2018-BCD

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1967. The brakes
also became fully
hydraulic, replacing
the semi cableoperated
rear system
that the Mark I had
inherited from the
A35. Nevertheless,
the introduction at
the end of 1962 of
the similarly sized
Morris 1100, followed
by an Austin-badged
counterpart a year
later, left the A40
looking cramped on
the inside and outclassed in terms of road
holding and ride.
A deluxe version tested by The Motor in
1958 had a top speed of 66.8 mph (107.5
km/h) and could accelerate from 0–50
mph (80 km/h) in 19.5 seconds. A fuel
consumption of 38 miles per gallon (7.4
L/100 km) was recorded. The test car cost
£689 including taxes.
Believe it or not, the
A40 Farina played a
very significant role in
British saloon car racing
over the years, starting
most notably when
Doc Shepherd secured
the British Saloon Car
Championship in 1960.
Race-prepared cars
frequently achieved
more than 70 bhp
from the A-Series
engine.
The production run ended in
November 1967 after approximately
342,000 had been built in the UK (plus
67,207 in Italy as the Innocenti A40). As
the BMC 1100/1300 range established
itself as the UK’s top seller, the newer
more space-efficient ADO16 took sales
away from the A40. In its last year, only
12,000 A40s were built. The last of the A40
The Austin Motor Company was one of
England’s earliest car manufacturers, founded by
Herbert Austin in 1905 with its factory at
Longbridge near Birimingham, and merging with
Morris Motors Ltd in 1952 to form the British
Motor Corporation. The A40 ‘Farina’ was actually
one of the last Austin-badged cars; other
Longbridge models wore differing marque badges
denoting their levels of equipment and trim.
The new “baby Austin” was in development between 1955–58 and was designed
by the Italian stylist Battista Pininfarina. It was launched on 18th September 1958
and the standard model (heater and extra trim not included!) cost £676 7s 0d. The
Mk 1 was propelled by the wonderfully compact 948 cc A-series engine (which
grew from a design originated in the late 1940s by Eric Bareham). It returned an
average of 45 mpg, did 0–60 in 35.6 seconds (!) and could reach 73 mph.
A ‘Countryman’ version of the saloon (with top-hinged rear window – arguably
one of the first “hatch-backs” in UK mass-production) was announced in
September 1959 and, two years later, the Mk 1 models were restyled into the Mk 2
which (later to have 1098cc engines) continued in production until 20th November
1967, by which time a grand total of 342,180 A40 Farinas had been built.
Today the A40 Farina Club Ltd estimates that less than six hundred of the little
cars now exist but they still represent economical classic motoring. The Club was
founded in 1979 and has almost 400 members around the world. Annual subscription
is just £17.50 and technical advice is always available, plus the Club has a thriving
spares supply service combining top-quality components with sensibly low prices,
while steadily expanding their list of remanufactured obsolete items unavailable
elsewhere.
Farina News, a 42-page A5 full-colour magazine is published quarterly, while
several friendly meetings are organised during the year. Many members attend various
car shows while others are enthusiastic race or rally participants (specially-prepared
A40s can be very, very quick!)
For further details do please contact us either by post to 36 Wood End, Banbury
OX16 9ST, e-mail us to info@A40FarinaClub.co.uk or else feel free to visit our
website at www.A40FarinaClub.co.uk or find our official club page on facebook.
thanks for your interest
production
run enjoyed a final burst of
publicity as Unit Beat ‘Panda’ cars for
Birmingham City Police. The UK based
A40 Farina Club now estimates that less
than four hundred of these unique little
cars exist world-wide (a one-tenth of one
percent survival rate). BCD
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BCD 18 www.BritishCarDay.com September 16, 2018 • British Car Day Programme
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