The Austin A40 Farina was a compact car introduced by BMC in 1958; the world's first hatchback, designed by Pininfarina of Italy. The A40 Farina Mk. II was introduced in 1961 and had a four inch longer wheelbase to increase the space for passengers in the back seats; the front grille and dashboard were also redesigned. The Mk. II had more power and an SU replaced the previous Zenith carburettor but was otherwise similar mechanically. The 948cc engine was replaced in the autumn of 1962 by a larger 1098cc version with an output of 48bhp. The car now shared its engine with the recently introduced Morris 1100, although in the A40 it retained the 'conventional' north-south orientation of the earlier unit. An improved gearbox was fitted at the same time.