The Midget and Sprite Club was founded in 1983 when, rather
sadly, these cars were not enjoying the best of attention.
Ownership was generally a short term affair with little regard for
maintenance or investment for the longer term welfare of the
breed. The popularity and success of these cars in various forms
of motorsport also played a part in the demise of many examples.
So, the Midget and Sprite Club was formed in England to better represent these cars and to provide a service and encouragement to owners. Already at this time, very many examples had been scrapped, with some versions, such as the Sprite MkII and Midget MkI becoming quite a rarity. To give the club some idea of the scene and to establish what was left, we began our register of cars in 1984. This was set up to cover the 14 versions that were built over the 21 years of production. To date, the running totals are as follows - (Chassis number prefix in brackets)
| Sprite MkI (AN5) - 1075 | |
| Sprite MkII (HAN6) - 139 | Midget MkI (GANl) - 69 |
| Sprite MkII (HAN7) - 75 | Midget MkI (GAN2) - 43 |
| Sprite MkIII (HAN8) - 224 | Midget MkII (GAN3) -179 |
| Sprite MkIV (HAN9) - 271 | Midget MkIII (GAN4) -171 |
| Sprite MkIV (HANlO) - 100 | Midget MkIII (GAN5) -141 |
| Austin Sprite (AAN10) - 80 |
(Round arch) Midget MkIII (GAN5) - 349 |
| Midget 1500 (GAN6) - 362 | |
| Total Sprites - 1964 | Total Midgets - 1314 |
Obviously, there is nothing new in an owners club keeping a register of cars but in most cases, once an owner has provided the details of their car, then nothing more is heard in return. However, the Midget and Sprite Club has made it policy to send a register reply certificate to all owners registering their car with the club. This tells the owner how many of that type were built and how many are on the register. The earliest and latest examples known to survive, the closest matching by chassis number to that of the example being registered plus any other details that may prove interesting to an owner who would like to know exactly how their own car fits into the current picture. There is no fee charged to register a car, we are just pleased to receive any information that may add to the register. If you would like to register your Sprite or Midget, then please supply the information as detailed below. Once completed, the form will go to D. and Bob Zimmerman who will then forward batches of forms to the Midget and Sprite Club in Britain. Register Reply Certificates will be returned in batches to Bob for distribution to those owners registering their cars. (Please allow a little time for all this to happen!)
We advise that you check the I.D. numbers actually on the car and not just rely upon those given on the registration document, errors are not unknown. Also, we would be very pleased to receive photocopies of BRITISH MOTOR INDUSTRY HERITAGE TRUST PRODUCTION TRACE CERTIFICATES if available for your Midget or Sprite.
Terry Horler (Secretary to the Midget & Sprite Club)
If you need more information, please contact:
D. Zimmerman
811 South DePeyster Street
Kent, Ohio 44240
(330) 678-9394
mg-rootes@sbcglobal.net