Gasoline Engine ,4 Cylinders, 15 HP, 4 Doors, sunroof. 2 separated seats in the front and 1 long seat in the back. Original color Red, Current color is dark green.

Austin's Third Chapter in America (Imported)
With the close of the war, Leonard Lord then head of the Austin Motorcar Company, decided to spend 1,000,000 pounds on the infrastructure of the corporation so as to prepare it to resume consumer production. Also at the close of the war there was a movement in England towards the Labour party and to nationalize many 
industries, due in part to the shortage of resources brought about by the war. Many of the vital industries needed for the manufacture of automobiles such as power generation (coal and oil were in short supply) were not able to run around the clock as in the past. With 
natural resources in short supply production was cut back and hence, it was difficult to absorb all the returning soldiers back into the work force. This caused a recessionary effect on the economy and the heavy tax levied on the purchase of new automobiles and the gas 
rationing (as little as 7 gallons per month) did little to spur 
sales in the UK. Lord recognized in 1945 that, if Austin was to survive as a company they would have to rely on foreign markets. The next step was to design a car that would appeal both the home and to the largest forging market, the USA. Then, sometime between the summer of 1945 and spring of 1947, it is unclear to this author, the A40 was conceived, designed and developed, with the first one being built in apparent secrecy. Austin's were once again imported to the U.S. starting in the late 
summer and fall of 1947. This new "modern" Austin looked very much like the late 30's and early 40's General Motors products, sporting the 6 window look (3 per side). The A40 had some very unique features including:
Full box frame 
Independent wishbone front suspension 
Hydraulic brakes in the front and mechanicals in the rear 
1200 CC 40 horsepower OHV engine . 
16 inch tires 
A jacking system operated from the interior 
Leather interior and 
A sunroof 
The acceptance and popularity of the A40 inspired Austin to begin shipping the A90 Atlantic sport car as well as a few of the larger (A125 & 135) models to the States. Unfortunately, the A90 sales were not good and the A40 was receiving a luke warm reception in the States. A final effort was made to bolster the sales in 1951 by modernizing the A40. The "new" A40 included improvements such as: A new dash with instruments mounted in the center 4 wheel hydraulic brakes 
Column shift and A MkII rear axle, adding 5mph to the top speed This final effort failed as the American public was quickly moving on to the modern looking coachwork. By 1952 the effort to import to the American market was abandoned. Sales continued through 1953 and early 1954. And to the best of my knowledge, only 54 A40's remain in running condition today in the USA. Note: The A40 was an important development in the history of the 
English automobile. The block and many of the other internal and external parts of the A40's engine can be found in the BMC's "B" series engine and other parts through the early 1970's. Austin's Final Chapter (Austin in Disguise?) In 1951 the American Nash company had started design work on a small 2 seater called the NX1 they intended to add to their line. The design originally called for the mechanical systems to be provided 
by Fiat. But soon after Nash president George Mason was introduced to Len Lord, president of Austin by Donald Healey (helped to create the Nash-Healey sports car) an agreement was reached for the Austin 
Motorcar Company to produce the "Nash" Metropolitan. As a result of the agreement, Nash would hold exclusive marketing rights for the Metro. The first Metropolitans were rolling off the assembly line in spring  of 1954. costing less than $1500, it had all the great styling that 
made Nash famous. If the larger Nash models were upside-down bathtubs then the Metropolitan had to be an upsidedown soap dish. To add to the smooth lines of the body, there was no outside access to the trunk (or even a trunk lid). The rear trunk was accessed through the toneau type cover located in the area behind the bench seat. It was a 2 seater and came in the form of a hardtop or convertible and even had "room" for children directly behind the modest bench seat. It sported such standard equipment as a heater, a radio and a continental spare. Some of the options included, two tone paint and whitewall tires. The mechanicals were mostly borrowed from the Austin A40 (see above) 
and the A30 models. 1200 cc engine (A40) Steering Suspension and Brake systems The transmission was only available in the standard (American preference) three on the tree and then finally, in 1956 the engine was upgraded to the B-series BMC 1489 cc four cylinder.
In 1957 Austin secured the right to market and sell the Metro in foreign markets where AMC did not trade. Austin never put their badge on the Metro (probably a good decision) but chose to market it simply as the Metropolitan 1500. These right hand drive models were 
never really embraced by foreign markets and the British politely tolerated it as an oddity.By 1959 the big three in Detroit were turning out their own compacts and by 1960 AMC decided to abandon the Metro. The only real change to the body by this time was the addition of a trunk lid for access to the trunk from the outside of the vehicle. The leftover stock took a long time to sell in America, dragging into 1961 and a few as late as 1962.
Total production numbers for the US were 19,399 convertibles and 75,569 hardtops. Approximately 9,400 units were distributed in the UK and other markets.
Due to the uni-body construction and the sometimes harsh climates of the states, few of these cars are actually in running condition today but there are several clubs and web pages out there where you can get more information on these little cars. If you have any information to add to this, or comments about it, 
please e-mail me. Also, if you would like to do a guest feature about the history of your favorite automobile, I'd be happy to hear your ideas. 

Actual Model

Actual Model