top of page

Austin Junior Forty (J40) 1951

Austin pedal cars were made in England by Austin Motor Company Limited. Available models were the Junior Forty (J40) and the Pathfinder. The J40 Roadster was based on the 1948 A40 Devon and Dorset. The Pathfinder Special was based on the Jameison OHV 750 Austin Seven racing car of the late 1930's.

From the sales brochure for the Austin J40 Pedal Car:  

'Austin J40 cars are made in a specially constructed factory at Bargoed in South Wales. Here, in good conditions with the guidance of an experienced rehabilitation officer and under the supervision of a doctor, disabled Welsh miners are able to find a new interest in life and do a job of work that is both useful and congenial. There are employment facilities at this factory for 250 men'.

 

The pedal car factory opened on July 5th, 1949 and was called the Austin Junior car factory. It was paid for by Government funds and was run on a not-for-profit basis, purely for the employment of the disabled coal miners. The factory had a floor area of 24,500 square feet and was tooled up by the Sheet Metal Planning Department.

Production started with the Pathfinder with a plan to build 250 a week, but unfortunately this figure was never reached. After a year the Pathfinder was dropped and was replaced in 1950 by the J40. The cars were made from scrap off-cuttings of metal from the Longbridge Austin motor car factory and were built and painted the same way as the motor cars themselves.

 

The J40 was a very well equipped toy of excellent quality and was probably the best pedal car on the market at the time. It featured real working headlights and horn, detachable wheels with Dunlop pneumatic tires, a realistic facia panel and leather-cloth seating. It had an opening bonnet and boot and also a lot of good quality chrome on the bumpers, hub caps, radiator grill, boot handle, and centre bonnet moulding with the 'Flying A' ornament, which was later dropped because of a change in the law. It was claimed people could injure themselves on the mounted bonnet badge if they rolled on to the front of a car.

 

The Austin pedal cars were used for many purposes such as teaching road safety to school children, appearing in many road safety films. The J40 could be seen fitted to roundabouts at fairs; these cars having two steering wheels and no pedals, and they could also be enjoyed by children on single-mounted, coin-operated rides. Some pedal cars were later converted to gas engine power; these occasionally having their bodies 'stretched' to make room for taller drivers.

 

The total production of Austin J40 pedal cars numbered 32,098, and production stopped in September 1971.

The J40 sold for £27.0.0 plus £6.0.0 purchase tax, while the Pathfinder cost £20.0.0 plus £5.0.0 purchase tax. At the time the average working man would have to save 2 or 3 weeks full wages to buy a J40.

The J40 was primarily intended for the American market but it also established its own export markets in Denmark and Canada. The Austin pedal cars eventually were to be found in homes around the world.

Click on image to view

bottom of page