@@andypandywalters Hi" yes such a sad shame as she was 98% restored along with her engine too,, Very likely been in a crash write off and the engine used in a Mini, !
I had an 1971 Austin 1300 GT, purchased it in 72, it was the same colour but with Autumn Leaf interior which I have to say is preferable to Limeflower. Mine was a series 1 version as against this model which is a series 2. The series 1 had an oil pressure gauge in the cluster with the fuel and water temperature gauges and didn't have the face level ventilation, but they were a waste of time on the 1300's you got more air in the car by opening the quarter lights. BL obviously penny pinching in removing the oil Pressure gauge! I traded in my Cooper S to buy it. The 1300 GT had the same power unit as the Cooper S MK3, slightly detuned developed 6 BHP less than the S, but a much nicer car to drive not as quick but handled just as well and was far more comfortable to drive, at least you could drive long journey's and get out the car without back ache and not have a headache! The difference between the S and GT was the cam, the distributor and the innards of the block, both had the same 11 stud cylinder head 12G1805 and high compression cylinders, though the 1300GT had a compression ratio of 9.75:1 as against 9.5:1 of the S! I thoroughly enjoyed my 1300GT, the only downside was the 3 branch exhaust kept splitting on the Y of the downpipe, so sorted this out going to Downton and getting one of there 3 branch exhaust manifolds, never had a problem after that. Keep the water holes on the front inner wing trumpets cleaned regularly by wiggling a piece of wire in them to let them keep draining from the scuttle, otherwise they soon clog up, then rot sets in! One came up on eBay not so long ago went for £11000. Anyway a very nice car look after it.
Many thanks for your comprehensive reply Geoff. Thoroughly enjoyed reading it......great memories. I note your comment about the drain holes. When I gave the car a comprehensive internal anti-corrosion wax treatment last year, I found the nearside outlet partially blocked. As you suggested, a bit of wire (and a feeler gauge !) soon sorted things out.
Very tidy 1300, I like these cars, I’ve had a 1300 Automatic and a Wolseley 1300, both cars were great cars, reliable and fun to drive. Thanks for showing your very clean GT.👍
Hi from Christchurch New Zealand. About 3 weeks ago I bought my own blue Austin 1300 GT. It’s a bit tougher than yours and will need some rust cut out. It runs and dives ok needs a good time up. I too got my licence in a Morris 1100 in 1977 when I was doing my apprenticeship at a BMC garage. Looking forward to tinkering with it over the next few years. I’ll see if I can post a photo.
@@andypandywalters you're welcome Andy. A standard orange 1300 was my 1st car as a teenager in the 80s, not the GT. Already well used by then but still plenty of fun left. The GT is the ultimate of its kind & a very rare sight now. Nice to see one looking this good
What a beautiful little car! I grew up loving these as a boy together with the Mini. Unfortunately they were notorious for rusting out here in SA so just can't find them anymore.
I grew up wanting a Mini Cooper S, first car was a 1964 Morris 1100, couldn't drive it with the windows closed, because of the smell of fumes. Sold it in 1973, for one of the first NZ assembled Mazda RX2s, it was like night and day, except the apex seals only lasted 40k kms, but kept it for 8yrs, The only common thing here is, 1973, LOL.
I learned to drive in one of these! Same colour too. Never understood why a driving school (Shenley, in Northfield, Birmingham during 1975) should use a car like that.
The twin carb state of tune already existed in MG form and I think they launched the GT trim to try to appeal to the younger customer. Either way it was a nicer more lively good handling car than was often given credit. I've often thought the ADO16 range was the nicest saloon/family car BMC ever did in many ways.
Wow, that is lovely. In 1976 I bought what was badged an Austin 1300 Sprinzel, had a few extras over a normal 1300. Its number plate was LYN 473K, only paid £795 for it with very low miles. Christ, I wish I had kept it, it was a lovely car. Well done on yours Andy.
@@andypandywalters Yes I know it was last taxed way back as I checked it. I was thinking that maybe somebody would have retained the plate being LYN. I had a red Sierra E210FTY, I sold that car for more than what I paid for it because a mate pointed out E2 LOFTY could have been made. Good fun all this.
I'm so pleased that I'm not the only person to regard these little cars as absolutely beautiful! I tried to get one back in the late 70s but even then couldn't find one in such fantastic condition. I ended up with a very similar MG1300 which was a joy to drive, and seeing your wonderful example has brought back a lot of very happy memories.
Thanks for your kind comments J B. I was indeed extremely fortunate to find this pristine example. They do come up for sale from time to time, but not often. Good one's are snapped up quickly. The MG1300 is a fine car though. I particularly like its wooden veneer dash.
Lovely car..owned 2 of these, wish I had kept them...one saved my life from the strength of construction...I went under the back of a trailer before they had the bars there to prevent you going underneath..peeled the roof off...I felt it brush my hair ..I just climbed out unscathed...Super comfortable , easy to service... Dad worked in F block at Drews Lane plant so had to buy BL :-)
Looks Mint. Reminds me of how I used to admire some of my teachers' cars around 1970 ..... ADO16 in various guises ..... Austin 1300GT (my favorite - engine always sounded so refined in them and they looked the most areodynamic AND they had the all important tachometer !!), MG 1300, Riley 1300, Wolseley 1300. Am glad you're going to treat her right. I'd forgotten about the floor mounted ash tray in the back.
Tis indeed a thing of beauty. Amazing it has made it so long. My 1971 1300 fell to bits after hours of welding in 1979. If only they had built them properly in the first place! Very envious :)
Thank you for your kind comments. I was extremely fortunate to have bought her (2017) in such immaculate condition. Previous owners obviously looked after her well !. I consider myself the custodian of the car for the future until the next owner, which won't be until I pass away !
Thanks Paul. I do consider myself very fortunate to have found one in such exceptional condition. Take a look at 'The 1100 Club' website, you might find it of interest. (always looking for fellow enthusiasts like yourself !)
I bought one of these new in February 1972 same colour and same interior, if I remember right the interior colour was determined by the outside colour hence the limeflower interior with this particular colour ! and black interior with the orange colour! Great little car though so look after it wish I still had mine 😒
Snap! Your interior looks like Limeflower, one of three colours that came with Teal Blue. The different materials fade at different rates! You won't regret keeping it, it's so period! Old carpet was a honey/amber colour?
That's right Geoff it is Limeflower. I wasn't sure, but more knowledgeable owners have said so. And you are correct about the fading of the door cards. The carpet was indeed of similar colour but long past its best, hence its replacement.
@@andypandywalters The door cards go greenish while the seats go brownish over the years as they are different vinyls. My Mallard green car has a Limeflower interior and that has done the same. Teal blue cars also came with a navy interior
Logic was a commodity often lacking in model policies from BL . The Austin Allegro was completely inferior in every respect to the model it replaced , this car ! Surely today with modern metal preservation built in at construction we would have bullet proof cars ample room and not wedge shaped , cars with excellent visibility, slim screen pillars , economical and good roadholding . The flat floor would be an ideal candidate for EV conversion . I believe the only drawback on these lovely cars was the love affair the sub frames had with rust ! I remember the riley wolsely and MG varients with the Vanden plas being a joy to own unlike the Van den plas Allegro which was touted as Leylands Joke car by Jeremy Clarkson , he was right .
I recently bought an Austin 1300GT! I watch this video a lot!!!Great video!!! I'm going to make lots of memories with my Austin 1300GT even though I'm far away in Japan!!! Here's my Austin 1300GT video↓ ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-eN5-PebffO8.htmlsi=Gc2A2p2JbniAYQli
Thank you for your kind comments , I'm pleased you like my GT. Your car looks very nice, and I look forward to watching your video. Best wishes from the UK.
Lovely car. Oil pump failure, that's unusual !! Can you enlarge on what happened, was it a catastrophic failure or a wear out failure? From memory the pump is driven off of the camshaft end.
In brief, not catastrophic. The oil pressure light refused to go out and my garage diagnosed pump failure. When it was removed they told me the internals (impeller ?) had been fitted back to front and was scored ? (don't quote me as I'm not a mechanic!) They replaced it and undertook what i understand is called a 'bottom end rebuild'. All that was covered by the guarantee given by the dealer from whom I bought the car. Whilst the engine was out I paid to have the gearbox refurbished too.
