1957 Ariel Square Four, 1000cc. Registration Number 637XVL, ...

Estimate

£6,500 - £7,500

1957 Ariel Square Four, 1000cc. Registration Number 637XVL, Frame Number GM1087, Engine Number TM1197.
Sold with V5C, (non transferrable number), Dating Certificate from the Ariel Owners Club, Copy of workshop manual.
The Square Four is a motorcycle produced by Ariel between 1931 and 1959, designed by Edward Turner, who devised the Square Four engine in 1928.
The first Square Four 4F was shown at the Olympia Motorcycle Show in 1930, in chain driven overhead-camshaft 500 cc form. Early Square Fours used a hand-change, four-speed Burman gearbox. In 1932, the cylinder bores were enlarged by 5 mm to give a capacity of 601 cc, specifically to accommodate owners who wanted a sidecar.
The "Cammy" engine gained a reputation for overheating the rear cylinder heads, so in 1936 the engine was completely redesigned, emerging as the OHV 995 cc model 4G, Mk I.
In 1953, the 'four pipe' 997 cc Mk II was released, with separate barrels, a re-designed cylinder head with four separate exhaust pipes from two cast-aluminium manifolds and a rocker-box combined with the inlet manifold. Square Four production, along with that of all other Ariel four-strokes, ceased in 1959.
XVL is an attractive, restored machine which started first kick, and ran well on test.
The dating certificate states that the bike was manufactured in 1957, but is fitted with an earlier (alloy head) 1952 engine.