Discussion
Hi
Looking to source the wisdom of PH.
Younger daughter is 14, a bit of a handful, not getting on too well with her mother and has something of a propensity to spend her time gaming with her friends &/or shopping & 'hanging out' rather than anything too purposeful.
She does quite like cars and - prompted by us seeing one recently - has become quite taken by the idea of an Austin A35 for us to go to events in and, maybe, tweak a little to use in low key competitions.
Although, in normal circumstances, I would consume my own vomit before parting with my hard-earned for a 'peanut', the game changes if it's something that Claphamette 2 becomes interested in.
My issue is that, when I started looking into it, I naively assumed that there would be a plentiful supply of the things. What I am finding is that 2 doors are very rare and that the few that are on the market are either sub £2k basket cases, tarted-up horrors that haven't seen the inside of an MOT bay for 10 years at £5k or full on Speedwell replicas at £20k +
Looking at E-bay, Car and Classic and the A35 owners club (which all seem to be rotted hulks that have been festering on drives for 30 years or Betty selling Sid's long-time pride and joy now that she's had to put Sid into a home)
Any smart ideas that I've missed for where to find a decent A35?
Looking to source the wisdom of PH.
Younger daughter is 14, a bit of a handful, not getting on too well with her mother and has something of a propensity to spend her time gaming with her friends &/or shopping & 'hanging out' rather than anything too purposeful.
She does quite like cars and - prompted by us seeing one recently - has become quite taken by the idea of an Austin A35 for us to go to events in and, maybe, tweak a little to use in low key competitions.
Although, in normal circumstances, I would consume my own vomit before parting with my hard-earned for a 'peanut', the game changes if it's something that Claphamette 2 becomes interested in.
My issue is that, when I started looking into it, I naively assumed that there would be a plentiful supply of the things. What I am finding is that 2 doors are very rare and that the few that are on the market are either sub £2k basket cases, tarted-up horrors that haven't seen the inside of an MOT bay for 10 years at £5k or full on Speedwell replicas at £20k +
Looking at E-bay, Car and Classic and the A35 owners club (which all seem to be rotted hulks that have been festering on drives for 30 years or Betty selling Sid's long-time pride and joy now that she's had to put Sid into a home)
Any smart ideas that I've missed for where to find a decent A35?
As with any 70 year old car, you're probably going have to kiss a lot of frogs...Sometimes the one that Ethel (or whoever) is selling can be a minter. Be prepared to travel the length and breadth of the country and be tough enough to just walk away when the thing that looked fab in pictures turns out to be glitter-rolled turd.
I have an A30 van on the road & two saloons which aren't. There are loads of two door & four door cars for sale up to 5K. Some of those are super solid cars that have been looked after & have decent upgrades. I paid 7K for it last year, it has a 1098, MG diff & discs, and I have done around 2000 miles in it. It's an older restoration but solid & tidy. I love driving it.
Prices are lower than they were. There are loads on FB Marketplace. You really need to go and look at a hell of a lot of them, as a lot are terminally rotten or bodged.
Just bear in mind they aren't the safest cars to crash in. Great fun though, very simple, and you have to drive it 100% of the way.
Prices are lower than they were. There are loads on FB Marketplace. You really need to go and look at a hell of a lot of them, as a lot are terminally rotten or bodged.
Just bear in mind they aren't the safest cars to crash in. Great fun though, very simple, and you have to drive it 100% of the way.
A doff of my cap OP for your Claphamette's fine taste in wanting an A35! As you say prices have risen over the past few years, and for a taste of what you could be letting yourself in for in buying a restoration project i'd wholeheartedly recommend Ambleton's thread in Readers Rides, a great in-depth view of what you could potentially be buying.
As for any avenues you might have missed, i'd say you have most of them sussed - it'll just be a case of waiting for 'the right car' to come along. They are still out there, my old man picked up a minter back in 2021 that had done something like 8,071 miles from new and hadn't moved from its heated garage since 1974, think it set him back £6,000; whilst not cheap, for the fact that it's never had any welding and doesn't need any, it saves a fortune in the long-run. Best of luck on your hunt, hope to see this thread being updated with a "Look what i've bought...." post at some point
As for any avenues you might have missed, i'd say you have most of them sussed - it'll just be a case of waiting for 'the right car' to come along. They are still out there, my old man picked up a minter back in 2021 that had done something like 8,071 miles from new and hadn't moved from its heated garage since 1974, think it set him back £6,000; whilst not cheap, for the fact that it's never had any welding and doesn't need any, it saves a fortune in the long-run. Best of luck on your hunt, hope to see this thread being updated with a "Look what i've bought...." post at some point
Turbobanana said:
They also suffer from the Historic Motorsport tax that old Fords succumbed to.
Goodwood A35 Academy Race:
Whilst i've got my anorak on, that picture was from one of the HRDC amalgamation races at Mallory Park, opening it up to all A35s built to HRDC regs - the cars at the front with body coloured roofs being the faster Speedwell-specification cars. Not surprised the values are rising tbf, even in the 22 years i've been following A35s racing i've seen countless cars rolled in to a ball or involved in a big one... Goodwood A35 Academy Race:
Prices of A35s have dropped like a stone over the past year.
You can get a really tidy standard one for ~£7k. Occasionally one comes up at around 3-4k that's mint but they sell quickly.
Facebook marketplace and the A30/35 club Facebook pages are good.
Rot boxes cost an absolute fortune to sort out - ask me how I know
(only doing it because it's a long time family member)
Something to note- If it's not absolutely mint, I'd put money on it being a rotter. They can and do hide horrific rust very well! Mine didn't look that bad before I started stripping it. Holy s
t how things escalated.
You can get a really tidy standard one for ~£7k. Occasionally one comes up at around 3-4k that's mint but they sell quickly.
Facebook marketplace and the A30/35 club Facebook pages are good.
Rot boxes cost an absolute fortune to sort out - ask me how I know
(only doing it because it's a long time family member)Something to note- If it's not absolutely mint, I'd put money on it being a rotter. They can and do hide horrific rust very well! Mine didn't look that bad before I started stripping it. Holy s
t how things escalated. Edited by Ambleton on Monday 24th June 14:40
ClaphamGT3 said:
Hi
Looking to source the wisdom of PH.
Younger daughter is 14, a bit of a handful, not getting on too well with her mother and has something of a propensity to spend her time gaming with her friends &/or shopping & 'hanging out' rather than anything too purposeful.
She does quite like cars and - prompted by us seeing one recently - has become quite taken by the idea of an Austin A35 for us to go to events in and, maybe, tweak a little to use in low key competitions.
Although, in normal circumstances, I would consume my own vomit before parting with my hard-earned for a 'peanut', the game changes if it's something that Claphamette 2 becomes interested in.
My issue is that, when I started looking into it, I naively assumed that there would be a plentiful supply of the things. What I am finding is that 2 doors are very rare and that the few that are on the market are either sub £2k basket cases, tarted-up horrors that haven't seen the inside of an MOT bay for 10 years at £5k or full on Speedwell replicas at £20k +
Looking at E-bay, Car and Classic and the A35 owners club (which all seem to be rotted hulks that have been festering on drives for 30 years or Betty selling Sid's long-time pride and joy now that she's had to put Sid into a home)
Any smart ideas that I've missed for where to find a decent A35?
I could put you in touch with a guy called Neil Evans who is the technical guy for the austin A30/35 club, he may know of any possibilities.Looking to source the wisdom of PH.
Younger daughter is 14, a bit of a handful, not getting on too well with her mother and has something of a propensity to spend her time gaming with her friends &/or shopping & 'hanging out' rather than anything too purposeful.
She does quite like cars and - prompted by us seeing one recently - has become quite taken by the idea of an Austin A35 for us to go to events in and, maybe, tweak a little to use in low key competitions.
Although, in normal circumstances, I would consume my own vomit before parting with my hard-earned for a 'peanut', the game changes if it's something that Claphamette 2 becomes interested in.
My issue is that, when I started looking into it, I naively assumed that there would be a plentiful supply of the things. What I am finding is that 2 doors are very rare and that the few that are on the market are either sub £2k basket cases, tarted-up horrors that haven't seen the inside of an MOT bay for 10 years at £5k or full on Speedwell replicas at £20k +
Looking at E-bay, Car and Classic and the A35 owners club (which all seem to be rotted hulks that have been festering on drives for 30 years or Betty selling Sid's long-time pride and joy now that she's had to put Sid into a home)
Any smart ideas that I've missed for where to find a decent A35?
blue_haddock said:
I could put you in touch with a guy called Neil Evans who is the technical guy for the austin A30/35 club, he may know of any possibilities.
That would be awesome thanks - really appreciated!I am also learning that most A35 owners have a total aversion to London and the ones that are for sale are miles away
Chunkychucky said:
Whilst i've got my anorak on, that picture was from one of the HRDC amalgamation races at Mallory Park, opening it up to all A35s built to HRDC regs - the cars at the front with body coloured roofs being the faster Speedwell-specification cars. Not surprised the values are rising tbf, even in the 22 years i've been following A35s racing i've seen countless cars rolled in to a ball or involved in a big one...
My bad, I didn't check, I just Googled "A35 Academy". Nothing useful to add other than my mother had an A35 van when I was a kid about 45 years ago. It was so rotten back then that when someone lent on the top of the front wind one day their hand went through it. My father 'repaired' it with a piece of roller blind fabric and a rattle can of the green paint, which probably outlasted the rest of the car.
There's a few A30s on C&C that looks ok. One grey one at 9k that looks pretty standard but lovely, and one modified black one at 10k.
The black £10k one has all the desirable mods done already and (if it's as solid as it appears), is probably a bit of a bargain tbh. Midget brakes, 1275 engine, frontline suspension etc.
By the time I've done the same to mine (and the bodywork) I'll be somewhere between 25-30k
The black £10k one has all the desirable mods done already and (if it's as solid as it appears), is probably a bit of a bargain tbh. Midget brakes, 1275 engine, frontline suspension etc.
By the time I've done the same to mine (and the bodywork) I'll be somewhere between 25-30k
Turbobanana said:
Chunkychucky said:
Whilst i've got my anorak on, that picture was from one of the HRDC amalgamation races at Mallory Park, opening it up to all A35s built to HRDC regs - the cars at the front with body coloured roofs being the faster Speedwell-specification cars. Not surprised the values are rising tbf, even in the 22 years i've been following A35s racing i've seen countless cars rolled in to a ball or involved in a big one...
My bad, I didn't check, I just Googled "A35 Academy". 
I'm all for seeing some A35 pron posted on PH, fortunately not everyone is 'special' enough to simultaneously ruin their A35 and their bank balance like i've done... 
As another poster suggested, it may be worth considering something other than an A35 - they're cute, but it can be a slippery slope when you start modifying one.. in all honesty I still get a good laugh taking my dad's bog-standard car out and driving it on the doorhandles whilst just about managing 50mph, although the braking distances do take some getting used to!
Chunkychucky said:
Turbobanana said:
Chunkychucky said:
Whilst i've got my anorak on, that picture was from one of the HRDC amalgamation races at Mallory Park, opening it up to all A35s built to HRDC regs - the cars at the front with body coloured roofs being the faster Speedwell-specification cars. Not surprised the values are rising tbf, even in the 22 years i've been following A35s racing i've seen countless cars rolled in to a ball or involved in a big one...
My bad, I didn't check, I just Googled "A35 Academy". I'm all for seeing some A35 pron posted on PH, fortunately not everyone is 'special' enough to simultaneously ruin their A35 and their bank balance like i've done... As another poster suggested, it may be worth considering something other than an A35 - they're cute, but it can be a slippery slope when you start modifying one.. in all honesty I still get a good laugh taking my dad's bog-standard car out and driving it on the doorhandles whilst just about managing 50mph, although the braking distances do take some getting used to!
- Lancia Fulvia rally replica
- Riley One-Point-Five in period saloon car racing spec
- Frog-eye Sprite in period club racing spec
All get a "Nah; I'd like an A35 please" response
ClaphamGT3 said:
I have tried to get her thinking about;
- Lancia Fulvia rally replica
- Riley One-Point-Five in period saloon car racing spec
- Frog-eye Sprite in period club racing spec
All get a "Nah; I'd like an A35 please" response
- Lancia Fulvia rally replica
- Riley One-Point-Five in period saloon car racing spec
- Frog-eye Sprite in period club racing spec
All get a "Nah; I'd like an A35 please" response
Well, I can't criticise her taste in fine automobiles! The Riley is a sensible suggestion, similar vein to the A35 but cheaper to buy and quicker courtesy of the B series engine (standard car vs standard car). I do like a Frogeye, however given they're an A35 in a frock you're going to be facing similar issues to purchasing an A35 but be looking at purchase prices 100% higher or possibly more 
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