Category: Classic Cars

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HUDSON HORNET

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Hudson is another brand that is no longer produced. Although it started in 1909, by the early 1950s the brand had been acquired by Nash and went into limbo. If Hudson is to be remembered for anything it should be for their innovative engineers who were able to produce good designs with very limited budgets. In 1954 Hudson launched its Hornet which replaced the aged 1948 model that had proved unable to compete with the V8s from other manufacturers. Although the Hornet had only an L-section six-cylinder 5.0-litre engine which… Read more

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SIMCA ARONDE

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The Simca marque was a development of a French company which initially built Fiat cars in France under license. Aided by the Simca Aronde (French for the bird Swallow), which was introduced in the early 1950s and styled in the same fashion as American cars of the 1950s, the manufacturer soon became France’s top privately-owned automobile producer. In fact, over the 12-year period that the car remained in production 1.3 million Arondes were sold. This level of sales eclipsed sales of both Peugeot and Citroen at that time. The Aronde… Read more

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LANCIA APRILIA

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Vincenzo Lancia’s last car, the innovative Aprilia of 1937-1950, appeared a few weeks after his sudden death at the age of 55. Its aluminium V4 engine, of 1.35 litres and, from 1939, 1.5 litres, with a chain driven overhead camshaft, gave a top speed of 128 km/h. The rear as well as the front wheels had independent suspension. Quite an innovation was the pillarless streamlined four-door saloon body which was followed later by a Zagato designed and built Spyder or sports roadster. When Lancia began thinking of the Aprilia, the… Read more

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MINI MOKE

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In February 1966, the Mini-based Moke went on sale. This lightweight two-wheel drive vehicle combined Mini mechanicals with a buckboard-style body without doors and windows. The concept originated in Britain in 1956, as a light army personnel carrier for use on and off normal roads. Some four-wheel drive prototypes were built but they never went into production. Production of the 2WD versions started in Britain but sales were too slow for the parent company so the decision was made to transfer production to Sydney. A similar vehicle was also produced… Read more

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PEUGEOT 205 GTI

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With the introduction of the 205 Peugeot set itself the challenge of producing from scratch a small hatchback which would stand out in a crowd. Not only did they achieve this but they created one with such street cred that it became a cult car almost overnight. Such an achievement was quite remarkable. Introduced in 1983, a total of 2.74 million cars were produced during its production life. Most remarkable of all is that it was Peugeot that achieved this, not Volkswagen or arch rival Renault. Suddenly, it seemed, Peugeot… Read more

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BMW 3.0 CSL

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The CSL was a lightweight version of BMW’s flagship six-cylinder 2800/3.0 CS coupes, although the shape harks back to the 1965 2000 CS. It was built especially to allow the car to meet the requirements needed for European Touring Car Group 2 racing. The first CSLs, announced in May 1971, were specially modified so as to become 217km/h road racers with thinner body panels, no front bumper, fibreglass rear bumper, racing latches on the bonnet, manual winding side windows made from plexiglas, and of course the alloy-skinned opening panels, all… Read more

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PACKARD V12

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Throughout the world the name of Rolls-Royce has been associated with the best in automotive engineering. Prior to World War II the name Packard gloried in the popular title of `the American Rolls-Royce’. In fact, during World War II, Packard manufactured more 24-cylinder Rolls-Royce Merlin motors than the entire British aero engine industry. Packard started its climb to success in 1915 when it introduced the world’s first production V12 engine, based on a competition engine built by the British firm Sunbeam. Packard called their cars using this engine Twin Six… Read more

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TOYOTA CROWN

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The Toyota Crown always offered good value for money but never sold in large quantities, unlike smaller Toyota vehicles, compared with comparable Holdens and Fords of tits time. Perhaps its rather bland and conservative looks contributed to this situation for on driving aspects alone it was at least equal to and often better than the competition. The car certainly should have appealed to buyers looking for excellent finish, high comfort levels and solid basic engineering providing they were prepared to accept its tasteful and neat styling. The 1975 Crown was… Read more

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ALVIS SPEED TWENTY

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First introduced in 1920, all Alvis cars made in the early 1920s were designed around a four-cylinder engine. They proved to be a popular sports car but GT Smith-Clarke, the chief design engineer was looking for better performance so in 1927 he introduced an 1870cc six-cylinder overhead valve engine and it was this engine and all future enlarged versions of this engine which powered most of the cars Alvis made right up to the outbreak of World War II in 1939. To increase performance, over time, the original 1870cc engine… Read more

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CHRYSLER VALIANT R-SERIES

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The R Series Valiant was a sensation – a family sedan which could almost touch 100 mph (161 km/h) and run the standing quarter mile in well under 19 seconds. Despite its foreign antecedents (the R Series was assembled from US parts), the Valiant incorporated modifications for Australia. And within ten years the marque would be wholly made in Australia and bear no resemblance to US models. Local planning on the Valiant started in early 1961. To gain a marketing edge over Holden and Falcon, Chrysler Australia opted for the… Read more