- Austin A35
The A35 was a small (compact) car sold by the
British Motor Corporation under the Austin marque in the 1950s.__TOC__Introduced in 1956, it replaced the highly-successful
Austin A30 . The name reflected the larger and more-powerful 34 hp (25 kW) A-Seriesstraight-4 engine, enabling a slightly higher top speed and better acceleration.The A35 was very similar in appearance to the A30, except for a larger rear window aperture and a painted front grille, with chrome horse-shoe surround, instead of the chrome grille featured on the A30. Both had Auto in|13|0 wheels. The semaphore turn-signal indicators were replaced with present-day front- and rear-mounted flashing lights. A slightly easier to operate remote-control gear-change was provided. Much of the improved performance was a result of different gearbox ratios. The A30 had the first three ratios close together then a big gap to top (4th gear). The A35 ratios were better spaced and gave a max speed in third of convert|60|mi/h|km/h|0|abbr=on against about convert|45|mi/h|km/h|0|abbr=on for the A30.
Like the A30, the A35 was offered as a 2- or 4-door saloon or 2-door "Countryman" estate and also as a
van . The latter model continued in production through to 1968. A rare pickup version was also produced in 1956, with just 475 sold.The A35 passenger cars were replaced by the new body shape A40 Farina models in 1959 but the estate car version continued until 1962 and van until 1968.
The A35 was quite successfully raced in its day and can still be seen today at historic race meetings.
Performance
A two door de luxe saloon with the 948 cc engine was tested by the British Motor magazine in 1956 and was found to have a top speed of convert|71.9|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 30.1 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|41.5|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £554 including taxes of £185. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Austin A35 de luxe two-door saloon| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = November 21 1956]
Film and media appearances
A 1964 model A35 van carrying a 1953 tax disk with a 1978 registration (HOP 2 1T), and no front "sidelights", features in the 2005
Aardman movie, .Notable A35 Owners
1976 F1 World Champion, James Hunt, drove an A35 van as his daily transport.
Double F1 World Champion, Graham Hill, raced an A35 saloon in the early 1960s. The car was later sold to Frank Williams, a current F1 team owner, who also raced it in the UK.
Production
*Saloons: 130,000
*Others: 151,000.Engines
* 1956–1962 - 948 cc "A-Series" I4, 34 hp (25 kW) at 4750 rpm and 50 ft·lbf (68 Nm) at 2000 rpm
* 1962–1968 - 1098 cc "A-Series" I4, 55 hp (41 kW) at 5500 rpm and 61 ft·lbf (83 Nm) at 2500 rpm ("Van")References
External links
* [http://www.austinmemories.com Austin Memories]
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