Cars in the 50s and 60s

The majority of cars on the roads in the 50s and the 60s were not new cars – in fact, many were from before the war (that’s the second world war 1939 to 1945); unquantified feeling is that most families did not have a car at all. My early cars in the early 60s included a 1937 Austin 12, 1937 Morris 8 ‘E’ Type, Austin Devon (1950?), straight back Ford Popular, 1956 Riley Pathfinder, 1933 MG PB (had a non synchromesh ‘crash’ gearbox which meant that you had to judge the speed of the engine to the selected gear), 1947 Triumph Roadster, 1952 Morris Minor – each one bought for little, worked on out of necessity and sold for about the same as the purchase price. Most of the cars had no heaters and it did get a touch cold. Most had starting handles which one had to stick into the front of the engine and then vigorously crank (holding the handle correctly to avoid a broken hand) in order to turn the engine over and, with luck, start it. One would drive along listening, feeling and sniffing to see if the car was OK; tools were always carried; most common things to fix were the electric fuel pumps (usually SU), fan belts slipping or breaking and the jets of the carburettor clogging. More on this subject later.