Big Wolseley find

[bigstraight6]

A good friend of mine has just acquired this beautiful 1959 Wolseley 6/90, she had been locked away in a garage for many years but after some fresh petrol in the tank and a decent battery she fired up without any hesitation We were able to drive it up and down the private road leading to the workshop and all works well, even the brakes feel good. The combination of the silky smooth 'C' series 2.6 straight six engine note and the slight whine from the gearbox are pure nostalgia, it really is a delight this old car....

[Junkman]

Fuggin ace! Insure it, tax it, drive it!

[AnthonyG]

Absolutely lovely - is that serious rust or just staining?

[vulgalour]

That's a bit of alright, that is. Are those the original lights on the back? I only ask because they look really out of place with the smooth styling of the rest of it.

[Angrydicky]

What a cracker. Floor change must have been quite a rare option in these, no?

 

I see it has a towbar, would make an utterly fantastic towcar for a vintage caravan

[wuvvum]

That is gorgeous - don't think I've seen a Wolseley that shape before. Are they essentially a six-pot version of the Riley Ditchfinder?

[Shep Shepherd]

 

Make it roadworthy and that Wooly would make for a great rolling restoration - how cool would it be to drive it every day?

[Lankytim]

Oooh, i'd love a go in that!! It looks really solid too!

[ProgRocker]

That looks alright!

[DSdriver]

Fantastic. Paint it black, stick a bell on the front and pretend you're Charlie Barlow in Softly Softly.

[Split_Pin]

Thats a lovely old car that and the interior looks in particularly excellent shape. I like the colour too.

 

What's the owner's plans for it?

[AeroNautiCal]

Now that... Is a thing of beauty!

 

I love it.

[Andrew353w]

Truly beautiful! My biology teacher had one when I was at school in the 1970s; they were rare then, so now it must be rarer than a rare thing on 29th Feb!

 

Looks lovely and worth driving on a regular basis! Epic!

[TagoraSX]

Nice, looks in great nick too.

[dollywobbler]

Good stuff. My reference book reckons these came with a right-hand gearchange (as did the Morris Isis - same car, yet another different body). Don't think there's any Ditchfinder in them - there was a Riley equivalent but it's all BMC with monocoque construction.

 

Rear lights look standard BMC, also shared with the Isis though they do indeed look rather odd.

[RedSparrow]

These are nice, very well styled. Always fancied an MG variation. The last time I saw one was going round the oval at Arlington but lets not go there!

[Wilko220]

What a stunna! Very envious...

[dollywobbler]

These are nice, very well styled. Always fancied an MG variation. The last time I saw one was going round the oval at Arlington but lets not go there!

 

Sadly there was no MG equivalent of these mighty six-bangers. A larger, six-pot Magnette Z is rather appealing!

[RedSparrow]

Wikipedia alleges:

The similar Wolseley 4/44, first sold one year earlier, used the 1250 cc engine from the MG TF. Although visually similar, the MG has lower suspension and only the front doors, boot lid and roof panels are shared

 

Which I was not aware of until 2 minutes ago. I find this incredibly hard to believe!

[dollywobbler]

It's true. Know a bloke who used to own one AND tow a caravan with it! The engine was detuned from MG spec. Wolseley must have worried about dazzling its buyers with POWAARGH.

[michiel]

Hnnng. Gorgeous.

[eddyramrod]

That's bloody gorgeous! I am officially jealous! I'd love to see it recommissioned and used as-is. How cool!

[The Reverend Bluejeans]

Absolute WolsPorn. The Pathfinder is one of my all time favourite motors, coil spring rear end, torsion bars and the big twin cam. The 6/90 is a bit tamer but still a stunning looking car. Iirc, there were three series of them. One had rear coils (?), another had the side gearshift between the seat and the door (!).

 

The big Nuffield cars were so much better engineered than Austin stuff. I think Gerald Palmer was responsible for these as well as the lovely Z Magnettes and other BMC rightness.

[Tetleysmooth]

Terrific find that is.

 

I'm just bloody jealous.

[holbeck]

^ Ditchfinder was the same but with Riley grille, and Riley twin cam engine. Later Riley's had the 'C' series engine and were known as the Riley 2.6.

 

This car is a 6/90 Mk3 as it has the centre floor gear change, plus revised rear suspension. (mk2 had the right hand gear change, Mk1 column gear change and metal dash board).

 

The designer of the 6/90 / Ditchfinder, Gerald Palmer was sacked by BMC because of it's handling deficiencies, but resurfaced at Vauxhall and was responsible for the FB victor.

[Wilko220]

 

Sadly there was no MG equivalent of these mighty six-bangers. A larger, six-pot Magnette Z is rather appealing!

 

If you have a spare six grand down the back of the sofa, this one has just been listed on ebay...

Seems a bit much seeing as it's SORNed and "does require some parts to finish off".

 

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MG-Magnette-Z ... 3f227c923c

[freebird]

 

Sadly there was no MG equivalent of these mighty six-bangers. A larger, six-pot Magnette Z is rather appealing!

 

If you have a spare six grand down the back of the sofa, this one has just been listed on ebay...

Seems a bit much seeing as it's SORNed and "does require some parts to finish off".

 

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MG-Magnette-Z ... 3f227c923c

They do make big money.

To be fair, they look the nuts and are one of the few 50s cars with "a modest engine size" that can easily cope with modern traffic, they even handle well, apparently.

That big Wolseley is on my bucket list to own, my Dad used to tell me stories of when his mates and he used to pile into his friends one and travel up from London to Southend,at the weekends, in the late 50s/early 60s. A very potent car in its day.

Fabulous car.

[406V6]

The designer of the 6/90 / Ditchfinder, Gerald Palmer was sacked by BMC because of it's handling deficiencies, but resurfaced at Vauxhall and was responsible for the FB victor.

Leonard Lord was looking for an excuse to get rid of Palmer so that Issigonis could return from Alvis and take his job. Issigonis designed the Mini and the bones of the 1100 but the following cars he was responsible for (1800, Maxi) were so bad that they killed BMC. I reckon the industry would have been a far better place if the brilliant Palmer had kept his job as design head at BMC and Issigonis had disappeared into obscurity. Anyone interested in Palmer should read his autobiography "Auto Architect"

[mattblack]

Leonard Lord was looking for an excuse to get rid of Palmer so that Issigonis could return from Alvis and take his job. Issigonis designed the Mini and the bones of the 1100 but the following cars he was responsible for (1800, Maxi) were so bad that they killed BMC. I reckon the industry would have been a far better place if the brilliant Palmer had kept his job as design head at BMC and Issigonis had disappeared into obscurity. Anyone interested in Palmer should read his autobiography "Auto Architect"

 

In what way was the 1800 'bad'?

[plasticvandan]

It wasnt bad,neither was the Maxi,but they werent what was wanted/needed,just Issi fulfilling his own dreams of max interior space for min exterior space.Issigonis's autobiography is a very good read,after the 1100 BMC treated him like God,but the 1800 was a sales flop(in relation to what was predicted) and the Maxi was unloved from the start,both within BMC and with the public.

 

After the Maxi issi was pushed aside following the BL formation,tho retained as consultant almost until his death in 1988,his consultancy was terminated (Austin Rover were still paying for his costs when he was in a care home iirc) not long after he wrote to Austin Rover suggesting that the Mini should not be called the City or Mayfair and should revert to names like super and deluxe lol