Lot Ended
Description
Rare Morris Commercial with a 3.5 six-cylinder petrol engine, 13ft
wheelbase and 40cwt (two tons) payload capacity; only four owners from new;
well-maintained and in regular use; driven to the sale from Ludlow
Introduced in
1933, the Morris Commercial C-Series range of light trucks were general purpose
load-luggers that kept British industry moving in the pre-war years. With a
stubby bonnet up front housing either a four- or six-cylinder petrol engine
(rather than the later engine-under-cab design which became popular after the
war), they had payload capacities typically between 15cwt (0.75 tons) and 60cwt
(3 tons).
Prized less for speed than for low-end
torque and ease of maintenance, the C-Series was simple to fix with parts
interchangeable across many Morris models. In combination with a massively
strong chassis, reliable cooling system and sturdy suspension, they were in high
demand in the building and agricultural industries, proving capable of surviving
decades of hard use.
These qualities also made
them ideal for military service and they went on to become the ‘general purpose’
truck of the British Army until 1942/43, providing sterling service in harsh
environments like North Africa and on the war-torn roads of
Europe.
First registered in August 1937, this
rather splendid Morris Commercial is the CS 13/40 variant, the S denoting that
it is a six-cylinder model with a 3.5-litre petrol engine and the 13/40
reflecting the 13-foot wheelbase and 40cwt (two-ton) load
capacity.
It seems to have had just four owners
from new, the first being corn merchants JA Tyers & Son of Claybrooke Mill
near Rugby who kept it until at least 1959, judging by old insurance documents
on file.
The buff logbook shows that the second
owners were general hauliers HW Coates Ltd, only six miles up the road from
Tyers in Cosby, Leicestershire. It was next owned by agricultural hauliers AE
Jones of Granville Garage in Ludlow, although it isn’t clear when they bought
it. An old V5 shows that HW Coates bought the truck back again in 1997 and it
seems they kept it until our vendor acquired it in 2021.
A professional mechanic who specialises in maintaining and restoring
vintage commercials, our vendor has kept the truck in good running order during
his five-year ownership, using it to promote his business at local shows.
As you can see in the photos and the video, this
Morris Commercial appears to be in fine fettle for an 89-year-old and was driven
to the sale from the Ludlow area. A sturdy old workhorse which retains its
original Leicestershire-issue number plate, ANR 118 is now in search of an
enthusiastic fifth owner who can continue to preserve it well into the next
century and beyond.
Consigned by James
Dennison – 07970 309907 – james.dennison@brightwells.com