Austin Twenty Memoirs
• • Austin Twenty Memoirs
Sir,
Austin Twelves, Austin Twelves all over the place but, rarely an Austin Twenty. Then in the September MOTOR SPORT an Austin Twenty four-cylinder is mentioned!
What a car, one of the best-lookers, one of the nicest to drive, and easiest, and the most reliable car of its day. We had one almost seven year’s, my father having bought one, I believe secondhand.
I at fourteen was personally responsible. for its maintenance for the last two years, 1925-27, and a large amount of the driving, too.
Here is something for modern car owners to wonder at. The engine was so quiet that at tickover engine speeds it was literally impossible to tell that the engine was running, and, remember, this was a big four-cylinder engine not the six. This may seem a bit steep to the modern owner but is a fact my pocket money of those days could vouch for, the odd bets being quite lucrative.
The only trouble in seven years’ motoring, admittedly not of a large yearly mileage, was with the tyres, which I personally cured by the hard work at the age of about twelve of giving the dog teeth on the hubs a good scrubbing with a wire brush.
Maximum speed was just sufficient to bend the needle slightly at the 6o-m.p.h. stop, with the aid of a slight tail wind.
What happened to the Twenties ?
Ours was sold to a local laundry, who put a van body on it and broke my heart every time I saw it pass. The last time I saw it the driver had the ” lid ” open and was staring mournfully inside. I asked what was the matter and he replied, ” Don’t know, she won’t go properly this morning.” So I went to her and looked inside at the used-to-be ph so shiny engine, tickled her under the carb-chin and said, ” Come on old girl for me.”
I pressed the starter and straightaway she purred like a Contented cat and went smoothly and powerfully out of my life for ever.
Poor old girl!
Blackpool. ” SILENT POWER.” [This correspondent also joins the vintagetypewriter fraternity, his brother having a circa 1904 Mignon, bought about 1924, in which two keys, one for spacing, the other for typing, both operated by the right hand, are used instead Of a key-board, the left hand aiming a pointer at a chart of capital letters, small letters, numerals, stops, etc.! Another of these was in use at Bexhill a few rears ago. Another reader weighs in with a circa 1920 Remington ” Home Portable,” which is, perhaps, enough about vintage writing machines —En.]