The cars : Rover SD1 development history
Featuring five-door supercar styling, and some of the nicest engine notes to grace an executive car, the Rover SD1 has a place in the hearts of many car enthusiasts today. However, when it was new, poor build quality, flaky paint, and the poor image of its builder meant that its sales potential went unfulfilled in [...]
September 25, 2011
· 
Keith Adams · 
17 Comments
People : Spen King
An interview with the man behind many of the company’s greatest cars – and a few that you might not immediately associate with him…. Interviewed by Keith Adams, 13th December 2002 ROVER had enjoyed a very successful time during the 1950s and 1960s – once the company was swallowed by Leyland, Donald Stokes asked King [...]
August 28, 2011
· Keith Adams · No Comments
The cars : Maestro/Montego development story
The Metro started BL on its road to recovery, but if it was going to be a long term thing, then it needed to be followed up by equally popular mid-sized counterparts. However, the Maestro and Montego failed to capitalise on the lead pulled out by the impressive new supermini. Back from the brink? IN [...]
August 7, 2011
· Keith Adams · 36 Comments
The cars : Austin/MG Metro development history
Launched amid a barrage of patriotic fervour, the Metro was for two brief years, Britain’s most fashionable car – it proved a continued success for the company, too, racking up over two million sales during its 17-year production run. Sadly, its success alone was never going to be enough to stop BL falling further behind [...]
July 23, 2011
· Keith Adams · 15 Comments
Archive : New team for BLMC’s car division
British Leyland – has had to stop, production of Allegro, Maxi, Marina, 18/22 and some Triumph models because no suspension units are available. Output on Mini models, which was restarted last week after Leyland shipped back to Birmingham stocks of suspension units which had previously been exported to an assembly plant in Milan, is expected [...]
May 13, 1975
· Keith Adams · No Comments
People : Spen King interview
Into the future, with Spen King ‘The next Rover model will be very much a Rover car. It will be better than previous Rovers. A lot better, actually.’ Rover-Triumph head of engineering, Spen King (below centre), talks to Philip Turner about the company’s future model plans. Interview, June 1974, Motor magazine. When British Leyland was formed, [...]
June 1, 1974
· Keith Adams · No Comments
