Riley 4 - Riley 4/72

Just before the 1961 Motor Show, in October, the car became the 4/Seventy-Two. Closely related again was the 16/60 update to the Wolseley car. The engine was now 1.6 L (1622 cc), and Riley again got the twin-carb version with 68 hp (51 kW). It also used an improved suspension with anti-roll bars. The wheelbase was 1 in (25.4 mm) longer, through the moving of the back axle rearwards, and the front track was increased by 2 inches (5 cm). These modifications to the wheel locations were made at the same time to all the BMC Farina saloons, and were seen as an answer to criticism of the indifferent road holding of the 1959 cars. Borg Warner automatic transmission became an option in the Riley at the same time, making the Riley the first mass produced car in Europe to adopt the Borg-Warner 35 system following Borg-Warner's establishment of a plant at Letchworth to produce a transmission package that ten years earlier had been developed for US applications.

Further modifications to the suspension a year later included 'recambering the rear springs' to improve ride and roadholding, but from the outside there was little to distinguish the later Rileys from the models as they had appeared in 1959, and the car continued very little changed until its withdrawal in 1969.

The 4/72's main competitor, appearing in 1963, was the Humber Sceptre from the Rootes Group - with a 85 hp engine, 4 speed manual or 3 speed automatic (post 1965) and a more modern interior it thoroughly trounced the 4/72 in reviews of the period.

When an automatic 4/72 was tested by The Motor magazine in 1962 they recorded a top speed of 81.3 mph (130.8 km/h), acceleration from 0-60 mph (97 km/h) in 20.6 seconds and a fuel consumption of 26.5 miles per imperial gallon (10.7 L/100 km; 22.1 mpg). The test car cost £1186 including taxes. The manual car was £1087

The 4/72 was sold as the Riley 1500 in Argentina and as the Riley Comet in Austria.