Hillman Minx: forty years of the family Hillman

The Hillman Minx was a mid-sized family car built by Hillman from 1931 to 1970 in a long succession of versions, with badge-engineered sisters sold by Humber, Singer and Sunbeam. For much of the 1950s and 1960s the Minx and its derivatives were the biggest sellers in the Rootes Audax family.

Hillman Minx at a glance

Based on one source, which covers the Minx up to the post-war Mark VI in the sections used here.

History of the Hillman Minx

The original Minx was announced on 1 October 1931. It was straightforward and conventional, with a pressed-steel body on a separate chassis and a 30 bhp 1185 cc engine. It gained a four-speed gearbox in 1934 and a restyle with a slightly V-shaped grille, and for 1935 synchromesh was added to all forward gears, making the Minx the first mass-produced car with an all-synchromesh gearbox. It was designed by Rootes’ technical director Captain John Samuel Irving, designer of Sunbeam aero engines, together with Alfred Herbert Wilde.

The 1936 model was renamed the Minx Magnificent and given a much more rounded body. The chassis was stiffened, the engine moved forward for more passenger room and the rear panel sloped; a folding luggage grid was offered for £2 7s 6d, and a Commer-badged estate car joined the range. The final pre-war Minx of 1938 had a different grille and external access to the boot, in Safety and De Luxe forms. The 1939 model was changed so thoroughly underneath that few mechanical parts were interchangeable with the 1938 car. During the war Hillman built the 10HP utility, a Minx chassis with a two-person cab and covered load area, and continued the basic saloon for military and essential civilian use until 1944.

After the war the Minx returned as the Mark I with the same 1185 cc side-valve engine and a new protruding boot. The Mark III of 1948 came as saloon, estate and drophead coupé, and the Mark IV of 1949 bored the engine out to 1265 cc for 37.5 bhp. A 1949 road test recorded 67 mph, 0–60 mph in 39.7 seconds and 32.1 mpg, at £505 including taxes. The Mark V of 1951 added side chrome trim and a floor-mounted handbrake, the Mark VI of 1953 a new grille and the two-door Minx Californian hard-top. The last Minx, the New Minx of 1967, was part of the Arrow family and essentially a basic Hillman Hunter.

Design and features

• All-synchromesh gearbox: the 1935 Minx was the first mass-produced car to have synchromesh on every forward gear.
• Long model life: the Minx stayed in production for nearly forty years through pre-war, wartime, post-war, Audax and Arrow generations.
• Estate and utility versions: an estate was almost always offered, and from 1954 to 1965 there was the short-wheelbase Hillman Husky and the Commer Cob van.
• Badge-engineered sisters: the same car was sold as a Humber, Singer and Sunbeam in different markets and periods.
• Audax best-seller: from the mid-1950s to the mid-1960s the Minx family was the highest-volume line in the Rootes range.

Hillman Minx versions

• Minx (1931): the original 1185 cc saloon on a separate chassis.
• Minx Magnificent (1936): rounded restyle with a stiffer chassis and more cabin room.
• Minx Mark I–II (1945–1948): post-war cars with the pre-war engine and a new boot.
• Minx Mark III–VI (1948–1953): saloon, estate and coupé bodies, the 1265 cc engine and the Californian hard-top.
• Audax Minx (from 1956): the modernised family that also produced the Singer Gazelle and Sunbeam Rapier.
• New Minx (1967): the final Arrow-based version, a basic Hunter with a 1496 cc engine.

The Minx was replaced by the Hillman Hunter, and the smaller Avenger later filled the gap below it. The 1930s Hawk was the larger car of the Minx’s early years. More cars are in the Hillman collection.

Video: 1960 Hillman Minx Series IIIA De Luxe Saloon

Video on YouTube.

Sources

• Hillman Minx, English Wikipedia: model history, Marks I to VI, engines, bodies