MV Cowal crew accommodation was below the bridge and at the stern. She was fitted with electric hoists and side-ramps to allow the loading of vehicles from conventional piers and at any state of tide. The 14-ton cargo lift had space for five average cars, which were turned on two 14-foot turntables on the lift and a further one at the front of the "garage". An aft cargo hold had two 7-ton derricks for cargo handling. These were removed in 1958 and the hold plated over, to provide additional car deck area. MV "Cowal" entered service on the Gourock to Dunoon crossing
Cowal subsequent invasion by Norsemen, the Hebridean islands of Dal Riata became the Kingdom of the Isles, which following Norwegian unification became part of Norway, as "Suðreyjar" (historically anglicised as "Sodor"). The remaining parts of Dal Riata attracted the name "Argyle" (later "Argyll"), in reference to their ethnicity. In an unclear manner, the kingdom of Alba was founded elsewhere by groups originating from Argyll, and expanded to include Argyll itself. However, an 11th-century Norse military campaign led to the formal transfer of Lorn, Islay, Kintyre, Knapdale, Bute, and Arran, to "Suðreyjar". This left Alba with no part of Argyll except Cowal,