Description

1931 Morris Minor

Current owner 11 years; nice little coachbuilt two-door saloon in need of recommissioning following 5 years in storage; transferable number plate

Launched by Morris in 1928 as a rather belated response to the Austin Seven, the diminutive Minor started life as an attention-grabbing but not particularly successful £100 open two-seater with a Wolseley-designed overhead camshaft engine also used by MG. More expensive four-seater tourer, coachbuilt saloon and fabric saloon versions soon followed and found more favour.
In late 1930 the Morris engineers devised a simpler 847cc side-valve version that has stood the test of time and made the side-valve Minor one of the most endearing small cars that Britain has ever produced. Far less numerous than the Austin Seven, only around 40,000 of the overhead cam Minors and 47,000 side-valve models were built before the more widely sold Morris Eight arrived in 1934.
First registered in Surrey in April 1931, this two-door Minor coachbuilt saloon comes with a copy of a cutting from ‘The Motor Trader’ dated November 1932 offering a reward for information about the car which had just been stolen from the Twickenham area. Fortunately the London Police were able to recover the car and it was returned to the owner undamaged.
Little is known of the Minor’s subsequent history but it was later owned by a Philip Linley of Lynton, North Devon, and then by a Don Davies of Church Stoke, Montgomery, from whom our vendor acquired it in 2010. A note from Davies in 2006 states that the car required no restoration, had excellent brakes, had recently had the charging system and the starter motor reconditioned and had just passed its MOT with no defects.
Five old MOTs from 2004 – 2010 show that the car was in light but regular use over that period, although we are told that it was last driven five years ago, the declining health of the vendor causing it to be put into storage in 2018 with the battery removed and the radiator drained.
It retains its original (transferable) number, PL 7003, and appears to be in reasonable order throughout with just a few cosmetic blemishes here and there (as shown in the photos) but will doubtless benefit from some precautionary recommissioning before sallying forth once more.
For more information contact James on 07970 309907 or email james.dennison@brightwells.com