1947 Austin 8 SaloonReg.

no.

HXR 767Chassis no.

79796Engine no.

1A-106760Austin finally replaced the venerable Seven in 1939, with the new 8 carrying over the 900cc engine from the ‘Big Seven’ but otherwise being a new design, incorporating semi-unitary construction.

With 24bhp, the 8 was never going to set speed records, but that’s not what it was meant to do – in the finest Austin tradition, it was intended as dependable family transport, and in that role it performed superbly.

A robust car, it proved its metal in a filmed publicity exercise in 1939, where an 8 climbed all the main Lake District passes in the course of a day; many were unpaved, and in a condition that would render them impassable to any modern family car, but the 8 performed superbly.

This rugged ability attracted the armed forces during the war, and over 9000 of the special Military Tourer model were produced for the army.

Civilian production was halted in 1943, and when it resumed after the war the car was ...