Despite an insistence from Standard Motor Company chairman Sir John Black that it had to be sold for less than either the Morris Minor or the Austin A30, the Standard 8 was remarkably forward-thinking for the early 1950s. It used Standard’s first unitary-built design (with bolt-on wings), and a subframe supported the engine, gearbox, front suspension and front bumper. Independent front suspension was by coil springs, double wishbones and telescopic dampers, while at the rear was a banjo-type live axle with leaf springs with lever arm dampers. Brakes were hydraulic-actuated drums all-round, while the steering was the only part that seen as dated, being a Burman worm-and-nut arrangement as used in the 1930s.
To achieve that low sale price, the specification had to be limited. As presented at its launch, the 8 featured sliding windows, hammock-type seats, a single windscreen wiper, a single sun visor, no hubcaps, no radiator grille and no boot lid – the luggage compartment was accessed by folding down the rear seats. Most buyers paid for the ‘missing’ features to be reinstated as dealer-fit options.
The story of the Standard 8, 10 and Pennant range is of steady improvement – the larger-engined 10 of 1954 had a more normal level of equipment and it
