More attractive, sylvan-based advertising for the Austin Seven

[Tony Griffiths]

Another restored cover from 1927:

[Dave Mann]

The artist has left her car out of her painting

[Bob Culver]

With the blue smoke they would not be so relaxed in Oz.

Is she painting the wood or the trees?

[Tony Griffiths]

The artist has left her car out of her painting

She can't paint cars, so is leaving it to last....if at all....however, a little later, she did have a go.

[Tony Press]

Front 5" Headlamps in 1926 - very advanced !

[Tony Griffiths]

A more exciting picture - the other Austin Seven crowd had lit a BBQ.

[Parazine]

Interesting that this shows the headlamps in the forward position. Very few restored cars from the period (late '26 and early '27) have the lamps forward; most have been "retrofitted" to scuttle lamps. 

Apparently a kit was supplied by The Austin Motor Co. to mount the lamps back on the scuttle after a police force expressed concerns about the new position not showing the width of the car correctly.

I wonder what the uptake was for the Longbridge modification kit at the time or whether the cars were so adapted later in their lives.....

[Tony Griffiths]

Interesting that this shows the headlamps in the forward position. Very few restored cars from the period (late '26 and early '27) have the lamps forward; most have been "retrofitted" to scuttle lamps. 

Apparently a kit was supplied by The Austin Motor Co. to mount the lamps back on the scuttle after a police force expressed concerns about the new position not showing the width of the car correctly.

I wonder what the uptake was for the Longbridge modification kit at the time or whether the cars were so adapted later in their lives.....

Indeed - quote from The Book: "Between September 1926 and January 1927 the factory fitted headlamps next to the radiator, but due to the uncertainty about legality they went back to the scuttle mounting until 1928." It was at this time (the change to Lucas R515 headlamps) that the factory experimented with moving the headlamps forward onto the front wings. Around 2000 cars were produced in this form with R40M headlamps, over the winter of 1927/28 from car numbers A3-4572 to A3-6754 before the headlamps reverted to their former position when their legality was questioned."
Of course, some boy-racers of the time went for the 4-headlamp look.

[Bill Sheehan]

Bob - if it was in Oz the blue haze wouldn't necessarily be smoke if there were eucalyptus trees in the area.  They give off a blue haze, particularly in the mornings.  Now you know why the ranges not far from Sydney are called the Blue Mountains.  As a member of an Artist's Society for over 40 years I can't help being impressed by the quality of the covers back then.  Cheers,  Bill in Oz

[Bob Culver]

Hi Tony G

It is quite unnerving what can do with photoshop. Many years ago a house of mine had had some (countered) problems with subsidence. The Council proposed a very deep sewer alongside and ignored warnings. Being a pessimistic realist I took "before" photos including  the newspaper cover of the day. The poorly supervised work turned out a vastly greater disaster even than I imagined but the Council legal team, in accordance with the tradition of their noble profession, would concede nothing. My photos saved the day and got me a rebuilt basement. I suspect today the public spirited souls would have held out.

The notion of not showingthe width of the car has some basis. I found with my car in the 1960s I would often use the dim bulb in the city. Very few other cars then had Dim lamps in the main reflectors. Combined with the spacing pedestrians would look at the car and step out when very close. Fortunately the uniques Seven steering enables square evasive action. (Is it the elk test which Mercedes failed some years ago? The Seven can step around an object and straighten up before it has time to fall over.)

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Barbeques were for the future. A Thermette or Primuss got away, or a petrol flame thrower.