Austin A70

Infobox Automobile
name = Austin A70
Hampshire/Hereford


manufacturer = Austin/BMC
production = 1948-1954
85,682
predecessor = Austin 16 hp
successor = A90 Westminster
layout = FR layout
engine = 2199 cc Straight-4

The A70 Hampshire and later A70 Hereford were large automobiles sold by the British Austin Motor Company from 1948 until 1954. They were conventional body-on-frame cars with similar styling to the smaller A40 Devon.

A70 Hampshire

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Hampshire


production = 1948-1950
35,261cite book |last=Robson |first=G. |title=A-Z of British Cars 1945-80|year=2006 |publisher=Herridge |location=Devon, UK |id=ISBN 0-9541063-9-3]
body_style = 4-door saloon
2-door estate
wheelbase = Auto in|96|0
length = Auto in|163|0Most Hampshires were 4-door saloons, though some estate and pickup truck versions were also built. The 2.2 L (2199 cc) straight-4 pushrod engine provided the same power output, at convert|67|bhp|abbr=on, as it had when installed in the earlier Austin 16 hp. The new car was nevertheless lighter, and probably also benefited from reduced wind resistance: published acceleration and top speed figures were correspondingly brisker. Accelerating from 0 - convert|80|km/h|mi/h|abbr=on took 14.5 seconds and the maximum speed was convert|83.3|mi/h|km/h|abbr=on.

Production of the A70 Hampshire model ended in 1950 with just over 35,000 built. In 1950 the UK price was £648 which included the heater.

A70 Hereford

Infobox Automobile generation
name = Hereford


production = 1950-1954
50,421
body_style = 4-door saloon
2-door estate
2-door convertible

wheelbase = Auto in|99|0
length = Auto in|167.5|0
width = Auto in|69.5|0
height = convert|65.5|in|mm|abbr=on
weight = The A70 Hereford replaced the Hampshire in 1950 and was wider and slightly longer with an extra convert|3|in|mm in the wheelbase. A new addition to the saloon and estate models was a 2-door convertible with coachwork by Carbodies of Coventry. A notable mechanical change was the use of hydraulic brakes. The smaller A40 Somerset had similar styling and even shared the same door panels. Sales were slow, with just over 50,000 produced when the A90 Westminster replaced it in 1954. A rare variant was the Hereford pick-up. This shared the same platform as the estate, but with fully-faired bodywork aft of the driving cab. The interior of this rather plush workhorse was fitted out the same as the saloon, with a large split-bench seat, full instrumentation set in the middle for easy completion in left or right-hand drive configuration.

A car tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1951 had a top speed of convert|80.5|mph|km/h|abbr=on and could accelerate from 0-convert|60|mph|km/h|abbr=on in 21.4 seconds. A fuel consumption of convert|21.9|mpgimp|L/100 km mpgus was recorded. The test car cost £911 including taxes. cite journal | authorlink = Unsigned |title = The Austin A70 Hereford Saloon| journal =The Motor| volume = | pages = | date = May 2 1951]

External links

* [http://www.austinmemories.com Austin Memories]

References