A Morris J2 Van bodied by Caffyns.
Another photo from Les' extensive archives, this time showing a Morris J2 van that was bodied by Caffyns' body building works at Park Farm Estate in Folkestone, Kent. The van has been signwritten in the colours of Edwards (bakery) of East Street,
Tonbridge, also in Kent. A roller-shutter door has been fitted, and sliding bread trays installed.
The J2 van was first seen in 1956, and sold well until being replaced in 1967. Whereas the earlier J and JB vans had a
separate chassis, BMC moved to chassis-less construction with the J2. Despite switching to a monocoque construction,
the basic J2 platform allowed BMC to sell not only the van, but also pickup and minibus. The vehicle shown here however
would have been supplied as a chassis and cab, quite a common option with light vans, so that specialist coachwork
could be fitted by an outside coachbuilder which, in this case, turned out to be Caffyns. Perhaps the most numerous version
of the J2 nowadays are the campers, a number of which are still in use. Both Austin and Morris variations were available.
The J2 was initially powered by the familiar BMC 1.5 B Series engine, as found in many cars of the time. This would later evolve
into the 1622cc version in line with those fitted to Morris Oxfords and Austin Cambridges of the day. For people who valued
economy over pace, a diesel option was also offered. In 1967 sale of the J2 range ended, being replaced by the 250JU which
was in effect a majorly re-designed J2.
Return to Old Photographs of Cars - Page 4.
|
