Description
The Wolseley 1100 is one of the most recognisable products of the British Motor Corporation’s mid-1960s range, combining refined styling, compact proportions and an emphasis on comfort that set it apart from its contemporaries. Introduced as the more luxurious sibling to the Austin and Morris 1100, it was aimed at buyers who valued craftsmanship, dignity and quiet sophistication in a compact saloon.
This particular Wolseley 1100, finished in its elegant Glen Green coachwork, was built on 2 February 1965 and dispatched on 8 November the same year to Eustace Watkins Ltd, a BMC dealer in London. It was first registered on 6 January 1967 and has had just four previous owners, all of whom have played a part in creating one of the most charming and well-documented examples we have encountered.
The story begins with its first owner, Ms Minnie Saunders, who was 69 years old when she took delivery. Minnie cherished the car for an extraordinary 16 years, covering only 25, 000 miles during her ownership. A wonderful period photograph of her with the sales team at Hemel Hempstead still forms part of the history file, adding a rare human touch to the car’s early life. In March 1983 the Wolseley was sold to Jack Hazard and Son, a British Leyland dealer, who chose to keep it as a showroom display car. Over the next 21 years it accumulated a mere 2, 000 miles, spending much of that time admired rather than driven. In 2004 the car passed to Mr Neil Caste of Petworth, who owned it for nine years and added just 5, 000 careful miles. By 2013, when Mrs Judith Sanson of Storrington became the next custodian, the mileage stood at only 32, 000. Mrs Sanson commissioned a lovely bundle of printed photographs in 2013, many of which show the car at events and beautifully capture its condition. The Wolseley also attended the Classic Car Summer Picnic at Amberley Museum that same year, further cementing its place as a well-known and well-loved example. The most recent private owner, Mrs Christine Brown, purchased the car in 2014 with 33, 000 miles on the clock and has enjoyed it ever since, only selling now in order to purchase another vehicle from Milestones. Throughout her ownership the car has continued to be cherished, maintained and sympathetically enjoyed, with the most recent service carried out in April 2025.
The accompanying history folder is exceptional. It includes a Heritage Certificate, a beautifully typed narrative of the car’s life that truly tells its story, period Wolseley 1100 sales brochures from several dealers, a strong MOT history with a paper trail tracing mileage back to 1976, and a fascinating tax disc collection dating from 1971. There is an extensive selection of invoices demonstrating decades of careful maintenance, along with servicing posters, leaflets and manuals. The car was featured in Practical Classics magazine in 2006, with a dedicated and affectionate article, and is supported by a large collection of magazine features covering the Wolseley 1100 model range more broadly. Spare keys are also present.
This is a genuinely beautiful Wolseley 1100, both in appearance and in provenance, presented with one of the most complete and engaging history files we have seen. It has clearly been loved throughout its life and remains a delight to behold today. Cars of this quality, with such a gentle mileage story and depth of documentation, rarely stay available for long. Viewings are strictly by appointment only.
