I came across these rusting relics of the 1950s and 60s in a wreckers' yard. They, with many others, had been left to rot like forgotten warriors in some remote military hospice. The top illustration is a line of Austins, probably A50s; the larger is of a Morris 1000. Neither was glamorous yet they were the backbone of a motor industry whose brands were much loved by ordinary families all over England and the British world.
None of those old manufacturers survived and, despite Britain having been one of the world's major producers of cars, there are, to my understanding, no mass market English brands left.
What killed Britain's motor industry? Lemming-like unions and incompetent managements who squabbled endlessly while the Japanese and other Asiatic manufacturers watched and then acted skilfully from the sidelines.
I had English Austins, Morrises and Vauxhalls. Today I drive a Toyota, my wife a Hyundai.
The choice was obvious.
© DON DONOVAN
dnovan@ihug.co.nz
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