For British motorists in the late 1970s, the miracle was that the climate for motoring changed so fast. Even though there had been two vicious energy crises and a long period of horrifyingly high inflation, fine cars were still being made, space was still available to drive them, and new […]

For Britain’s motor industry, the Second World War changed everything. When Britain’s car makers returned to their peacetime businesses in 1945, they faced a different reality. The market-place, clientele, social climate and economy had all been transformed. It was not only the factories which built the cars, but also the […]

Britain’s motor industry did not exist in 1894, not only because the motor car itself was new and rare, but because British legislation still discouraged its use. It was not until pioneers like Walter Arnold & Sons (of Kent) took the plunge that any sort of domestic manufacture took place. […]

From the outside, these cars really do look different from a standard Mini, and are also comparatively rare: only 28,455 Hornets and 30,912 Elfs were produced over nine years. In effect, they are only up-market versions of Sir Alec Issigonis’s immortal small car, but most people pinpoint them as Minis […]

Hawk and Super Snipe range arrived in 1958 introducing unitary construction to Humber models for the first time. As with previous Humber model line-ups, the new range started with the four-cylinder Hawk, however, it now shared the same basic bodyshell as the larger six cylinders Super Snipe. The new body […]

Compared with the dumpy Standard Eights and Tens which it replaced, the Triumph Herald was a totally different type of car. Stylish where the old Standards had been dull, and technically exciting where old Standards had been boring, the Herald was the first of a big family of saloons and […]