Artist MF Hussain’s vintage Morris 8 car auctioned for ₹17.7 lakhs

The Morris 8 car, originally painted grey and black when MF Husain used it, has been in the artist’s family since 1991. After his death in 2011, it was restored, repainted beige and black, and kept at his Mumbai home.

A 1937 Morris 8, a vintage British-made car that artist MF Husain once drove around, was sold to a Mumbai-based businessman for ₹17.74 lakh in an online auction that ended on Wednesday night.

The 1937 model of Morris 8 was with artist MF Husain’s family since 1991.(HT Photo)

The car, originally painted grey and black when Husain used it, has been in the artist’s family since 1991. After his death in 2011, it was restored, repainted beige and black, and kept at his Mumbai home. The Morris 8 sale was part of a vintage car auction by auction house AstaGuru, which estimated the value of the car, with all its original sections and accessories intact, to be between ₹8 lakh and Rs12 lakh.

The new owner of the car wanted to remain anonymous. However, he told HT in an email response that he collects vintage and classic cars and that there were two reasons he bought the Morris 8.

“This model had made the company (Morris Motors) Britain’s largest car manufacturer at the time. The history of the car, its rich, artistic provenance and definitely, its looks, attracted me towards it,” he said, adding, “The fact that it was owned by a very renowned artist of our country made it even more appealing to me.”  

While members of the Hussain family were unavailable for comment, AstaGuru said the car has been in the family since 1991. “The car is in working condition, and is a rare model as there are only a handful of them in India,” said Siddanth Shetty, vice president of strategy at AstaGuru. “There have been no changes in the parts of the model since 1937.”  

It cannot be called a revolutionary car, Shetty said, but added that its vintage look and feel makes it appealing to collectors. It is not a very expensive car to own, so people can begin their collection with it, Shetty said.

The Morris 8 model was in production between 1935 and 1948, inspired by the popularity of the Ford Model Y, the production of which began three years earlier, in 1932. According to data from AstaGuru, 1,16,000 Morris 8 cars were sold in the first three years of its production, with experts crediting it as the model that saved the brand.

Other vintage cars at the auction included a Rolls Royce Silver Wraith 1947, which got the highest bid of ₹1.70 crore, and a Chrysler Airstream 1936 that was auctioned for ₹48.21 lakh.