It’s strange how things work out sometimes, isn’t it? There I was, in Lord Nuffield’s billiard room, recounting his life and times for visitors and just reaching the merger of Nuffield and Austin that was agreed in 1951 to create BMC when we heard a car draw up at the front. That in itself relatively unusual – it normally means a visitor has arrived in an older British, often Nuffield or BMC, car and is therefore directed away from the main carpark. And this one did not disappoint.
In 1948, at the London Motor Show, Morris showed a range of new cars. Best remembered of course is the Morris Minor, Sir Alec Issigonis’s first complete car and perhaps Britain’s favourite and most recognised classic car, but there were others too. Foremost amongst these was the four cylinder Morris Oxford and its longer nosed six cylinder derivative, the Isis. Like the Minor, these were monocoque bodies with torsion bar suspension and rack pinion steering.
Power, all 41bhp of it, came from a 1476cc ohv four cylinder engine and there was a four speed transmission with a column change. This example was built in 1950 and sold in February 1951 to its first owner in Brussels, Belgium. Last weekend, the owner and his wife were touring England, looking at Morris and BMC sights. An interesting weekend to pick, with hindsight, given the national events then on-going.
The Oxford had a Wolseley twin – the 4/50 (four cylinders, 50 bhp), a smarter interior with more wood and leather, and a longer bonnet with a traditional grille for traditional Wolseley buyers. The Isis and its Wolseley 6/80 were visually similar to their counterparts, but longer front ends and corresponding longer wheelbases.
But to turn up at Lord Nuffield’s home in the last Oxford from the pre-BMC Morris…timing.
Hate to be a pedant but the Morris Isis was launched in 1955 to zero interest. It was a development of the then current Oxford.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morris_Isis
Yes the mechanical equivalent of the Austin Westminster six, I owned both examples and swapped engines between them.
Lord Nuffield was said to be no fan of this styling, famously having called the smaller but nearly identically styled Minor a “poached egg”, preferring the prewar look he’d grown up with.
I would say he was right on the face of it but 180 degrees off in his prescription, if anything these cars that got Morris styling to where GM had been in 1941-2, were not bold enough for 1949 although perhaps it was the best since early British efforts at full pontoon styling like the Singer SM1500 were really clumsy-looking.
Looked up Google Images of the Singer. Yes, awkward. A lot of British cars of the 30’s-50’s were conservatively styled like they were from five or ten years before, but nicely done. Not that one.
The Morris equivalent of the Wolseley was called the six, the Isis came along with the series 2 body and Austin OHV engines after the merger, these earlier cars had a Wolseley OHC l6 the last true Wolseley shaft driven OHC engine which was a WW1 aircraft engine inspired design.
Nice cars. I like the look, especially that blue one (like the front end better). But other than that, I know nothing about these cars other than they look cool.
The time and place of that experience had to have been a real charge for you. These cars exude a unique charm.
I had to go look it up, and apparently the Oxford was sold in the US, but you’d never know it, as I never saw one. The MG Magnette, which came a couple of years later, did sell quite decently here. It was a rare affordable “sporting” sedan, and the MG brand was of course huge then.
I got a loan of one of these Oxfords from a friend back in 1969 – it was pretty ancient and shagged out by then of course.
It had absolutely no grip whatsoever, possibly because the skinny cross ply tyres were nearly bald and I remember getting it sideways on a roundabout at 20 mph.
Nice old fashioned dashboard if I recall correctly.
What a marvellous experience, being there when one of these pulls up outside. At the risk of making a nuisance of myself, I’d have swarmed all over it!
This was Dad’s first new car after the war, and replaced a ’28 Essex. And yes, his was green too. He drove it all over the east coast of Australia, even up into Far North Queensland where there were hardly any roads at the time; I think it was that wandering spirit, he just wanted to see what was there. Only problem was the aluminium sump shattering on a rock when crossing a creek bed. I’ve always thought that was strange, putting an alloy oil pan on a flathead (not ohv) engine. For that matter, why did they go back to a flathead when the prewar Morris Ten it replaced had overhead valves? Shame the Oxford didn’t get the Wolseley’s overhead cam setup.
Nice .
I’m surprised to see a left hand drive Oxford in England .
I’m one of those who loves LBC’s as much as I love elderly Chevy six bangers .
A few years ago I was looking to replace my dead Morris Minor and a nice gent close to Canada offered me a ’53 (?) Morris Oxford that only had 35,000 miles on it and always garage kept .
I wrestled with it for a goodly bit but I couldn’t see pressing a museum piece into yeoman duty ’round Los Angeles so I passed .
I’d love to see this car in person .
Are the doors the same as Morris Minor ? .
-Nate
No, not the same doors. The Minor doors have square upper corners where they meet the B pillar. Even odder perhaps the outer skin of the Morris Six doors are different to the Oxford, instead shared with the Wolseley models.
Thank you Sir .
-Nate
The reason for the LHD is that this was sold in Belgium and was back on a touring holiday covering Morris and BMC sights in the UK.
Thank you Sir .
-Nate
The Oxford, like its little brother Morris Minor, came to the 1940s with a SIDEVALVE engine. It’s superior handling (YES. consider its price comparable contemporaries) and reliability made it the one choice for Melbourne’s new yellow (more orange, actually) TAXI FLEET. The major service intervals and total mileages clocked up by these were enormous. 1960s replacement was more for “up-to-date-image” sake than wear or no longer adequate service.