We have mentioned in previous posts that the Austin Seven design was licensed to enable manufacture and sale outside of the UK. Examples exist from Australia, Germany, France, Japan and the USA. The Austin Seven Bantam in the museum collection was produced in 1934 by the American Austin Car Company. A Bantam rooster was adopted as part of the radiator name badge.

It was also in 1934 that the American Austin Car Company filed for bankruptcy before being re-born in 1935 as Austin Bantam.

Up until 1934, mechanically, the Bantam was very similar to the British built models. As is immediately obvious from the accompanying photo however, the styling, designed to appeal to the American market, is considerably less ‘box-like’ than the British models of the Austin Seven.

1934 Austin Seven Bantam in the Cotswold Motor Museum

Once the company re-formed in 1935, the engine design departed from the British version and around 6000 Bantams, in various body styles, were produced during the period 1937 – 1941. In part, because of the Great Depression, and maybe the fact that the American car-buying public were not really that keen to adopt a small car, production of the Bantam ceased in 1941.

One final credit to the American Bantam – and a further example of the formative role that, 100 years ago, the Austin Seven played in launching the fortunes of several global motor manufacturers – is that a few thousand American Bantam vehicles were produced as pre-production models for the World War II Jeep, with around 1000 going to the British army.