Month: May 2020

The smooth six-cylinder version of the BMC 1800 (ADO17) could have been a hit across Europe. It was a great long-distance cruiser. However, held back by a body changed little […]

Vanden Plas is one of the most famous names the BMC portfolio of names. Declan Berridge tells the fascinating story of this London-based producer of luxury cars. […]

It’s May 1969, and we’re inside the Austin-Morris showroom of Impact Garage of Mortlake near the leafy suburb of Richmond, Greater London. It’s literally a few days since the launch […]

Nissan’s highly-successful Sunderland factory, located in Washington, will remain open following a wide-ranging global re-organisation of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance. With partner Renault aiming to move more production to France, news […]

It’s July 1988 and we’re standing on Platform 3 at Carlisle Railway Station. Alongside is the Kensington to Stirling InterCity service, which, as well as pulling the passenger carriages packed […]

Back at the beginning of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, I made the decision that, as the lights went out in the car industry across the UK, we’d shift the emphasis […]

AROnline contributor Martyn Kelham has produced this series on the great motoring men. Here, in third part, he discusses the Sir Michael Edwardes, the man who could have saved British […]

In the comments section of David Morgan’s recent feature marking the 20th anniversary of the formation of MG Rover, I noted that the number of cars on UK roads seems […]

AROnline Contributor Martyn Kelham has produced this series on the great motoring men. Here, in the second part, he discusses the great businessman, Harry Lawson, who sailed too close to […]

In a parallel universe, it’s May 1973 and British Leyland has proudly introduced the new Austin Allegro three- and five-door. It’s an exciting new small family car, which is being […]

Between 1958 and 1997, the Austin FX4, FL2 and the Carbodies versions were an icon you could buy new and off the shelf. The history and development of the famous […]

  After years of change, competition and confusion, the choice of vehicle for the London cabbie seems a straightforward one these days. Well, it is if they want to drive […]

AROnline Contributor Martyn Kelham has produced this series on the great motoring men. Here, in the first part, he discusses the great pioneer, Frederick Lanchester. If you are reading this, […]

Ian Nicholls, AROnline‘s historian-in-residence, tells the story of Austin-Morris, and their part in the downfall of the British motor industry. Here, in the fifth part, we recall the launch of the […]

AROnline Contributor Martin Williamson says that MG is a given for him – like several other members of our Editorial Team, he has a soft spot for the ADO16 range, […]

Vauxhall’s first front-wheel-drive supermini was the 1983 Nova. It could have hit the market with something a whole lot earlier, had this exciting 1974 prototype been given the go ahead […]

It’s May 1978 and we’re on Melville Street in the heart of Edinburgh, literally a hop, skip and a jump away from the Castle, Princes Street and all of those […]

David Morgan looks back to May 2000 when the remains of the Rover Group were sold by BMW to the Phoenix Consortium for a token £10 and MG Rover was […]

Although it’s not Steve Saxty’s first book, The Cars You Always Promised Yourself is certainly his first serious effort after penning a guide to the Ford Capri III back in the […]

It’s interesting comparing what we think now with contemporary consensus. I like to think that, in my historic writing, I tend to err on the side of reporting the contemporary […]

It’s May 1973, and we’re looking at the petrol forecourt of B&K Motors in the Kensington area of Liverpool. Judging by the crowds, there’s something interesting going on, but we’re […]