One of Britain’s most prolific car manufacturers of the 20th century is set to make a return.
Roughly three decades after the brand disappeared from UK roads, the Austin Motor Company is plotting its comeback – but rather than making modern, affordable vehicles for the masses, it’s taken inspiration from its history.
The Austin Arrow 2 is a lightweight two-seater roadster – in the style of the Austin Seven of 1922 – but featuring an electric powertrain.
The vehicle is powered by a 15kW electric motor, fed from a 20kWh lithium-ion battery, which the company says is good for 160km of driving range.
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While performance appears lacklustre – with almost 80 per cent less power than an entry-level Hyundai Inster – the Austin Arrow weighs just 605kg with its battery, giving it a claimed 0-100km/h time of 7.8 seconds.
The company says the Austin Arrow also has a top speed of 100km/h.
The original Austin Seven was a popular choice for a budget race car, with the likes of Sir Colin Chapman – the founder of Lotus – successfully campaigning a modified Seven, as did Bruce McLaren.
Australian motorsport legend Peter Brock also learned his trade on an Austin Seven – racing one around his parents’ farm, despite the car having no brakes or bodywork.
Behind the revival of Austin is British engineer John Stubbs, who recruited Nigel Gordon-Stewart as CEO and Chairman of the company in recent months – a veteran of TVR, Lamborghini,Lotus, and McLaren (during the F1 road-car era).
It’s understood Austin has set up manufacturing facilities in India, with each car being made to order – in both left- and right-hand-drive configurations.
The Austin Arrow is reportedly priced from £31,000 – or just over A$63,200.
The original founder of Austin, born in 1866, also had a connection with Australia, having moved to Melbourne at the age of 16 to work with his uncle at Langlands Foundry – the city’s first foundry and iron shipbuilder.
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