14-04-2022, 05:01 PM
There are many 'good' pre-War cars that have survived in penny numbers; I think there are three reasons why the Seven has bucked the trend and survived in the numbers it has:
It was small enough to be put in the back of the shed/garage/barn/field when it became outdated/unwanted/broken-down.
It was made of excellent materials which meant it was able to continue to function when most other cars curled up and died (a friend used a Frazer Nash as daily transport in the 1960s. When he decided to rebuild it he purchased a Ruby to tide him over - it gave such good service that when the 'Nash was back on the road he decided to 'refresh' the Ruby. He claimed there were something like eighteen faults, any one of which would have stopped the 'Nash dead... but the Ruby was still going without complaint).
And probably most significant, the 750 Motor Club adopting the Seven as the basis for their economy formula ensured a continuing supply of consumable components when items for other cars just dried up.
I have run both a mid-20s Austin Twelve and a late-20s Morris Cowley, and I can confirm the design and build quality and specification of the Austin was far superior. Apart from the fitment of a dynostarter, I cannot think of one aspect of the Morris that I preferred over the Austin.
It was small enough to be put in the back of the shed/garage/barn/field when it became outdated/unwanted/broken-down.
It was made of excellent materials which meant it was able to continue to function when most other cars curled up and died (a friend used a Frazer Nash as daily transport in the 1960s. When he decided to rebuild it he purchased a Ruby to tide him over - it gave such good service that when the 'Nash was back on the road he decided to 'refresh' the Ruby. He claimed there were something like eighteen faults, any one of which would have stopped the 'Nash dead... but the Ruby was still going without complaint).
And probably most significant, the 750 Motor Club adopting the Seven as the basis for their economy formula ensured a continuing supply of consumable components when items for other cars just dried up.
I have run both a mid-20s Austin Twelve and a late-20s Morris Cowley, and I can confirm the design and build quality and specification of the Austin was far superior. Apart from the fitment of a dynostarter, I cannot think of one aspect of the Morris that I preferred over the Austin.