Austin A40 Prepped for Goodwood Members Meeting Test Day

Midland Classic Restorations (MCR) was recently tasked with preparing an Austin A40 for the Goodwood Members’ Meeting test day. With the car having been laid up for some time, the owner made a last-minute decision to attend, giving us a very short window to get it ready.

Our workshop team worked quickly, completing necessary preparations and checks on the suspension and fluids over Monday and Tuesday this week. On Wednesday, Dom and Rob transported the car to Goodwood, in time for the 2025 Goodwood Members’ Meeting Test Day.

The test day started well, with the car completing a couple of solid sessions in preparation for the upcoming event in April. Unfortunately, during the first session, the distributor failed (it happens to the best of us); we replaced the distributor trackside, timed it up, and got the car back on track without missing much time.

In the last few sessions, a more significant issue began to surface. The first symptom we noticed was inconsistent clutch travel. After bleeding the fluid, we managed to get the car back on track. However, it quickly became clear that the problem wasn’t with the hydraulics or the clutch itself. Instead, the crankshaft (the engine unfamiliar to MCR Racing) — had fractured, this unexpected failure ultimately cut the test day short.

At MCR Racing, our priority is always to get cars and customers back on track as quickly as possible; we strive to resolve issues swiftly, and with a well-stocked support vehicle, we’re able to address most problems on-site. Only in cases of catastrophic failure do we face setbacks like this. While it was disappointing, we are optimistic about the car’s future. We’ll be working with the customer to ensure the Austin A40 is race-ready and fully prepared for future events – including the The 82nd Goodwood Members’ Meeting!