My First 7

[WJPez]

Wayne - Without wanting to put you off in any way, if you want a car to completely cope with modern traffic and which your wife will feel safe in, don't buy a Seven. You can mod it all you like but really it is not going to be happy at much more than 45-55mph and if you go anywhere near a motorway you will have inevitably have artics passing you.  And if you were able to mod it to the extent needed, then would it really still be a Seven?

The reality of a Seven on other types of road is that you will always have impatient people trying to get past you and on some roundabouts at busy times on A roads you will find it a challenge to beat the acceleration and speed of modern vehicles. Some of us deal with all this and drive as defensively as possible, weighing risk against reward. Others choose not to. It's a very personal choice.

Buy an MGB and you'll have plenty of fun with it - your wife will be happy and you'll easily cope with modern road conditions.

Hi Nick, i appreciate your comments. You are right, perhaps something more modern is the way to go. I have looked at MG Midgets as this is what the wife wants, but I really like Austin 7's. I have been researching for a while and when I came home empty handed yesterday I couldnt beleive how miserable I was. I had been looking forward to the moment for so long. Personally I would be more than happy with 45-50 mph when needed but would happily pootle around at 40 mph. I was trying to come up with a compromise that gets me the vehicle I want without making my wife feel uncomfortable.

Wayne

[JonE]

Just beware the thrill of the chase. Once it's been landed, the practicalities of living with her - I mean IT - may make you reconsider in the cold light of day.

Drive more of them locally... from the nearest small ads to you.

And a Midget. I must admit I've bought the restorers guide AGAIN after having a 1961ish Mk1 Midget (pre wind up windows) 20 years ago. They are very pure drivers cars, and fabulous value.

[Nigel was in Brittany]

I made the trip up to Lincolnshire on Sunday to see the Ruby. The car was very nice and Nigel was very knowledgeable. A concern that my wife and I had was the overall speed. We ended up on a main road and with  cars whizzing past it was quite hairy for the wife, she was in a bad accident a couple of years ago and is still quite nervous as a result. What tweaks/modifications are available to extract a little more acceleration and top speed. I have seen another car advertised that has a 3 bearing engine with a phoenix crankshaft fitted, is this a better starting point to get what I am looking for?

Wayne

Do Phoenix do a 3 bearing ? or is the engine a 3 bearing crankcase with the centre main carrier removed and a 2 bearing crank fitted.

[Martin Prior]

Wayne - Without wanting to put you off in any way, if you want a car to completely cope with modern traffic and which your wife will feel safe in, don't buy a Seven. You can mod it all you like but really it is not going to be happy at much more than 45-55mph and if you go anywhere near a motorway you will have inevitably have artics passing you.  And if you were able to mod it to the extent needed, then would it really still be a Seven?

The reality of a Seven on other types of road is that you will always have impatient people trying to get past you and on some roundabouts at busy times on A roads you will find it a challenge to beat the acceleration and speed of modern vehicles. Some of us deal with all this and drive as defensively as possible, weighing risk against reward. Others choose not to. It's a very personal choice.

Buy an MGB and you'll have plenty of fun with it - your wife will be happy and you'll easily cope with modern road conditions.

Hi Nick, i appreciate your comments. You are right, perhaps something more modern is the way to go. I have looked at MG Midgets as this is what the wife wants, but I really like Austin 7's. I have been researching for a while and when I came home empty handed yesterday I couldnt beleive how miserable I was. I had been looking forward to the moment for so long. Personally I would be more than happy with 45-50 mph when needed but would happily pootle around at 40 mph. I was trying to come up with a compromise that gets me the vehicle I want without making my wife feel uncomfortable.

Wayne

That's such a shame, Wayne.  If you'd have to use the Seven mainly on busy main roads I'd completely understand your wife's feelings.  

I've used mine as everyday transport since 1975 and used to do quite a lot of mileage on motorways and dual carriageways, but in those days most lorries wouldn't do more than 50 and the Austin could hold its own.  Nowadays, however, I plan my routes to avoid major roads.

I'm fortunate to live in Herefordshire, a county with only three miles of motorway and about the same of dual carriageway.  Almost all of the roads are reasonably A7-friendly.  Maybe a move out to the sticks would solve the problem!

[WJPez]

What are peoples thoughts on Big 7's? There are a few around and would still give me the look I am going for with I assume a little more speed.

Wayne

[AustinWood]

My car can cruise happily between 40 & 50 all day and a bit more if needed. Its a bit slower up hills, a bit faster down. I use it a lot (3-4,000 miles per year) but live in the Scottish Borders where there are no motorways or dual carriageways. On the whole I find I don't seriously impede other traffic.
In town (eg Edinburgh) it's great. Keeps up with traffic with no problems and fits where other cars won't. The Japanese tourists love it & and everyone smiles at me as I drive by. Great fun.

[Martin Prior]

What are peoples thoughts on Big 7's? There are a few around and would still give me the look I am going for with I assume a little more speed.

Wayne

The Big Seven isn't significantly faster, but does have the feel of a bigger car with a bit more metal around you.

[WJPez]

My car can cruise happily between 40 & 50 all day and a bit more if needed. Its a bit slower up hills, a bit faster down. I use it a lot (3-4,000 miles per year) but live in the Scottish Borders where there are no motorways or dual carriageways. On the whole I find I don't seriously impede other traffic.
In town (eg Edinburgh) it's great. Keeps up with traffic with no problems and fits where other cars won't. The Japanese tourists love it & and everyone smiles at me as I drive by. Great fun.

What made you buy the Big 7 over a standard Austin 7? To date I have done far less research on the Big 7, what is it like to get hold of spares? How different is the engine, how does it compare acceleration and top speed wise?

Wayne

---

What are peoples thoughts on Big 7's? There are a few around and would still give me the look I am going for with I assume a little more speed.

Wayne

The Big Seven isn't significantly faster, but does have the feel of a bigger car with a bit more metal around you.

Do you have a Big 7? If so, what speed are you getting at a comfortable cruise? I was looking for at least 50 mph to make the car more useable.

Wayne

[Andy Bennett]

Hi Wayne
The fact that you are even thinking about 'acceleration' lends me to think that you are really looking at the wrong type of car. Unless you go for one of the sporty 7s (Nippy, Rep Ulster, some specials etc) then acceleration really isn't something that sits alongside a normal conversation about an Austin 7.

i think that you need to think of an Austin 7 (incl big) as a car to enjoy a gentle drive where you might keep up with local traffic (in 30 or 40 linits), but you probably won't up hills (especially 2 up), and away from the lights or a roundabout you are going to have annoyed teenagers on your bumper wondering why you can't do 0-60 like their Ford Fiesta, and if that isn't going to work for you then you really need to look at a more powerful car, not one with fewer than 20bhp.

For me, I avoid dual carriageways wherever possible. There is little more scary than a row of cars in the outside lane doing 80, overtaking a lorry closing up on you at 60mph plus in the inside lane, and with a hill approaching. Much nicer to use the back roads where you can pull off if you cause a queue or have a boy racer on your bumper determined to pass you.

sorry

Andy B

[Ian Williams]

A big seven will not be any faster than a normal seven, but the suggestion of a sports model is not a daft one however is riddled with pitfalls for the unwary. A Nippy is a great sports tourer, has some weather protection when needed, and if it has a decent engine and close ratio gearbox so will keep up with modern traffic, however many these days have lost their original engines and are running a std touring unit so back to square one for performance! An Ulsteroid or special if well built will perform very well, sadly there are a lot of rather poorly conceived and constructed examples out there which will be little faster than a standard car. Good examples of any sports or special are expensive, that said a lot of bad ones are expensive too. Find a decent one and I am sure you will love it.......much better than an MG!