Morris Oxford MO

Morris Oxford
Oxford 1953 in Newton Abbott
Overview
Manufacturer	Morris Motors British Motor Corporation British Leyland
Production	1913-1914 1919–1935 1948-1971
Body and chassis
Class	Small car

Morris Oxford is a series of motor car models produced by Morris Motors of the United Kingdom, from the 1913 bullnose Oxford to the Farina Oxfords V and VI.

Named by W R Morris after the city of dreaming spires, the university town in which he grew up, the manufacture of Morris's Oxford cars would turn Oxford into an industrial city.

From 1913 to mid-1935 Oxford cars grew in size and quantity. In 1923 they with the Cowley cars were 28.1 per cent of British private car production. In 1925 Morris sold near double the number and they represented 41 per cent of British production. The model name was recycled in 1948 and lasted almost another 23 years through to 1971 but in this time the market sector and engine-size remained nearly constant between 1476 cc and 1622 cc.

Aside from the Oxford Sixes and the Oxford Empire models all Oxfords since 1918 have been 12 or 14 HP cars of about 1500 to 1800 cc..

Oxford MO 1948–54

Oxford MO
Oxford four-door saloon 1952
Overview
Also called	Hindustan Fourteen (India)
Production	1948–54 159,960 produced.[1]
Assembly	United Kingdom Australia [2] India
Body and chassis
Body style	4-door saloon 2-door estate
Related	Wolseley 4/50 / 6/80
Powertrain
Engine	1476 cc side-valve Straight-4
Dimensions
Wheelbase	97 in (2,500 mm)[3]
Length	165.5 in (4,200 mm) [3]
Width	65 in (1,700 mm) [3]
Height	64 in (1,600 mm) [4]
Chronology
Predecessor	Morris Ten series M Morris Twelve Morris Fourteen
Successor	Oxford II

After the Second World War the 13.5 fiscal horsepower Oxford MO had to replace the Ten horsepower series M, Morris's Twelve and Morris's Fourteen. It was announced along with the new 918cc Minor and the 2.2-litre Six on 26 October 1948 and was produced until 1954. The design was shared with Nuffield Organisation stable-mate Wolseley 4/50 which used a traditional grille and better finishes.

Designed by Alec Issigonis, the Oxford, along with the Morris Minor, introduced unit construction techniques, although it is not widely recognized as a true unibody car. Torsion bar front suspension was another novelty, and hydraulically operated 8-inch (200 mm) drum brakes were fitted all around. Under the bonnet, the MO was a step back in technology from the pre-war Ten. It used a side-valve straight-4 rather than the older overhead-valve unit. The single SU-carburetted engine displaced 1.5 L (1476 cc/90 in³) and with its output of 40.5 bhp (30.2 kW) at 4200 rpm could propel the car to 72 mph (116 km/h). The four-speed gearbox had a column gearchange and steering was by rack and pinion.

Interior fittings were reasonably comprehensive by the standards of the time, with a full width shelf under the dashboard and "useful pivoting ventilator panels" (hinged quarterlights) at the front edge of each of the front doors and a rear window blind included in the price.^[5] Instrumentation included an oil pressure gauge, an ammeter and an electric clock.^[5] Also available, albeit at extra cost, was a heater.^[5]

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  saloon 1950

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  wide-mouth
  alligator bonnet

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  sidevalve engine (modified to use twin carburetters)

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  grille 1952

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  facelift grille 1953

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  profile 1952

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  Morris Oxford Series MO Traveller 1953

Traveller

The MO was sold as a 4-door saloon and 2-door Traveller estate with an exposed wooden frame at the rear. Both were four-seaters.

Just 3½ inches longer than the saloon which its dimensions otherwise matched the Traveller was given bench seats front and back, the front backrest split for access to the back. Six could be seated in reasonable comfort, though the back squab was narrowed by the rear wheel arches, and furthermore there was a large platform behind for luggage or freight. Folding forward the rear seat made an area nearly five feet square and three feet high. The front part of the car remained the same as the saloon and no comfort was sacrificed by front seat passengers. Normal winding windows were retained in front but the side windows at the rear (which provided excellent vision for the driver) could slide horizontally, the first for more than two feet and the second only a short distance to give ventilation. The vague steering column gear change lever still showed no improvement over previous Oxfords^[6]

The Motor magazine tested a Traveller in 1952 but only attained a top speed of 64 mph (103 km/h) and acceleration from 0–50 mph (80 km/h) in 26.2 seconds. A fuel consumption of 26.4 miles per imperial gallon (10.7 L/100 km; 22.0 mpg_-US) was recorded. The test car cost £825 including taxes.^[4] The final drive ratio had been lowered from 4.55 to 1 to 4.875 to 1 in 1949 "in the interests of top gear acceleration, which still keeping top gear reasonably high, as is ...Morris policy", according to a statement attributed to the manufacture.^[5]

Morris Six

A six-cylinder version was sold as the Morris Six MS.

It was replaced by the Oxford series II announced Tuesday 18 May 1954.^[7]

Hindustan Fourteen

Hindustan Motors of India produced the Oxford MO as the Hindustan Fourteen.

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

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