THE AUSTIN A95/A105 WESTMINSTER – A CELEBRATION

The year is 1956, and you want four doors and an engine between 2 and 2.6 litres, which instantly rules out the MG Magnette ZB and the Sunbeam Rapier. Nor can you really afford to spend more than £1,250, which instantly rules out the last of the Riley Pathfinders, the Jaguar 2.4 and the Rover P4 105S.

So, on your shortlist, the Humber Hawk and the Wolseley 6/90 are handsome, dignified and resolutely non-sporting, as are the cheaper Ford Zodiac Mk. II, Morris Isis Series II and Vauxhall Cresta E. That leaves the new Vanguard Sportsman, which is certainly well-appointed, down to the ultra-violet panel lighting. It also features a modified Triumph TR3 engine with twin SU carburettors, and the top speed is over 98 mph.

But the Standard looks slightly too flamboyant, and, besides, Austin appears to have the solution in their A95 and A105. BMC launched the original A90 Westminster in 1954, and by early 1956 the flagship A105 with a twin carburettor version of the C-series engine joined it. September of that year saw a significant facelift, with a longer boot, an extended wheelbase, a modified grille and a slightly more powerful engine. The A95 replaced the A90 while the A105 looked even more imposing.

The Australian Wheels magazine noted of the A95:

Strangely enough, too, the car's handling has improved vastly; there being now substantially less understeer than in the old A90 - and this too can possibly be credited to some of the weight having been moved rearward along with the new boot.

In their view, the Austin was "no sluggard in any man's language, and, in all, apart from one or two details, is an aggressive, sporty saloon capable of showing a clean pair of heels to most cars, quite regardless of their size. Back in the UK, the motoring correspondent for The Observer thought the A95 the "star of the Austin range", and The Sketch regarded it as a "splendid combination of performance and comfort".

The option of a floor gear lever in spring 1958 further enhanced the Westminster's potential as a sporting saloon, especially as the standard four on the column was not the best of its type. Meanwhile, several motorists pondered the tuning capabilities of the 2.6-litre power plant to create a four-door version of the Austin Healey 100/6.

The 'Farina'-bodied A99 Westminster replaced the A95/A105 in summer 1959, leaving behind memories of a very enjoyable 'Q-Car'. Unfortunately, BMC was never to produce a model to rival the Rover P6 and the Triumph 2000 – but a few years earlier, a big Austin with four-on-the-floor showed the potential of what might have been…