Introduced during late 1938, the Standard Flying Eight featured a number of à la mode styling cues such as a waterfall grille, arched roofline, beetle back and bulbous wings.

Notable as the first 8hp model on the British market to utilise independent front suspension, the newcomer was underpinned by a brand-new, box-section ladder frame chassis.

Equipped with a counterbalanced crankshaft and aluminium cylinder head, its 1021cc four-cylinder engine was allied to three-speed manual transmission.

Reputedly capable of 62mph and 33mpg, the compact saloon provided dependable but not austere transport.

Priced at £129 ex-Works, its standard specification included a sliding roof, chrome headlamps, flat spring-steel bumper blades, easy-clean wheels, etc.

A delightful example of the breed, this Flying Eight is understood to have been restored in the 1980s, apparently with a colour change from grey to black in 1989.

It has mellowed since then but still presents attractively.

Pleasingly, the...