Development story

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 […]

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 […]

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 launch in 1970 came after a long lead-up as the company grappled with the issue of building an additional model that was more-road focused than the agricultural […]

The Range Rover P38 development story explains how this car looked the way it did. It took Rover 24 years to replace the Range Rover – but, when it did, […]

Triumph’s early 1960s future looked far from assured but, thanks to the launch of the Herald in 1959, it looked a whole lot brigher than once-dominant Standard’s. So it’s no […]

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 […]

More than a decade in the making, the Jaguar XJ40 was Browns Lane’s bold leap into the 1980s… However, the rest of the industry was already looking forward to the […]

Featuring five-door supercar-aping styling, and one of the nicest engine notes ever to grace an executive car, the Rover SD1 has a place in the hearts of many car enthusiasts […]

The Clubman was developed through BMC’s want to expand the Mini concept, without spending too much money. It started out as a hatchback proposal penned by Roy Haynes, but then […]

The Trident Clipper is one of the most attractive British GT cars of the 1960s that you’ve (probably) never heard of. With dramatic style and copious performance, it should have […]

The MINI’s development story is a tale of politics, Anglo-German disagreements, and a brilliant end product. […]

The Chrysler Horizon development story tells a difficult tale. It was Chrysler Europe’s first world car, and an effective Anglo-French interpretation of the Volkswagen Golf, which should have gone on […]

The Austin Ambassador was a late-life facelift of the Princess, which added the versatility of a hatchback. In addition to this, it gained new styling and a fresh, 1980s-style interior. […]