I came across these two on a recent Sunday Tokyo sojourn – one a full-fledged Brit, the other an aspiring impostor. Let’s first take a look at the distinguished UK citizen hiding under the overhang.
It appears we have here a late 60’s or early ‘70’s Vanden Plas Princess 1100/1300that while mostly intact, unfortunately looks immobile.
I have to admit, trying to identify BMC’s ADO16 models from this era has always been difficult for me – is it an Austin, a Morris, a Wolseley, a Riley, or an MG? A 1100 or a 1300? Or a Vanden Plas? Given most share the same chassis and body shell, it usually comes down to the grille.
Power came from the A-Series pushrod four cylinder – 48 hp in 1100 (1098 cc) guise and 58 with the 1300 (1275 cc). Note the radiator on the right side of the engine bay.
While mostly described as an up-sized Mini, the suspension on these models was unique and innovative – it was manufactured by Dunlop and named “Hydrolastic”. Rubber bladders were located at each wheel and filled with a solution of alcohol and water. Lines connected the bladders front to back. When a wheel deflected, it would compress the fluid to the opposite (front or back) wheel, to prevent pitching. The system was fairly reliable, but required a knowledgeable mechanic to service it.
The Vanden Plas Princess was the luxury entry of the group – and could be had with an attractive wood and leather interior.
Hopefully this one will get back on the road again. Tomorrow we’ll take a look at the Pretender in the top photo.
Related: CC MG 1100 (ADO16): BMC’s Greatest Hit by Roger Carr
I don’t know why, but with all I have read about British cars/vintage British cars, I did not know before reading this what was in the Hydrolastic system. Sure, the name implies that 1 of the ingredients MIGHT be water, but I figured that somehow (?) that water was in a gaseous state and or another gas was in there. And/or maybe there just had to be a fluid/viscous fluid of some kind that was compressable but not too compressable.
Not sure if I would want to own a car called Princess….sounds like something BARBIE would drive.
If one simply must have an ADO 16 – and apparently some must – the VDP Princess should be it. Removes entirely the Issignonis Masochist-spec interior, replacing it with a space someone might actually want to enter. Albeit the Captain Mainwaring-spec* leathers and wood cappings and picnic tables do not make it Her Maj’s Phantom VI, but at least soothe the eye. At least, too, it really was all (ineffciently) fitted by VDP. Extra sound padding also made it harder to hear the murderous scream of the transfer gears and inevitably cracked exhaust, though it made it no easier to find a gear or go anywhere fast (other than round corners) than ever it was.
This one is along way from home, and the Hydrolastic has slumped in despair at ever returning.
I wonder what the cultural fascination is for the Japanese in these tiny luxosnob cars? They did snap them up in the ’80’s boom, but this is still a great find.
*Capt Mainwaring was one of the main characters in Dad’s Army, an intermittently hilarious Brit sitcom of the late ’60’s/early ’70’s, set in WW2 with a troop of old men as the Home Guard. He is pompous, pretentious, uptight, a minor bank manager, dreadful snob and just the man for whom such an absurdist spec was installed into an economy car. “Handbuilt, you know.”
Dad’s Army is currently available on Netflix (USA)
Japan likes British cars and lifestyle in general. There also are Japanese who like American cars and lifestyle, and Brits who dress up like James Dean and Mamie Van Doren and drive Vauxhall Crestas with wide whitewalls, and caucasian Americans who love anime and put JDM parts on their Civics.
And web site proprietors who want Peugeot badges for their Dodge vans.
It’s all part of life’s rich pageant, my friend.
Ha! Those web site proprietors.
I thought Dr. Alex Moulton was reponsible for the design of the Hydrolastic suspension?
http://www.austinamericausa.com/
(Select “Letters from Dr. Alex Moulton” on the left-hand panel.)
The ADO16, sold in the U.S. first as the MG Sport Sedan and later as the Austin America, did not do well at all under American conditions. One of the primary selling points was its available fully-automatic 4-speed automatic transmission which had no peers in other small cars at the time. Unfortunately the in-sump trans would quickly self-destruct, particularly with the American tendency to ignore things like checking oil level regularly. Not to mention the rust and other British Car Syndrome ailments of the day. It was not unusual to see these cars offered up for nearly nothing when only a few years old, with no takers.
Yes, you’re correct – I should have said manufactured instead of developed by Dunlop – corrected. Jim.
The hydralastic gave a nice ride but wasnt all that reliable or robust lopsided or completely sunken 1100/1300s were once a common sight requiring the dealer to reinflate the system leaks and complete failures were part of the ADO16 experience,
Somewhere on youtube is an advertisement made by Dominion motors extolling the virtues of the then new Morris 1100 suspension showing’a’ 1100 getting air while driving across a paddock, what the fail to mention is how many cars it took to film the ad several destroyed the suspension while filming LOL, it was meant to be Citroen on the cheap it wasnt quite that good, Todays enthusiasts have worked out how to pump their cars back up again as BMC/BL dealers are extinct but some of the cars live on.
It didn’t help that the cars were very low geared, with a top-gear speed per 1000 rpm value that varied from 15 to 17.5 mph, depending on model. That means the poor little engines were spinning their guts out at 60 mph – anywhere from 3500 to 4000 rpm. Not conducive to longevity, especially on long cross-US trips.
Agree about the gearing, but they were suitable for UK roads at the time and were reliable in those conditions.
I can imagine they would only be useful as a town car in the US and useless on long haul interstate roads, but a 60s American car would have been just as unsuitable on our roads
US car sales were always minuscule in the UK, I don’t think that many found there way to Europe , did the US ever have a large export market for their cars other than Canada ?
Mexico and most countries in South America had fairly stiff tariffs for the direct importation of cars, but the US auto companies happily set up assembly/manufacturing plants there. Here’s a 1970s Brazilian ad featuring locally-built Fords. These were based on 1966 US big Fords, but with more and more local styling input as time went on.
American cars were kept out of Europe largely because of high fuel prices and the practice of taxing due to engine displacement/power. Also, the big cars were not meant for cities that were laid out in 1247.
Not “large” but American cars were regularly imported into many European countries and were surprisingly popular in places like Switzerland and France as an alternative to the European luxury brands. Then the 70s came.
Dead right about suitability to UK conditions, Lee. I don’t know if you saw the musings of Brock Yates (re-published here a few weeks back) on the late ’60’s UK car industry, but he mentioned crowded roads, essentially no motorways, and relatively low ownership thus great care of the one car. Reverse all of that for the US.
Or Oz, where about 90,000 local-made ADO16’s were sold, and within no time they were just really cheap wheels. Whilst the sheer expense of new cars meant cars were cared for here, the poor 1100 just screamed on the then-unlimited open roads, in the heat, and died early. Add in some of their known weaknesses (like the Hydrogas sinkages) and they had a dreadful name.
I suspect US car sales around the world were victims of tariffs and fuel taxes and (without meaning controversy) govt/societal spending priorities of the taxing countries. Aussies, for example, would’ve bought them in droves, but instead took up the tariff-protected local versions of the same.
I can understand why you would in a big open country like Australia
I have heard it said that the best American muscle car was Australian because they had some semblance of handling , I could go for a Falcon coupe and a big plus is the steering wheel of the right hand side
A fast US muscle car in the UK is a nightmare to drive , the width and left hand drive makes overtaking difficult if not dangerous, then you come to a corner which the car will never take only to find inadequate brakes.
Basically all you can do is accelerate hard in a US muscle car then crawl round a corner, so it feels like a one trick pony, would love to try a fast Australian Ford
Interesting – in England, these were known as the Vanden Plas Princess 1100/1300, and the Austin name was nowhere to be seen. But here’s the real oddball. Around 1964-1965, the Princess was rebadged as an MG Princess and sent to the US, complete with an MG emblem stuck to the top of the grille. According to Wikipedia, a total of 154 were sold. It appears that Americans didn’t want a tiny “luxury” car.
That’s the right name. I was tied up yesterday and missed reviewing this post in advance. The name is corrected now.
Where’s the overhead cam, and cross flow cylinder head ? At least they could offer us hemispherical combustion chambers. The little R8 Gordini had a hemi head, and it was a giant killer. 100 horsepower !
1950s engine design OHC in cheap small cars was a long way off at BMC, Datsun improved those engines with a proper 8 port head and fewer oil leaks BMC didnt bother.
The Singer Chamois offered leather and wood trim with an ohc engine. It had a wedge combustion chamber, but a proper hemi is not really that efficient anyway. If you got the Sport model it had one horsepower per cubic inch for a top speed over 90 mph.
The Gordini wasn’t exactly a luxury car.
My great aunt had one of these back in the early 70s. She was then in her mid sixties and a bit of a timid driver. I was only in the car once; she always drove in the kerb-side lane and as a result, we tailgated a Glasgow corporation bus all the way to our destination!
Though I’m quite familiar with the VDP Princess, from my childhood British car books, I think if I had seen this one in Tokyo, I would have just assumed it was one of those pseudo-British retro tribute cars the Japanese churned our in small numbers in the nineties. In this case, a particularly good clone. I’m more curious about the gray van …
+1. I’m British, but in the second shot, with the Japanese plate prominent, I could believe there’s a Nissan Micra lurking behind all that chrome.
The Japanese love these BMC oddballs right alongside the import of used JDM cars into New Zealand was a thriving export of Minis and these and anything else unwanted that Japanese buyers fancied.
Our first family car (the one with more than two doors) was a MG 1100. This photo was taken in 1969 with me standing in front and my mum next to the car. I do not remember what year was this MG.
This MG was nothing but a money pit for my father who spent almost every weekend fixing it. This car seemed to have jinxed my father in regard to the front-wheel-drive cars. Every FWD car he owned, all of them as company car, thereafter had serious quality and mechanical issues. He swore them off ever since.
A lot of people got burned by Alec Issigonis designed FWD cars, they were not the best buy in their day.
I saw one of those for sale a few years back, only one I can ever recall seeing. What’s that thing in front of the house?
It’s coming up tomorrow Adam….Jim.
Looks like Postman Pat’s van.
https://cdn.instructables.com/FB7/LHFS/JB3ZPO82/FB7LHFSJB3ZPO82.LARGE.jpg
Nice find – and in Japan, no less. Sugoi!
I always wonder about foreign cars in 60s Japan. Who were the market leaders? When one sees period pics, it seems there weren’t many foreign-built cars on the streets, except for the odd American car – which had no real domestic competition until the late 60s.
Not that I believe this Princess to be anything but a recent import, which probably broke down a while ago. Keeping these on the road is relatively easy in Europe – especially so in the UK, obviously – but I wouldn’t chance it in Japan. Too unreliable, too foreign.
One foreign car I saw a few times in Japan was the Renault 4. Usually LHD, so most are recent imports from France. It’s so weird to see those in Tokyo traffic. There is a strong following for these in Japan, though they never imported the model there (AFAIK).
The original Mini is also seen frequently, but those were imported at the time (when precisely? No idea.) Maybe they only imported the non-hydrolastic type, which would explain the Princess awaiting rescue here.