1958 Austin Healey

TAXI Limousine

4 - Cyl.

Manual

Diesel

Authentic 1958 Austin right hand drive London Taxi. PIP PIP. Hello everyone up for NO RESERVE auction is a complete 1958, which was the last year for this model England right hand drive authenitic Taxi. Now before I get to far into the description I want to mention that there are over 75 full page pictures that show every inch of this car. I also wanted to mention my contact tel # so that if anyone has ANY questions or wants to ask anything at all or inquire about a buy it now price, that can be added to the auction, to end the auction early you can just pick up the phone and call me directly. My tel # is 570-875-7109. Now back to the description, this was broght over from England sometime in the mid 60's. The car has a clear pennsylvania title. It was titled in Pa. in 1968 according to the title. This Taxi is near complete in every way, it needs a full restoration but it's all there. This is a Austin FX3 model these ran from 1948-1958 so this is one of the last ones. It has all it's serial and body tags still present and readible. This is the Diesel version. The engine looks very clean for it's age. We were told the the engine does run. The tank would have to be drained and have some new fuel put in and change the battery but from what we can see we believe this to be very true, but we have not had the time to do this. The Taxi comes with extra set of seats as you can see in the pictures. The Taxi is pretty solid for her age and not being well taken care of for the last 40+ years. You do have some rust as you can see in the pictures. The floor and frame are very clean and solid as is alot of other areas of the car. The worst spots for rust is below the rear doors on both sides, the left hand side being the worst of the two. Now these came with a very cool hydrolic jacking system. As you can see in the pictures there are 4 jacks that are permently mounted to the suspension of the car, when you turn a switch in the engine compartment it gives fluid to all 4 of these jacks and rasies the car so that the tires are off the ground. you can either just raise the front or just the rear at one time or all 4. If you look at the pictures of the engine compartment you will see the swith assembly. This is a restorable car and can be brought back to her past glory. These real British Austin Taxi's have a collectiblity and have a following. you don't see many of these here in the states but some did make it here thru collectors. This is a breakdown of what these cars are: The Austin FX3 was a taxicab designed for city use in the United Kingdom, often called a London black cab, but also used in other major cities across the country. After the war Mann & Overton decided that it needed a more up to date design. So it was agreed that Austin would supply the engine/chassis with the body been supplied by Carbodies in Coventry, although the body was actually designed by Austin's chief body designer Jim Stanfield. In 1948 a new Austin Taxi appeared on the streets called the FX3, it was soon the market leader. Although in 1952 a diesel engine from Ferguson was available as a conversion, it was 1954 that Austin were producing their own 2.2 litre diesel engine as a factory fit. Also produced was the FL1 this was the same model but had no luggage space by the driver instead it had a bench seat and the roof sign was deleted. The FX3 was offered with a 2.2litre ohv petrol engine and an all-steel body from Carbodies. It was available during the years of 1948-1958. The first prototype of an FX3, registration number JXN 841 went on tests alongside the FX2 registration number, JXN 842. Later, aftermarket diesel engine conversions by Perkins and Standard prompted the Austin Motor Company to develop their own diesel engine which appeared in 1956. and slowly became the standard in the FX3. In 1957-1958 a series of automatic transmission test vehicles were manufactured, of which only two are known to survive. Unlike more recent black cabs, it had no nearside door (passenger side), leaving an open space with a raised floor platform used for carrying a large trunk or other luggagge. This area was over the locked stage area for tools to be kept on board. The FX3 was a popular model with more than 10,000 taxis being built, mostly for use in London, while a few hundred went into use in other parts of the United Kingdom. When it was introduced in 1948 it soon dominated the market, thus becoming the typical icon of the London black cab. The FX3 was replaced by the Austin FX4 introduced in 1958, though the older taxis continued in use for many years. In turn, the FX4 ceased production in 1997 and was replaced by the TX series. The Austin FX3s are still sought after by collectors and vintage "London Transport" enthusiasts. Several Austin FX3s have been shipped to the United States of America by collectors, hobbyists and for use as advertisement icons. Date when launched late 1948 Discontinued in 1958 Total produced 13,737 (All chassis produced at Longbridge) Taxi Engine Petrol 2199 cc 50 bhp at 3,500 rpm Max torque 102lbs/ft at 1,600 rpm Hire Car 68 bhp at 3,800 rpm Max torque 116lbs/ft at 1,700 rpm Diesel version 2,178 cc 55 bhp at 3,500 rpm Max torque 89lbs/ft at 2,800 rpm Main measurements Taxi & Hire Car Length 14ft 5.3ins Width 5ft 7.5ins Height 5ft 10.8ins Wheelbase 9ft 2.7ins Track front 4ft 8ins rear 4ft 8ins Price ex Works Taxicab Petrol Feb 1957 £910 no tax Diesel .: . . . : . £1012 no tax Taxi Chassis - Petrol Feb 1957 £777 incl. £151 Purchase Tax ..: . . ...:.... : - Diesel . .:.. ..:.. £904 incl. £177 Purchase Tax Now lets get to the 75+ full page pictures of the Taxi. The last few pictures that you see above are what the Taxi would look like when fully restored. Now some were not fully black as you can see but alot were and this is one of them. This is a fully Black version. If anyone has any questions please feel free to email or better yet call me at 570-875-7109. I would be happy to answer any questions you might have. The Taxi comes with a clear title in hand and is sold as is. If anyone wants to come and inspect the car, you are more than welcome to come and look over the entire car or have someone else inspect it for you if you can't come. Just please call me to make an appointment. I take pride in listing anything here on Ebay. I always give a realistic and honest description. I like the buyers to be happy with what they purchase. This is why I put as many pictures as I can. This is why I have perfect feedback. This is the way auctions should be on Ebay Period. As always, Thanks for taking the time to view this auciton and have a great day....