At the end of WW1, Austin decided to implement a one model policy. The result was the Twenty, launched in 1919.

It was known as 'Austin's American Car' because it incorporated central gear-change and coil ignition, possibly copied from a Hudson which Sir Herbert Austin had used during the war.

The Twenty however was expensive and difficult to mass produce and the horse-power tax destroyed demand for large engined cars, so the Twenty became a chauffeur-driven luxury model with formal coachwork on its long chassis.

This 1922 example was bought second hand for £33 by a Mr Filby around 1932. He drove 37,000 miles to Cape Town and back, without serious incident – a splendid example of 'Austin dependability'.