1952 AUSTIN A40
DIPSTICK MALCOLM MCNABB
Never ever did I think to myself "Mmm, yes, one day I must buy myself an Austin A40." To the contrary - as a youth, whenever I'd see an Austin A40 drive past I would think to myself "I really should throw a stone at that thing so it will get off the road."
I’m talking about the 1950’s roly-poly shape A40. They seemed to be a dime-a-dozen on the roads of Perth during the 1960s.
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Ah yes, Perth in the 1960s - when the roads brimmed with cars of style. I was growing into my teen years and starting to take a discerning interest in what a good car looked like. And my sophisticated taste (lol) drew an opinion that although the A40 looked okay up front, it’s rear end made it look like a tired old English hound dog that had been given a hefty kick up the bum, but still refused to move. Yep, if ever there was an old man’s car, it was surely a 1952 Austin A40 Devon.
1950s Austin A40 Devon . . . . seen from a stone's throw
But hey, that was then. This is now - 2020, and Malcolm fast approaches old man status. So I have gone out and bought myself a 1952 Austin A40. But one that hasn’t been kicked up the bum. I’ve acquired an Austin A40 Countryman.
It’s basically a van with factory-fitted side windows, rear seat, full head-lining/cabin-trimming, and carpet… an Oz station wagon. Only a fraction of these reached our shores compared to the A40 sedan, which is probably why I’d never seen one before.
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The box-body style reminds me very much of a Morris Minor van, but a little grown up. Just like me.
