Cars need fuel, and for those fortunate to own a car in the early 20th century, that meant buying petrol in cans from the nearest chemists’ or bicycle shop. As car-ownership increased, however, following the launch of the Model T Ford the need for roadside...
Acclaimed former rally driver and engineer Donald Healey became a car manufacturer in his own right in 1946. He wanted to build a high-performance, inexpensive sports car, and achieved that with the Healey 100. Launched at the London Motor Show in 1952, the two-seater roadster...
Performance had always been the preserve of open roadsters, but by the 1960s sports saloons were gaining ground. This inroad was fuelled by car-makers such as Ford and BMC turning out tuned versions of their family cars that made a good base for a circuit...
Lancia Delta Integrale Evoluzione II, 1993 Delta Integrale Evoluzione II Lancia was sold to Fiat in 1969, and it was hoped a high-performance hot hatch would recapture Lancia’s earlier glory. The specialized S4 took second place in the 1986 World Championship and, keen to capitalize on this...
“Adding power makes you faster on the straights. Subtracting weight makes you faster everywhere.” COLIN CHAPMAN, FOUNDER OF LOTUS The mid-1960s was probably the pinnacle of unfettered driving enjoyment. Roads worldwide were still relatively uncrowded, in many cases speed limits did not apply, and engineers—working from opposing ends...
The classic car period of 1940-1990 is the era when the Cadillac name stood for luxury, style, and power in imposingly large packages. Henry M. Leland started the company in 1902, and Cadillac became notable for its ability to manufacture high-quality cars on a large...
Cars such as big Opels and Vauxhalls appealed to up-and-coming consumers, who were trading up from economy-minded small saloons, but there was also a breed of large car aimed at a wealthier clientele. Just as today’s Mercedes, Jaguar, and BMW models are considered a cut...
The VW Transporter T1 Microbus-based camper—often known simply as the Kombi—was much-loved when new, and is highly desirable today. The mechanical underpinnings of the Beetle were present in the Transporter (Volkswagen Types 1 and 2 respectively), but the basic van was available in a wide...
After World War I a rush of very cheap, very crude, little vehicles known as “cycle cars” appeared, but these were killed off by proper cars in miniature such as the Austin Seven and Citroen 5CV. This pattern was repeated after World War II, with...
In 1922 motorcycle enthusiasts, William Lyons and William Walmsley, went into partnership to build sidecars. Five years later, Lyons designed a stylish body for the Austin Seven, and just one year on from then his firm moved to Coventry; from these humble origins the Jaguar...