By Ben Selby The chorus in the TV advert went something like this. “You’ve never seen, anything, like this before!” The General Motors marketing department went all out to showcase their latest and most technologically advanced production sports car ever. They even went as far to say it was the most advanced production car on the planet. It was also …
By Ben Selby The Beatles. Peter Sellers. Britt Ekland. Enzo Ferrari. James Garner. Steve McQueen. Twiggy. Mick Jagger. What do all these famous people have in common? They all owned Mini Coopers. In particular, the original Mini Cooper. The car which John Cooper and his Cooper Racing Team transformed from the Alec Issigonis designed economical urban runabout, into a rally …
By Ben Selby During the 1930s, a civil war was raging from within Detroit City. This war was not over ideologies or religion, but for ultimate supremacy of the American car market. The parties involved were “the big three,” namely Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. Walter Chrysler saw that his company needed a middle brand to bridge the gap between …
The DB7 was to Aston Martin what the RAF was to England during 1940. One defeated the Luftwaffe and helped save Britain from the Nazi jackboot, and the other helped to save one of the coolest car brands in existence from financial ruin. Prior to the DB7’s launch at the 1993 Geneva Motor Show, Aston Martin were in the financial …
By Ben Selby Its really hard to imagine Porsche without the 911. When it was launched in 1964, Porsche was keen to cement the 911 as the company’s halo model. However, the 911 did not get off to a flying start straight away. Many accused Porsche of moving upmarket too soon, neglecting buyers who wanted a new variation of the …
By Ben Selby April 16th 1964. Television sets across America began broadcasting an advert made by the Ford Motor Company. What the announcer said next signified that something unique was on its way. “Coming April 17th, the unexpected, the Ford Mustang.” The term “unexpected” fit well, for no one was prepared for what Ford was about to show them. Prior …
By Ben Selby When Citroen launched the fabled DS at the Paris Motor Show in 1955, the car world changed forever. For perspective, try to picture the European motoring landscape of the post war years. During the late forties, the vast majority of cars produced look just as they did before WW2. Vertical radiator grills and high rooflines were the …
By Ben Selby The look on the guy’s face said it all. He stared for a good few minutes before he spoke. “Is this an E Type?” he asked. “Sure is” said I. “Wow, its BLEEP-ing mint,” he replied. As I headed inside to pay for gas, the lady at the counter asked which pump it was. I told her …
By Ben Selby Any Jaguar XK120 is special. Built from 1948 to 1954, the XK120 was the car which made Jaguar as we know it today. With its XK straight six and gorgeous flowing lines, the XK120 quickly became the must-have accessory for all tycoons and celebrities, such as Clark Gable and Frank Sinatra. The XK120 also saw its fair …
