For many years, the small and medium-sized Austin and Morris vans produced by BMC were almost as familar a sight on British roads as the cars on which they were based.
Lucrative contracts with the nationalised utility companies helped to ensure that some of these models remained in production way beyond their natural sell-by dates, although the same could also be said for Leyland's larger vans, and indeed, this also held true for some of Leyland's competitors.
By the end of the 1980s, Rover's CDV production had been reduced to just one model – the Maestro van – as the upmarket image being cultivated for its newer models precluded the development of commercial versions the Rover-badged cars. When the Maestro van finally died in 1994, so did the company's long tradition of producing light commercial vehicles... or so it seemed. At the beginning of February 2003, MG Rover sprang a surprise by launching CDV versions of the Rover 25 and MG ZR.
On this page you'll be able to trace the history of the car-derived commercial vehicles produced by BMC and its successors, and also catch a glimpse of some models offered only in overseas markets, plus some that never quite made it into the showroom...
Small models
Austin A30 van 1954-1956 Austin A35 van 1956-1968 Austin A35 pick-up 1956-1957
Sharing its major mechanical components and frontal styling with the "Baby Austin" A30 saloon, the 5cwt A30 van (type AV4) soon found a ready market with Britain's small bsuinessmen. The same bodyshell was used for the Countryman estate car version, having been fitted with rear side windows. Although the A30 van offered the same payload as the first Morris O-type (Minor-based) vans (see below), it was physically smaller, having a load capacity of just 60 cu ft as opposed to the O-type's 76 cu ft.
In 1956, the van was uprated in line with the car range, receiving a 948cc A-series engine in place of the original 803cc version, to become the A35 (type AV5). While the A35 saloons were replaced by the Mini in 1959, the van soldiered on, with a MkII version (type AV6) being launched in 1962, identifiable by its white radiator grille and less-fussy door skins. This version lasted just 6 months, before being replaced by the MkIII version (type A-AV8) in October of the same year, which gained the 1098cc A-series engine. Finally, in May 1966, the 1098cc engine was supplanted by the Mini's 848cc unit, considered adequate for the sort of local delivery work these vans invariably undertook. Production ceased in February 1968.
The A35 also spawned a shapely pick-up (type AK5), but just 475 of these were produced over a short and sporadic production run between 1956 and 1957.
Minivan 1960-1982 Mini pick-up 1961-1982
The Minivan appeared witin a few months of the Mini itself. Sitting on a longer wheelbase, it featured a basic, pressed grille, double rear doors and the 848cc A-series engine. Payload was 5cwt, while load capacity was 46 cu ft, or 58 cu ft if the passenger seat was removed. This same bodystyle would be used for the Traveller and Countryman estate cars which appeared later that same year, although they almost invariably featured the cosmetic addition of a wooden rear-body framework.
Exactly one year after the launch of the Minivan, the pick-up version arrived, built on the same wheelbase and sharing the vans other styling cues. Further developments were few and far between. 1967 saw the introduction of the 998cc engine, which was offered alongside the 848cc unit, but both van and pick-up would retain the original Mini's charctertistic sliding windows and external door hinges throughout their production life.
At the end of 1978, they were renamed "Mini 95" in reference to the 0.94-ton gross vehicle weight (rather than payload), and a couple of years later, they became part of the Morris van range. When the new Metro-based van arrived in October 1982, the Minivan and pick-up's days were numbered, and they were quietly dropped at the end of that year.
Morris Metro 1.0/1.3 1982-1985 Renamed Austin Metro 310 (later Metrovan) 1985-1990
1982 was a significant year for the Metro: as well as seeing the introduction of the image-boosting new MG and Vanden Plas variants, the bargain-basement City version was also launched that year, forming the basis for the van version that would follow before the year was out.
In launching the Metro van, BL was merely responding to public pressure. Within short order of the car's launch, a growing number of businesses had recognised its potential as a load-lugger, and had produced their own makeshift conversions by removing the rear seats and blocking out the rear side windows, much as they had done with the 1100 estates in the previous decade. From that point on, despite it being BL's intention that the Minivan should serve this market, the Metro was clearly destined to replace its long-running forebear. Indeed, despite initial impressions, the Metro van's payload and loadspace were all but identical to (if slightly less practical than) the Minivan's (although BL did not publish a capacity figure for the Metro with its passenger seat removed). As it transpired, there was a short overlap in production of Metro and Mini vans, but the older vehicles days were numbered.
BL's initial reluctance to offer the Metro as a van may have been driven by a wish to avoid diluting the car's trendy image. Even after it had bowed to the inevitable, the van was still set apart from the car range by virtue of its Morris badge. As with the larger Maestro, a pick-up was not part of the standard range, although a few specialist conversions were offered, such as the Metro Mover. The factory did, however, produce a small number of MG Metro vans as special orders for privileged customers. Following the demise of the Morris marque in 1985, the restyled Metro van emerged with an Austin badge, alongside the new Maestro van. The Metrovan continued in production after the Austin badge was also dropped (in 1987), but the more upmarket Rover Metro of 1990 was not officially offered in van form, although there were some aftermarket conversions.
Based on the Series E Morris Eight (itself an updating of a pre-war design), the 5cwt Z-series van was nearing the end of its production life at the time of the 1952 merger. Just one year later, it was replaced by the Morris Minor-based O-Type van and pick-up truck, which offered an improved load capacity with its boxy rear bodywork.
Morris ¼-ton (O-Type) 1953-1971 Also sold as Austin 6cwt & 8cwt
Better known as the Morris Minor van, the O-Type was introduced with a 5cwt payload in 1953 to replace the Morris Z-series. The payload was uprated in 1962, with 6cwt and 8cwt versions being offered right through to 1971. The standard van had a load capacity of 76 cu ft.
Alongside the standard van and pick-up versions, the O-Type could also be supplied as a chassis-cab, allowing coachbuliders to build custom bodywork for everything from campers and ice cream vans to tow-trucks and mini-artics. Another popular mid-1960s conversion was a high-roof extension for the standard van, allowing such things as gas canisters and the new-fangled upright fridge-freezers to be carried. Additionally, dealer chain Wadhams offered an estate-car conversion, which basically involved fitting the van with rear seats and side windows to form a kind of cut-price Traveller, sans wood.
Special versions of the van were produced for the Post Office (traditionally one of Morris's most loyal customers), to be used by the Royal Mail and GPO telephone engineers. Early examples of the former type were fitted with black rubber front wings (see right) both to protect against minor impacts and to keep the initial purchase price down. In fact, the van's sheer longevity can largely be attributed to the loyal patronage of these customers in the later years.
Morris Cowley MCV 1950-1956
Introduced to replace the essentially pre-war Y-series van, this Morris Oxford MO-based 10cwt van served in the ½-ton sector as big brother to the ¼-ton Z-series and O-type vans, proving more popular than the forward-control Morris J-type van which offered an identical payload. The boxy van body gave a capacity of 120 cu ft, or 138 cu ft without the front passenger seat.
In addition to the standard van, the factory also turned out pick-up and chassis-cab versions, with the latter being used as the basis for a wide range of specialist vehicles – including the custom-built, wooden-bed pick-up shown here: the better-integrated rear bodywork on factory-produced pick-ups was all-steel.
Morris ½-ton Series III 1956-1962
Based on the Series III Morris Oxford, this model replaced the Cowley MCV. Load capacity for the standard van remained at 120-138 cu ft, and again it could also be ordered as a pick-up or chassis-cab, for bespoke coachwork such as that seen here. Six years later, it was discontinued in favour of the Morris versions of the new Austin A55 van (below).
Austin A55/A60 1958-1972 Also sold as Morris ½-ton 1962-1971
Utilising the front-end styling of the MkI Austin A55 Cambridge, this van's raised roofline resulted in a useful 96 cu ft load capacity, one of the factors that saw it continue in production until the early 1970s, seeing off the proposed ADO17-based panel van (see below) in the process. In 1962 it was upgraded to the A60 mechanical spec, also receiving a minor facelift but essentially retaining the mid-1950s Cambridge style. It was eventually pensioned-off in favour of the Marina-based van.
Effectvely replacing both the Austin A55 and Morris Minor vans, the Marina-based models were briefly sold in identical Austin- and Morris-badged versions before being cunningly rebadged as "Austin Morris". Both van and pick-up offered a 10cwt payload, and were powered by the widely-used 1275cc A-series engine; the van was also available in a 7cwt version, with the option of the 1098cc A-series. Load capacity for the van was 88 cu ft, rising to 104 cu ft with the front passenger seat removed. The pick-up had a 36 cu ft loadbay.
In 1978, the models were relaunched as the 440 (7cwt) and 575 (10cwt), and received the styling revisions applied to the Marina 2 saloon and estate models, including matt black bumpers and redesigned dashboard. They were also rebadged at this time, in line with BL's emerging strategy for
vans to fall under the Morris marque. Finally, in 1980 the A-series engines were supplanted by the revised A-Plus unit, in 1275cc form only.
Morris Ital 440/575 1982-1985
In line with the revisions which had been made to saloon and estate models a couple of years before, the Marina-based van and pick-up eventually gained the Ital's new front end, along with the passenger cars' new model name. Following the demise of the non-commercial Ital models in 1984, Morris briefly became the LCV-only marque that BL had envisaged back in the late 1970s. Almost 15 years after production ceased, the tooling was sold for production in China...
The moribund Morris marque finally died in 1985, when the Ital 440 and 575 were replaced by the Austin-badged Maestro 500 and 700 respectively. The new vans featured a larger rear opening, in addition to the benefit of the increased payloads that the new names suggested. Loadspace, however, was slightly down, at 86 cu ft. There was no factory-built replacement for the Ital 575 pick-up, although a small number of vans were converted into pick-ups by external contractors. When production ceased in the mid-1990s, it marked the end of the Rover Group's involvement in the light commercial market under BMW. However, the van later resurfaced in China as the Etsong QE6440.
4x4 models
The Land Rover and original Range Rover could often be seen at work for the emergency services, with ambulance and fire-engine conversions being undertaken by a number of specialist companies. Here, however, we concentrate on the factory-produced commercials.
Land Rover (Defender) 1948-date
Over its 50-year-plus production history, the venerable Land Rover has
always been available in a variety of van and pick-up configurations.
The original 80-inch wheelbase model was superceded by the 86- and 107-inch
models in 1954, while four years later, the Series II models were launched
with 88 and 109-inch wheelbases respectively, which were retained for
the Series III of 1971.
The range was revised for the 1980s, with the Ninety and One Ten models
replacing the 88 and 109 respectively, and in 1990 the Defender name was
introduced to reflect the Land Rover name's newfound status as a marque.
There were also the forward-control models, offered between 1954 and 1978
in a variety of wheelbase lengths, although, as with the special light-weight
Land Rovers, the vast majority of these were sold under military contracts.
Land Rover's expertise in the commercial market was reflected in BL's
1981 reorganisation, which saw the Freight Rover division created within
the Land Rover group to handle the Sherpa van, a move which would lead
to the creation of the formidable 4-wheel-drive Sherpa.
Range Rover 1972-1994
This rarely-seen van version of the Range Rover really belongs in the
"Overseas models" section (below), as it was built primarily for sales
in markets where commercial vehicles did not attract the import duties
that made the standard Range Rover too expensive for many customers. However,
a handful were in fact sold in the UK, mainly to Police forces. Production
of the van continued long after the two-door estate model had been discontinued,
giving a clue as to the feasibilty of the special edition two-door CSK
model which appeared in 1990.
Land Rover Discovery 1993-1998
The Discovery van was offered as a more civilised alternative to the traditional
Defender. Like the Discovery estate from which it was derived, it was
initially available only as a 3-door model, but in later years, the 5-door
Discovery was also offered as a sort of semi-van, with its rear seats
intact but its luggage-bay side windows blanked-off. Various other countries
had their own van versions of the Discovery, some of which were introduced
to avoid punitive import duties.
Land Rover Freelander Commercial 1999-2006
Land Rover launched a new derivative of the Freelander at the Fleet Motor
Show at the NEC, Birmingham, in 1999. The Freelander Commercial is based
on the three-door Hardback and was targeted at major fleets, small businesses
and people who need to transport equipment to remote off-road areas, customers
will include utility, plant hire, security and construction companies.
Overseas models
Morris DOMI
This Danish variant was produced by Dansk Oversoisk Motor Industrie (hence the name), based on the standard Minor chassis cab. DOMI added the integrated, all-steel rear bodywork, lower but longer than that of the standard O-type van, and offering a useful increase in loadspace.
Morris 1000 Super Combi
Another Danish offering, this time achieved by panelling-in the standard Traveller's rear side windows and removing the rear seats. This makes an interesting counterpart to the Wadham-converted estate cars, which were basically Minor vans with side windows and rear seats added...
The UK did have a pick-up version of the Austin A55/A60, but the Austin A55 Utility featured here was a local Australian initiative, developed to take advantage of the ready market for this type of vehicle Down Under.
Siam di Tella Argenta
Logic may have suggested that the Austin A55 pick-up would be superceded by a Farina-style model, but in the world of commercial vehicles, there was often little incentive to replace a tried and tested model purely for cosmetic considerations. However, a Farina pick-up was offered by Siam di Tella in Argentinia, alongside their locally-produced Farina saloons and estates.
This converted saloon was the prototype for a proposed Herald-based van, featuring a high roofline and one-piece, top-hinged rear tailgate, but it was not adopted for production. Instead, Triumph produced the Courier (see "Standard-Triumph" section, below) between 1962 and 1966.
BMC 1800 1966
BMC condsidered replacing the ageing A55 van (see above) with this smart-looking 1800-based van.
This 1100 estate-based van was considered for limited production, to be used by BMC's dealers, but it was found that the car's Hydrolastic suspension was not particularly conducive to this role. However, the idea was taken up by several businesses, notably the television rental firm DER, who bought standard 1100 estates and fitted opaque panels, bearing their logos, over the rear side windows.
Standard-Triumph
Although these models are included here for the sake of completeness, it should be noted that they were no longer in production by the time of the BMH-Leyland merger of 1968.
Standard 7cwt/10cwt 1954-1963
Based on the Standard Pennant saloon and powered by an 1147cc engine, these utilitarian offerings competed with the Morris O-Type and Austin A55 vans (see above) in the 7cwt and 10cwt classes respectively, and curiously looked a little like an amalagam of both these rivals. They offered a competitive load capacity, and had the advantage of being sold at a lower price than many of its rivals.
In 1960, Triumph looked at developing a replacement based on its Herald saloon (see "Proposed models" section, above), but this effort was aborted in favour of the Courier van (see below).
Triumph Courier 1962-1966
Triumph panelled-in the rear side windows of its Herald estate to produce the Courier. However, after a moderately successful first year, sales fell sharply, as potential customers realised that many rival vans offered more loadspace for rather less money. In fact, in the last two years of production, fewer than 100 Couriers were built.
Feedback:
This page was contributed by Declan Berridge, with information about the MG Metro van and Maestro pick-up provided by Dale Turley.
