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[jereboam]

For all that do not know of them this is what an Austin Westminster of the 1960's looked like:



A wonderful classic heavy (not suitable for scissor jacks, but had if I remember correctly pillar jacks) well appointed executive British car, but without power steering which made driving them very hard until you got used to it!

They later made great 'destruction derby' cars as well!

I had a Wolseley 6/99 in the very early 1970s - smashing car.  I paid £52 for it, spent a further £17 get a new floor welded in and didn't pay out another penny on it for the next 2 years.  It had a BMC 'C' series 3-litre lorry engine, a 3-speed column shift gearbox, with a mechanical overdrive on every gear, including reverse, and  it went like the clappers.  At least, once you got it rolling, it went.  The average double decker bus could beat it away from the lights, but once it got up to about 30mph, it could hold it's own against an E-type up to about 80.  

It was bigger than the Omega, and very luxurious - all polished wood and leather.  But, obviously, it didn't have all the toys - they hadn't been thought of then.  Big plastic steering wheel with a chrome inner wheel for the horn.  It may have had seat belts in front, but they definitely weren't the retractable ones, and nobody used them then.  What it lacked were the picnic tables built in to the back of the front seats which were in the Westminster, the Princess and the 6/110, I think

Can't remember why I got shot of it - may have been an engine problem - but I dumped it in the field at the back of my parent's place, and it just sat there for 2 years.  

Don't remember it having a built-in jacking system, though.

[Bob S]

Good grief I'm amongst people of my own age Austin Westminster wow! my dad drove one as a taxi the picture brought back memories. There was also a large Wolseley used by the police though not the 4/44 can't remember its name. They used to have square box sections welded to the sides itto which you inserted the jack and wound the car up from there, solid as a rock until they corroded.
I too have suffered at the hands of the rather intoxicated "peg leg Pete" jack used by Vaux & VW. I always shuve the spare under the car till the flat is off then switch it around. I had the same jack fail on me twice in the same tyre change. They are rubbish and don't give much warning. Thanks for the initial welcome, I was surprised to see you had gone, though better to see  you are back. I too inherited another daughter she filled the boot and the rest of my car with stuff that turned out to be 90% junk!

[Andy B]

....
Big plastic steering wheel with a chrome inner wheel for the horn.   ....

 ..... that you could find whether you had any lock on or not, unlike the Omega's, that you've to look at to find. The facelift's is even worse.

[gsdtrainer]

Had a 1965 cambridge,lovely motor,beautiful to drive,best car i ever had.Ooops til I got my Omega that is

[Andy B]

Had a 1965 cambridge,lovely motor,beautiful to drive,best car i ever had.Ooops til I got my Omega that is

I wonder what they would be like to drive 'back to back' with each other now.  :-/

[gsdtrainer]

Good question,Andy,we're probably spoilt nowadays.comfort of 30/40 years ago is standard now.

[gsdtrainer]

Days of the longago,when you operated the screenwash with your left foot,little arms popping out to indicate which way you were going(or sticking your arm out the window and making  funny signals ).Good old days??

[Andy B]

Good question,Andy,we're probably spoilt nowadays.comfort of 30/40 years ago is standard now.

It only used to be the real upmarket cars that had electric windows,  ... how many cars had air conditioning? Even my crappy Astra has 'one touch' electric windows (at the front) and air conditioning (not that it works  )
The most mundane cars have thing that they couldn't have even thought of in the 50's & 60's or even the 70's.  A comment made on TV when Apollo 13 film was made maked you think. There is now more computing power on a typical car than there was on the Saturn rocket!    

[gsdtrainer]

 :oand the car probably goes further too

[Andy B]

Days of the longago,when you operated the screenwash with your left foot,little arms popping out to indicate which way you were going(or sticking your arm out the window and making  funny signals ).Good old days??

My Dad had a 1949 Triumph 'Razor Edge'  Saloon (NOT the Renown) when I was little. There were no screen washers on that ... no requirement for them. Main beam gave you 2 massive headlamps that produced less light than a kiddies birthday cake candles, when you dipped them, the passenger (?) reflector pivoted to dip the light while the driver's went out!    That's how it was supposed to be!  

[gsdtrainer]

Modern technology of the 40's.Had a mk1 cortina that did that,but both headlights went out.Must be the same manufacturer

[Andy B]

Modern technology of the 40's.Had a mk1 cortina that did that,but both headlights went out.Must be the same manufacturer

It wasn't Lucas was it?    

[phil her up]

The scissor jack was invented by the same bloke that invented helicopter ejector seats

[Lizzie_Zoom]

For all that do not know of them this is what an Austin Westminster of the 1960's looked like:



A wonderful classic heavy (not suitable for scissor jacks, but had if I remember correctly pillar jacks) well appointed executive British car, but without power steering which made driving them very hard until you got used to it!

They later made great 'destruction derby' cars as well!

I had a Wolseley 6/99 in the very early 1970s - smashing car.  I paid £52 for it, spent a further £17 get a new floor welded in and didn't pay out another penny on it for the next 2 years.  It had a BMC 'C' series 3-litre lorry engine, a 3-speed column shift gearbox, with a mechanical overdrive on every gear, including reverse, and  it went like the clappers.  At least, once you got it rolling, it went.  The average double decker bus could beat it away from the lights, but once it got up to about 30mph, it could hold it's own against an E-type up to about 80.  

It was bigger than the Omega, and very luxurious - all polished wood and leather.  But, obviously, it didn't have all the toys - they hadn't been thought of then.  Big plastic steering wheel with a chrome inner wheel for the horn.  It may have had seat belts in front, but they definitely weren't the retractable ones, and nobody used them then.  What it lacked were the picnic tables built in to the back of the front seats which were in the Westminster, the Princess and the 6/110, I think

Can't remember why I got shot of it - may have been an engine problem - but I dumped it in the field at the back of my parent's place, and it just sat there for 2 years.  

Don't remember it having a built-in jacking system, though.

Your observations Jereboam take me right back to George's (my f-i-l) Westminster; it was all those things that so impressed me about this car that he bought for £50 in 1971 after I 'broke' (tappet arm separated from the head!) his Humber Hawk!! 8-) 8-) 8-) 8-) 8-)

The latter I partially learn't to drive in, and the Westminster he allowed me to drive after passing my test, but on both cars those great big steering wheels were only their for one very good reason; no power steering!!  God didn't my arms ache after driving these cars, and on the Humber I had to learn to double de-clutch!

Great memories of the cars and my dear father-in-law, very sadly no longer with us

[Lizzie_Zoom]

Good grief I'm amongst people of my own age Austin Westminster wow! my dad drove one as a taxi the picture brought back memories. There was also a large Wolseley used by the police though not the 4/44 can't remember its name. They used to have square box sections welded to the sides itto which you inserted the jack and wound the car up from there, solid as a rock until they corroded.
I too have suffered at the hands of the rather intoxicated "peg leg Pete" jack used by Vaux & VW. I always shuve the spare under the car till the flat is off then switch it around. I had the same jack fail on me twice in the same tyre change. They are rubbish and don't give much warning. Thanks for the initial welcome, I was surprised to see you had gone, though better to see  you are back. I too inherited another daughter she filled the boot and the rest of my car with stuff that turned out to be 90% junk!

Thanks for that Bob!!

Yes my own children (x3) are all now over 30 with their own families so I thought the days of fully loaded cars were over.  But now I have an additional daughter with a son, both of whom I have unofficially adopted with her full blessing who now fill my miggy up as I once filled up Cortina Estate's and Carlton's in particular!  This did not help in the matter of first extracting the rather jack from its boot 'cupboard', and then all the bother it gave me.