The construction of a commercial vehicle, even if based on the current production model was a somewhat radical step for Armstrong Siddeley. After all, till now, the name had always been associated with cars for the luxury segment of the market. However the wool trade in Australia from the late 1940s had enjoyed a boom and there were suggestions from the main Armstrong Siddeley dealers there, that there was the opportunity, with a suitable vehicle, to benefit from the trend. As the UK, continued to recover from the costs of the second World War such a suggestion was very welcome. The prototype Utility Coupe was sent to Australia in April 1949 for evaluation and as a result the Station Coupe was proposed as a second alternative which was agreed and both went into production - the Station Coupe in May and the Utility Coupe in August of 1949. Production lasted till 1952 by which time 974 Station Coupes and 742 Utility Coupes had been produced. Though 60% of the production went to Australia these vehicles could be found in some quite remote parts of the world. Though considerably more expensive than the home grown product the owners of these vehicles found them to be reliable and long lasting.
The car in our opening Picture was sent as a Station Coupe to Buckles in Sydney in 1951/2 and along with two others, before sale, was converted into a Station Wagon (Estate car) by McDonalds, coachbuilders, of Bankstown, Sydney. At some time in the Australian part of its life it was owned by a band leader and used for ferrying band members and their equipment from gig to gig. It is said that a double base was included in the equipment so careful stowage must have been the order of the day
Time passes and in 1990 an enthusiastic member of the Armstrong Siddeley Owners Club sourced the vehicle and brought it back to this country. The engine, gearbox and the running gear was overhauled and the vehicle made road ready. One little peculiarity was that the normally placed under floor fuel tank had been replaced by a larger square tank fitted behind the drivers seat. Might this reflect the terrane covered and the distances to some of the bands venues? The Station Wagon was well used and attended events drawing interest wherever it went. In 2017 it passed into the hands of the present owner to keep company with two other Armstrong Siddeley cars.
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