AROnline » Austin Allegro

The cars : Austin Allegro development history

Keith Adams — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 19:28:40 +0000

What’s left to be said about the Allegro – it never met sales predictions, earned a terrible reputation in the press and with buyers, and its fame far exceeded its influence in the automotive industry. British Leyland threw everything into making it a success, and yet failed dismally… Goodbye market share WHAT is so very [...]

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Concepts and prototypes : Austin Allegro

Keith Adams — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 16:16:18 +0000

Some photos taken during the Allegro’s development… Alternative frontal treatment for the Allegro GT model. Did the 1750 version (with a single carb) deserve the “GT” badge? Austin obviously thought not. The grille on this 1970 mock-up was solid because the intention was for the Allegro to have its radiator side mounted, like the Mini [...]

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Essay : Overture to the Allegro

Keith Adams — Sat, 04 May 2013 07:23:46 +0000

On the eve of its 40th birthday, Ian Nicholls digs into the archives to discuss the Austin Allegro from the perspectives of British Leyland’s movers and shakers at the time Britain in May 1973 was a different country to what it is now. This was a world where the most desirable consumer item was a [...]

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Concepts and prototypes : Allegro Equipe

Keith Adams — Wed, 09 Jan 2013 22:30:36 +0000

Keith Adams, photography, Stephen Harper In the lead-up to the launch of the series 3 Austin Allegro, newly-recruited Austin Apprentice Stephen Harper joined the team of young stylists tasked with raising the appeal of the Longbridge-built mid-liner. Harper had already come up with the LE limited edition, and the Equipe was a development of this [...]

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Blog : Making the Allegro cool

Keith Adams — Sat, 05 Jan 2013 14:17:24 +0000

Keith Adams I’ve already blogged about the 40th birthday of the Allegro, and how they really do make great classic cars – and that 2013 will be its big year – but few people will argue with the fact that it’s challengingly styled. If you read the development story of the Allegro, you’ll see that [...]

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Technical : Hydragas explained

Keith Adams — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 00:01:58 +0000

Hydragas suspension was one of the quiet achievements pioneered and refined by British Leyland – and yet, it never received the praise it deserved. KEITH ADAMS briefly explains how the system works. Pioneer that led nowhere… SINCE the introduction of the Mini in 1959, BL’s predecessor, the British Motor Corporation (BMC), had been right at [...]

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Tested : Kadett vs Allegro vs Lancer

Keith Adams — Sun, 04 Nov 2012 19:47:48 +0000

We’re moving towards the 1980s, and the hottest new ticket in town is GM’s exciting new front-wheel drive Opel Kadett/Vauxhall Astra. To see how good it was, What Car? magazine pitched a saloon version against the Austin Allegro and Colt Lancer. The result was pretty clear then – but would it be the case now? [...]

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Engines : E-Series

Keith Adams — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 17:51:41 +0000

Designed and specially built to become the Corporation’s new mid-sized engine, the E-Series had a troubled early life, but eventually matured into something very worthwhile indeed. New engine, new factory; new start? By the mid-1960s, it had become clear to BMC’s management, that in order to maintain sales volumes, the company would have to produce [...]

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Engines : A-Series

Keith Adams — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 17:37:26 +0000

The A-series engine did service in a variety of cars for almost 50 years, during which time it was available in a bewildering variety of capacities and states of tune. A hard act to follow The A-Series engine was certainly a case of the ‘British Curate’s egg’ – good in places. In fact, that is [...]

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Picture gallery : Austin Allegro

Keith Adams — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 15:21:25 +0000

A few images from Allegro sales brochures…

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Tech : Recharging Maxi spheres

Keith Adams — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 18:13:52 +0000

The main problem with Hydragas is that over time, the sealed units would lose gas and become less effective. Alexander Boucke describes the steps involved in getting your Hydragas suspended car back into rude health From 1977/78, Maxis leaving Cowley no longer used the Hydrolastic suspension system, having been upgraded to the more advanced Hydragas [...]

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Celebration : Allegro at 30

Keith Adams — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 17:39:33 +0000

For June 2003, we are doing something different for the Car of the Month feature…. In May 1973, the replacement for the seminal Austin 1100/1300 – for many years, the UK’s best selling car – was launched to the world’s press. For a long time, the car was known to many in automotive circles as [...]

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The converters : Crayford-Spikins Allegro convertible

Keith Adams — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 17:19:08 +0000

Soon after the Allegro was launched, Twickenham-based dealers Spikins saw the potential for a convertible version, and began to produce this Crayford-designed conversion. Tested in Mike McCarthy in MOTOR magazine shortly after its launch, he summed up that it was the logical, but expensive successor to the Minor Convertible. Alfresco Allegro SUMMER. Summer is lazing [...]

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The cars : Innocenti Regent

Keith Adams — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 16:27:11 +0000

THE Italian Allegro, that it seemed, no one wanted… Short and not-so sweet THERE’S not much to say really about the Innocenti Regent. This version of the Allegro was produced in Italy under licence during 1974 and 1975, and lasted a scant 18 months in production. The Italians allegedly begged British Leyland to let it [...]

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In-house designs : Vanden Plas

Keith Adams — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 10:19:09 +0000

Vanden Plas prototypes The coachbuilding firm of Vanden Plas had been purchsed by Austin in 1946, and thus became part of the BMC empire that was created by the merger of Austin and Morris in 1952. Until the end of the 1950s, the factory at Kingsbury in north-west London was chiefly used for the production [...]

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BMC>MG’s Top Ten sellers : 1952-2005

Keith Adams — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 21:04:37 +0000

Keith Adams WITH THE number of BMC/Leyland/Rover cars on our roads diminishing rapidly, we take stock of the successive companies’ ten most popular cars during the post-war years. Some of these numbers are going to shock you, simply because the cars are so rare on the road now. In fact, even the latest car on [...]

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Allegros : It’s a case of love… and hate. But mainly hate.

Keith Adams — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 09:45:22 +0000

Keith Adams You think I’d never learn. Soon-to-be ex-Practical Classics staffer, Sam Glover, dropped me a note asking if I’d be interested in taking his delightful Allegro off him. Seems he can’t keep it once he moves down South, and as always, thought of me once he’d found himself in a must-get-rid-of-old-donkey scenario. Allegros and [...]

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Car of the month : October 2005

Keith Adams — Sat, 01 Oct 2005 12:29:51 +0000

YOU might know this car better as ‘Molly, the Beige Babe’ – the car that conveyed Keith Adams, Alexander Boucke and Declan Berridge to Naples in September 2005, but it has gone on to a new life in Germany. Now owned by Martin Blum, from Cologne, this very special Allegro 1500 will form the centrepiece [...]

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Events : Staples2Naples… by Allegro

Keith Adams — Fri, 30 Sep 2005 17:53:35 +0000

As you probably all know, an intrepid team of three austin-rover.co.uk correspondents entered in the world famous Staples2Naples challenge last year – and nearly won it… In 2005, we did it again… We didn’t win anything this time, but it was an enjoyable occasion, and we proved once and for all that the term ‘All [...]

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Events : London to Tashkent… by Allegro

Keith Adams — Tue, 26 Apr 2005 17:28:22 +0000

If getting to Dakar, Naples or Chernobyl seems a little on the easy side, you could always drive to Tashkent. Oh, and make sure you do it in a superannuated Austin Allegro… Karl Parsons fresh from his Plymouth-Dakar adventure comes back for more punishment… The mother of all adventures… FOLLOWING on from the runaway success [...]

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