Police TC - ignition coil

[Tim Jackson]

Here are a couple of photos of my police TC bulkhead. The battery box is larger than a standard TC, and the battery/toolbox combo is positioned differently on the bulkhead. And the coil and fuel pump are mounted in different positions. I have the high tension lead exiting upwards from the coil. Is this correct? If downwards, the lead is squeezed up against the bulkhead. Any thoughts from police TC owners?
Cheers, Tim Jackson
TC0999, TC1202

[stephen stierman]

Looks nice, mount the coil upside down though to be correct.

[Steve Simmons]

Very interesting, thanks for posting the photos. I wonder, was the battery larger on the police cars to help run the added equipment? Or perhaps a second battery was used?

Is your car restored as a police car or as a standard version?

[Tim Jackson]

Stephen, Thanks. I’ve tried the coil upside down (lead downwards), which is certainly correct for a standard TC. However, due to the lower coil position on the ‘modified’ police bulkhead, the original Lucas Q12 coil doesn’t fit at all well with the lead downwards.

[Tim Jackson]

Steve - I assume the larger battery box was for extra battery capacity for police equipment. I don’t know if it was for one or two batteries. Strangely, the captive ‘hold down’ nuts at the bottom of the battery box are positioned for a standard size single battery.

I retained the modified police features of the bodywork, but not police regalia (signs, klaxon, etc). So far as I know, these items varied between police forces.
TC0999, TC1202

[stephen stierman]

One pretty TC!

[Peter deBruyn]

Hi Tim -
Stunning restoration, VERY cool car. I've always been fascinated by the TC Police cars and had read about the larger battery box and generator bulge - but until your car I'd never seen photos of these - holy cow that generator bulge is positively enormous! Big enough for two - do you know the specs on the generators used in these cars? And if they did use the standard Lucas Q12 coil, I'm sure you have it mounted correctly - is it possible they used something different, with a bracket nearer the "head" of the coil? Any responses from other Police car owners? I look forward to more photos in the next Totally T-Type II. Maybe the battery box housed some radio equipment as well, or ...?
Best Regards,
Pete in the USA
TC0252
TC2903

[Tim Jackson]

Pete - many thanks for the kind words.

I don’t have any technical information on equipment installed in TCs destined for police use. My guess is that the factory offered modifications for police use, but each force had its own requirements, with some choosing standard TCs (presumably cheaper). I do know the ‘sister’ TC to mine (TC0998), registered with Hertfordshire police on the same day, had the same large dynamo bulge, as this is mentioned in the book, ‘MGs on Patrol’. These might be unusual, who knows?

On my car, the sidescreen box had a 30mm diameter hole above left side chassis rail (matching those on the bulkhead). This was probably for additional wiring for radio gear, loudspeaker, etc. I’ve filled the hole to prevent road splash getting in.

Only one police TC owner responded, and he couldn’t detect any changes from a standard TC. You may be right that a different coil or bracket was used.

Regards,
Tim

[i.thomson]

I'll bet they had a Runbaken oil coil or something similar rather than the Q12. Keep an eye open for one under someone else's bonnet and measure it up to see how it matches up.

Ian Thomson
Notts UK

[Tim Jackson]

Ian - you might well be right, though I think oil-filled coils are usually mounted with terminals upwards. It could explain the lower mount position on the bulkhead than the standard TC. As you suggest, I’ll keep an eye out for this setup on other cars.

Thanks and regards,

Tim

[Gene Gillam]

Check with John Twist at University Motors....he has a restored police car in his showroom I believe.
http://universitymotorsltd.com/

[Tim Jackson]

Many thanks Gene. I'll follow-up on that.

Tim

[Steve Simmons]

I have an oil coil in my car. I would be happy to post a photo tonight if it would help.

[Tim Jackson]

Steve, Thanks, I'd appreciate a photo of your oil coil, offsite if you like.

[Steve Simmons]

I forgot the coil is out of the car at the moment, but here are a couple older photos I found that may help a little.

[Tim Jackson]

Steve, many thanks for posting photos of the Runbaken oil coil in your TC. As I thought, its mounted with terminals facing upwards. Do you know why this coil was fitted instead of the standard Lucas Q12 coil? Was there any police connection? Thanks again.

[Steve Simmons]

They were a pre-war performance accessory so you sometimes see them on racing cars or other sports cars where the owner was trying to boost performance.

[Tim Jackson]

I'm trying to reclaim the original registration number for TC0999 from the Driver and Vehicle Licencing Agency (DVLA) in UK
In this context, does anyone have a photo of the large bonnet bulge on another police TC?