Austin & Morris 1100 and 1300

The Morris came first, and that is the opposite of the usual BMC order. Morris 1100, 15 August 1962. MG 1100, October 1962. Austin 1100, September 1963 — thirteen months later. Vanden Plas Princess October 1963, and Wolseley 1100 and Riley Kestrel both September 1965. The “Austin/Morris 1100” shorthand hides it completely.

What actually differs between the badges is the carburettor, and very little else. Single SU on the Austin and Morris: 48bhp on the 1098, 58bhp on the 1275. Twin SU on the MG, the Riley and the Vanden Plas: 55bhp on the 1098, 65bhp and then 70bhp from October 1968 on the 1275. The Wolseley started on a single SU HS2 and went to twins later. Carburettors, manifolds, air cleaners and distributors split by badge. Nothing else does. Beyond that: the Austin grille has wavy bars and a coat of arms, the Morris has straight bars; the Morris got a black crackle dashboard from Mk2; the estate is a Countryman on the Austin and a Traveller on the Morris, both from March 1966, and there is no estate version of the Wolseley, Riley, MG or Vanden Plas at all.

The proof that the shell is common is a part number. One front windscreen rubber seal — ARA1392, sold here as ES35 — is catalogued as fitting Austin, Morris, Wolseley, Riley Kestrel, MG and Vanden Plas Princess 1100/1300. One part, six badges, twelve years, Mk1 and Mk2. The October 1967 Mk2 grille and fin changes did not touch the glass aperture. It is a continuous-loop seal.

Mechanically it is one car. 8in (203mm) front discs and rear drums on every model. Hydrolastic interconnected fluid suspension — Moulton’s design, wishbones at the front, front-to-rear interconnection. 12 volt, Lucas, dynamo. Wheelbase 93.5in, 5.50 × 12 tyres. Subframes, brakes, suspension, glass and body rubber are common to all six badges.

The marks, for dating a car quickly. Mk1, 1962 to October 1967 — four-door only at home, two-door was export. Mk2, October 1967 — wider grille extending below the headlamps, badges move from the bonnet to the grille, cropped fins, smoother tail-light fitting, two-door now available at home, simulated wood on the estates. Mk3, September 1971 — range reduction, production to June 1974. Austin and Morris 1300GT from October 1969. The 1275 option reached the upmarket badges in June 1967 and Austin/Morris in October 1967.

And the engine warning, because it is the expensive one. A 1098 A-series block from this car will not fit a Morris Minor, and vice versa. Blocks are not interchangeable between the in-sump transaxle cars and the end-on gearbox cars. Same capacity, same family, different block.