These Antipodean specials were based on the ADO17 (note the doors), but were treated to unique front and rear styling.
It could be said that the Kimberley and Tasman look rather like the four-door Maxi that was never put into production, but any attempt to dress-up the design failed, in truth. The car was phased out in 1974 to make way for the Leyland P76.
The Austin Kimberley and Tasman, and their Morris-badged cousins, were an interesting development of the BMC 1800/2200 reserved for the Antipodean markets only. Built between 1970 and late 1972, unsold […]
When the BMC 1800 was launched in 1964, few people can have imagined that one of its defining features – its doors – would later appear on a series of […]
In 1973, Leyland Australia announced that all former Austin and Morris cars would be replaced by a sweeping range of new Leyland-badged cars. Keith Adams tells the Leyland P76 development […]
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 […]
Big and ungainly it may have looked, and it struggled to capture the imagination of the car buyers of the 1960s, but there’s no doubting the 1800 was one of […]
The Vanden Plas 1800 prototype is one of the better-known near-misses in BMC and BL history, and it proved to be something of a showstopper in one of its rare pubic […]
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. […]
After the formation of BMC, Australia became an increasingly important market for the company, with models imported from the UK giving way firstly to local assembly of CKD (completely knocked […]
The origins of ADO17 can be traced back to XC9000, the first in a series of designs produced by Alec Issigonis in 1956, following his return to BMC from Alvis. […]
Craig Cheetham Most die-cast models are of popular subjects – cars that the model makers know will appeal to such a broad cross section of people that they’ll get back […]
In this gallery, we take a look at some of the names used to sell various versions of the BMC 1800/2200 in overseas markets… Austin Balanza Home market name: based […]
In this gallery, we take a look at some of the names used to sell various versions of the BMC 1800/2200 in overseas markets… Austin Balanza Home market name: based […]
This excellent article comes from the Australian publication, Australian Motor Sports and Automobiles, December 1970. NEW AUSTIN AUSSIE SIX With very Australian names, how can the new BLMC six-cylinder car […]
These Antipodean specials were based on the ADO17 (note the doors), but were treated to unique front and rear styling. It could be said that the Kimberley and Tasman look […]
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