HubNut Goes Vintage - 1928 Austin 12 Heavy, National Motor Museum

[@NationalMotorMuseum]

Glad you enjoyed the drive. Its a favourite with our visitors, particularly the school groups. Great feeding the wheel demo!

[@HubNut]

Thanks. It's a superb member of your fleet.

[@RWBHere]

​@@HubNut Thanks Ian. 🙂👍Brilliant car, with lots of character! Built in the days when each one was crafted with pride. Never heard of Gumdrop though. I once helped a friend with part of the restoration of a c.1934 Austin 6 Heavy, which had a completely covered cabin. The wooden floor with an access hatch in it was something of a novelty for me. And it was a very comfortable car to sit in, although I never travelled in it. The magneto ignition timing lever was marked 'Advance - Retard', and both it and the Accelerator lever were brass, and also smaller than the ones on that 12.

[@richardparkersmith4810]

My mother had a 1928 Austin Light 12 with the same body in the late 1950s early '60s. We went 2 miles to school in it every day and it was glorious. One of the cats used to like to snooze on the canvas hood and was once driven a few miles to the village on it when my mother forgot to shoo it off. The floor was wooden boards which was fun when going through floods! It was a fine old car and utterly reliable. I want it back!

[@paulbennell3313]

That gear whine is absolutely sublime!

[@lrochfort]

Val Biro came to my school with Gumdrop when I was 6. I still have the signed book, and read it to my children. We all got to sit next to Val in the car. It's one of my strongest memories of Infants school. He often cameos as background characters in the books.

[@garyjohnson9561]

I’ve got two, a 1923 tourer (it wasn’t called a Clifton when mine was made), with rear wheel brakes only and a 1928 fabric Burnham saloon. Glad to see you’ve been introduced to the joys of Austin motoring!

[@rich_edwards79]

As soon as it appeared on screen my first thought was 'that's Gumdrop!' - looking back, they were probably the books that helped fuel my interest in cars as a child. Very distinctive looking machine especially in that sky blue paint, all it needs is the wings on the radiator cap and a big brass horn complete with squeezy rubber bulb!

[@SM-dt1pr]

Loved Gumdrop too.

[@peterbishop2552]

Lucky man. I drive a 1932 Riley Nine DHC, which I took to the Hubnut gathering at Brooklands last year.

[@MrOvershoot]

That's brightened my Sunday Ian, the look of joy on your face was wonderful, the way you kept turning round was like you had someone in the car who you just had to see the grin on their face as well 😊 Love the colour as well, cars were made by engineers back then and as a result were much simpler to keep on the road.

[@markadams3261]

Modern motorists still use hand signals, but not connected with motoring.

[@KiwiStag74]

What a lovely experience! Open top touring - that is so much a luxury nowadays - appears to be almost commonplace back then. Being of the Austin bent myself, but never having experienced the pre or post WW1 vehicles, this was an absolute treat - and like you, reading Gumdrop and seeing / experiencing one in motion, is just fantastic. Who needs a car stereo when you have an engine and gearbox that play such beautiful music anyway? Many thanks to you and the museum for bringing the big beast out to show us.

[@NeurodivergentSuperiority]

Commonplace becuase using hand signals in a car with a roof is harder than one with a removeable roof... or a Caterham!

[@johnwaga3702]

Ian, what a brilliant video and a truly exceptional car. The instrumentation looks the business and there’s something magical about cars without all the electronic gadgetry you get nowadays. You must do more of these!

[@sadie376]

Oh yes, an Austin like that is always going to be 'Gumdrop'!

[@AndreiTupolev]

It sounds very much - the starter, the idle, the gear whine - like a vintage bus. About the same size as one too

[@karlspencer-smith1339]

The motor museum is about 10 miles from where I live and it never bores me,as it’s such a fantastic place to visit;with the variety of cars and motorbikes etc,but the grounds is an eye opener and palace house…the Late Lord Montagu was a fantastic person,who deeply loved his home and worked hard to get the museum the way it is;since the 50s…he was a peoples person and very well loved and very missed by many 🙏🏻

[@maxeluy]

Magnificent is definitely the right word to describe that motor vehicle

[@marioavossa]

That is one beautiful looking car. Just so refined looking, but probably offers a challenging drive to modern drivers. I have an automatic so it would be a massive challenge as I mash the gearbox into powder🙄.

[@thephilpott2194]

To some extent it could probably take the heat while you learn; the lack of accurate stress calculation and CAD meant that drivetrains tended (by and large) to be over-engineered. After a fortnight you'd probably be fine.

[@jimcrichton8028]

Double de clutching is not actually that difficult, give the engine a wee rev between gears with the clutch up and take your time, you notice when Ian did it he rushed it a bit at first and did not actually rev it at all really, then the second try he got it right.

[@patrickw6934]

Despite being born in 1937, My Dad knew all his twenties and thirties cars. We'd go to the odd motor show together and he could always instantly recognise makes and models. Lost him in 1986. Such things remind me. 🙂 In a good way. Thanks.

[@caw25sha]

8:48 My parents were big fans of the Secret Army TV series and we went to an exhibition at the RAF Museum at Hendon some time around 1978. It included various evasion equipment, eg compasses concealed in buttons, silk maps etc, as well as sets from the TV series.

[@ColinCarFan]

In about 1996 we visited Beaulieu and they let you drive that very car around a small car park circuit! Luckily my wife had her driving licence with her (unlike me) so she drove. It was fantastic until she caught that steering wheel accelerator and the car sped up and scared us both to death as she was trying to keep on course until I realised what had happened. Our very young toddlers thought this was all part of the fun 😄.Thanks for bringing back a wonderful memory.

[@paulwayman4579]

I seem to remember a Gumdrop sroryline that featured a visit to Beaulieu to get spares. It might have been in a TV annual that were often Christmas presents for my generation. Good video

[@tomoreilly9932]

Love the old dials,must have thought they were captain Nemo back in the day.

[@thegearknob7161]

I rode in this very car many years ago. Glad to see it's still being used. It's great. So much passenger room, it's like a London Taxi back there. Mechanical, but smooth.

[@petersimpson5859]

My dad read the Gumdrop stories to me at bedtime, lovely memories. So odd to think this car was only 11 years old when he was born.

[@worldofrandometry6912]

How exciting it must have been back in the day to own one of these.

[@mrcogginsgarage7062]

Not long finished a rear hub bearing replacement on one of these,they really are beautifully made everything is so well made properly built,motor car the sort of thing that we used to do so well,you looked like you rather enjoyed this road test .

[@richardparkersmith4810]

Yes, they are the perfect vintage car from that point of view. Not much to go wrong and well built enough that it does not happen very often.

[@anthonystevens8683]

What a wonderful car and I must confess that I am green with envy that you had the chance to drive Gumdrop. Times were simpler then in the motoring world. I do wonder how many of the cars produced today will still be drivable in 100 years. A moot point for me as I'll not be around to find out.

[@matthyde693]

The well chuffed look on your face, brilliant.

[@handbrakebob]

This is fabulous… thank you. 😊

[@JRattheranch]

I learnt to drive on the same vehicle, 1927 vintage, without an electric starter... 🤭

[@funkyneil2000]

I also loved the Gumdrop books as a kid. I met Val Biro and sat in Gumdrop once. I remember that my parents had found his address and we just dropped in. That poor man was probably just looking forward to a nice quiet day. A key memory for me though.

[@Leon-uj7pc]

What a very nice looking car. It looks like somebody that knows how to drive a manual trans could get right in and have no real trouble driving it. The pedal layout is just like modern cars. Contrast that with a Ford Model T where you have 3 pedals and none are the gas pedal (On a USA Model T the pedal on the far left is clutch, the middle is reverse and the pedal on the right is brake (CRB) ). The thing i like most about these old cars is the dash or mirror clock.

[@MrFoxman360]

What a beautiful sound that car makes when underway

[@comcarclub]

My Lord, what a treat! You spoil us, Mr Hubnut!

[@Rjhs001]

What an interesting feature Ian. It's just occurred to me that less than 30 years later Citroen introduced the DS. What an amazing thought!

[@robertlambert8719]

That is one beautiful motor car! I just love the sound of the gears, just has something modern cars don't have. I think it's called style! The way things are going, modern motorists soon won't be able to drive a manual car, just push a button and hopefully the thing will work! Enjoy these lovely cars while you can! Brilliant video.

[@jorgefernandez-mv8hu]

That was a great video. You forgot another tidbit of information about feeding the wheel when turning. That would be that you never grip the wheel with your thumb around the wheel. The reason is that manual steering on those cars would give a nasty kick on the wheel when you went over a large bump or pothole and if your thumb was in the way of the spokes, it would hurt a whole lot. We used to have a truck like that at work and you learn about that rather quickly after a short drive. That was a lovely ride in a beautiful car. Thanks for taking us along.

[@scottishcarenthusiastsandtrain]

Excellent Review Ian, not a huge fan of pre war cars but this Put a smile on my face, that gearbox gate just like a Ferrari, wish car box gates were designed like this today showing the gate design.

[@bentullett6068]

I like the fact the gear and handbrake lever are pretty much in the same location as in a Land Rover Defender.

[@brianlaunchbury4491]

@@bentullett6068 I presume you mean a Land Rover? The Defender name caused a lot of consternation, within the company, when it was introduced, I know because I worked there!

[@peterriggall8409]

Something very special Ian to be able to drive that in such a magnificent setting. As you say, ‘Huge thanks to Beaulieu.’ Loved it.

[@JamesG75]

That's a magnificent machine. Really enjoying your Beaulieu series so far Ian

[@macgvrs]

Love the whine of the straight cut gears. Neat old car.

[@torresalex]

That was joyous to watch, and a reminder how far cars have come in the intervening years. I can't help but feel that even though we've gained a lot, some of the charming and clever simplicity of these old cars feel so right! It's a real marvel of a video, thank you for having us along.

[@Blind-Dave]

Beautifully driven Ian, and so very nearly an antique.

[@GSimpsonOAM]

The car already is ;)

[@CauliflowerMcPugg]

Lucky man, a very delightful car. Love the wonderful whine of the transmission.

[@jmdoutdoors5729]

What a awesome vehicle. I love British cars, great video. Thank you very much from Fresno California.

[@RikMcCloud]

They adapted the Gumdrop books into a TV series in the 90s. It was as simple as showing the illustrations whilst a narrator told the story. I loved it as a kid though. Nice to see a Heavy 12 again :)

[@scalecrawlnl]

Great sound! Always col to see heritage motors on the HubNut channel. The house you were stood before rather nice too. Thank you very much and naturally leaving a like 👍👆

[@GG-hu9dn]

Beautiful machine - work of art actually! :-))

[@danielchandler955]

I have to say, I immediately thought 'Gumdrop' when I saw the video image. Great books and amazing car. Thanks for the video 🙂

[@bombakdik]

How marvellous! And yes, I am glad to use that word! lovely video, really liking how it repesents a different way of living. It makes me think of the song of Eagles, Peaceful Easy Feeling. Back in the days, time was as precious as it is now, but everything needed its attention and time. Now there is much more rush going on. How those cars represent that is just so fascinating. Concerning the double declutching: don't rush it ( ;) ) You can be faster by not rushing it! On my father's GT6, I always do the double declutch with downshifts as once again the bloody circlip of the intermediate shaft is gone... again... Very cool that this car has 4 speed!

[@jimmyquinn9639]

Lovely old car 🚘🚙🚗⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️👍👍👍👍

[@Nino500]

In the rain, not so much a triangle of doom as a rectangle of resignment

[@tonypp.7093]

A great video. I really enjoyed that, thanks Ian!

[@lawrence5117]

Love this video, more old cars please.

[@HubNut]

We've got even older coming soon...

[@janhanchenmichelsen2627]

"The conciderable sound of the motor car". Level of Britishness 11/10. ;-)

[@richardparkersmith4810]

Not sure which years this is applicable to but because of the four wheel brakes, they had to have a reflective triangle at the back to help prevent people with only 2 wheel brakes running into the back of them.

[@robertlambert8719]

Correct, but like you I have no idea of the year. I have memories of some lorries having a "Warning, Air Brakes" on the back, probably for the same reason!

[@richardparkersmith4810]

@@robertlambert8719 Ah yes, I remember the air brakes think now. Thanks!

[@alansmith1770]

Lovely old car Ian.

[@jo05dk]

Cars of that vintage have so much class designwise. Especially the 30s brought us some absolutely gorgeous cars imho. I wouldn't want to own one, too far away from what i'd be comfortable driving on a regular basis, but man.. Looking at them, in some cases hearing them, makes my day. Thanks for this Ian. Lovely car, even for those of us who haven't read the books you refer to.

[@nickmoore2301]

Never seen you smile so much driving a car 😁👍

[@glynjones2540]

People would usually get in via the passenger door and slide across. This would prevent your spats being splashed with horse muck by passing traffic!

[@gryfandjane]

How delightful! Motoring around the grounds at Beaulieu is the stuff of dreams, to be sure. I’d love to visit the place, but getting there from central USA takes some doing. At least I’ve been to Gaydon…

[@edgarbeat2851]

I love all yours vids but this is my absolute favourite.

[@knutarneaakra6013]

What a Great motor. Just love it

[@sr20trx]

As soon as I saw it in your video yesterday I thought Gumdrop! Still have the book, one of the few childhood books I kept.

[@klauswassermann8054]

Splendid, utterly delightful video! It almost felt like I drove that Austin myself. I own a (currently dormant) 1934 Morris 10 so I kind of know what these cars are like to drive :) Thanks for sharing your experience! Now I think I will really have to buy a Heavy 12 some day.

[@multislipful]

Great review, as always. My late mother took the, then newly introduced, driving test in one of these - and passed first time. My children were read all the beautifully illustrated Val Biro Gumdrop stories too. Wonderful to see this one running, and running so well. Thank you

[@NeurodivergentSuperiority]

Such a very simple piece of engineering, even i could work on it, and im still a teen!

[@nigelh4617]

It is indeed a splendid motor car

[@trailingarm63]

Nice double-declutching Ian. Haven't had to do that since I moved on from my Austin Cambridge, you needed to double-declutch to go down from second to first and that car was made in 1960! The 12 Heavy seems very user-friendly for its day and I'm not surprised it was successful. Decent performance from a reasonable-sized engine.

[@bcfairlie1]

Oh my gosh. I loved the " Gumdrop " books as a kid. It started my life long love of vintage cars

[@bentullett6068]

I have just looked it up on KZbin and the narrative video book series has been added. I will be watching them again.

[@Richard-Bullock]

Gumdrop! OMG! Blast from the past I've not thought about for many years. I'm a couple of years older than you Ian, so Gumdrop was a part of my early childhood too.

[@allanriches9381]

Leave Betty at the museum and bring the 12 Heavy home. Just imagine it towing Bob around Wales, what fun that would be.

[@michailokeefeMooMoo]

Amazing little car bet it was fun driving it

[@darrenwilson8042]

Fascinating museum to visit - even without the added extra of use of some of the exhibits lol

[@arnonmus1]

Masterful Hubnut, thanks so much for this test

[@RVPartsGerald]

Brilliant Ian, demonstrating not to cross your arms on the steering wheel.

[@Zeem4]

Gumdrop - that brings back some memories. I never had the books but I had some of the stories on tape, which ended up sounding muffled in places because I'd listened to them so much. Seems like I'm on an unplanned vintage car binge too, as I've only just finished watching Mustie1 try to start a 1930 Plymouth.

[@nomdeplume2724]

Smashing 💥 Thank you Ian. 🤓

[@michaeltutty1540]

Fantastic video, Ian. Today was the day for interesting old cars on KZbin. Twin Cam has a new video about a1948 Wolesley 10. That was a car first introduced in 1939.

[@graemew7001]

What a magnificent car, drives really well. Randon thought I had though, I wonder what modern car the fan belt is actually from 🤔. It's a shame I'm 6 feet tall because I'd never be able to drive that lovely car.

[@awtistiaeth4699]

Thanks! As an older but fellow petrol-head, (these days with a guilty conscience, lol) I'd much rather watch your vids than what TG became in the end many years ago. You make it about the cars, the history and the motoring experience, not yourself.

[@WouterB76]

Magnificent video Ian, thanks!

[@allanfoster6965]

Marvelous as usual Ian. Thank you. 👍👍

[@EyesWideOpen61]

What a trip, I love it. Thx HubNut

[@jamesfrench7299]

Sounds like a mini AEC bus and the London RT reminds me of a large vintage car!

[@philh1462]

The smile on your face!

[@daniellee9015]

Absolutely brilliant video Ian 👍omg she's absolutely beautiful where did we go wrong with cars today the technology on that car is amazing nearly 100 years old the cars we have today will have gone the way of the dodo testament to proper built cars brilliant

[@siriax1691]

Now this would make a very interesting daily driver for HubNut.

[@HubNut]

Not entirely sure given the hills around here...

[@pablojones5613]

Is this the oldest car you've reviewed on the channel? It was actually fascinating!

[@HubNut]

Yes, but not for long...

[@willdatsun]

@@HubNut Next time you are down my way I can introduce you to a chap up the road with some cars from 1906,.1915 etc.

[@lanceleader8891]

Excellent. More please.

[@saxon-mt5by]

The lack of leg-room between the steering wheel and seat is because the cushion has been reupholstered with too much padding - it shouldn't be that tight! You comment on the fact that the pedal layout is 'conventional'; the Austin Twelve was the first British mass-produced car to have the (now) normal pedal layout and central gear lever.

[@Nino500]

Also, in the below dash views (6:52), you catch a glimpse of a wooden spacer block above the steering column in the mounting bracket, which looks like the column has been lowered.

[@saxon-mt5by]

@@Nino500 Well spotted! Yes, that would lower the steering wheel the best part of a couple of inches.

[@micheltebraake7915]

Glad you can drive the cars there Ian.

[@michaelwright2986]

Congratulations on your period-appropriate description: "a splendid motor car."

[@Blackadder75]

holy smokes, Hubnut going Jay Leno!

[@21stcenturyozman20]

Well what a bonus week it is! My two favourite KZbin car presenters - HubNut and Twin Cam - doing vintage cars. Excellent - and more of the same, please! 🥰

[@robingray1302]

Wot, no wipers ???? Thanks so much for showing this, you really do convey exactly what it feels like to drive something that old. Don't know why but the hood reminded me of Bob, maybe half a bob on the back would make a great vintage camper........

[@theshowmanuk]

Fantastic !

[@ddogg14]

I really hope to drive a car from this vintage at some point in my life

[@Chris391971]

The memories of my wedding car are flooding back!!!!

[@bentullett6068]

I used to have a Gumdrop video which was all of the books but narrated. I wonder if anyone has these on KZbin. I loved it when Gumdrop got sold and did various things with its different owners. I also remember the character Reggie and his Renault.

[@bentullett6068]

Update the Gumdrop story videos are on KZbin

[@MrButtonpresser]

Good job. Beautifully filmed and edited.