Wolseley 16/60 - a forgotten British 60s classic!

Wolseley 16/60 For those in the know, you’ll know the progress of the 16/60 came naturally. The manufacturer already had the 15/60 in the market, which had been well received, and the 16/60 was to come in and replace that 50s car with something fresh and more in keeping with the current trends for the 1960s. And with that, the 16/60 came to market in 1961. The changes externally weren’t some dramatic overhaul - the rear lights were revised to go with the new lower fins and the rear over riders were moved slightly to accommodate this change. You might wonder then, what it is exactly that was changed for the new car. Well, the biggest changes were going on where the casual observer might not immediately begin to look. The new larger engine with larger valves gave more power and torque and there was the introduction of a new auto box - which I chat about later in the video. The engine was a 61bhp 1622cc engine, a B series which replaced the 1 1/2 litre engine used in the outgoing model. It is worth noting that vehicles like this came to market in a new age: the dawn of the motorway. A quick read of the brochure sees Wolseley push the prolonged, high speed cruising potential of the car as a key selling point, alongside the economy. Ride quality was improved for the new car and there were modifications made to the suspension including changes to the shock absorbers, springs and Wolseley put in a stabilising bar to the rear and anti roll bar to front. Accompanying this was a subtle boost to stability with the increase of front and rear track by two inches - roughly 5 centimetres. Brakes on these are drums, front and rear, which is what you’d expect for a 60s vehicle. These are obviously very well adjusted because they pull up smartly. The car is also rustproofed from new as standard and said in the brochure to be treated in one of the most up to date plants in Europe. You notice rust proofing become more of a pressing concern and selling point as the decade accelerates and it’s interesting to see it mentioned as a side note within this one. The only extras available at time of purchase were laminated screen and automatic transmission and if you’re watching from abroad and you didn’t get a heater, whether or not that was an option to you is dependent on your export market. Interestingly, the radio isn’t listed as an extra, the radio area of the car is said to be designed for the provisions of a smiths radiomobile radio. Something I did find interesting and you might too, is that in the brochures for these, duotone colour schemes are advertised at the same price as a single colour option - this is quite a rare thing in the BMC line up and worth mentioning. I guess Wolseley’s promise of it being an exceptional value for money car isn’t lost, even in the smallest of details. They must’ve got something right with this one, because bizarrely, nothing really changes on it apart from dash trim and various sneaky cost cuts to trim until it is discontinued in favour of the 18/85. Buy Wisely, Buy Wolseley the brochure says. But is it marketing chatter or a message to believe in? Let’s have a closer look at the car and cast our own judgement.

Added 20 Apr 2026