Austin A30 - 54

The

Austin

A30  

is  

a  

compact  

economy  

car  

launched  

at  

the

1951  

Earls  

Court  

Motor  

Show,  

London  

by  

the  

Austin  

Motor

Company  

and  

produced  

by  

the  

newly  

formed  

British  

Motor

Corporation    

from    

May    

1952    

to    

September    

1956.

Introduced   

as   

the   

"New  

Austin   

Seven",   

it   

was  

Austin's

answer to the Morris Minor.

At launch the car cost £507, undercutting the Minor by £62.

Styling

Though   Austin   had   previously   contracted   the   American   industrial   designer,   Raymond   Loewy   in the   task,   the   designs   of   Holden   'Bob'   Koto   were   discarded   and   the   car   we   know   was   eventually styled in-house by Ricardo 'Dick' Burzi.

Features

The   body   structure   was   designed   by   T.K.   Garrett,   who   had   been   an   aeronautical   engineer   before joining   Austin.   It   was   of   fully   stressed   monocoque   chassis-less   construction,   which   made   it lighter   and   stiffer   than   most   contemporary   vehicles,   the   first   Austin   to   be   made   in   this   way. Inside   there   were   individual   seats   at   the   front   and   a   bench   at   the   rear   covered   in   PVC   with   an option   of   leather   facings   on   the   seats.   Evidence   of   economy   was   seen   in   only   having   a   single windscreen   wiper,   central   combined   stop/tail/numberplate   lamp   and   a   sun   visor   in   front   of   the driver only. A passenger-side wiper and sun visor, and a heater were available as optional extras. Originally   only   offered   as   a   4-door   saloon,   2-door   variants   were   introduced   in   late   1953,   and   in 1954   a   van   and   van-based   "countryman"   estate   were   made   available.   Despite   having   a   smaller loading   capacity   than   the   equivalent   BMC   O-type   Minor   based   vans   (60   cu   ft   /   1.70   m3   as opposed   to   76   cu   ft   /   2.15   m3)   the   Austin   van   offered   the   same   payload.   Being   slightly   lighter and stiffer, it was favoured by businessmen, and saw long service for many. The A30 was replaced by the Austin A35 in 1956 with 223,264 examples having been built. The   A30   had   a   smaller   rear   window   than   the   A35   and   trafficators   instead   of   modern   indicators, which   popped   out   from   the   B   pillar   when   operated   by   a   knob   mounted   on   the   centre   of   the dashboard. The   car,   along   with   the   larger   engined   (and   hence   faster)   A35,   was   quite   successful   in   1950s saloon car racing, and some still appear in historic events.

Performance

The   car's   newly   designed   A-Series   straight-4   engine   was   state   of   the   art   for   the   time   and returned   an   average   fuel   consumption   of   42   mpg   /   under   7L/100   km.   With   spirited   driving   the A30   was   able   to   attain   a   top   speed   of   70   mph   (110   km/h)   (factory   quoted).   In   their   road   test The Motor   magazine   achieved   a   top   speed   of   67.2   mph   (108.1   km/h)   and   a   0–60   mph   time   of   42.3 seconds.   Braking   was   effected   by   a   hybrid   system,   with   Lockheed   fully   hydraulic   drum   brakes   at the   front   and   a   body   mounted   single   cylinder   operating   rods   to   the   wheels   at   the   rear,   which despite   being   heavily   criticised   as   being   archaic   and   old-fashioned,   were   reported   as   being   quite acceptable. The   rod   system   provided   good   handbrake   efficiency   and   was   applied   by   a   lever   in   an unorthodox   position   to   the   right   of   the   drivers   seat   (Right   hand   drive   vehicles).   Bumps   were handled   by   independent   coil   springs   at   the   front   end   and   beam   axle/semi-elliptic   leaf   springs   at the back. A   car   tested   by   The   Motor   magazine   in   1952   had   a   top   speed   of   62   mph   (100   km/h)   and   could accelerate   from   0–50   mph   (80   km/h)   in   29   seconds.   A   fuel   consumption   of   38.8   miles   per imperial   gallon   (7.28   L/100   km;   32.3   mpg-US)   was   recorded.   The   test   car   cost   £553   including taxes. The   optional   radio   was   an   extra   £43   and   the   heater   £9.   Performance   data   need   to   be   seen in   the   context   of   fuel   availability.   Early   in   the   Second   World   War   "branded   fuel"   disappeared from   sale   in   the   UK,   and   the   nationally   available   fuel   available   at   the   beginning   of   1952   had   an octane   rating   of   just   70,   which   enforced   relatively   low   compression   ratios:   this   reduced   the performance   available   from   all   cars,   especially   small   ones.   In   1952   branded   fuels   returned   to the    forecourts,    available    octane    ratings    began    to    increase,    and    compression    ratios    were progressively   improved   along   with   the   performance   figures   of   cars   such   as   the Austin A30   and   its A35 successor.

Australian production

The A30   was   produced   in Australia   by   the Austin   Motor   Company   (Australia)   Pty   Ltd   from   1952   to 1954 and by its successor, the British Motor Corporation (Australia) Pty Ltd from 1954 to 1956.

1954

Engine 803 cc 4 cylinders Power 30 HP