"Welcome Waits the Austin family" 1929. Another lovely Light Car cover.

[Tony Griffiths]

Warmly dressed for October weather in an unheated Saloon.

[Steve kay]

"Lovely to see you and your family out for your Sunday lunch, sir. Now if you could take yourselves over to the back of that queue, we'll call you in when we have an empty table for six or less diners. What's that? Indeed, there is another car park for Rolls, Daimler and Lea Francis shooting brakes. They are of course all allowed in, dozens at a time. They've been out hunting and shooting, sir, quite different rules for Lord Willoughby Baskerville and his pals."

[Bob Culver]

Thanks again Tony
Another very attractive picture. Despite being about the cheapest car on the market the advert is clearly pitched at the middle class, and I suspect not just as a ploy of wishful association. In terms of weeks of a tradesman’s wage not wildly more expensive than an entry level car now, but homes were single income and few waged tradesmen in UK would have had enough discretionary income left over for a car.
And how many persons now dress like that to go out in the car...or go anywhere by any means? Here they blame cold houses for child colds, but I suspect it is largely due the way persons and especially children accustomed heating now dress.
I wonder if the basement door leads to a hoard of Austin parts?

[Tony Griffiths]

I wonder if the basement door leads to a hoard of Austin parts?

Well spotted - and almost certainly. A treasure trove of parts from the ex-works racer the owner bought as his son's first competition car. Cracked supercharger castings, fragmented crankcases, twisted conrods, sheared halfshafts, a gearbox full of mechanical marmalade - and other handy bits.

[Chris Garner]

Strange title. I would think " A welcome awaits the Austin Family " is better...or even alliterative " a warm welcome awaits... "
The rear wheel appears to be a 17" one compared with the 19" on the front!
Slip up by the advertising department in missing the acute accent off the e of " coupe ".

Chris ( pedant! )

[Tony Griffiths]

The rear wheel appears to be a 17" one compared with the 19" on the front!
Chris ( pedant! )

It does! Let's make the passengers life-sized - and the lady a little more "comfortable".
Perhaps they had a seer working in the advertising section.

[Steve kay]

"Blown the head gasket, sir? Well there's a chap called Tony in  a shed just over there who will have one. If he's  away at a sale buying French cars, another chap called David is just up the road, or Jamie who's in an old barn behind the green grocers keeps most bits. Now you Austin Sevens breaking down are easy to help, but when the wealthy motorists have trouble with overhead camshafts, or sleeve valves, that always causes trouble. Oh yes, don't worry, there is Swarfega in the gents."

[Tony Press]

Open centre wheels in 1929 - or are they an early chrome centre ?

[Tony Griffiths]

Open centre wheels in 1929 - or are they an early chrome centre ?

Just one of those unexplained oddities I suppose - and the brakes do look too small as well. Clearly, the artist cannot have been an A7 anorak.

[Ivor Hawkins]

I think Bob’s basement door is in fact the beer cellar as the building appears to be an inn. Still a wonderful image and so much room in the back of that RK!