The Sheerline was something of a poor man’s Rolls-Royce or Bentley, built by Austin in England between 1947 and 1954. While they sold for a third less coin, you could still buy five or six Austin sports cars for the same money. The seller bought this car a few years ago to restore but never got around to it. How it got to the U.S., to begin with, is unknown as the car is equipped with a right-hand-drive. Located in a snowy field in Bismarck, North Dakota, this luxury project is available here on Facebook Marketplace for $6,500.
Austin designed this Bentley competitor during World War II but didn’t put it into production until after the war. Over eight years, only about 8,000 copies of the Sheerline were built, including a few limousines. The seller estimates that only 100 or so of them still survive worldwide, which means this is a very rare automobile. But it also suggests that parts will be hard to come by, especially since there can’t be much of a network for them in the U.S.
The seller indicates this is a very restorable car and that the floor pans are solid. But he/she has owned it for seven years and if it’s spent all that time out in harsh weather and snow, you must wonder. For example, the tires and tubes are new. But is that 2015 new or 2022 new? The indicated mileage is 50,000 but might mean a lot of life is left in the 3,995cc straight-six engine. But given the reputation of temperamental 1950s English cars, a rebuild may be likely even though it ran when the seller bought it.
Fortunately, the glass all looks good, and the upholstery was professionally redone. But a sheet covers the seats now and the dashboard looks dusty and rusty, so perhaps more than just a good cleaning will be needed. If you can get this old girl going again and whipped into presentable shape, you’d be the only one in your circle to have one of these machines. Put on a chauffeur’s cap and take your friends out for a ride!
“(T)he dashboard looks dusty and rusty.”
Looking for pictures online of other Sheerlines, I discovered that the entire dash is made of wood!
You’ll need a good woodworker, and a metalworker for restoring this big eyed beast.
The British designers seemed to have a desire for making the frontends on some of their cars look “happy.”
That’s a British registration plate under the US one, so there’s a clue as to its right-hand-drive-ness.
The last one of these that I saw was in a banger race at Cowdenbeath.
The symmetrical dash allowed for easy adaptation for right, or left hand drive.
(Austin, being British got favourable import treatment into Canada, probably more common here post WW 2.)
This one would therefore be a good candidate to switch to left hand drive as a restomod, modern in-line 6, or 5 from the GM Atlas engine line.
Get these classic lines with modern driveability. And cast out Lucas, Prince of Darkness!
These were popular with local governments in the UK as the mayor’s official car.
Oversized headlights from the 1920’s? They should change the name from Sheerline to Mr. Magoo.
Having some experience with Austin mechanicals — though not the big 4.0 “six” — I would guess the hardware under the body is fairly stout, and not the worst in the world to get (and keep) running.
The coachwork looks repairable as well, as does what little we see of the interior, so I’d say an enthusiast who isn’t in it to turn a fast buck might do okay.
Neat, dignified old beast.
Slightly updated, the shape lasted. Remarkably, the companion Austin (later Vanden Plas) Princess, built on the same chassis, was still on sale (complete with split-windscreen) in 1968, by which time the NSU Ro80 had been available for a year.
There’s a rusty white Princess that keeps showing up in my local Kijiji listings.
I believe it’s past history included being a wedding limo.
Probably a parts only car at this point.
Front looks Superfly
Rw,
As the car is from 1951 and the superfly cars came some 20 years later, I would suggest the superfly look was suggested by the Austin Sheerline!
as That Guy says, they were typically sold to local authorities to be official for dignitaries like the lord mayor, or rental companies, wedding cars, etc. rarely bought by private individuals for their own driving use.
a bit of sports car trivia, this engine was used by Jensen in their 541 sports car – just before Jensen started their long association with Chrysler using various Mopar V8s in the CV8 and Interceptor.
Sadly this is unlikely to get restored. These cars show up from time to time, but very few are getting restored owing to the amount of work and expense. It’d have to be a labor of love. But hopefully someone will take the plunge.
Project for a true Anglophile. Sort of looks like “Lord Bentley’s” pudgy son who put on too much weight at prep school. Still, it has a hint of upper class pretentions. Paint it white for use as a wedding car and picnic lunch from the “boot” competition at British car shows.
In the late 1980s I found a white Sheerline limousine sitting in a back alley of Baltimore. But already owning a later Vanden Plas Princess limo, I passed on the Sheerline, always wondered what became of it.
The headlights are known as the Lucas P-100, the largest made by Lucas. They were also used on the Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith, but with different mounting hardware.
Mechanical parts like brake and suspension/steering, are still available, and motor/gearbox parts can be found in the UK, except for main & rod bearing sets, and the original copper/asbestos head gaskets. Anyone buying a Sheerline or Princess should join the Vanden Plas owner’s club in England, as they do supply spare parts.
I still own the Princess limo, it was the actual vehicle used by the British Royal family when in the USA. The photo is of the car at the British Embassy in 1987, where once again it transported the [former] British Ambassador Sir Anthony Acland, who was delighted to ride in it again. He regaled me with stories about the limo visiting Washington DC many times between 1961 and 1974.
So worthy of a restoration. Elegance and rarity make this worth doing.
You can restore many mass produced Chevys and Fords all day long and you will have a nice car. Restore this and you truly have a special piece of automotive history. Bravo to the man or woman who accepts this challenge and preserves history for others to admire and enjoy.
Great car!