• New Cars
    • First Impressions
    • Road Tests
  • Classics
    • Classic Profiles
    • Classic Driving Impressions
    • Classics Information
    • Events and Days Out
  • Motoring For Fun
  • News & Views
  • Bookshelf
  • Technical
    • Grumpy Old Mechanic
    • Kim’s Tips
  • Features
    • Visits
    • Track Days
  • Contributors
    • About our contributors
    • Kim Henson
    • Chris Adamson
    • Kieron Fennelly
    • Ant Henson
    • Rachel Henson
    • David Miles
    • Gerald Morgan
    • Dave Moss
    • Dave Randle
    • Robin Roberts
    • Tom Scanlan
    • Glen Smale
    • Keith Ward
    • John Price Williams
  • More…
    • About Wheels Alive
    • Tips for using this website
    • Useful Links
  • A-Z

Wheels Alive

Old cars, new cars, borrowed cars & blue cars. If it steers it's here!

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

For Your Bookshelf – Austin Cars 1948 to 1990

Author/Source: Kim Henson

5th May 2020

Book Review – Austin Cars 1948 to 1990 – A Pictorial History.

Reviewed by Kim Henson.

Title: Austin Cars 1948 to 1990 – A Pictorial History

Author: David Rowe

Published by: Veloce Publishing www.veloce.co.uk

112 pages; softback

Price: £12.99

ISBN: 978-1-787112-19-3

There is a huge amount of detail in this compact but informative volume. From writing motoring books myself I appreciate that the author has gone to great lengths to incorporate as many useful facts and figures as possible about each Austin model covered, including, for example, luggage capacities and colours available. I also like the way that the models have been included in chronological order.

Although I have been an Austin enthusiast for many years, in this volume, which I read with interest from cover to cover, I have found many snippets of information of which I was previously unaware. I also found interesting the way in which each model section includes a diagram showing the instrument layout – an unusual but welcome addition to each model’s story.

For each Austin covered there is a brief section on the history of the model and the context in which it was produced, and in some cases (but not all) details are provided of the total numbers produced.

VERDICT

In my opinion this is a ‘must-have’ book for anyone interested in post-War Austins, and I enjoyed reading it; there is so much information packed into it, plus many colour photographs of the various models.

Personally, and this is not a criticism, just a comment, I was a little disappointed that the book does not cover brief notes (at least) about how the cars drive and perform. However of course the title is ‘A Pictorial History’ and this is the aim, rather than a complete analysis, and I appreciate that there is only so much that can be packed into a book 152 pages long.

I am very pleased that this book has been produced, especially as there is relatively little written about the Austin Motor Company and its models.

Save Post as PDF

Categories: Bookshelf, Kim Henson Tags: Austin, Book review, Bookshelf

Tip: For improved search accuracy, enclose search terms for multiple words in quotation marks. For example:
"Land Rover".

Advertise with us
A-ZPlease visit the A-Z page for listings by make, model, year etc. and an advanced search form.

Recent Posts

Updated Peugeot 3008 SUV – Road Test

SMMT Budget response, plus top ten new car sellers in Britain in February

Latest Citroën C3 – Road Test

Aston Martin’s St Athan plant will be vital in the company’s future

Bargain Basement Bimmer – Part One of a three part series about enjoying a modern classic Z3

Classic Clubs Series – No. 4 – The MG Owners Club

Ford Focus mild hybrid – Road Test

Fiat 500X Sport SUV – Road Test

Contributors

contributors

Our well-respected contributors live and breathe motor cars; aren’t we lucky?

Contributors to the site include talented, highly-respected people (so they tell me) on the hallowed membership list of the Guild of Motoring Writers, and from the similarly well thought-of Western Group of Motoring Writers. In addition there are valued contributions from other knowledgeable and capable motoring writers who have something useful to say about all aspects of driving and running vehicles in the 21st Century. All of our team are passionate about motor cars!


Read about our contributors  ››

Popular Tags

4WD SUV 4x4 4x4 SUV Audi Austin Beaulieu BMW Book review British Motor Museum City car Compact SUV Convertible Coupé crossover Electric Electric Cars electric vehicle estate Estate car five door estate five door hatchback Ford four door saloon hatchback Honda hot hatchback Hybrid Hybrid SUV Kia large SUV luxury SUV Mazda MG mid-size SUV Mini Mitsubishi MPV news News round-up Nissan People carrier PHEV Pick-up plug-in hybrid saloon seven seater MPV Seven seater SUV Skoda sports sports car Sports saloon sporty hatchback supercar Supermini SUV Suzuki The Motor Ombudsman three door hatchback Tyres Volkswagen
All Tags ››

Wheels Alive Social

  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook

Follow us on Twitter

My Tweets

Contact us

We welcome your questions, comments and feedback. Please click here to contact us.

Advertising Opportunities

Please contact us if you would like to discuss advertising opportunities on Wheels Alive.

Please share our website

Copyright © 2021 Kim Henson, Wheels Alive