• Only 2 former keepers

• Classic & Sports car featured

• Older restoration still in great shape

First unveiled to the public at the London Motor Show in 1949, the Austin A40 Sports was designed as a ‘sport touring’ version of the venerable Austin A40. Featuring a body-on-frame construction, all-aluminium shell, folding soft top and the iconic ‘flying A’ bonnet ornament, the A40 Sports was produced in collaboration with fellow British manufacturer Jensen Motors.

In total, only just over 4,000 cars were built during the three years of production between 1950 and 1953. Jensen produced the body shell after a request from Austin to produce a car that ‘looked like the Interceptor, but could use Austin A40 running gear.’

Underneath, the A40 Devon running gear remained virtually unchanged, save for the centre section of the chassis receiving reinforcement through additional box-sections to counter the removal of the roof, whilst the 1.2-litre engine gained twin SU carburettors, with a total power output of 46bhp.

Two series of the A40 Sports were produced. The initial GD2 series of cars were built between November 1950 and August 1951, and featured a conventional floor-mounted shifter and identical dashboard to the A40 Devon. The later GD3 cars featured a re-designed dashboard, fully-hydraulic brakes, and - most notably - a steering column-mounted gear changer.

Perhaps the A40 Sports’ biggest claim-to-fame is that in 1951, the A40 Sports was used for a publicity stunt and world-record attempt by Leonard Lord, who bet the Austin PR department that he could drive around the world in 30 days in the car. In the end, the journey was completed in 21 days, with an average 475 land miles covered per day, and a respectable 29mpg returned throughout the trip.

This particular Almond Green-over-tan A40 Sports is part of the latter GD3 batch with the column-mounted manual transmission, and was first registered in October 1952, being sold by the Jensen Motors dealer of West Bromwich.

Interestingly, this particular A40 featured in the April 1992 issue of Classic and Sports Car, as part of a double feature with its production stablemate, the Jensen Interceptor.

Having passed through the care of two prior owners and a restoration during the late 1980’s / early 1990s, this A40 Sports came into the care of our vendor’s father in June 2017, with the intention of bringing the car ‘back up to scratch’ and enjoying it during the summer months as part of his modest, yet high-quality car collection. 

Sadly, this plan never came to fruition, as the owner sadly passed a mere few months later, with the car now being sold by his son, having been kept in a high-quality garage inside a separate ‘carcoon’ and with a battery tender hooked up throughout its time in storage.

Whilst the history that is present with the car is not the most extensive file we’ve ever seen, it is certainly interesting.

The V5 registered keeper document is present showing 2 former owners, the requisite British Motor Industry Heritage Certificate is present, as is a copy of Classic & Sports Car April 1992, which the car featured in. 

There are also a few invoices, but most interesting is the condition appraisal dated from 2017, which was carried out by the vendor for the Austin Counties Car Club. This document corresponds with the data and history known about the car, with the late owner showing the car as being in ‘show’ condition, along with detailing his plans for the future.

The heritage certificate also shows that this example was fitted from the factory with 12-volt electrics, a 7-36 ratio rear axle, and a Smiths miles-per-hour speedometer. It also confirms that this Worcestershire car has come ‘full circle’ in terms of its geographic history, with the car originally being registered in the same county.

The lovely tan interior has stood up well to the test of time, and remains in impressive condition for the cars age and older restoration date, which the vendor suggested was “around 30 years ago” at the time of documenting the car in 2017.

As expected, there is wear noted to the driver’s seat in particular, which has also discoloured and cracked slightly with age. The carpets are all in good condition, however, and the rear seats are in excellent shape and appear to have been very rarely used. 

The dashboard is in good order and shows a light, yet commensurate ‘usage patina’ in particular to the controls, whilst all the dials and gauges appeared to be working as intended during our photo shoot. 

The steering wheel is perhaps the most worn part of the interior and exhibits a heavy patina and notable signs of wear, and would benefit from a thorough refurbishment by the next owner. The inner headliner of the folding soft-top is also lightly stained, though the next owner may wish to fit an entirely new fabric top for peace of mind.

The Almond Green paintwork looked absolutely fantastic in the sunshine during our photo shoot, and the contrasting tan soft top really does make this A40 Sports a real head-turner of a car. 

Generally, the bodywork is nice and straight with no sign of any impact damage that we noted, though the doors may need a little re-alignment for the best appearance. The paintwork is generally unmarked barring light wear such as stone chips and minor lines, the most notable of which we’ve showcased in the gallery below.

All four wheels are in excellent shape with only a few paint chips here-and-there, and only light pitting shown on the chrome ‘beauty dish’ centres and both bumpers, In keeping with the car’s age. 

The soft-top looks good from a distance, but, unfortunately, has a number of small rips and patches of damage to the material, so would best be replaced by the next owner to ensure the continued survival of the interior, and to keep the car waterproof. Thankfully, the mechanism of the roof itself is in excellent order and folded with ease.

Despite having been stored for an extended period of time connected to a battery tender, this A40 Sports fired into life relatively quickly, and was then happy to sit and idle during our photoshoot. As far as we could tell, the car exhibited no concerning mechanical behaviours, and the oil pressure came up as it should and the temperature remained nice and steady. 

The vendor notes that there is a light oil leak from the engine, which appears to be coming from around the rocker cover as seen in the photographs below, though this does not appear to be particularly major or anything beyond the ‘usual’ leaks expected from a classic British car of this age.

Underneath, the chassis looked to be solid and shows signs of liberal grease and preservative applications, along with the usual light ‘bloom’ of corrosion to areas such as the exhaust and leaf springs, but nothing more untoward that we noted. For your own peace of mind, an extensive gallery of underside photos can be seen below.

A further vote of confidence can also be gained from the recent MOT exam. Despite being exempt on account of its age, this A40 Sports passed its MOT test on 09 June 2021 on the first go, with the only advisory being for a light oil leak, in keeping with what both the vendor and our assessment has determined. 

Rare, famous and previously restored, this 1952 Austin A40 Sports is an unusual example of the second-generation British ‘sports touring’ car from the early post-war period, and is certain to drum up a conversation with any like-minded enthusiasts wherever it goes.

In generally great aesthetic condition and in very good mechanical health, this A40 Sports is ready to be enjoyed, yet gives plenty of scope for the next owner to fettle and improve upon the condition of the car in their own time - an excellent candidate for a light ‘winter project’ to bring it back to its best.