Austin

US, 1901 – 1921

Austin Automobile Co, Grand Rapids, Mich.

The early American Austin was known as The Highway King. Despite an output of 50 or less units per year, it was something of a pioneer in a number of ways. The 1902 2-cylinder Austin models were much larger than most contemporary makes and for several years, although colours were optional, most of these big Austin cars for sale were painted either white with tan trim or light brown. By 1911, the Austin cars were equipped with electric lights and left-hand steering. Two years later, Austins featured a highly successful two-speed axle, with wheel-base up to 11ft 10in. After 1915, this Austin company attempted to market smaller and cheaper cars and also introduced a 12-cylinder model in 1917 which was produced until the firm ceased operations. About 1000 cars were made altogether.

GB, 1906 to date

(1) Austin-Motor Co Ltd, Longbridge, Birmingham, 1906 – 1970

(2) Austin-Morris Division, British Leyland Motor Corporation Ltd, Longbridge, Birmingham, 1970 to date

Herbert Austin resigned from the general managership of Wolseley in 1905, and formed his own company: Austin-Motor Co Ltd. Austin did not, however, pursue the development of the horizontal engine, but switched to more conventional designs using sv in-line units with T-heads, separately-cast cylinders and chain drive, first supplemented and then supplanted by shaft-driven cars. Most Austins of the pre-1914 period, were fours, though sixes were marketed from 1908 to 1913, the Austin 60hp being a really big machine of 9.7 litres’ capacity. There was also an Austin 1100cc single for sale in the 1909-1911 period, but this was really a Swift distinguishable only from the Coventry company’s version by its radiator. In 1909 Austin marketed a 15hp 4-cylinder town carriage with cab-over-engine layout at £475; at this time they were also making Gladiators for the British market. In 1910 a 1.6-litre 4-cylinder Austin Ten was made for export only, being introduced to the home market the following year. In 1914, when Austin became a public company, three 4-cylinder Austin models were listed, the largest, a Austin 30 of nearly 6-litres’ capacity, having electric lighting and starting.

After World War 1, Austin tried a one-model policy with a 3.6-litre Monobloc sv 4-cylinder Austin Twenty; the price had to be raised from £495 to £695 during the first year of production, which landed Austin in the hands of the official receiver, though the Austin Twenty car proved a great success and was made and for sale until 1929. Despite financial troubles, however, the Austin company came up in 1921 with their second great vintage design, the 1661cc Austin Twelve, one of the hardest-wearing machines of all time.

Enlarged to 1.9-litres in 1927, it remained in the Austin-catalogue, always with magneto ignition, right up to 1936, and survived in production as a taxicab into the 1940s. Finally, 1922 saw the Austin Seven for sale, one of the greatest of all baby cars; it gave 13bhp from 747cc, killed the cyclecar and boasted 4-wheel brakes, though these were not coupled until late 1930. The pedal worked the front ones and the lever the rear. By 1929, an Austin Seven supercharged sports version had 32bhp, still with a 2-bearing crankshaft; the 3-bearing crankshaft came out with the 1937 Austin Seven models. The Seven was extensively raced by the Austin works; among its countless successes were a third place in the 1929 TT, and a win in the 1930 B.R.D.C. 500-Mile Race at Brooklands. Its descendants were legion; the Austin Seven was made in Germany by Dixi and their successors BMW; In France by Rosengart, In Japan by Datsun and in the USA by the American Austin Co. Even after production ceased at Longbridge at the end of 1938, manufacture of the engine was taken over by Reliant and continued up to 1962.

6-cylinder Austin cars reappeared in the range in 1927 with a 3.4-litre Austin Twenty for sale, usually found with limousine bodywork, followed by a 2 ¼-litre coil-ignition Austin Sixteen for sale in 1928. A less successful 1 ½-litre Austin Six was introduced in 1931, but Austin found another winner in the 1.1-litre Austin Ten for sale in 1932, which was made until 1947. In 1934 the company offered a choice of over 50 models – the Austin Seven, the Austin Ten, a 1 ½-litre Light Austin 12/4, the old Austin Twelve and five Austin Sixes from 1496cc to 3400cc – not to mention semisports versions of some of the smaller Austin cars. Synchromesh was now standard, with the option of the American Hayes automatic gearbox on 16 and 18hp models only. In 1936 the Austin company sponsored a team of three short-stroke twin ohc 750cc supercharged Austin racing cars designed by Murray Jamieson, which had nothing in common with the ordinary Seven except for the transverse-leaf front suspension. Their engines developed 116bhp at 9000rpm and they were raced until the outbreak of World War 2.

Austin styling received a face-lift in 1937, and again in 1939 when alligator bonnets came in with the 900cc 8hp which replaced the Austin Seven, but the image remained the same – solid and well-furnished cars of great durability appealing to the more conservative type of owner. Girling mechanical brakes were used. The first sign of a more progressive attitude came in 1945, when a 2.2-litre ohv 4-cylinder Austin Sixteen came out using the chassis and body of the 1940 Austin Twelve; this proved quite as durable as the famous Austins of the 1920s, and the engine was still being used in taxis and the 4x4 Gipsy in 1967. Coil and wishbone independent front suspension appeared in 1947 on the luxurious and traditionally-styled ohv 4-litre 6-cylinder Austin Sheerline and Austin Princess, and these were followed by the 1.2-litre Austin A40 Dorset and Austin Devon saloons with overhead valves and independently sprung at the front, which did well in America and helped Austin to sell over 85.000 cars in 1928. A further bid for dollar exports came with the big 4-cylinder Austin A90 power-top convertible – successful long-distance record work at Indianapolis failed to attract many buyers, though the engine had a long run in the first Austin-Healeys.

Austin merged with Morris to form the British Motor Corporation in 1952, when there appeared their first unitary-construction car, the 803cc Austin A30. The Healey sports car came under Austin’s aegis that year, and in 1954 Austin-Healeyy started to make the little Metropolitan coupés and convertibles for Nash. In style these were Nash Airflytes in miniature, with 3-speed gearboxes. They were powered initially by the Austin A40 engine and later by the 1 ½-litre Austin A50. Production continued until 1961. From 1955 onwards all Austins save the 4-litre models had unitary construction, new models that year being the Austin Cambridge with A40 and A50 engines, and the 2.6-litre 6-cylinder Austin Westminster. The big Austin Princess saloon went over to automatic transmission in 1957, and these Vanden Plas-bodied models subsequently (in 1960) became a make in their own right, under the name of Vanden Plas Princess. In 1959 the 948cc Austin A40 appeared with Farina styling; this was later made in Italy under licence by Innocenti and pave the way to a rationalized range of 1½-litre saloons in the Farina idiom, made in Morris, MG, Wolsely, and Riley forms as well as the basic Austin Cambridge.

1960 saw a new Austin Seven, the first of Alec Issigonis’s Minis, which Morris sold as the Mini-Minor. It had a 848cc ohv 4-cylinder engine mounted transversely and driving the front wheels, the 4-speed gearbox lived in the sump, all wheels were independently sprung by rubber in torsion, and it had an unmistakable box-like silhouette. The name Mini was soon applied to all versions, Austin as well as Morris, and the car not only became a best-seller, but distinguished itself in competition as well, with numerous rally wins to its credit. Mini-Cooper versions joined the range in 1962, the hottest standard version in 1968 being the 1.275cc Cooper S with 76bhp and front disc brakes; later developments include a 4x4 Mini-Moke for off-the-road travel. Logical developments were the 4-door 1100 saloon with interlinked Hydrolastic suspension (introduced as a Morris in 1963, with an Austin version listed in 1964), and the bigger 1800 of 1965. Minis acquired Hydrolastic suspension in 1965, and all the smaller fwd cars were available with an automatic gearbox in 1967. Both the Mini and the 1100 are made for the Italian market by Innocenti.

Improvements in 1968 included all-synchromesh gearboxes for Minis and an alternative 1275cc engine for the 1100. A special ‘federalized’ version of this Austin 1300, the 2-door Austin America with automatic transmission, went on sale in the USA. At the same time the 6-cylinder A110 gave way to a new 3-litre, combining the Austin 1800’s hull design and Hydrolastic suspension with the existing engine and conventional rear-wheel drive. This one, however, coincided with the merger of B.M.C and Leyland interests in January 1968; it was slow into production, never caught on, and was discontinued in 1971. Later in the year came Mk II versions of the Austin 1800 with 86bhp engines and optional power steering, made as Morrises and Wolseley as well as Austins. An A60 replacement came in 1969; the 1½-litre Maxi in the Issigonis tradition with fwd and transverse engine. New were the 5-bearing engine with chain-driven ohc, the 5-speed all-synchromesh gearbox, and the 5-door semi-estate car body; by 1971 it had acquired a more satisfactory rod-operated gearchange and the option of a 1748cc power unit.

In 1970 rationalization led to the replacement of the MG 1300 by the Austin 1300GT, and that August the former Austin and Nuffield elements in the British Leyland empire (Austin, MG, Morris, Vanden Plas and Wolseley) were merged to form the Austin-Morris devision. Already at the 1969 Earls Court Show the Mini had been made a marque in its own right, and by early 1971 basic versions of the 1100/ 1300 theme were sold as Austins only, Morris variants being dropped. The 3-litre six’s replacement appeared in 1972. This ADO 17 was based on the C6 already announced by British Leyland’s Australian branch, and was in essence an enlarged Maxi on which the transversely-mounted ohc 2.227cc engine drove the front wheels. Basic price was £1.246. With the 1100/1300, the Maxi and the 1800 making up the 1973 range, Austin now offered only fwd cars, a far cry from the conservatism of pre-World War 2 days. Automatic and high-performance variants were also added in 1973.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; KM, MCS

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com

Lea-Francis

GB, 1904 – 1906; 1920 – 1935; 1937 – 1953; 1960

(1) Lea & Francis Ltd, Coventry, Warwickshire, 1904 – 1935

(2) Lea-Francis Cars Ltd, Coventry, Warwickshire, 1937 – 1960

Lea Francis started as bicycle manufacturers, like so many car makers, but unlike most of the rest, never went over permanently and consistently to Lea Francis cars. These Lea Francis cars appeared in fits and starts. The first appeared in 1904, in the shape of a 15hp Lea Francis car with a 3-cylinder horizontal engine, the oddest feature of which was its connecting rods over 3ft long. In the same year, however, Lea Francis stopped making their cars, and Singer the Cycle Company began building Lea Francis cars under licence and under the Singer name. R.H. Lea had in fact worked for Singer before branching out on his own. Thus began another famous car name. Lea Francis made motor cycles from 1911, and they concentrated on these until 1920. In that year two Lea Francis cars reappeared beside the motorcycles; assembled 4-cylinder touring Lea Francis cars of 11.9 and 13.9hp. Few of either were made. Then, late in 1922, the Lea Francis car company found its feet at last, with an equally conventional assembled light Lea Francis car. This Lea Francis car had a 1.074cc 4-cylinder sv engine of 8.9hp by Coventry-Simplex, replaced in the following year by a 10hp Meadows unit of 1¼ litres with overhead valves. A Lea Francis car with 7hp Bradshaw flat-twin engine came to nothing. There were 3 forward speeds and quarter-elliptic springs at both ends. The 10hp Lea Francis car was very popular, and was made until 1928. Like other Lea Francise cars to come, it was well made, dependable, and lively. The great moment came for the Lea Francis cars in the very important RAC Small Car Trials of 1924, in which the Lea Francis car made the best all-round performance. During 1925 a wider family market was sought with the 12/22hp J-type Lea Francis car. This Lea Francis car had a longer wheelbase, allowing more spacious bodies, front-wheel brakes, a 1½-litre 4EC Meadows engine to cope with the weight and a 4-speed gearbox. For the sake of comfort, semi-elliptic springs were substituted at the rear on the P-type Lea Francis car introduced for 1928, which also had a plate clutch and 4ED meadows engine.

The Lea Francis car firm’s first serious sports car was the L-type with 4ED engine, announced for 1925. The Lea Francis 12/40hp was one of the best assembled cars in Britain, and appealed more widely than the light Lea Francis cars. It was, indeed, current until the second cessation of car production in 1935. However, Lea Francis also made some more ponderous, less lively Lea Francis cars, without the same degree of success. From 1925 until 1929, the Lea Francis range duplicated some of the heavy 6-cylinder machines offered by Vulcan of Southport, with whom Lea Francis cars had been associated since 1922. The 18hp Lea Francis car was a 2¼-litre car with cantilever rear springs and overhead worm drive. This Lea Francis car was succeeded by A.O. Lord’s Type T, with its advanced but unreliable Lea Francis LFS-type, double ohc engine of 1.7-litres. There was also, in 1928, a 2-litre six Lea Francis car. These Vulcan/ Lea Francis cars ended with the demise of the Vulcan. However, an excellent Lea Francis car with a six was at last introduced for 1931: the Lea Francis Ace of Spades model, with their own 2-litre, single ohc engine. This Lea Francis car continued alongside the old 12/40hp until 1935, together with a new 18hp Lea Francis car, which was a 2¼-litre enlargement of the Lea Francis Ace of Spades. However, a really powerful Lea Francis car was also listed from 1928. This Lea Francis Hyper Sports was a quite different car, with its heavily-modified, Cozette-supercharged Meadows 1½-litre engine, low build and raked radiator. The sports-racing two-seater Lea Francis car could attain 90mph, though a coupé and a short open tourer could also be had by those who did not intend to enter competitions. The Lea Francis Hyper Sports won the 1928 Ulster Trophy race.

A new company introduced two entirely new Lea Francis cars for 1938. These Lea Francis cars were designed by Hugh Rose, who had been responsible for the Riley Nine engine and, like the Riley, had 4-cylinder power units with push-rod overhead valves operated by two high camshafts. The Lea Francis car had ceased to be an entirely assembled car. A 12hp and a 14hp Lea Francis car were available, with cubic capacities of 1½ and 1.6-litres. Both had a 4-speed synchromesh gearbox. A sports version of the 1½-litre Lea Francis car was also sold, thus maintaining the old tradition. These two ‘Leafs’ were good cars, and as they were new, up-to-date Lea Francis carmodels, they could be continued after World War 2. Most of those built in this period were Lea Francis Fourteens, which were heavier but had a bigger bore and a capacity of 1.8-litres. A tuned sports Lea Francis car of the 14hp arrived for 1948. At the end of that year, an export version of the 14hp Lea Francis car, with torsion-bar independent front suspension, was shown and this suspension was adopted for both the 14hp and for the new 18hp, with a 2½-litre engine, in 1950. The sports model of the 18hp Lea Francis car was a fine car, with 100bhp available. The Lea Francis cars for 1953 had hydraulic brakes, but that was the last year in which the Lea Francis car appeared as a competitive production car. By mid-1952, output had fallen to six Lea Francis cars a week. An expensive car of specialist appeal,  the post-war years were too hard for it. In 1960 a few prototypes of a new sports Lea Francis car, the Leaf-Lynx, were made, but it never reached production. The power unit of this Lea Francis car was a 2½-litre Ford Zephyr, there was independent front suspension and disc brakes were supplied, but the car was ill-favoured and ill received. No better luck attented the Lea Francis carfirm’s attempt to make the Nobel bubble-car.

Source: Georgano, encyclopedia of motorcar; TRN

The information is written with the greatest of care. However, if you have any suggested amendments please contact us at office@prewarcar.com