Austin A40 Sports - Colours of fittings and mechanical components

Be aware that the A40 Sports was a hand-built car and as such there surely were variations from time to time. Also, there are very few if any totally original Sports known.

 

I’m open to getting your opinion /  & sorry, there is no particular order and much text here :)

Warm thanks for all the feedback I already received!

 

The Austin A40 Sports chassis was not built in CAB1, so unlike the Austin A40 Somerset, it never got a chassis & engine & fittings all-over green painting.

 

 

  • The engine block, head, crankshaft pulley, water pump, Sump, timing chain cover - Austin engine green (Austin used different colours to differentiate different engine types, so the shade of green used on the A40 generation is different from the one used on Austin-Healey 100/3000s and on the later A-Series engines - the correct engine colour is available from the ACCC)

     

  • Valve cover / Rocker cover - Austin engine green

 

  • Breather pipe and clamp - Austin engine green or black

 

  • Starter -  Austin engine green

 

  • Alternator - Austin engine green

 

  • Gearbox housing -  natural aluminium     

 

  • Inlet manifold & Exhaust manifold - bare metal casting

 

  • Engine/carburetter stabilizer - black if fitted

 

  • Oil filter bracket - natural aluminium

 

  • Oil Filter - Austin engine green; AC aftermarket - Red or grey; there is an AC decal that went on these parts.

 

  • Air cleaner - black with a square brass Vokes decal    

 

  • Fan blades - red

 

  • Thermostat body, upper hose elbow -  Austin engine green

 

  • Engine block drain tap, sump drain plug - natural brass

 

  • engine ID plate - it seems to me that it was painted engine colour as well, so it was fitted before painting

 

  • Carburettor parts - Standard SU: choke coupler, jet links, couplings - Black - and natural brass. An MG website suggests that the black parts were blued instead of painted black. Bluing is a metal treatment that has a black, transparent type of look to it. Most other carburettor parts: air cleaner nut, carburettor overflow lines, oil pressure gauge line and coupling on the firewall - Natural brass, springs and other clips - Zinc plated

 

  • Distributor body -  Natural aluminium

 

  • Fuel pump base sections - Natural Aluminium

 

  • Exhaust pipe bracket, clamps  -  black    
  • Frame, suspension parts, rear end, brake drums, brake lines, springs, shocks and all chassis parts - gloss Black

 

  • Rear-axle -  gloss Black

 

  • Differential case - natural aluminium

 

  • Radiator -  brass,  painted with a very thin coat of gloss black paint.

 

  • Shock absorbers - body left unpainted with the shock arms painted black

 

  • Dash under panel - black millboard, sound deadening material was attached to the millboard to the patterned side

 

  • Glovebox Interior -  early GD2: brown canvas with flock like coating; later?

 

  • Carpets -    short hair wool, Wilton-type. Carpets were partly untrimmed and were trapped under sideboards. Trimmings for trimmed edges were made out of Rexine. Under the driver's feet, a rubber mat with a centre AUSTIN logo was stitched in. Later cars were fitted with stainless plates at the door openings to clamp the carpets down.

 

  • Underfelt - natural tan

 

  • In the cabin, the floor was lined with a tarpaper sound deadening material that was glued to the floors with a tarlike substance

 

  • Headlamp bodies - Black

 

  • Headlamp adjusting nuts, headlamp rings, headlamp ring retaining screw - Chrome

 

  • Radiator hose clamps - wire type with round slotted screws or cotter pin type - cadmium zinc plated

 

  • Oil filler cap -  nickel silver with red/white water transfer decal

 

  • Engine dipstick - Austin engine green

 

  • Brake reservoir and cap - black with Girling water transfer on, cap natural

    

  • Steering wheel column and installations - GD2: mahagony brown, GD3: silver; both have the steering box in chase black with blended overspray approximately 3-4 inches up the column

 

  • Umbrella handbrake lever -  GD2: mahagony brown; GD3: silver

 

  • GD2 Gearlever - Gloss black

 

  • GD3 Gearshift mechanism - Silver (the correct colour is available at the ACCC)

 

  • Tachometer cable, speedometer cable, choke cable, starter cable, brake cables, clutch cable housings, fuel lines (braided) - Cadmium

 

  • Seat runners - zinc plated

 

  • Rearview mirror back - Lucas mirror, type seems to have evolved during production; back colour depending on type fitted: Black or Lucas Brown

 

  • Front licence plate brackets, license plate holders and clips - Black

 

  • Horns and brackets - Black

 

  • Starting handle - Black

 

  • Smiths Stevenson Bevelift jack - Red with natural aluminium head and black handle

 

  • Fuel line -  Black, this was part of the chassis assembly and got painted black.

 

  • Dash panel screws -  Chrome

 

  • Windscreen wiper motor cover - Black, wrinkle finish

 

  • Austin Tools - Black

 

  • Wiring Harness - cloth-covered wiring loom; black with red and white/or yellow (?) tracers

 

  • Battery box - black bakelite tray, clamp made from metal or wood

 

  • Wing splash plates - Black

 

  • Inside trunk - varies, there are some possibilities. Early photos show an internally black trunk, later images picture one painted car colour

 

  • Firewall, engine compartment side - varies, see trunk. It makes sense to think that the body tub generally had been painted car colour initially, but early photos show a black firewall, whereas later images picture one painted car colour with black wing splash plates only.

 

  • Hood frame - cream,  silver or car colour (?)