Austin 1100 Price Guide

The Austin 1100 (and its Morris, MG, Vanden Plas, Riley, and Wolseley siblings) was the best-selling car in Britain throughout the mid-1960s. Alec Issigonis’s Hydrolastic suspension gave it a ride quality that embarrassed cars twice its price, and the transverse engine layout borrowed from his Mini maximised interior space.

The Car

Produced from 1963 to 1974 across various BMC and British Leyland badges, the 1100/1300 family used 1,098cc and 1,275cc A-series engines driving the front wheels. Pininfarina styled the body. The Hydrolastic suspension (interconnected fluid displacers replacing conventional springs) delivered a supple, composed ride. Over 2.1 million were sold across all badge variants, making it one of the most successful British cars ever produced.

Buying

Survivors are remarkably scarce given the production numbers. Rust was catastrophic on these cars from new and has claimed the vast majority. Hydrolastic suspension can lose fluid and sag. The A-series engine is well-supported. The 1300 used an enlarged version of the same engine in the same body. Any 1100 in solid structural condition is worth preserving as a piece of British motoring history.