Austin Introduces Its Postwar Models

In 1947 the Austin Motor Company was preparing to introduce its first postwar models, dubbed the "A40" line to denote its 40 horsepower engine. To herald its new fleet, Austin sent an understated 78 rpm record to its dealers and distributors. One side was a straightforward explanation of its features from Leonard P. Lord, the head of the company; the other a report on a road test from race driver George Eyston.

These were two of the most important figures in the British motor industry. Lord had been head of Morris before becoming he chairman of Austin. Starting in 1952, he led the combined Austin-Morris operation, which took the name British Motor Corp. Eyston was best known for breaking the land-speed record three times between 1937 and 1939 in his car Thunderbolt.

Leonard Lord; George Eyston and Thunderbolt

The A40 was a small car. Its 92.5 inch wheelbase was 7.5 inches shorter than the smallest postwar American cars (the Henry J and the Nash Rambler), other than the miniature Crosley. When the car came to be sold in the US, the illustrations promoting it used artistic license to stretch it about 20 percent, giving it more the silhouette of a Packard than an Austin.

UK ad

George Eyston was complimentary about the car after his road trip through the Alps. (One hopes Austin lent him the model with the optional heater.) But you have to wonder how impressed he really was. After all, the A40 had a top speed of only 70 mph and its 0-60 mph time was a leisurely 37 seconds. And to stop the A40, you had to rely on a combination of hydraulic and mechanical brakes, which required an impressive amount of pedal force to operate. Times have changed, and there are many cars today that accelerate ten times as fast as the Austin, and many more that get better gas mileage (28 mpg). None have mechanical brakes. 

Of course, the Austin was a small car and relatively inexpensive. It cost about £500, or about US$22,000 today. Here are some of the currrent vehicles you can purchase for that amount. I suspect they all have heaters.

The reviewers were not taken with the looks of the A40, thinking it old fashioned. It is clearly based on the American cars of the late 1930s, but also is not that dissimilar from postwar American cars, although the latter are gargantuan in comparison. The A40 did well in the market, and was sold until 1952.

It's instructive to compare this introductory record for dealers to the one the Ford Motor Company issued to promote its new Edsel in 1957. That was the souvenir of a touring musical extravaganza that had been presented in five regions and later in 24 more cities. On the first side, there was a story line about "Adam and Eve," the first Edsel customers. Side 2 shared the tale of a dealer and his family, and the great if fleeting prestige they derived from being associated with Edsel.

I'm not so sure that Lord and Eyston, with their clear recitation of the features and benefits of the new model, were not more helpful and persuasive than Ford with its dancers and chorus - and no particular point of view as to why the Edsel was superior to any other car.

This 78 from the Internet Archive stash was very noisy; it took some effort to subdue the commotion. My thanks once again to Ernie for alerting me to this item.