The Nippy was one of the bus and coach models of Thornycroft, the English manufacturer that built coaches, buses and trucks from 1896 until 1977. It belongs to the descriptive names the company used for its vehicles from 1931.
Thornycroft Nippy at a glance
| Maker | Thornycroft, Basingstoke |
|---|---|
| Type | bus and coach |
| Range | Thornycroft passenger vehicles |
| Name | descriptive model name, scheme in use from 1931 |
| Sister models | Lightning, Patrician, Daring, Cygnet |
| Lorry namesake | Sturdy, a 5/6-ton lorry |
The Nippy is mentioned only in the list of Thornycroft bus and coach models on the English Wikipedia article about the manufacturer; no separate article or photograph of the model is available, so this page is short and based on that one source.
History of the Thornycroft Nippy
Names instead of numbers
Thornycroft started with steam vans in 1896, built its first petrol vehicle in 1902 and moved fully to internal combustion power in 1907. From 1931 the company used descriptive names for its vehicle range, and the Nippy appears among the passenger models of that scheme.
The bus and coach range
In the Thornycroft lists the Nippy stands with the Type J, Beautyride, Boudicea, Cygnet single-decker, Daring double-decker, Lightning and Patrician. The company built passenger bodies and chassis at Basingstoke alongside its lorries, and its trolleybus range came later, with the MS1 of 1931 and the S7A of 1959.
A company that outlived its models
Thornycroft was taken over on 1 March 1961 by AEC’s parent Associated Commercial Vehicles, and production was limited to the Antars, Big Bens and Nubians; after Leyland took over ACV in 1962, vehicle production at Basingstoke ended in 1969. The Nippy name did not continue, but the works kept making gearboxes until it was sold to Eaton Corporation in 1972.
Design and features
- Passenger model: listed in the bus and coach range rather than among the lorries.
- Descriptive name: introduced in the 1931 scheme, when Thornycroft named its vehicles instead of numbering them.
- One of a set: a companion to the Lightning and Patrician in the passenger list.
- Basingstoke product: built at the works that also made the company’s lorries and fire chassis.
Thornycroft Nippy versions
- Nippy: the passenger model named in the Thornycroft list.
- Lightning: another passenger name of the same range.
- Patrician: a bus and coach name listed with the Nippy.
- Daring: the double-deck model of the range.
The passenger range shared its Basingstoke works with the lorry side, where the Thornycroft Sturdy and the Thornycroft Nubian were built. More vehicles are in the Thornycroft collection.
Sources
- Thornycroft, English Wikipedia: model list, naming scheme, company history
