Austin A35
Encyclopedia
The A35 was a small (compact
Compact car
A compact car , or small family car , is a classification of cars which are larger than a supermini but smaller than or equal to a mid-size car...
) car sold by the British Motor Corporation
British Motor Corporation
The British Motor Corporation, or commonly known as BMC was a vehicle manufacturer from United Kingdom, formed by the merger of the Austin Motor Company and the Nuffield Organisation in 1952...
under the Austin marque in the 1950s.
Design
Introduced in 1956, it replaced the highly successful Austin A30Austin A30
The A30 was a compact car produced by Austin Motor Company in the 1950s. Introduced in 1951 as the "New Austin Seven", it was Austin's answer to the Morris Minor...
. The name reflected the larger and more powerful 34 hp (25 kW) A-Series
BMC A-Series engine
Austin Motor Company's small straight-4 automobile engine, the A-Series, is one of the most common in the world. Launched in 1951 with the Austin A30, production lasted until 2000 in the Mini. It used a cast-iron block and cylinder head, and a steel crankshaft with 3 main bearings...
straight-4
Straight-4
The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
engine, enabling a slightly higher top speed and better acceleration.
The A35 was very similar in appearance to the A30, except for a larger rear window aperture and a painted front grille, with chrome horse-shoe surround, instead of the chrome grille featured on the A30. Both had 13 in (330 mm) wheels. The semaphore turn-signal indicators were replaced with present-day front- and rear-mounted flashing lights. A slightly easier to operate remote-control gear-change was provided. Much of the improved performance was a result of different gearbox ratios. The A30 had the first three ratios close together then a big gap to top (4th gear). The A35 ratios were better spaced and gave a max speed in third of 60 mi/h against about 45 mi/h for the A30.
Like the A30, the A35 was offered as a 2- or 4-door saloon or 2-door "Countryman" estate
Station wagon
A station wagon is a body style variant of a sedan/saloon with its roof extended rearward over a shared passenger/cargo volume with access at the back via a third or fifth door , instead of a trunk lid...
and also as a van
Van
A van is a kind of vehicle used for transporting goods or groups of people.In British English usage, it can be either specially designed or based on a saloon or sedan car, the latter type often including derivatives with open backs...
. The latter model continued in production through to 1968. A rare pickup
Pickup truck
A pickup truck is a light motor vehicle with an open-top rear cargo area .-Definition:...
version was also produced in 1956, with just 475 sold.
Austin A40 Farina
The Austin A40 Farina was a compact car introduced by the British Motor Corporation in 1958, replacing the earlier A40 Devon.It combines many of the virtues of a saloon and estate car in one body. There is more headroom for the rear passengers because of the angular instead of curved lines of the...
models in 1959 but the estate car version continued until 1962 and van until 1968.
The A35 was quite successfully raced in its day and can still be seen today at historic race meetings.
Performance
A two door de luxe saloon with the 948 cc engine was tested by the British MotorThe Motor (magazine)
The Motor was a British weekly car magazine founded on 28 January 1903....
magazine in 1956 and was found to have a top speed of 71.9 mph (115.7 km/h) and could accelerate from 0-60 mph (96.6 km/h) in 30.1 seconds. A fuel consumption of 41.5 mpgimp was recorded. The test car cost £554 including taxes of £185.
Film and media appearances
A model representing a 1964 version of a A35 van carrying a 1953 tax disk with the registration (HOP 2 1T), and no front "sidelights", features in the 2005 Aardman movie, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-RabbitWallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is a 2005 British clay-mation animated comedy horror film, the first feature-length Wallace and Gromit film. It was produced by DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Animations, and released by DreamWorksPictures...
. Another one was seen in A Matter of Loaf and Death
A Matter of Loaf and Death
A Matter of Loaf and Death is an animated television short created by Nick Park, and the fourth of his shorts to star his characters Wallace and Gromit...
with the registration DOH NUT5. In 2009 as part of the show put on in the exhibition "Wallace & Gromit present a World of Cracking Ideas" at The Science Museum a real A35 van mocked up to look like the model used in the film.
Notable A35 owners
- 1976 F1 World Champion, James HuntJames HuntJames Simon Wallis Hunt was a British racing driver from England who won the Formula One World Championship in . Hunt's often action packed exploits on track earned him the nickname "Hunt the Shunt." After retiring from driving, Hunt became a media commentator and businessman...
, drove an A35 van as his daily transport. - Double F1 World Champion, Graham HillGraham HillNorman Graham Hill was a British racing driver and two-time Formula One World Champion. He is the only driver to win the Triple Crown of Motorsport — the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Indianapolis 500 and Formula One World Championship.Graham Hill and his son Damon are the only father and son pair both to...
, raced an A35 saloon in the early 1960s. The car was later sold to Frank Williams, a current F1 team owner, who also raced it in the UK. - 1972 Swiss Driver Thierry Ludi drove an A35 van from Istanbul to Geneva and back without refueling.
Engines
- 1956–1962 - 948 cc A-Series I4Straight-4The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
, 34 hp (25 kW) at 4750 rpm and 50 ft·lbf (68 Nm) at 2000 rpm - 1962–1968 - 1098 cc A-Series I4Straight-4The inline-four engine or straight-four engine is an internal combustion engine with all four cylinders mounted in a straight line, or plane along the crankcase. The single bank of cylinders may be oriented in either a vertical or an inclined plane with all the pistons driving a common crankshaft....
, 55 hp (41 kW) at 5500 rpm and 61 ft·lbf (83 Nm) at 2500 rpm (Van)
External links
- Austin Memories—History of Austin and Longbridge