In a new series of blogs, the Austin Pedal Cars team takes a look at some of the important, unique and rare pedal cars from their own J40 collection.
At Austin Pedal Cars we own a number of historically important and one-off J40s and Pathfinders, and some of these cars can often be seen at our Bicester Heritage showroom, and at events like the annual Goodwood Revival meeting.
Here, in the first of a series of blogs showcasing our favourite cars, we take a closer look at our unique Austin J40 Police Car. A favourite with everyone who sees it, this special pedal car has led out the Goodwood Revival Settrington Cup race on a number of occasions, with blue lights flashing and sirens wailing.
Inspiration Strikes: From Discarded Bonnet to Police Car
The inspiration for this law-enforcement special, came about when Austin Pedal Cars inherited a bonnet from an ex-fairground car, complete with a hard to avoid hole cut into it. Brothers Jamie and Mark Burnett, owners of Austin Pedal Cars, fitted the bonnet onto a J40 they had in stock and, while pondering what to do with the big hole, an idea was born.
Building the Police J40: Lights, Sirens, and More
Jamie sourced a blue flashing light that would fit into the pre-cut hole and wired it up to the battery…it worked! After that, new hand painted Police number plates were fitted along with Police livery, and an old air raid siren fitted perfectly into the boot which could be used as a siren. At this stage it became clear a more powerful battery was needed and, subsequently, one was fitted. The extra power this provided allowed for the additional fitment of a second police siren, operated via a 3D-printed switch box which provided operation for the blue lights, air-raid siren and Police siren.
A Star at Goodwood Revival: Leading the Race and Offering Rides
In 2021, the organisers of the Goodwood Revival event used this unique Police J40 as the Safety Car for that years Settrington Cup, leading out the 70 young racers in front of a global audience and it has been a regular sight at the Revival ever since. Occasionally, children have been picked from the Revival crowd by Austin Pedal Cars staff, to pedal the Police car leading out the field of racing J40s, creating a once in a lifetime experience for the lucky driver. Maybe this year it will be you, make sure to get a good spot at the side of the track!
See it for Yourself: Visit the Austin Pedal Cars Showroom
If you would like to see the Austin J40 Police car for yourself, make sure to call into the Austin Pedal Cars showroom at the next Bicester Heritage Scramble event, and try out the siren for yourself. Our team will be only too happy to show you around this, and many other, special J40 pedal cars on display, and look out for our next feature on another special Austin classic pedal car, coming soon.
Austin Pedal Cars offers a full range of parts and accessories for the Austin J40, along with an in-house factory restoration service, classic J40 pedal cars for sale, and the new J40 Continuation model. Bespoke commissions are considered on request, so if you want to create your own J40 Police car, please contact the Austin Pedal
