Austin Cambridge saloon.
Among several pictures that he sent in, Alan included this cracking old photo, showing his parents with their shiny (new?) Austin Cambridge - just look at UFN 495's paintwork shine!
Back to Car Photographs Page 3.
The Cambridge and other BMC saloons
The Cambridge shown was the last of several BMC/Austin cars that carried this badge at one time, the late 50s and 60s Cambridges as seen here were styled by Pinifarina, their first attempt for BMC being the Mk1 A40 Farina of 1958. The styling is very similar to that of the Peugeot 404, again a Farina design. In fact BMC, by this time very keen on badge-engineering and the economies of scale that it brought, took the basic 3 box, 4 door saloon design, and evolved them into a number of different marques, which by this time were all part of the British Motor Corporation. As well as the Austin Cambridge, you could now buy a similarly shaped Morris Oxford, Wolseley 15/60 (later 16/60), Riley 4/68 (later 4/72), and the MG Magnette. The Wolseley 6/110, Vanden Plas 3 litre and 4R also borrowed heavily from the original design. Marque loyalty was still a big deal in the 50s and 60s, hence the profusion of similar looking saloons in BMC dealerships - lifelong enthusiasts of the Morris brand for instance would rather lose a vital limb than be seen climbing aboard a contemporary Austin, despite Austins being identical under the skin.
Cambridges, and other Farinas, are disappearing from the roads all the time - rust has seen most of them off, a small number have been preserved, and a significant number seen off in the delicate hands of the banger racing set. We're told that many were bangered because they were beyond economical restoration, however I'd rather have seen them consigned to a quiet corner of the scrapyard, and at least be available to people needing bits. Ah well.
The only experience I have of the big Farina is via a Wolseley 16/60 that I had a few years back, bought from a work colleague. It needed some welding, so I deposited at the local garage after I cut the sills off, and let them get on with it. We ran this low mileage car for a few months, but er indoors didn't much like the boxy styling and it soon went to a new home. Although no road burner, I liked it a lot and its comfy leather seats were a nice place to be. The Wolseley was the plush Farina in the BMC range, the Oxford and Cambridge being aimed at the cost-conscious family motorist, and were less oppulently furnished. Sporting motorists were encouraged to drive home the Riley or MG Magnette version.
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