Lot Ended
Description
A wonderful old Morris with a known history from new; sympathetically
restored and repainted about 30 years ago and carefully used since; bags of
character and just how we like them!
The 10hp
bracket took a large slice of the UK market in the 1930s with Austin, Morris,
Ford, Vauxhall and Hillman all selling similar products head-to-head. Morris
introduced their medium sized 10/4 in 1933 and it proved a winning formula with
a conventional ladder chassis, excellent Lockheed hydraulic brakes, 27bhp
side-valve 1,292cc 4-cylinder engine and 4-speed gearbox. Well-made and
reliable, some 49,200 examples were sold before it was replaced by the Series II
version in 1935.
This wonderful 10/4 was
sold new in June 1933 by Frank Whitworth Ltd of Birmingham to first owner George
Williams of Handsworth, the original purchase invoice showing that it cost the
princely sum of £169 10s. Correspondence on file states that Mr Williams kept
the car until his death, leaving it in his will to the church. An old invoice
shows that by 1973 it was owned by a Rev FA Coley of Stoke Bliss, Tenbury Wells.
A letter from Austin Morris agent John Brown
of Caerphilly dated April 1987 states that they acquired the car in 1978 at
which point it had still only covered 10,000 miles with documentary evidence to
warrant this figure. It was then drained of water and spent the next 10 years on
static display in their showroom.
A letter
from the next owner in Ryall, Worcs, who owned the car from 1987 – 1998, states
that he had the bodywork restored and repainted by Tom Brown & Son, the
interior refurbished by a gentleman in Cheltenham and a new wiring loom made by
ex-Lucas Racing Team engineer Jon Bastick. A few photos show this work in
progress. It has had another six owners since, all detailed in a DVLA print-out
on file.
16 old MOTs from 1987 – 2017 imply
that the car was on the road for much of this time, although the odometer seems
to have got stuck on 36,687 miles from 2009 – 2014 so the true mileage is
unknown, the clock currently showing 45,955 miles.
A good few invoices from 2013 – 2022 show regular upkeep during
this period, including a rebuilt starter motor and dynamo, carburettor overhaul
plus routine service items. A battery cut-off switch has also been fitted by the
starter button between the front seats. The history file is large and
interesting and includes some old driving licences and insurance documents from
the 1930s, an original owner’s handbook and lubrication chart, a maintenance
manual plus much else besides.
As you can see
in the photos, this charming old Morris looks wonderful with bags of character
and has been starting promptly and running sweetly as we have moved it around on
site, with good 40psi oil pressure. We love it and we are sure that the next
owner will too...
For more information
contact James on 07970 309907 or email [email protected]