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David WilkinsThe Vauxhall Slant Four engine has come up a few times in the current sequence, so today I thought I’d do the first car to use this power unit, the 1966 FD Victor. The Slant Four, with its belt-driven OHC was a notably ‘modern’ design, as was the FD itself, which featured a bonded windscreen, coil-sprung rear suspension and US-influenced ‘Coke bottle’ styling. Ford’s Cortina only achieved a similar spec with the 1970 Mk3. Pic <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a>.<a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Vauxhall" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Vauxhall</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsYesterday I explained how the recently featured R3 models, the Rover 25 and Streetwise, and the MG ZR, were derived from Rover’s R8, launched in 1989. The R8, seen here in 200 hatch form at the <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a>, was developed jointly with Honda and debuted the modern K Series engine. It was probably the most successful BL/Rover product of the modern era. Under the skin, the R3 contained a lot of R8 but the rear suspension was from the Maestro. <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/MG" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#MG</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Rover" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Rover</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsYesterday, I featured MG Rover’s Streetwise in juxtaposition with the Rover 25 on which it was based. Another variation on the 25 was this slightly sportier MG version, the ZR. Like the Streetwise, the ZR was far less ‘pipe and slippers’ than the standard 25. This sort of rejuvenation measure was essential given that much of the 25’s design and tech, while sound, dated back to the Rover R8 of 1989. Pic: the <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/MG" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#MG</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Rover" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Rover</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/BritishRacingGreen" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#BritishRacingGreen</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsThis car is the predecessor to the 1967 Hillman Hunter (Arrow) based Sunbeam Rapier featured yesterday. It’s a derivative of the previous generation of Minx (Audax). The original 1955 version of this Rapier, the Series I, was styled by Raymond Loewy Associates but the design had received a number of detail tweaks by the time this Series III version appeared in 1959. Pic: <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/SunbeamRapier" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#SunbeamRapier</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsTwo decades on from Field Marshal Montgomery’s Second World War staff car featured yesterday, the Rootes Group model range was still headed by a Humber Super Snipe, albeit in this more modern Series V form. It was a rival for the Austin A110 (and its badge-engineered BMC sisters), the Rover P5 and the Vauxhall Cresta. The Humber’s unflashy comfort and luxury found favour with diplomatic, ministerial and royal users. Pic: the <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a> 2023. <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Humber" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Humber</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsWhile the rebranding of <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Chrysler" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Chrysler</a> Europe as Talbot did not succeed, the choice of name itself was quite clever as it had previously been used by both the British (formerly <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Rootes" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Rootes</a>) and French (formerly <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Simca" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Simca</a>) sides of the operation. Automotive genealogy can be complicated. One snag - did this old, if illustrious, brand really resonate with buyers? Here’s a British Sunbeam Talbot Alpine convertible from 1955. Pic: the <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Sunbeam" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Sunbeam</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Talbot" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Talbot</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsIf you thought badge engineering was the preserve of Leyland’s mass market models, and only the 1300 and <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Allegro" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Allegro</a> received the Vanden Plas treatment, think again. For many years, posher versions of the XJ6/XJ12 were badged as Daimlers rather than Jags, and the top-of-the range <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Daimler" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Daimler</a>, the best of the best, was a Vanden Plas. I snapped this one at the <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a>. Apparently <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/VandenPlas" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#VandenPlas</a> badged Jags were sold in the US as recently as 2008. <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Jaguar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Jaguar</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

David WilkinsToday, we move on to the fifth-generation <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Opel" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Opel</a> Kadett, the Kadett E, which was introduced in 1984. My picture shows its near-identical <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/Vauxhall" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#Vauxhall</a> sister, the Astra Mk 2 (photo: <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/GreatBritishCarJourney" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#GreatBritishCarJourney</a>). By now the Kadett was no longer being sold in the UK. The Kadett E had a much more streamlined ‘aero’ look than its predecessor but was mechanically mostly unchanged. This was the last Kadett: its replacement would adopt the Astra badge already used by Vauxhall. <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/WeirdCarMastodon" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#WeirdCarMastodon</a> <a href="https://mastodon.online/tags/davidsdailycar" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#davidsdailycar</a>

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