Casgliadau Arlein

Austin J40 pedal car. Light blue, weathered condition, original upholstery worn. Chassis number '21339'. The date of delivery from the factory was 05/11/1959, the original destination was Harrods, London and the original colour was blue.

The idea of a replica Austin was first thought of in 1946 by Austin boss Sir Leonard Lord, who put a team together to design a pedal car. Production started in 1949, with the help of Government funding, in Bargoed. The plant was staffed entirely by local miners disabled by pneumoconiosis. The cars were made using scrap metal left over from production at Longbridge of the Austin road car. More than 31,000 pedal cars were sold before production finished in 1971, including the J40 and the Pathfinder. Early models were fitted with Austin's "flying A" symbol, but these were soon removed for safety reasons.