[dudesam24]

Hi BHPians
This is my first thread on Team-BHP.
I am a general and laparoscopic surgeon based at Mumbai. i had this soft corner for old beauties like this, Austin A40. I have a Ford Prefect at Mumbai.
This thread is based on my effort to restore a legacy back to its glory and beauty.
I do not have much experience in such kind of restorations and hope that fellow BHPians will help me restore this Austin A40 to its best.
The car has significant deterioration and ornaments have been lost or replaced with non-standard ones.
The work on the car has begun at my native place in Cuttack, Orissa.
I will keep posting on the progress of the work as and when i visit my native place.

[anjan_c2007]

Wish you all the very best with the A 40 restoration. A lot of work needs to be done. The car is quite original on the whole. The rusting needs to be contained. Have'nt seen the engine bay-please post some pictures. The dash, meters and the steering (including the horn button) are original.The door trims, levers are all original but need to be spruced up.The seats need to be replaced with ones with the period look. The seat cover has some modern trims.Wheelcaps are needed which may be a bit tough to find.
The front and rear bumpers have the Padmini guards with the black rubber that need to be taken off and replaced with the original ones.
The front parking lights are not original.The tail lights are original.

[Stanher]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

Wheelcaps are needed which may be a bit tough to find.
The front parking lights are not original.

I remember seeing just 2 hubcaps with a local scrapguy here a few years ago. He was quoting around 5k for just the pair back then.

Alternatively, there is a setthat can be had from ebay UK:

Austin A40 Devon,Dorset & Somerset Chrome Hub Cap x 4. on eBay (end time 02-Apr-11 12:14:57 BST)

I might be wrong but it appears that the headlights too are not original? Arent they supposed to be a bit smaller in size?

[peeve]

Congrats on your new buy.I think you have an almost complete A40.Like others have pointed out few original parts like the bumpers,parking lights and seats have to be re trimmed to period style .Extent of rust can be assessed only after you dismantle the car .Good news is that parts like wheel caps are available in plenty on e bay.uk.In fact almost all A40 parts are available.Start looking for a good set of bumpers in the local scrap markets .Fellow BHPians will be be able to help. Good luck and keep us posted on the work.Few pictures of the engine bay would be appreciated .

Cheers

[Shreeram]

Excellent !!! Hope this Car gets back to Its former Glory soon.. Best Of Luck..
By the way I just saw another A40 here in pune yesterday, Up for sale
A very good example of what not to do with a Vintage Car.. and Expected Price -- Ridiculous.. anyways.. Nice to See another Beauty being Cared for.

[SuperSelect]

Sambit !! Great to finally see you here .

You have a beautiful and original A-40 there. The only worrying bit is the sizeable amounts of rust that seems to have crept into corners and ends.
You will need to get hold of a very skilled and reliable bodyworker / denter for the job - some of the rusted panels may have to be fabricated. Do look for chaps with good references, so your beauty is in the right hands..

All the best for the restoration, and looking forward to seeing this beauty gleaming, back on the roads - I'm going to be glued to this thread !!

[vintagepoint5]

Congratulations for A40, this car has prety original things, find the good body denter for its restoration. Once all these work is completed, they are great cars of its times. I have found memories of this type of model, when I was kid. Although that car was in very mint condition and rides was very
smooth and comfortable due to nice suspension system.

Good luck!

[harit]

Originally Posted by dudesam24

Hi BHPians, soft corner for old beauties like this, Austin A40. I have a Ford Prefect at Mumbai. This thread is based on my effort to restore a legacy back to its glory and beauty.
I do not have much experience in such kind of restorations and hope that fellow BHPians will help me restore this Austin A40 to its best.
The car has significant deterioration and ornaments have been lost or replaced with non-standard ones.
The work on the car has begun at my native place in Cuttack, Orissa.
I will keep posting on the progress of the work as and when i visit my native place.

This car is in bad shape. First, please check if your papers are upto date, if not get them done.
Ensure that your tinker knows his work, alignment and all. Lots of non original and missing parts, get behind them first. Why is this car called a legacy? What is the history?

Cheers harit

[mbz180]

Originally Posted by Stanher

I remember seeing just 2 hubcaps with a local scrapguy here a few years ago. He was quoting around 5k for just the pair back then.

Alternatively, there is a setthat can be had from ebay UK:

Austin A40 Devon,Dorset & Somerset Chrome Hub Cap x 4. on eBay (end time 02-Apr-11 12:14:57 BST)

I might be wrong but it appears that the headlights too are not original? Arent they supposed to be a bit smaller in size?

Since you will be visiting Cuttack every now and then, I would suggest you come down to Kolkata and hunt for parts at Mullick Bazar, our local car chor bazar. I would think some trim parts would still be available, if you want I can do some hunting for you in a couple of weeks time. An an Austin A40 had recently been restored here as well, and it took part in the last rally, so the restorer maybe able to held for parts too.

And Stanher, congrats on becoming a Distinguished Bhpian, I hadn't noticed earlier.

Best Regards
Prithvi

[priyadarshan.b]

Man this is such a beautiful car.. Most of the original stuff is still on the car. That should make your job easy. As all the experts have pointed out, body work is the area where you probably need to focus. Do tell us about the history of this car. Congratulations and wish you all the best for your restoration..

Priyadarshan

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by mbz180

Since you will be visiting Cuttack every now and then, I would suggest you come down to Kolkata and hunt for parts at Mullick Bazar, our local car chor bazar. I would think some trim parts would still be available, if you want I can do some hunting for you in a couple of weeks time. An an Austin A40 had recently been restored here as well, and it took part in the last rally, so the restorer maybe able to held for parts too.

And Stanher, congrats on becoming a Distinguished Bhpian, I hadn't noticed earlier.

Best Regards
Prithvi

Thats a good suggestion Prithvi.This is because Kolkata had many A 40's plying on the city streets till the 1970's and even later.Many Kolkata houses had the ground floor garage, with steel grilles and the Austin A 40 could be seen parked inside. I remember at least two houses on the Harish Mukherjee Road with A 40's parked in the garage.

[goandude]

Hi, welcome to team bhp. My dad had a car like this in the late 60's to early 70's. we used to cheer when he did 40 mph it felt fast at that speed. And we did a few long distance drives in it. The side indicators were an arm which came out of the B pillar.

[dudesam24]

Well guys
Thanks a ton for such overwhelming response and lots of advice.
Work keeps me very busy. Sorry for delay in replies.
After i met Ravi (super Select) and went through his thread on the brilliant restoration work of his Fiat, I thought it to be a good idea to put my Austin here.
Its a family car- has had a lot of inattention over last 30 years after it was parked (in a leaky tin-shed) due to my grand dad being fed up of some nagging distributor problem way back in 1981. In fact it was just out from the garage then with fresh paint job etc and with all the stupid monkeying with body ornaments as has been rightly pointed out by fellow BHPians. It never mattered that time, I believe. The Landmaster (sadly converted into Ambassador Mk III in 1984) was, and still is, a steady performer and involuntarily the Austin lay in the shed, slipping into deterioration. But what i can really thank God for is that it was not scrapped.
The car has been in the family for well over 60years and registration is not an issue. lifetime tax is paid and roadworthy fitness certificate will be obtained after the repairs.

The body work and dismantling started in Oct 2010. Well the tin work is massive but my tinsmith has done good work so far by hand-crafting each and every bit of the nooks and corners of the abused body. It will take another month or so to finish the tin work. I will post photos when i visit Cuttack next month.

As rightly pointed out by mbz180, Mullick Bazar is Mecca for parts hunters and my trip there is overdue. A friend at Kolkata is arranging for original bumpers, guards, hub-caps, monograms etc for me to pick up.

so much for now
will keep updated

[dudesam24]

Well
The semaphore indicators were found hidden under a strip of metal which had shut their slot on the side pillar_ they need attention but happy that they were there. Will get fresh ones as well.

[angad22]

Originally Posted by dudesam24

Well
The semaphore indicators were found hidden under a strip of metal which had shut their slot on the side pillar_ they need attention but happy that they were there. Will get fresh ones as well.

Found this thread interesting and I am posting pictures of my Austin A40 Dorset.