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...
1950’s America loved two-seat sports cars, or roadsters, and domestic car-makers, as well as rivals from Europe and beyond, rushed to satisfy the endless demand. Seeing the potential of new revenue streams and fresh customers, firms such as Jowett and Triumph, traditionally makers of small...
The rare 1957 Rambler Rebel was conceived by the American Motors Corporation as a medium-sized, high-performance sedan car. It has since been lauded as the first factory-produced, lightweight muscle car, and is the forerunner of icons such as the Pontiac GTO and Plymouth Road Runner,...
Saloon cars were the top-selling workhorses of the 1950s’ car world. In an era where hatchbacks still hadn’t really been invented, mid-sized saloon cars with separate boots and four doors—or two big doors to make getting into the back a straightforward business were in big...
Seeking to boost mobility and car ownership, the Italian government struck an innovative deal with the country’s most important car manufacturer. Politicians pledged to invest in fast highways connecting up the important cities of the long, thin country, if Fiat committed to building a new...
MG—the company that virtually invented affordable, fun, British sports cars—started life making stolid, unsporting Morris cars go faster, but it quickly adapted and modified them into some legendary models to produce “affordable, performance cars.”...
For a nation so recently devastated by wartime bombardment, Germany’s automotive resurgence in the 1950s was impressive. The resurrection of the Volkswagen project, and the methodical rebuilding of the Mercedes-Benz, Opel, and German Ford marques, laid the foundations for the mighty German car industry we...