’t put out much power (maybe 35 amps, tops) and the output wasn’t consistent from idle to redline, unlike alternators.
Your running electrical system in those days mostly consisted of lights, windshield wipers, heater blower, and maybe a tube/valve radio (tubes draw rather a lot of power).
I think the one fog light/one driving light system came into place because there simply wasn’t enough “juice” to run a pair of either. I’m sure our Mr. Stern will correct me if I’m wrong.
I believe you are right. I remember putting a pair of driving lights on my P5 Taunus. I had to use them sparingly as when I turned them on the generator light on the dash would just start to glow. Perhaps there was a reason it was hard to find 6 volt halogen lights in ’72.
You have to think back to the 60’s, before smokeless coal was mandated, and you could have regular fog or a ‘pea-souper’. In average fog you use low beam headlights so others can see you. When fog gets really bad you want to turn your headlights off because the fog is reflecting the light back in your eyes due to the height of the lamps. At low speed the low spot light shining ahead would show up a stationary vehicle before you ran into it, and the fog light would show you where the kerb was so that you didn’t drive onto it. London buses used to have a single LHS fog light to illuminate the kerb. We are talking about speeds of 15 – 20 MPH max.
It seems some folks back then noted the Scepter’s vague resemblance with the 1964-65 Valiant and wondered whether Chrysler’s increasing participation in Rootes’ capital had anything to do with that. Coincidence? Most likely, yes.
I’m struggling to find that vague resemblance to the Valiant. Where exactly is it? I must be looking at all the wrong places.
I think he’s talking about the grille treatment.
I see certain similar elements, but the overall front end treatment strikes me as rather different. And the rest of it has no resemblance at all.
Paul, if as you put it the front is “rather different” and “the rest has no resemblance at all,” how/where do you “see certain similar elements”?
I did say it was vague. And yes, as Aaron65 said, it’s the front end, as that was clearly the only thing they modified for the Mark II. Might be clearer still when seeing a 1964 and 1965 Valiant, as well as the Ozzie AP6 version.
What a find! Any Rootes car on the road here is now a rarity, even in the classic community. The Rapier is probably the most numerous but many models seem to have almost totally dropped off the radar.
The first Sceptre was effectively a Singer Vogue with a Sunbeam Rapier spec tuned engine and smarter interior, though no wood dash. Indeed, strong rumours persist that this was supposed to be a new Rapier, hence the rear window shape, and perhaps the sports style dash. The Mk2, seen here, took the front end of the Super Minx and added 4 headlamps instead.
The later Arrow version was purely a Hillman Hunter/Sunbeam Arrow Brougham, British style.
Several years ago, at a classic show, a Sceptre owner and I engaged in conversation around my Dad’s Super Minx history, and he let me not only sit in his car but also start it up. I was surprised then by the non-luxury feel of the dash but also the space (or lack of it) inside. But I’m taller now than I was when I was 5.
I also heard that it was an 11th hour change from Sunbeam Rapier to Humber Sceptre, when Rootes realised that there was no way of replacing the Hawk and Snipe. Enter the Australian version of the Valiant, not really a big Humber either.
When classmates mum with Super Minx was giving lifts I remember a decent sized back seat, certainly better than the VW notchback or Morris Minor my mum would have been driving, and with it’s own doors as well.
I’m almost at a loss for words. We didn’t get these officially in Australia, so it’s great to have this photo essay as only Prof. Tatra can give us. Thanks for taking the time to prepare that chart of the competition. Putting it in context really helps.
Hillman only went to upstairs valves in 1954, so the engine design isn’t that old. Maybe not ‘best practice’ by the mid-sixties, but by British standards this was still a fairly new engine. And this has the 1725; Rootes’ finest development of that engine. Bryce can tell us how good this is.
I love the shot of the Sceptre badge underlined with the side trim. I’d never realized the side trim on these had a patterned insert. I guess a plain wide chrome strip isn’t good enough for a Humber. 🙂
What I can’t get over is that roofline though. If you were going to all the trouble and expense of tooling up a new Humber-specific roof panel, window frames and front and rear glass for a low-ish production variant (just under 30,000 units), why retain the dated reverse-slope C-pillar? Surely a conventional pillar would look more dignified as befits a Humber? But then, looking at the way the rear seat is set back relative to the door opening, maybe having a more conventional C-pillar would compromise rear seat access to an unacceptable degree (for a Humber)? Good rear seat room though.
And I’m amazed how great the shine is on so many of these Tokyo classics. Must have great polish over there, and no road dust!
As Tatra said, it’s a tarted-up Super Minx, and it looks it. I remember being shocked when the Super Minx was launched, because it completely lacked the sense of style that the Audax cars had, even after too many face-lifts. At least the Mk1 Sceptre had the proper quad light front-end – the Mk2 has the strange Super Minx treatment of putting sidelights where the headlights belong.
That roof-line looks the same as the pre-facelift Super Minx to me, except for the raised windscreen header – I don’t remember the Sceptre looking any less ill-proportioned than its’ donor.
On the Sceptre the roof is 1¼ inches lower and the rear wing pressings are different with those small winglets extending back from the rear windows. As noted, the front screen is taller looking, extending into the roofline. The recess round the rear lights is also different, creating a larger, almost triangular shape, more obvious when in two-tone colour schemes.
The roofline difference is similar in concept to that between the standard Rover P5 saloon and the P5 coupe version, but less effective.
I’m writing a counterfactual and interested in the table.
Can you tell me which website these data are obtained from?
Even in NZ where Rootes cars survive in fairly large numbers the Humber Sceptre is rare I do recall seeing several in OZ though years ago, this is the model to have and the Sceptre had the same engine as the Vogue with twin choke Solex carb and twin outlet cast headers alloy cylinder head atop the new 5 main block you got those standard where it was all optional on the Superminx, front discs were standard across the range boosters were optional on the basic cars
Quite a find its amazing what is tucked away in Japan and what they bought years ago
I love the lower roofline and more bulbous windscreen on these. Not sure if we actually got these new in NZ as Rootes pushed the Humber 90, which was basically a Humberfied Super Minx in body. We also got the odd Humber Vogue, which was Rootes Australia’s Humberfied Singer. I find it amusing that some adverts for the Sceptre make it look rather sleeker than the reality, but either way it’s still my favourite derivative of the Super Minx.
The sad Arrow based Sceptre was not intended to be the end of the road for Humber. Roy Axe started work on a V6 Humber which was designed to be a ‘bigger’ Avenger. Unfortunately what came out after the dead hand of Chrysler intervened was the even sadder Chrysler 180, a car nobody asked for or wanted. Had it even been sold as a Humber, it’s fate would have been less ignominious. Chrysler meant nothing in the UK.