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Hillman Minx
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The Hillman Minx was a series of middle-sized family cars produced under the Hillman marque by the Rootes Group between 1932 and 1970. There have been many versions of the Minx over the years, as well as various badge-engineered versions which were sold under the Humber, Singer, and Sunbeam marques.
For most of the 1960s the Minx and its derivatives were the greatest-volume sellers of the "Audax" family of cars from Rootes which also included the Singer Gazelle and Sunbeam Rapier.
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Encyclopedia
The Hillman Minx was a series of middle-sized family cars produced under the Hillman marque by the Rootes Group between 1932 and 1970. There have been many versions of the Minx over the years, as well as various badge-engineered versions which were sold under the Humber, Singer, and Sunbeam marques.
For most of the 1960s the Minx and its derivatives were the greatest-volume sellers of the "Audax" family of cars from Rootes which also included the Singer Gazelle and Sunbeam Rapier. The final version of the Minx was the "New Minx" launched in 1967, which was part of the "Arrow" family and essentially a basic version of the Hillman Hunter. Generally the Minx was available in four-door saloon and estate forms, with a 1496 cc engine.
The Hillman Super Minx was a slightly larger model offered during the Audax era.
Throughout the life of the Minx there was usually an estate version, and from 1954 to 1965 there was also a short-wheelbase estate, the Hillman Husky, and additionally a van derivative of that, known as the Commer Cob.
The Minx brand was revived briefly – along with the "Rapier" model name, as applied to the Sunbeam Rapier version of the Audax family – as a special edition late in the life of the Talbot Alpine / Talbot Solara cars, produced by Chrysler Europe after the demise of the Rootes Group.
Pre WWII Minx
The original Minx was introduced in 1932 with a pressed steel body on separate chassis and 30 bhp 1185 cc engine. It was upgraded with a four speed transmission in 1934 and a styling upgrade, most noticeably a slightly V-shaped grille. For 1935 synchromesh was added but the range was otherwise similar.
The 1936 model got a new name, the Minx Magnificent, and a restyle with much more rounded body. The chassis was stiffened and the engine moved forwards to give more passenger room. A Commer badged estate car was added to the range.
The final pre-war model was the 1938 New Minx. There were no more factory built tourers but some were made by Carbodies. The car was visually similar to the Magnificent but now access to the luggage boot (trunk) was external, that on the predecessor was accessed by folding down the rear seat.
Wartime Minx
During the war, British car companies produced simple Utility load carriers, the Car, Light Utility or "Tilly". For Hillman it was the Hillman 10HP a Minx chassis with two person cab and covered load area behind. The basic saloon was also produced for military and essential civilian use from 1940-1944.
Postwar Minx
The Minx sold between 1945 and 1947 had the same 1185 cc side valve engine, the same wheel base and virtually the same shape as the prewar Minx. This postwar Minx became known as the Minx Mark I (or Minx Phase I). Between 1947 and 1948 a modified version, known as the Minx Mark II was offered.
A much more modern looking Minx, badged as the Mark III, was sold from 1948. This was the first Minx with a protruding boot / trunk which effectively respected the "three box" saloon style by then replacing the 'flat back' look, inherited from models that had made their debut in the 1930s. Three different body styles were offered initially, these being saloon, estate car and 'drop-head coupé' (convertible). Beneath the metal, however, and apart from updated front suspension, little had changed: the Mark III retained the 1185 c side-valve engine of its predecessor. Claimed power output, at , was also unchanged. However, in 1949 the old engine was bored out and compression ratio increased, for the Mark IV Minx, to 1265 cc, and power output increased by 7% to . A Mark IV saloon tested by The Motor magazine in 1949 had a top speed of and could accelerate from 0- in 39.7 seconds. A fuel consumption of was recorded. The test car cost £505 including taxes, the price including radio (£36), over-riders (£5) and heater (£18).
Further minor facelifts followed. In 1953, with the Minx Mark VI, a fourth body variation was added, being the so-called Hillman Minx Californian, a two door hard-top coupé with, slightly unusually, a b-pillar that wound down out of sight along with rear side window to give an unbroken window line when all windows were fully opened: the rear window assembly was of a three piece wrap-around form. The wheel base and overall length of the car remained the same as those of the four door saloon and convertible permutations. For the Mark VIII, in 1954 a new ohv 1390 cc engine was installed. This was the engine which, two years later, would be carried over into the first of the new "Audax series" Minxes.
Audax design Hillman Minx (Series I to Series VI, 1956–67)
The Audax body was designed by the Rootes Group, but helped by the Raymond Loewy design organisation, who were involved in the design of Studebaker coupés in 1953. The car went through a series of annual face lifts each given a Series number, replacing the Phase number used on the previous Minxes; there was no Series IV. The engine was new for the model with overhead valves — a first for a post war Hillman. Over the years the engine grew from 1390 cc (in the Series I and II) to 1725 cc in the Series VI. A variety of manual transmissions, with column or floor change, and automatic transmissions were offered. For the automatic version, the Series I and II used a Lockheed Manumatic two pedal system (really only a semi-automatic), the Phase III a Smiths Easidrive and the V/VI a Borg Warner.
A Series III deLuxe saloon with 1494 cc engine tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1958 had a top speed of and could accelerate from 0- in 25.4 seconds. A fuel consumption of was recorded. The test car cost £794 including taxes of £265.
There were Singer Gazelle and Sunbeam Rapier variants of all these Hillman Minx models, and the names were again used on derivatives in the later Rootes Arrow range. Some models were re-badged in certain markets, with the Sunbeam and Humber marques used for some exports.
The New Zealand importer/assembler Todd Motors created the Humber 80 (Minx) and 90 (Super Minx) as separate models - identical apart from the badges - as a way to secure scarce additional import licences for CKD assembly kits. This was acknowledged in the 1980s Roger Hall play 'Prisoners of Mother England' when a newly-arrived immigrant in New Zealand spots one and exclaims: "Humber 80? There's no such car!"
Minx Cabriolets
Models
| Type | Year | Engine | Approx Production | Body types | Wheelbase | Max speed | Notes |
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| Minx | 1932-33 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | tourer, sports tourer, 4 light saloon, 6 light saloon, drophead coupé | | | 3 speed gearbox, Bendix brakes, wire wheels | | Minx | 1934 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | tourer, sports tourer, 4 light saloon, 6 light saloon, drophead coupé | | | 4 speed gearbox | | Minx | 1935 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | tourer, sports tourer, 4 light saloon, 6 light saloon, drophead coupé | | | Synchromesh gearbox | | Minx Magnificent | 1936-37 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | tourer, sports tourer, saloon, drophead coupé, estate (1937) | | | New chassis with engine moved forwards; pressed steel wheels | | New Minx | 1938-39 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | saloon, drophead coupé, estate | | | Styling update | | Minx | 1940-44 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | n/a | saloon, drophead coupé | | | Unitary construction, 12 volt, rear hinged bonnet, probably no coupés made | | Car, Light Utility, Hillman 10HP | 1940-45 | | | Utility body (also Saloon, "Convertible Van" "Ladder Van") | | | Six Marks, pickup bodies with integral cab | | Minx Phase I | 1945-47 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 60,000 (estimated including Phase II) | saloon, drophead coupé, estate | | | Unitary construction, 12 volt, rear hinged bonnet | | Minx Phase II | 1947-48 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | see Phase I | saloon, drophead coupé, estate | | | Styling update: faired in headlamps, hydraulic brakes | | Minx Phase III | 1948-49 | 1185 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 28,619 | saloon, convertible, estate | | | New styling, independent front suspension | | Minx Phase IV | 1949-51 | 1265 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 90,832 | saloon, convertible, estate, pickup/utility | | | Styling as Phase III | | Minx Phase V | 1951-53 | 1265 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 59,777 | saloon, convertible, estate | | | Minor changes | | Minx Phase VI | 1953 | 1265 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 44,643 | saloon, convertible, 'California' coupé, estate | | | New grille | | Minx Phase VII | 1953-54 | 1265 cc 4 cylinder side valve | 60,711 | saloon, convertible, coupé, estate | | | Bigger boot | | Minx Phase VIII | 1954-57 | 1390 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | 94,123 | saloon, convertible, coupé, estate | | | 15-inch wheels; early examples have previous engine | | Minx Series I | 1956-57 | 1390 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | 202,204 | saloon, convertible, estate | | | New body designed by Raymond Loewy, reminiscent of his 1955 Studebaker | | Minx Series II | 1957-58 | 1390 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | saloon, convertible, estate | | | Minor styling change | | Minx Series III | 1958-59 | 1494 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | 83,105 | saloon, convertible, estate | | | New grille | | Minx Series IIIA, B | 1959-60, 60-61 | 1494 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | 78,052
and 58,260 | saloon, convertible, estate | | | Tail fins; optional auto; hypoid rear axle on IIIB | | Minx Series IIIC | 1961-63 | 1592 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon, convertible, estate | | | No convertibles after mid 1962 | | Super Minx Series I | 1961-62 | 1592 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon, convertible, estate | | | Long wheelbase Minx | | Minx Series V | 1963-65 | 1592 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon | | | Front discs | | Super Minx Series II | 1962-63 | 1592 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon, convertible, estate | | | Front discs | | Super Minx Series III | 1964-65 | 1592 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon | | | All synchromesh gearbox | | Minx Series VI | 1965-67 | 1725 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon | | | All synchromesh gearbox | | Super Minx Series IV | 1964-65 | 1725 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | n/a | saloon | | | | | Hunter | 1966-79 | 1725 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | 470,000 | saloon, estate | | | "Arrow" series shape, optional overdrive | | New Minx | 1967-70 | 1496 cc 4 cylinder overhead valve | saloon, estate | | | Basic "Arrow" Hunter; 1725 cc engine optional on estates | |
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