View source for Engineering:Austin FX4

{{Short description|Motor vehicle model used as a London taxi}}
{{Use British English|date=June 2017}}
{{Redirect|Fx4||FX4 (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox automobile
| image        = 1962 Austin FX4 London taxi.jpg
|caption       = 1962 Austin FX4
| name         = Austin FX4
| manufacturer = [[Company:British Motor Corporation|British Motor Corporation]] (1958–1968)<br />British Leyland (1968–1982)<br />Carbodies/LTI (1982–1997)
| production   = 1958–1997
| assembly     = United Kingdom: Coventry, England
| predecessor  = Austin FX3
| successor    = [[Engineering:TX1|LTI TX1]]
| body_style   = 4-door saloon
| length       = {{Convert|4570|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| width        = {{Convert|1740|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| height       = {{Convert|1770|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| weight       = {{Convert|1600|kg|lb|0|abbr=on}}
| wheelbase    = {{Convert|2810|mm|in|1|abbr=on}}
| sp=uk
| designer = Eric Bailey
}}

The '''Austin FX4''' is a hackney carriage that was produced from 1958 until 1997. It was sold by [[Company:Austin Motor Company|Austin]] from 1958 until 1982, when Carbodies, who had been producing the FX4 for Austin, took over the intellectual rights to the car. Carbodies only produced the FX4 for two years, until 1984, when London Taxis International took over rights and continued producing it until 1997. In all, more than 75,000 FX4s were built.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lvta.co.uk/history.htm |title=London Taxi History | work = London Vintage Taxi Association | first1 = Stephen | last1 = Dimmock | first2 = Bill | last2 = Munro | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130527134112/http://www.lvta.co.uk/history.htm |archive-date=27 May 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Over its lifetime, the FX4 increasingly became regarded as a [[Engineering:Design classic|design classic]], and a visual icon of [[Place:London|London]] recognised throughout the world, to the point where its eventual successors - the [[Engineering:TX1|TX-series]] and the current LEVC TX - continue the FX4's basic styling cues and overall aesthetic.

==Design and launch==
The FX4 London taxi was the successor to the Austin FX3, produced between 1948 and 1958, and in its day, the FX4 the most widely used taxi in [[Place:London|London]]. Like the FX3, the FX4 was designed by Austin in collaboration with Mann & Overton, the London taxi dealership that commissioned it (and paid for half of its cost) and Carbodies, the coachbuilder that built the body and assembled the cab ready for sale. The design team included Albert Moore from Austin's engineering division, Jack Hellberg from Carbodies and David Southwell of Mann & Overton.<ref name="Adams">{{cite web|last1=Adams|first1=Keith|title=Austin FL2/FX4|url=http://www.aronline.co.uk/blogs/cars/austin/fx4fl2/the-cars-austin-fl2fx4/|website=www.aronline.co.uk|accessdate=19 April 2016}}</ref> The original design was by Austin's Eric Bailey and it was engineered for production by Carbodies' Jake Donaldson. It would be the first London taxi to go into production that had four doors, since earlier London taxis had featured a luggage platform that was open to the elements on the pavement/sidewalk side in lieu of a front passenger seat.<ref name="TCMLaunch">{{cite news |title=Prototype Austin Taxi has Automatic Transmission |url=https://archive.commercialmotor.com/article/1st-august-1958/53/prototype-austin-taxi-has-automatic-transmission |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=The Commercial Motor |volume=108 |issue=2770 |publisher=Temple Press |date=1 August 1958 |location=London |page=53}}</ref>

Like the FX3, the FX4 had a separate chassis, but with independent front suspension and dual-circuit hydraulic brakes. FX4 front steering feature Ackermann steering geometry which allowed the car to make U-turns in just 7.6&nbsp;m (25&nbsp;ft), a requirement for the narrow roads of London.<ref>{{cite news |last=Walton-Elliot |first=Kate |url=https://transportevolved.com/2016/05/31/london-taxi-company-of-coventry-england-provides-first-details-of-its-tx-5-plug-in-hybrid-taxi/ |title=London Taxi Company of Coventry, England Provides First details of Its TX-5 Plug-in Hybrid Taxi |work=Transport Evolved |date=31 March 2016 |access-date=16 June 2016 |quote=But it was phenomenally solid, and its Ackermann steering geometry allowed the car to make U-turns in just 7.6m (25 ft), a requirement for the narrow roads of London. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160601042706/https://transportevolved.com/2016/05/31/london-taxi-company-of-coventry-england-provides-first-details-of-its-tx-5-plug-in-hybrid-taxi/ |archive-date=1 June 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Dixon |first1=John C |title=Suspension Analysis and Computational Geometry. |date=2009 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=9780470682890 |page=104}}</ref>

The first FX4, registration number VLW 431, was delivered in July 1958 and went on test with York Way Motors. The official launch was later that year at the Commercial Motor Exhibition at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre,<ref name="TCMLaunch" /> with an order worth £24&nbsp;million ({{Inflation|UK|24,000,000|1958|fmt=eq|r=-3|cursign=£}}) for 2,000 FX4s placed at the show.<ref>{{cite news |title=Millions Spent at Earls Court |url=https://archive.commercialmotor.com/article/3rd-october-1958/64/millions-spent-at-earls-court |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=The Commercial Motor |volume=108 |issue=2779 |publisher=Temple Press |date=3 October 1958 |location=London |page=64 |quote=A single order worth nearly £24m. was taken on the opening day of the Show for 2,000 of the new FX4 Metropolitan taxis by the Austin Motor Co., Ltd.}}</ref>

{{Gallery
| align        = center
| height       =
| width        =
| File:Austin FX4 Museum of Transport Manchester (1).jpg
 | alt3=
 | Pre-1971 FX4 with "rabbit ear" indicators on the roof
 | File:Perkins 1965 taxi londynska.jpg
 | alt2=
 | 1965 FX4 Dashboard
| File:Austintaxi in Alsdorf 4.jpg
 | alt1=
 | Demonstration of Ackermann steering geometry

|title=}}

==Austin era==
[[File:London Taxi Cab (246570317).jpg|thumb|1958–1968 FX4]]
[[File:1977 Austin FX4 London Taxi (32566908222).jpg|thumb|1977 FX4]]

=== FX4 ===
The first model of FX4 was fitted with a 2178 cc [[Company:British Motor Corporation|BMC]] diesel engine and a Borg-Warner automatic transmission.<ref name="TCMLaunch" /> In 1961, the manual transmission from the Austin Gipsy was added as an option. From 1962, the Austin 2199 cc petrol engine was available.<ref name="Adams" /> However, almost all FX4 taxis were fitted with a Diesel engine.

With the sudden demise of the intended replacement in 1969, the cab was revised and updated to address shortcomings of the original. The original Austin design had a small rear light cluster and roof-mounted turn indicators (commonly known as "bunny ears"). On the revised model, the rear wings were modified with less prominent [[Engineering:Car tailfin|tailfins]] to accept the taillights and turn indicators from the [[Engineering:BMC ADO16#Mark II (1967–71)|MkII Austin 1100/1300]].<ref name="Adams" /> Front indicators were also provided below the headlights and repeater indicators fitted to the front wings.<ref name="Adams" /> and "bunny ears" were abandoned. More important to the drivers of the FX4, the interior was also revised. Sound deadening, black vinyl seats and an altered partition (with an additional 4 inches of legroom) were warmly welcomed.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.aronline.co.uk/cars/austin/fx4fl2/the-cars-austin-fl2fx4/|title=Austin FX4 Black Cab - taxi!|date=2011-07-12|website=AROnline|language=en-GB|access-date=2020-04-01}}</ref>

=== FX4D ===
In 1971, the 2178 cc diesel engine was replaced by a larger, 2520 cc version. This engine proved to be better for use with an automatic transmission and gradually fewer cabs with manual gearboxes were sold. The petrol engine was discontinued in 1973. This model was available from 1971 through 1982.<ref name="Adams" />

In 1973, Carbodies' owner [[Company:Birmingham Small Arms Company|BSA]], by now confronting imminent bankruptcy, was bought by Manganese Bronze Holdings, who were happy to continue making the FX4.<ref name="Adams" /> Detail changes, such as burst-proof door locks and push-button door handles, safety steering and moulded rubber overriders (designed because the original tooling for the chrome overriders had worn out) were implemented. BLMC were in turmoil themselves by this time, so while on paper they were involved with the FX4, in reality they did little more than rubber stamp changes that Carbodies undertook.<ref name="Adams" />

{{clear}}
==Carbodies era==
=== FX4R ===
In 1982, Carbodies, who had been producing the FX4 for Austin and Mann & Overton, took over the cab's intellectual property rights when British Leyland, Austin's parent company, lost interest in it; Carbodies thereafter produced it under their own name. The old Austin engine was no longer available due to the closure of the British Leyland engine plant at Courthouse Green, so Carbodies selected the [[Company:Land Rover|Land Rover]] 2286 cc diesel engine in its place and also offered the similar-sized Land Rover petrol engine as an option. The new model was branded the FX4R, with R standing for 'Land Rover engined'. The FX4R had some improvements over the previous FX4 models, including power steering, full servo brakes, a top speed of {{convert|85|mph}} and lockable rear doors controlled by the driver,<ref name="FX4R">{{cite news |last1=Read |first1=Keith |title=A taxi to get you there fast |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/coventry-evening-telegraph-a-taxi-to-get/174918668/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Coventry Evening Telegraph |date=2 February 1983 |page=20 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> but its performance and reliability were poor and the cab gained a bad reputation.

Some proprietors replaced the Land Rover engine with the [[Company:Perkins Engines|Perkins]]/[[Company:Mazda|Mazda]] 2977 cc diesel, which improved the performance of the cab dramatically. Whilst powerful and reliable, the Perkins conversion gained a reputation for being noisy at idle and, mistakenly, for causing cracks in the chassis. The chassis problem, which was also occurring on late model Austins, was traced to a manufacturing fault.

=== FX4Q ===
[[File:1985 Austin FX4Q London taxi.jpg|thumb|1985 FX4Q]]
In order to regain lost sales due to the FX4R's failure, Carbodies took old chassis and suspension components and refurbished them, fitting new bodywork and the original-type 2520 cc diesel engines re-imported from India.<ref name="Adams" /> Because these vehicles used refurbished chassis and suspension components, they were required to have a registration mark starting with the letter Q rather than the current year letter and thus this model was known as the FX4Q.<ref name="Adams" /> All were fitted with automatic gearboxes, but not the power steering fitted to the FX4R. Sold by the dealer Rebuilt Cabs Ltd, they were marginally cheaper than the FX4R.

{{clear}}

==LTI era==
[[File:1988 Austin FX4S London Cab (8722766590).jpg|thumb|1995 model]]

=== FX4S ===
In 1984, London Taxis International (LTI) was formed after Manganese Bronze Holdings bought the London taxi dealers Mann & Overton.<ref>{{cite news |title=Taxi-maker's jobs safer |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/birmingham-evening-mail-taxi-makers-job/174919924/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Birmingham Evening Mail |date=11 April 1984 |page=27 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> LTI replaced the 2286 cc Land Rover diesel engine with the new 2495 cc version. The new model was called the FX4S.<ref name="Adams" /> New rocker switches replaced the old toggle switches on the dashboard, the wipers were controlled by a stalk on the steering column and draught proofing was added to the bottoms of the doors and black rolled steel bumpers fitted, but basically it was an updated version of the cab that had been around for almost 30 years. At this time, Carbodies were developing a replacement for the FX4, the CR6, which is why this 'stopgap' FX4S was introduced. However, the CR6 was abandoned in 1985 and MBH decided to carry on making the FX4 until such time as it could fund a new cab.

=== FX4S-Plus ===
The FX4S was superseded in 1987 by the FX4S-Plus,<ref name="CMFairway">{{cite news |title=Nissan will drive LTI Fairway cab |url=https://archive.commercialmotor.com/article/2nd-march-1989/28/nissan-will-drive-lt1-fairway-cab |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Commercial Motor |volume=170 |issue=4308 |publisher=Reed Business Publishing |date=2 March 1989 |location=Sutton |page=28}}</ref> which had a rear compartment redesigned to allow five passengers, the trim changed to grey<ref name="CroydonPost89">{{cite news |title=London Taxis export drive |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-croydon-post-london-taxis-export-dri/174917947/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Croydon Post |date=1 February 1989 |page=27 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref> and a new grey plastic moulded dashboard was fitted, which featured the instrument cluster and switches from the Austin Metro.

=== FX4W ===
The Department for Transport was keen to see wheelchair accessible taxis and the FX4W wheelchair conversion, which was available from early 1986, enabled the FX4 to provide that facility. In this, the kerb side passenger door was made capable of opening 180° and the nearside part of the partition could be moved forward to accommodate the rearward facing wheelchair in place of the nearside tip-up seat.<ref name="CroydonPost89" /><ref>{{cite news |last1=Read |first1=Keith |title=The freedom riders |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/coventry-evening-telegraph-the-freedom-r/174917910/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Coventry Evening Telegraph |date=8 May 1987 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>

=== Fairway ===
[[File:Austin FX4 at St Pauls cathedral.jpg|thumb|LTI Fairway]]
In February 1989, the Fairway was introduced. It was fitted with a 2,664&nbsp;cc [[Engineering:Nissan TD engine#TD27|Nissan TD27]] diesel engine,<ref name="CMFairway" /> although in the beginning, buyers could also opt for the old, 2.5-liter Land Rover diesel unit.<ref name=AC89.49>{{cite magazine | magazine = Autocar & Motor | title = Road Test: Fairway 2.7 Silver | url = https://live.staticflickr.com/3597/3462696647_5640ae097a_b.jpg | page = 49 | ref = A4799 | date = 1989-02-15 | volume = 179 | number = 7 (4799) | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240404023009/https://live.staticflickr.com/3597/3462696647_5640ae097a_b.jpg | archive-date = 4 April 2024 }}</ref> The new engine made the FX4 a faster and more reliable cab. It had full wheelchair accessibility, in line with a new law that came into force in January 1989. The Fairway enabled LTI to sell to overseas markets, as well as move into provincial UK markets they had not been able to tackle.<ref name="CroydonPost89" /> Much of this increase in sales was due to local authorities insisting on wheelchair accessible cabs being used in their areas.

=== Fairway Driver ===
As part of a programme to develop a replacement model, AP [[Company:Lockheed Corporation|Lockheed]] were commissioned to design and develop front disc brakes, and in conjunction, GKN designed a new suspension system to allow disc brakes to be fitted whilst maintaining the mandatory 7.6 m turning circle. These modifications were fitted to a new model, the Fairway Driver, which was introduced in February 1992.<ref name="Adams" /> The very last Fairway made, with registration mark R1 PFX (i.e. RIP FX) and a plaque baring the name of Dave Burnham, who started working for Carbodies' Coventry factory when FX4 production began 46 years prior, was built on 1 October 1997 and was presented to the National Motor Museum, Beaulieu.<ref>{{cite news |last1=MacLeod |first1=Andrew |title=Honour for the men on the line |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/coventry-evening-telegraph-honour-for-th/174918007/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Coventry Evening Telegraph |date=9 October 1997 |page=14 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref>

==End of an era==
[[File:Blois London Cabs 3.jpg|thumb|FX4 with successor models. From left to right: a TX1 facelifted by its owner, a TX1 and an FX4]]
Transport for London (TfL), who had taken over control of the Public Carriage Office, ruled that by 2006 all taxis licensed in London should comply with Euro 3 exhaust emission regulations. The Fairway, and for that matter its replacement the TX1, used the same Nissan engine which complied with Euro 2. Most proprietors were reluctant to get rid of their very reliable and economical Fairways. In the face of pressure from the trade, TfL allowed different conversions systems to be developed that could be fitted to the Nissan engine to make it comply. These were the STT Emtec Clean Cab turbocharger system and the Van Aaken [[Chemistry:Exhaust gas recirculation|exhaust gas recirculation]] system. Only 80 Austin and Rover-engined cabs remained on the road, which made it uneconomical to develop conversions for them so they were granted an exemption. Although some owners of older Fairways got rid of them, many owners opted to spend almost £2,000 having their cabs converted. They did this rather than buy a new or second-hand TXII, which was considered to be very unreliable. In late 2009, only six of the earlier Rover or Austin-engined cabs remained in service on-street, most having covered more than a million miles each.

The Fairway was replaced in late 1997 by the all-new [[Engineering:TX1|TX1]], which was subsequently replaced in 2002 by the [[Engineering:TXII|TXII]]. This in turn was replaced in 2007 by the TX4.

==Non-taxi versions==
=== FL2 ===
[[File:1965 Austin FL2 Hire Car.jpg|thumb|1965 FL2, with extra brightwork]]
The Austin FL2 Hire Car was the limousine version of the FX4. Introduced at the same time as the FX4, it was aimed at the private hire, limousine and funeral trade and this market was the main reason why the petrol engine was offered in the vehicle. It had forward-facing occasional seats and a second front seat, and carried no roof sign. It could also be ordered with special trim at extra cost. It was also the base of a few hearses.

The FL2 was relaunched in 1982 as the FL2 London Limousine, based on the FX4R and developed in collaboration with Newport Pagnell engineering company Tickford. Air conditioning was offered as well as a wider range of luxury interior options, including a cocktail cabinet and a four speaker radio/cassette and colour television system.<ref>{{cite news |title=£40,000 - for a taxi |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/burton-mail-40000-for-a-taxi/174920225/ |access-date=20 June 2025 |work=Burton Mail |date=9 October 1984 |page=9 |via=Newspapers.com}}</ref><ref name="FX4R" /> Three stretch versions were built, with four doors and an 18-inch extension between the front and rear doors. A six-door version of the FX4S was also built. The FL2 designation was dropped around 1987, but limousine versions of the Fairway were ordered, the most prominent being that belonging to the Crown Prince of Tonga.

The FL2 and the FX4 were also sold to private customers. FL2 customers included Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh and Laurence Olivier. [[Biography:Stephen Fry|Stephen Fry]] owned a Fairway as his own private transport. An FL2 limousine was the official car of the Governor of the Falkland Islands, Rex Hunt, at the time of the Argentine invasion.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205117855|title=Sir Rex Hunt, Civil Commissioner for the Falkland Islands Photographs by Peter Tearall of the COI|accessdate=22 February 2017|publisher=Imperial War Museums}}</ref>

==FX4 at work==

{{Gallery
| align        = center
| height       =
| width        =
 |File:Euston old station main entrance geograph-2991366-by-Ben-Brooksbank.jpg
 |alt8=
 |Euston Station, 1962
 |File:Carnaby Street, London in 1968.jpg
|alt1=
|Carnaby Street London, 1968
|File:052R17130579 London 1979, London, Bus.jpg
 |alt2=
 |London, 1979
 |File:Looking for a Fare - geograph.org.uk - 495008.jpg
 |Alt3=
 |Paddington Station, 1985
  | File:Gloucester Road station exterior (1) - geograph.org.uk - 640850.jpg
 | alt4=
 |Gloucester Road Station, 1985
| File:Liverpool St station reconstruction 1989.jpg
 | alt5=
 |Liverpool Street Station, 1989
| File:Royal guard parade.jpg
 | alt6=
 |Changing of the Guard, Buckingham Palace, 1995
  |File:London cabs and buses.jpg
 |Alt7=
 |London, 2009
}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{citation |  first1 = Nick | last1 = Georgano | first2 = Bill | last2 = Munro | title = The London Taxi | publisher = Shire Publications | date = 2008 | isbn = 978-0-7478-0692-9}}
* {{citation | first = Bill | last = Munro | title = Taxi Jubilee - 50 Years of the Austin FX4 London Taxi | publisher = Earlswood Press | date = 2009 | isbn = 978-0-9562308-0-5 }}
* {{citation | first = Bill | last = Munro | title = FX4 Black Cab Manual, 1958 to 1997: Austin FX4, FL2; Carbodies FX4, FL2, FX4R, FX4S, FX4S-Plus, Fairway, Fairway Driver: An Insight Into the History and Development of the Famous London Taxi | publisher = J H Haynes & Co Ltd. | date = 2012 | isbn = 978-0857331267 }}

==External links==
*[http://www.taxianglais.fr/ Portail français réservé aux taxis anglais-www.taxianglais.fr]
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060411075806/http://www.lti.co.uk/ |date=April 11, 2006 |title=LTI Vehicles – Manufacturer of London taxis }}
*{{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110516092208/http://austin-rover.co.uk/ado6indexf.htm | date=May 16, 2011 |title= AROnline: FX4/FL2 Index Page }}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20110319024608/http://www.austinmemories.com/page60/page60.html Austin Taxi (at Austin Memories)]
*[http://britishblackcab.free.fr/ British Black Cab Fairway Driver (English & French)]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=1&v=or0GhJAa31w&feature=emb_logo Look at Life: Taxi! Taxi! short documentary]
*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZ0PgKmr0_o Trailer for "It's On the Meter" documentary]

{{London Hackney Carriage Taxicabs}}

[[Category:Rear-wheel-drive vehicles]]
[[Category:Sedans]]

{{Sourceattribution|Austin FX4}}