page_title: Austin 10
section_title: Road test
hierarchical_section_title: Austin 10 / Road test
caption_attribution_description: 1934 Austin Ten-Four Ripley Sports Tourer
context_page_description: The Austin Ten is a small car that was produced by Austin. It was launched on 19 April 1932 and was Austin's best-selling car in the 1930s and continued in production, with upgrades, until 1947. It fitted in between their "baby" Austin Seven which had been introduced in 1922 and their various Austin Twelves which had been updated in January 1931.
context_section_description: "The greatest comfortable speed was 55 mph though over 50 takes distance and persuasion. 30 to 35 is an effortless cruising rate with light throttle. . . The delight of the car lies in the easy speed and in the way it holds the road. The generally well balanced and quiet engine is livelier than some Austins. . . The suspension would probably be better with hydraulic shock absorbers. In front one travels very smoothly and the car is undoubtedly stable."
  Motoring Correspondent, The Times
  1933 saw the saloons joined by an open two-seater or Open Road tourer, a Colwyn cabriolet and a van. A sports model, the 65 miles per hour (105 km/h), 30 brake horsepower (22 kW) Ripley joined the range in 1934. Mechanical upgrades for 1934 included a stronger chassis, synchromesh on the top two gears and 12-volt electrics.
  The Ripley was a close-coupled four-door tourer with lowered front doors and no running boards. Improved engine breathing—Zenith downdraught carburettor, revised manifolds and camshaft—all combined to improve engine output to 30 bhp.
  Austin's range now included five "sports cars":
  Seven open two-seaters: Speedy and Nippy
  Ten-Four sports tourer: Ripley
  Light Twelve-Six sports tourer: Newbury and sports saloon Kempton
caption: Ripley sports tourer, 1934
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