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The converters

Metro Cooper - 1981
Austin/MG Metro (LC8)

The cars : Metro Cooper (AKA Monaco) development story

17 May 2022 Keith Adams 8

Unbelievably, the Metro Cooper was not offered as a ‘factory-backed’ conversion, even though it came with a blue chip pedigree. But there was a good reason why John Cooper Garages […]

Austin/MG Metro (LC8)

The converters : Frazer-Tickford Metro

15 May 2022 Keith Adams 9

Frazer established itself as a new car company in 1981, offering this fabulous-looking Tickford Metro, which was first shown at that year’s London Motorfair. The Tickford name was owned by […]

Avon Acclaim Turbo
Avon Coachworks

The converters : Avon Acclaim

29 December 2020 Keith Adams 12

Ladbroke Avon put together an interesting upmarket version of the Acclaim. It was initially only made available through the Henlys franchise, before being offered to a wider audience after the […]

Towns

The cars : Towns Hustler

26 December 2020 Keith Adams 54

The Towns Hustler: not so much a car, more a way of life… There’s so much more to this amazing kit car than its extraordinary looks – Keith Adams tells […]

Railton Claremont
Jaguar XJ-S

The cars : Railton F28 Fairmile/F29 Claremont

22 November 2020 Keith Adams 14

The Railton marque, first seen in Britain in the 1930s, was revived in 1989 with a pair of Towns-designed tourers based on the XJ-S convertible. However, it failed on the […]

Austin/MG Metro (LC8)

Modified Metros : Crayford Metro Politan

30 September 2020 Keith Adams 13

It seems that few – if any – of these Crayford convertibles actually reached customers before the company decided to concentrate on its Fiesta conversions. And it had a Dr […]

Rapport International

Modfied Metros : Rapport Metro

29 September 2020 Keith Adams 6

While several companies were quick to start tuning the Metro, Rapport was the first offer a soft-top version. Rapport took a novel approach to maintaining structural rigidity, by leaving half […]

Coleman Milne

The converters : Coleman Milne Rover Vanden Plas

27 January 2020 Keith Adams 0

This subtly stretched 800 Sterling revived a name which was abandoned by the Rover Group in 2005. The styling looked rather similar to a factory-developed version of the 800, too… […]

Austin/MG Metro (LC8)

The Converters : Wood & Pickett Laser Metro

22 October 2019 Keith Adams 8

Another name from the Mini’s heyday returned to the mainstream in 1980, turning its attention to the Austin Metro. They were extraordinary vehicles, the Wood & Pickett Laser Metro and […]

Rapport International

The specialists : Rapport Forte

10 June 2019 Keith Adams 34

You’d be hard-pressed to tell that the stunning Rapport Forte was based on the Jaguar XJ… And now it’s been rediscovered, and is about to be restored to sit alongside […]

Crayford Princess Estate
Crayford

The converters : Crayford Princess Estate

8 June 2019 Keith Adams 16

And here is the car that the Princess should always have been: Crayford produced its own hatchback versions of the 18-22 Series/Princess, but at a time when the five-door saloon […]

Princess (ADO71)

The converters : Torcars Princess Estate

8 June 2019 Keith Adams 13

The Torcars Princess Estate was sold through the franchised BL dealer network, and was covered by the BL’s Supercover warranty. The text and pictures at the bottom have been taken […]

Panther 6 press photo from 1977
Panther

The converters : Panther Westwinds

1 June 2019 Keith Adams 0

The origins of Panther date back to 1971, when Robert Jankel decided that he wanted leave the fashion industry and follow his dream of becoming a creator of exclusive cars. […]

Owen Sedanca
Chris Humberstone

The converters : Owen Sedanca

26 May 2019 Keith Adams 23

The Owen Sedanca was an amazing coupe, based on the 1970s Jaguar XJ6 and built by Panther Westwinds. Only three were made, but they now have a cult following… […]

Crayford TR7 Tracer (2)
Crayford

The converters : Crayford Engineering TR7 Tracer

16 February 2019 Declan Berridge 13

Crayford Engineering sought to produce an interesting variation on the TR7 theme, and ended up hatching out this little beauty. The Crayford TR7 Tracer looked awkward, and only one survives, […]

Jaguar XJ-S

The converters : Lynx Eventer

13 January 2019 Keith Adams 20

The handsome Lynx Eventer filled a gap in the market for a top-notch sporting estate, and examples could often be seen at the smarter sporting events. Step forward Lynx Engineering‘s […]

Crayford Austin 1100 hatchback
Crayford

The converters : Crayford Engineering

23 July 2018 Keith Adams 5

Crayford Engineering was founded by David McMullan and Jeffrey Smith in the 1962, their first product being a £100 soft-top conversion for the car of the moment, the Mini. Operating […]

Crayford 1100 Convertible
BMC 1100/1300 (ADO16)

The converters : Crayford BMC 1100/1300

22 July 2018 Declan Berridge 7

The BMC 1100/1300 was the only BMC/BL model to be offered as both an estate and convertible by Crayford Engineering (although these models were not marketed concurrently). You can also […]

Rapport Ritz
Rapport International

The specialists : Rapport Ritz

2 February 2018 Keith Adams 8

Although it’s not based on an Austin Rover product, we love the Rapport Ritz, and think it makes a fascinating comparison with the equally desirable (and Honda-derived) Avon Triumph Acclaim. […]

Avon Coachworks

The converters : Avon Jaguar Estate

16 February 2017 Declan Berridge 42

When the Series III Jaguar XJ6 was launched in 1979, Mercedes-Benz had the the up-market estate scene pretty much to themselves, with Citroën and Volvo bringing up the rear. However, […]

The converters

The converters : William Towns

30 January 2017 Keith Adams 2

William Towns is probably most closely associated with Aston Martin, having been responsible for the design of such cars as the svelte DBS and the futuristic Lagonda. However, as early […]

Mini

Concepts : Mini-based Towns Minissima

30 January 2017 Declan Berridge 11

At the 1973 Earls Court Motor Show, BLMC expected the new Allegro to be the centre of attention on the Austin-Morris stand. Instead, it was another car which stole the limelight… […]

Mini

The converters : Wood & Pickett Minis

27 January 2017 Declan Berridge 13

Wood & Pickett’s riposte to Radford’s upmarket de Ville… Having seen how Radford’s Mini de Ville conversions were catching on, Wood & Pickett decided that they too could take a […]

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