BMC 1100/1300 : Picture gallery

The 1100 range may have been badge-engineered to what some people may think of as an excessive extent, but what comes across in this selection of pictures collected from contemporary brochures is just how “right” the Pininfarina design was from the very start.

The question that remains unanswered in a definitive way is – WHY DID BMC NOT STICK TO THE FORMULA?



A very early and pure looking Austin 1100. The purity of line that this car possessed was unmatched by any subsequent BMC-designed car.



The colour and photography do not flatter this Austin 1300, but improvements to the car meant that overall, it was a better package than the original.



No, this is not “Carry on Camping”, but it is a nice period brochure shot…




Wolseley 1300

Wolseley 1300



MG 1100


Riley Kestrel
Riley Kestrel


Riley Kestrel 1300



Vanden Plas Princess 1300

Keith Adams

4 Comments

  1. I don’t want to seem critical, but not all the photos are correctly captioned. For example:
    The second one from the top is an Austin 1300, not 1100 – different grille pattern.
    The sixth one is an MG 1100, not 1300 – age of registration, upright rear lights, four doors, and no repeater flashers on front wings. (I have an MG 1300 Mk II)
    The seventh one is almost certainly a Riley 1300 – repeater flashers on the front wings.
    Best wishes,
    Chris Hayward

  2. Early on I owned the MG 100 in the States (early 1970s), no one really understood the hydrolast suspension here. I loved the car, although a bit under powered for US interstate travel.
    Later the Austin America had the larger 1.3L engine which was more powerful but still too small for continued 75 mph inter state travel.
    The other issue was the hard mounted fan which seemed to contact the shroud when shifting gears under hard acceleration.
    Other than that, the car handled very well and was a ball to drive. I wish car manufacturers made simple machines like this one still. This car today with a McPherson suspension and the VW 1.9l Tdi would be a blast to drive and would achieve excellent petrol usage numbers, as long as the manufacturer kept the interior as simplistic as the original.

  3. Form follows function – admirable ! Issi did the basic shape and proportions , Farina the finesse . A marriage made in heaven ?

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