1932 was the year Ford began to build complete cars in Britain. Ford also began bringing out an entire new line of vehicles designated uniquely for the European market. Ford Motor introduced the Anglia model in late 1939.
This was a car designed and produced by Ford in the United Kingdom. The Ford Anglia was an economical vehicle with few appointments.
It was an automobile that was meant for the low cost end of the market. The Anglia was a model that was the basis for other models and lasted for some twenty years. All Anglia’s were styled with a two door, four seater saloon body that was usually if not always finished in the Ford black paint.
The car featured in this article is a 1949 Anglia Custom Racer. It’s often been stated that every Ford Anglia imported into the U.S. ended up as a hot rod. There’s some truth to this however we also have seen a few non racers. The small automobile without all the bells and whistles and very light weight is really ideal to modify into a dragster.
It was 1948 that Ford began importing the Anglia’s into the U.S.and Canada. Though Anglia production technically ceased in 1953, the nearly identical Ford Popular 103E picked up where the E494A left off and continued another six years until 1959.
Specifications for the 1949 Ford Anglia Racer in this article is as follows…
Small block 350 cubic inch Chevy engine
365 Horsepower
350 Automatic Transmission
Holly 4 Barrel Carburetor
Edelbrock Intake manifold
Oversized Hot Rod Aluminum Radiator
Four Wheel Disc Brakes
Chrome Jaguar Rear End with Traction Bars
Anglia Racers Early Days
Others have said that if all these Anglia’s weren’t modified into hot rods there might not have been too many of them still around today. The hot rodding with the Anglia really started in the mid 1960’s. The gasser peak for the Anglia lasted from then to the mid 1970’s. Starting in the late 70’s the Anglia became populat as a street rod.
From the time that the Ford Anglia, Prefect and Thames were imported in 1948 until the end of 1953, these automobiles became the most sought after small cars ever to hit the drag strip. That being said, the projected sales figures for the U.S. and Canada came up far short. Buyers at that time seemed to prefer a larger and flashier car. As a result, dealers dropped their prices significantly, in some cases up to 30%.
In 1961 there were rules in place by the National Hot Rod Association that essentially disqualified the Ford Anglia from racing. Among two rules were that the car had to have a body manufactured in America. The second rule was that a racer was to have a wheelbase of 94 inches minimum. In 1963 the rules were changed significantly. Foreign automobiles would be allowed to compete in NHRA events and the cars could compete in the gasser classes even with a wheelbase under 94 inches. Good news for the Anglia since it’s wheelbase was 90.0 inches. With these NHRA rule changes the popularity of these small foreign cars, such as Ford Anglia’s, surged.
It didn’t take long for some people to look at the Anglia and note it’s racing potential, that is racing with an engine other than the standard one put in by Ford.as mentioned above the 49 Anglia featured in this article has a 350 Chevy engine. We’ve seen a variety of other engines used in the Anglia hot rod including a Boss 302 and a 354 V-8. In addition to the 350 automatic transmission we have also seen an Anglia built with a ’69 Muncie four-speed with a Zoom clutch. Gassers of course are heavily modified by definition.
(Article and Photos copyright Auto Museum Online)