In 1956 a much improved version of the A30 arrived, the Austin A35. The A35 used a larger A-series engine of 948cc as found in the new Morris Minor 1000, this new powerplant gave the little Austin good performance for its class and even led to some Saloon Car Racing successes during the mid-50's. The A35 now featured a larger front grille (with painted slats instead of chrome), a larger rear window, flashing turn signal indicators to replace the semaphore trafficators, remote control gear-change, but more significant in use was a new set of gear ratios. On the A30 the lower three were close together with a big gap to 4th. The A35 had much better spacing such that it could reach 60 mph in third and acceleration/hill climbing was maintained far more easily. The A30 had a compression ratio of 7.2:1 the A35 increased this to 8.3:1 to take advantage of better petrols appearing around this time. Both cars had normal front drum brakes hydraulically operated; but the rear drums were cable and rod operated by a single slave cylinder under the floor. This proved to be a maintenance weakness and needed frequent attention to keep
braking up to standards. Teaching someone to drive in one of these cars was a scary business, as the handbrake was between the driver's seat and his/her door .
The A35 proved to be popular with the car buying public although it soon dated after the launch of the new Mini range in 1959. Production of the A35 lasted in Saloon form until 1959 when the model was replaced by the Farina styled A40. Practical Classics January 1993 - Featuring Buyers Guide Austin Babies. Click Here to view in our shop.
