Flying Light 12 Saloon - Model 12AL

The Flying 12 was announced at the 1935 Motor Show and was a radical restyle of the previous range. Unfortunately the car was not an instantaneous hit and it was not until the model was revised for 1937 that it became a sales success.

I'm was advised by Stan to email you, for some reason my mail don't get through to him or to Phil
at the Standard Club webmaster adres !!!

I'm emailing from Bloemfontein , South Africa , and must say, since I acquired my little Flying 8 Saloon
I've been obsessing about Standards and visiting The Standard Club hompage twice a day !!!

I bought the car little more than a year ago almost fully restored. Only problem was the engine was completely stuck....!
After taking it apart I found that the top cover had corroded between no. 2 & 3 cylinders with water
leaking on top of the pistons. With the car sitting in storage for a year or two, the rings along with the piston had
got stuck completely. I carefully took out each ring and cleaned it along with all the ring gaps. The top cover
was repaired at a cylinderhead specialist shop in town, unfortunately I had to reuse the rings & the old top gasket but will replace
it as soon as I join the club.

After allot of tender loving care she sparked to life early in January.  We had some trouble
with starting, but with allot of persistence and huffing & puffing the "old granny" fired up.....!!!!

There's still allot to be done, body work is good although I spotted some rust on the bottom of the
windscreen rubber, there's some finishing touches to be done on the interior, she has no brakes on the
back wheels, but apart from that there's no other major problems.

I would like to join The Standard Club but with the unfortunate state of world economics the South African Rand
is a bit weak against the British Pound, but  be sure as soon as I take care of more pressing financial matters
I'm joining the club !

Attached are some photo's, please let me know what you guys think and what model it is as I'm not sure myself ?
Feel free to use these pic's as you see fit.

Thanks & regards.

Thys Jansen Van Vuuren

The Flying 12AL or Light 12 featured here was significantly different to the earlier model. It was shorter, narrower and lower and these caused a consequential loss of weight. This was also achieved by removing the chassis side members and replacing them with the sills, which became structural.  As the 1608 cc engine was carried over there was a useful improvement in both performance and fuel consumption.

This particularly fine example is owned by John and Rachel Maxwell from Towcester in Northants, and is in regular, reliable use:

Here are some more photographs of it, you can click on any to see an enlargement

John bought the Flying 12 a number of years ago to complement the Flying 9 that he already had in his garage. The car had previously belonged to another Club member and had been restored externally some time ago. The interior is original. John has generally kept the car up and made minor cosmetic improvements to the paintwork. 

The car and its owners have no fear of long distance work in this car, it is photographed here in Noth Norfolk at Holkham Hall, which was a stop on the popular East Anglian Roadrun.

If you have a Flying 12 in restoration, you might want to see this one, it will be at the Standard International Rally

Specification of the 1937 Flying 12AL

Your car can be preserved on the Internet, forever! I am always pleased to see stories of Standard restorations,  including photos, some taken during the process if possible. Send them to webmaster@standardmotorclub.org.uk for publication on this site. 

Return to Top of Page

Return to Flying Standard Features