1913 Rover 3.5hp, 499 cc. Registration number DS 9837 (non-t...

Estimate

£10,000 - £15,000

1913 Rover 3.5hp, 499 cc. Registration number DS 9837 (non-transferable). Frame number S37508. Engine number 3870.
Sold with the Pioneer certificate and V5C.
Designed by J K Starley, the Rover safety bicycle represented a breakthrough in bicycle design at the end of the 19th Century.
In 1902 Rover introduced the Imperial motorcycle with a 2.75 hp engine, being upgraded to the 3.5hp engine in 1903. It was an advanced design that featured a well-designed side valve engine; spray carburettor, robust diamond-type frame with twin front down-tubes, and excellent quality of finish.
Up to 1905 some 1250 motorcycles were produced but then production was dropped, due to public confidence in motorcycles waning, causing a downturn in sales. Rather than jeopardise its reputation, Rover stopped motorcycle production entirely, concentrating on its bicycle business and the development of a Rover car.
In 1911 Rover once again started to build motorcycles and these new ones were a success. The new engine was 500 cc with 3.5hp. This model was very successful in different contests and in 1913 alone the Imperial Rover motorcycle had more than 100 reliability victories. At the outbreak of World War I in 1914 Rover had produced 1435 motorcycles.
This example was restored by the well-respected Peter Autherson of Hull in June 1992 and bought by Mr Hird in the August of that year. In March 2019 it was sold by these rooms in our Sledmere auction. Our vendor then obtained a Pioneer Certificate dating it as 1913 and has completed both the Pioneer and Banbury runs on it.
Now for sale due to a bad shoulder it is sold with the Pioneer certificate and V5C.