Ford Sierra XR4x4

ENGINE 747cc/4-cyl/SV POWER 13bhp@5500rpm TORQUE N/A MAXIMUM SPEED 50mph 0-60MPH N/A FUEL CONSUMPTION 36-44mpg TRANSMISSION RWD, four-speed manual MoT Exempt ODOMETER 92,926 miles

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO DRIVE?

Great fun! It drives just as it should, considering its lived-in appearance. The engine fires instantly and settles straight into a comfortable idle. The clutch has very short travel and engages smoothly. There’s some pedal travel before the brakes bite, but this is normal and the car stops well. The gearbox is tight in operation, but if used patiently and carefully the synchromesh (on the top three ratios) works fine without any crunching. The suspension is firm and quite bouncy, feeling fine on good surfaces but unsettled on rutted or bad roads – again, everything you should expect from a properly set up Seven. It’s happiest cruising at around 40mph, beyond which engine and road noise starts to get intrusive.

BODYWORK CHECK

This baby Austin is original and unrestored, but not neglected. The paint is flat, but fundamentally solid across the entire body, but there is some corrosion in the door bottoms, rear nearside body where it meets the wing and in the rear passenger window frame. An hour or so with a wire brush and some underseal would treat the light surface rust on the chassis. The sill tread rubber is fine, but some small bits have cracked off. Unsurprisingly, the grille and badge have lost their shine, but the vinyl roof is in very good condition and the skinny tyres have deep tread. A new driver’s side wing mirror and electric wiper have been added.

HOW’S THE INTERIOR?

The interior is as original and heavily patinated as the exterior. The rubber floor lining is intact and looks good and the thick leather seats have stood up well to over eight decades of use. There are a couple of gaffer tape repairs to the driver’s seat squab seams and some of the stitching is coming away from the passenger seat base. The tiny instrument panel crams in plenty of information, but the ampmeter glass is cracked and the fuel gauge doesn’t work. The windscreen is hinged at the top and the rear side windows hinge open; the door glass drops on a winder, but the driver’s side’s propensity to come down unaided has been ‘fixed’ by way of a bungee cord holding the handle!

UNDER THE BONNET

The tiny inline ‘four ‘looks lost at the bottom of the tall engine bay. It is unmodified, there are some expected oil dribbles and the HT leads are of varying vintage, but there’s no rust or signs of accident damage. It is loud and raucous at speed, but never gives the sense that it is being overworked.

THE CCW VIEW

This 83-year old’s patina just makes it more adorable – it would be a crime to restore it and lose that air of age and time. Incredibly, it was being used as a daily driver until a few weeks ago.

EXTERIOR

Heavy patina Minimal corrosion

INTERIOR

Leather good for its age Broken fuel gauge

MECHANICALS

Sweet engine Synchro works