Description
PA 0837 Airline Coupe. (Engine No 1091 AP, Carbodies Body No 2916 ). One of only about 15 known survivors of the 47 MG Airline coupes built, of which only two are known to be roadworthy in the UK.
An all matching numbers car, possibly the most original surviving roadworthy Airline coupe. It was sympathetically restored, over some 35 years by previous father and son owners, Ronald and Richard Cass. It passed an MOT in 2011, although the car lacked some original equipment. It had little use until I bought it from the son in 2019.
Good history file including the ?Continuation? buff log book issued by Surrey CC in 1947 (stamped ?Old Book Retained?), photos of the restoration, invoices, original manual and parts list, articles about the car in magazines, etc. Also copies of factory file and Heritage Certificate from MGCC.
Supplied to its first owner, Alfred Lansdell Mizen, on 14 December 1934 by T Hawkins & Sons (Epsom) Ltd, the dealer plate is still on the dashboard. It was fitted with the ?Deluxe Extra Equipment? package, - bonnet strap, headlamp stone-guards, quick-release filler caps on radiator and petrol tank, radiator and oil thermometers (with glove pockets blanked for these instruments), and 8-day clock mounted on a bracket underneath facia board. The total price for the car was £299/ 2/ 6.
The Registration Book issued by Surrey County Council in January 1947, lists three owners of the car up to Ronald Cass, who bought the car in 1962 as a ?runner but only just? for a ?nominal sum?! He used it as a runabout until the mid-1970s, when he started a restoration that was to take 35 years! In 1992, the partly restored car passed to his son Richard, who completed the restoration in 2011. The ownership of the car between 1934 and the Continuation Book being issued is uncertain.
As much of the original car as possible was retained during the restoration with parts repaired rather than replaced. This included the Ash frame, where only those parts beyond repair were renewed. Old (dead) woodworm holes remain in the nearside door frame and the original Carbodies body number can still be seen (with difficulty!) on the cross member below the windscreen.
I bought the car from Richard in August 2019, roadworthy, but little used since 2011. I recommissioned it over the winter of 2019-20, and sourced and fitted the missing original items, adding a few things to improve safety in modern traffic, including LED lights, discreet flashing indicators in the side lights, high level brake light (easily removeable), driver?s sun visor and reproduction period exterior mirrors.
Apart from these safety additions, the car is now close to its original specification, including colour.
The car has covered about 3000 miles in my ownership, including several round trips of over 100 miles to Brooklands and Greenacres, where it has twice won the Pride of Ownership award for 4 cylinder cars. I always put my classic cars through an annual MOT test, even though they are exempt in the UK. The current certificate runs until May 2024.
I have plenty of additional photographs that I will send on request. There is a video on YouTube featuring the car at Brooklands - - details above .
I am only selling the car to fund the purchase of another MG, the price of which might be negotiable. I will consider any serious offer for the Airline.
Initial enquiries by email please
