Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

Wooster · Joined: 23 Dec 2013 Posts: 43

Hi All
I fancy a change. Currently I own a 1939 Rover 14 6-light saloon. But I fancy a tourer of some kind. I have a budget of £30k. It must be a four seater. It must be pre-war. It must be British. I don't want anything that has been modified. And I don't want anything that has been over restored. I definitely don't want a new leather interior. Any ideas?
Cheers
Rich

mikeC · Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2017 10:52 pm Post subject:

Hmmm! I think you may find your budget is a bit in the middle of no-man's land.

You might find an Alvis 12/60 or Wolseley Hornet Special within budget, or you will get plenty of change buying something like an Austin 12/4 Clifton or 4-seater Singer Nine Sports; but generally if you hope to have something the size of the Rover 14 then your budget may not be enough ...

Family-sized tourers from the 1930s were/are pretty rare, and likely to be from the better quality manufacturers like Talbot, Alvis, Lagonda; go a bit smaller and you might find an Austin Ten or one of the mid-sized Morris offerings.

Go pre-1930 and you will find 10 - 12hp tourers from the likes of Singer, Clyno, Humber, Rover which will be well within budget, but you may be disappointed in performance!
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in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

Rootes75 · Posted: Sat Jan 14, 2017 10:20 am Post subject:

I agree, £30k budget will get you plenty of change from an Austin/Morris/Hillman/Vauxhall type small prewar tourer.
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

Rick · Site Admin Joined: 27 Apr 2005 Posts: 22780 Location: UK

This Alvis looks to be in budget

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C657153

Or a vintage Vauxhall perhaps?
Slightly over budget but I'm sure there'd be a deal to be done:

http://www.carandclassic.co.uk/car/C766991

RJ
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Ray White · Joined: 02 Dec 2014 Posts: 7081 Location: Derby

The Vauxhall you spotted is a real beauty, Rick.

If it is as good as it seems, it should make someone very happy.

Rick · Site Admin Joined: 27 Apr 2005 Posts: 22780 Location: UK

D4B · Joined: 28 Dec 2010 Posts: 2083 Location: Hampshire UK

30k.....

Just think of the vintage motorcycle(s) or tractors you could buy Idea

mikeC · Posted: Sun Jan 15, 2017 2:21 pm Post subject:

Ray White · Joined: 02 Dec 2014 Posts: 7081 Location: Derby

badhuis · Joined: 20 Aug 2008 Posts: 1467 Location: Netherlands

Value of these old cars is hard to understand. For half the price of that Vauxhall (without hood) you could have the Armstrong Siddeley (for sale at the same seller). Same vintage, also a 14 hp and also a Tourer. Why the difference?
As an amateur I would have thought the AS would be worth more, as there are probably less built and I would guess they were in a higher price bracket when new?
On the other hand that does not say a ting about the value now, look at the A7 Chummys which are for sale at high prices due to popularity.
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a car stops being fun when it becomes an investment

Ashley · Joined: 02 Jan 2008 Posts: 1426 Location: Near Stroud, Glos

It's a pity two seats aren't enough because this looks interesting.

http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=232203488950&globalID=EBAY-GB

mikeC · Posted: Sun Jan 15, 2017 5:44 pm Post subject:

That Morgan looks very nice.

As for the Vauxhall and Armstrong Siddeley prices, the Vauxhall benefits from the halo effect from the 30/98 which is many people's ideal of a Vintage tourer, whereas the A-S suffers from the perceived image of a drab and dull carriage. I suspect they are probably comparable in the flesh, so yes the A-S looks like a bargain! Sometimes rarity does not go hand in hand with price, because it puts many people off.
_________________
in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

alastairq · Joined: 14 Oct 2016 Posts: 2117 Location: East Yorkshire

Wooster · Joined: 23 Dec 2013 Posts: 43

Thank all. The Vauxhall and the Alvis are nice but both are a bit older than I was thinking of. I'd prefer something from the mid-30s. The Morgan is pretty, but too small. I'm in no hurry and I'm enjoying looking. Something will turn up eventually.

Ray White · Joined: 02 Dec 2014 Posts: 7081 Location: Derby

I think the problem you will have is that the open touring car was becoming quickly unfashionable after the vintage period. The advent of mass produced closed cars at affordable prices gave the public a hitherto level of comfort that relegated the soft top to small sports cars for which there was still a healthy market.

While car manufacturers may well have offered tourers throughout the 1930's, the relatively few survivors now command high prices.