The Austin A40 Van was based on the A40 Devon/Dorset saloon cars which were marketed by Austin from 1947 to 1952 – the first post-war saloons to be produced by Austin – featuring a mix of old and new technologies. The Devon was the 4 door car and the Dorset was 2 door. When they were replaced by the A40 Somerset in 1952 the van (and pickup) continued unchanged until it was replaced by the A55 van in 1957.

On a personal note it is the first family car I can remember. My father was a farmer and he got one of these in the mid 50s. He cut out the side panels and replaced them with windows, he got a back seat out of the car version and bolted it in the back. We four children rode in there, except on market day when the rear seat came out and the van was used to take sheep to market. At the end of the day it was hosed out and the seat replaced, which made for a somewhat aromatic ride on a warm day. We were all very pleased when he bought a Morris Oxford and put a trailer on the back on market day. Mind you I distinctly remember watching the farmers unloading one day at the auction mart and one of them rolled up in a Humber Hawk - he opened the rear doors and let the sheep out, luxury travel for the woolly ones.