Despite taking its styling inspiration from the smaller, less powerful A40/A50/A55 Cambridge range, the wonderfully opulent Austin A90/A95/A105 Westminster line-up of the late ’Fifties was in a totally different league. And as this advert for the A95 shows, these were machines with more than enough power and performance to suit most buyers.
The problem was, even back in the late ’Fifties, many buyers wanted something more upmarket than an Austin badge on their luxury motor cars, which helps explain why just 60,000 six-cylinder ‘big Austins’ of all types were built between 1954 and 1959.
Austin described its A95 as “a car for the motorist who likes to travel far and fast, and to arrive fresh and relaxed”, all thanks to 2.6 litres of effortless oomph up front. Even better though was its value for money: At just £810 (plus £406 Purchase Tax), the A95 offered a more affordable alternative to the Rover P4s of the time.
