BSA Ten (1921–1926) History

After World War I, BSA Cycles Ltd re-entered the car market in 1921 with the Ten — a 10 hp light car powered by a Hotchkiss-built 1,080 cc air-cooled V-twin with overhead valves, aluminium crankcase, and coil ignition, developing around 18 bhp. A refined underslung-worm rear axle on Lanchester patents made it notably quiet for its era, helping sales through to 1924.

BSA broadened the range from 1922 onward with four-cylinder 11 hp and 14 hp models and six-cylinder 12 hp and 16 hp variants, catering to a wider slice of the light-car market. The BSA car name was dropped after 1926 as the company refocused on motorcycles and its Daimler holdings, before returning three years later with a completely different front-wheel-drive product.