Cars

Fancy a Metro in time for its 40th birthday in 2020? Here’s the AROnline guide on what to look out for… Years produced: 1980-1990 Body style: Three- and five-door ‘Supermini’ hatchback, […]

The ADO88 project was BL’s attempt at creating a supermini out of the original Mini. It formed the basis of the Austin Metro […]

ADO74 – the first attempt by British Leyland at replacing the Mini never saw the light of day. It was one project, but had many faces: a wide variety of styling exercises were produced before the programme was cancelled in 1973, as British Leyland could not raise the £130m needed to produce it. […]

The most comprehensive story you’ll ever read about the aborted 9X programme – the ill-fated Mini replacement, engineered by the man who created the original. […]

Coupe rennaissance THIS was the car that Rover fans have been waiting for since the launch of the 75 in the autumn of 1998. The coupe version of what has […]

In the 1990s, Rover exported Maestro production to Bulgaria and Montego assembly to India. But did you know that it almost repeated the feat with the Rover Metro/100? Read on […]

In the late 1970s a television producer who worked on the weekly BBC science magazine programme Tomorrow’s World flew to Bologna. It was just another assignment. The job: make a […]

Few can doubt the enormous contribution the Vitesse name had in raising the performance profile of the Rover marque in the 1980s and ‘90s. David Morgan tells the story of […]

Steven Ward recounts the events of Wednesday, 12 June 2013 at  Longbridge, England. The reason he was there was for the unveiling of the UK-spec MG3 – the car that […]

The Hillman Avenger was an ambitious ground-up new car for the Rootes Group, benefiting from the development resources of parent company Chrysler. In many ways, it should have been as […]

Ever seen an Austin FX4 not wearing its illuminated taxi light on its roof? Chances are it’s an Austin FL2, the black cab designed for hire and reward drivers. Declan Berridge […]

The Panther Solo was a short-lived and ultimately unsuccessful mid-engined, four-wheel-drive sports car designed to replace Lotus and TVR at the head of the UK sports car industry. But the […]

In 1969, Austin-Morris investigated ways to increase the appeal of the slow-selling Austin 3 Litre. This Wolseley 3 Litre prototype, as photographed at the Longbridge Elephant House in 1967, was […]

The Hillman Avenger was assembled in New Zealand and proved to be a minor hit on the Kiwi market. It remained in production for more than a decade and lives […]

The story of the Leyland Australia Moke Californian is a long one – and Mark Paget has managed to piece together this fascinating slice of Antipodean history. By 1976 Leyland Australia […]

The poor old Austin Allegro has been a target of criticism almost from launch, much of it deserved. But a myth has gained ground that needs correcting. People will tell […]

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 […]

The Range Rover’s place in history is now guaranteed as the world goes SUV crazy – but it wasn’t always the case, as a slow start and lack of development […]

The original Range Rover enjoyed a 26-year production run, during which time it was almost unanimously regarded as the best off-roader in the world – bar none. And now it’s […]

To commemorate 50 years of the Range Rover, David Morgan has compiled this definitive timeline highlighting many of its milestones. It starts with the first model and progresses to the […]