The car-based mailvans have included the once-ubiquitous Morris Minor and rarely-seen Austin Maestro...
| Small mailvans | |
Though the Series Z van – based on the pre-war Morris Eight – was still in production when BMC was formed in 1952, it was soon to be superseded by the ubiquitous Morris Minor. BMC's breakthrough model, the Mini, also entered service with the Royal Mail in van form...
Morris Eight Series Z
In 1940, the long-serving pre-war Morris Minor mailvans gave way to the Series Z, which featured a larger version of the standard coachbuilt body grafted onto the Morris front end; very soon, however, the factory-built panel van had to be accepted by the GPO. Deliveries continued until 1953, when the Series Z was replaced by the familiar, post-war Morris Minor.
Morris Minor
Morris O-type (Minor) The post-war Morris Minor was the GPO's standard small mailvan from 1953 until it went out of production in 1972. This view shows one of the original 1953 delivery, with its distinctive black rubber wings (which could shake off minor scrapes without the need for costly bodywork repairs) and split windscreen. Later deliveries, such as that pictured below, had red-painted, metal wings and one-piece windscreens.
Minivan
The GPO's first batches of 50 Minivans were delivered in 1960 and 1963, following the purchase of this prototype in 1959. The device on the back door is a locking bar to improve security, which was fitted to new mailvans up to 1971. Minivans were not popular as mailvans, as their low height made getting in and out of them tedious for postmen. When the Morris Minor went out of production, BL only had the Minivan available initially so the Post Office bought large numbers between 1972 and 1974, before adopting the Bedford HA between 1975 and 1978. Finally, a small batch of 25 Minivans was bought in 1981, although some of these were stock-piled, with the last of them not being registered until as late as January 1984.
This example has a detachable roof-mounted extension to increase its carrying capacity.
| Medium-sized mailvans | |
Morris ½-ton
Based on the Austin A55 Cambridge, the ½-ton van sat above the ¼-ton Minor-based van in BMC's commercial range, with both these models being available in Austin and Morris versions. It was produced until 1971, when it was replaced by the Marina-based 7cwt and 10cwt vans.
Marina-based vans
With the demise of the Minor and the fact that the Marina wasn't ready to replace it immediately, the Post Office turned briefly to the Minivan for its small mailvan (see above). However, a batch of 500 Morris Marinas was ordered for mailvan work in 1973. The Post Office returned to BL for its mailvans in 1979, buying Marinas and Itals from 1979 until 1983.
Numbers of Marina mailvans were 2300 in 1979, 140 in 1980, 2000 in 1981 and 600 in 1982 (440 models) followed by 2607 Itals in 1982 and 780 in 1983.
This view shows a pair of 1980 Morris Marina mailvans at Kelso, repainted in Scottish Datapost livery.
Austin Maestro
This staged brochure shot was largely wishful thinking on the part of Austin Rover, as Maestro vans were not widely used by Royal Mail. In 1984, Royal Mail decided to switch to diesel engines for its small mailvans, and both Ford Escorts and Austin Maestros were tried. However, just 70 examples were purchased: the Maestros were considered too noisy, so the Ford Escort went on to become the standard small mailvan for the next seventeen years.
Austin FL2
This boxy FL2-based mailvan underwent trials with the Post Office at the beginning of 1967, to see whether the car's much-vaunted turning circle would make it a worthwhile basis for a delivery vehicle. It seems the idea was scuppered by the van's tall rear bodywork, which while offering an impressive 200 cu ft load capacity, was found to make the van unstable when fully loaded. Needless to say, it was consequently not adopted for service.
This page was compiled by Declan Berridge, based on information and photographs kindly provided by Chris Hogan of the Post Office Vehicle Club.