Austin 7 RK Fabric Saloon

AMENDMENT: We have been informed that the note in the history file implying that very few fabric bodied Austin Sevens were made between 1928 and 1930 is probably wrong, and that several 1,000 were made.

Launched in 1922, the Austin Seven was an unprecedented success that not only saved Austin but wiped out most other small cars and cyclecars of the early 1920s. Simply yet brilliantly engineered by Herbert Austin and his young protégé, Stanley Edge, at Austin’s Lickey Grange home, it quite literally put Britain on the road.

Occupying barely more tarmac than a motorcycle and sidecar, it still had all the comforts of a family saloon and boasted such luxuries as four-wheel drum brakes and (from 1924) an electric starter. Built around an A-frame leaf-sprung chassis and powered by a 10hp 747cc four-cylinder sidevalve engine, it had transverse-leaf spring suspension at the front and quarter-elliptics to the rear. Available in numerous different body styles, it remained in production until 1939. Tough, easy to maintain and huge fun to drive, it has long been the backbone of the vintage car movement.

This particular Seven is a rare fabric bodied RK saloon of which very few were made between 1928 and 1930 (perhaps only 114 according to a document in the history file). First registered in Plymouth in October 1929, the car remained in Devon for the next 80 years although it apparently spent the last 50 of them in storage.

About 8 years ago the car was unearthed from storage by the previous owner who began a gentle process of refurbishment, the emphasis being on getting the car into a good mechanical state. Bills on file show that in 2007 some £4,500 was spent on the following items: engine overhaul; new clutch; rewire; new radiator; rebuilt wheels; new shock absorbers; new tyres and a new battery. The chassis has also been refurbished and appears very sound and straight.

Cosmetically the car has received very little attention and the interior appears to be largely original with 80 years of wear clearly evident. Given the current enthusiasm for conservation rather than restoration, it is a moot point whether it should be retrimmed or not. Someone has clearly had a go at replacing some of the fabric bodywork at some point, but further work here will no doubt improve things significantly.

The current vendor acquired the car about two years ago and has used it only sparingly for local runs. He has fitted electronic ignition to the car and reports that it runs well. Unused for the last several months, it will doubtless benefit from some further fettling before venturing out again.

MOT’d every year since 2007, it is currently MOT’d and taxed until April 2013. It comes with an original owner’s handbook, a fair amount of literature relating to the model, an old buff log book from 1948 (when it was owned by a Cyril Marshall of Bideford), a modern V5C and some old tax discs from 1946 and 1960. Pleasingly it also retains its original and transferable number plate, DR 6007. Altogether a most rare and charming motorcar that should amply reward the sympathetic refurbishment that it now deserves.