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Our Video of the Week the Wednesday features a car we don’t talk about often, in fact, I don’t think we have ever mentioned an Allard here before.  And that is quite a shame actually, as they were handsome cars that combined British style with American power into a fearsome competitor. This video on the rare Allard J2X comes via the folks at Fifth Gear. Although made in England with a Cadillac powerplant, the Allard was always aimed at the American market. Production began in 1949 and lasted no more than a decade.  For a few short post-war years an Allard was often the car to beat, but by mid-1950s Allard found it difficult to keep with the ever more sophisticated products of larger rival manufacturers and in 1959 finally stopped making cars. These days, there are probably more Allard replicas […]

Note: This is a guest post by Christopher Silvestri who is the owner of Christopher John, Ltd, in Daytona Beach, Florid. They are the newly designated US dealer for Raptor Sports Cars.  A question for automotive aficionados: What do you get when you combine the DNA of a Shelby Cobra with something Batman would unleash upon the roadways of Gotham? I give you, dear reader and fellow motoring enthusiast, the Raptor R165. It is yet another example of what I call “attainable luxury,” a sports car with an English pedigree and an international following, which has an unmistakable personality – and an undeniable degree of performance – at a reasonable price.

Jaguar Land Rover is set to shed more than 250 agency workers at its Solihull plant as part of plans to transfer production of the Jaguar XE saloon to Castle Bromwich. The Coventry car maker has confirmed the staff are set to see their temporary contracts come to an end. In all more 267 agency staff are set to leave the Lode Lane factory over the coming weeks. One employee revealed workers “had no idea” they would be laid off and assumed they were being transferred to other parts of the luxury car manufacturer. It is understood 67 agency staff have left the Solihull plant with a further 200 from the Manpower agency set to go in the coming weeks. Note: All or parts of this story come via the Coventry Telegraph – please check out their full story.  

The region’s next generation of engineers are set to benefit from an educational partnership between MG Motor UK, South and City College Birmingham and neighbouring Bournville College. The agreement will see the organisations work in close collaboration to inspire talent and deliver practical learning opportunities. Alongside providing four branded MG3 3Form Sport models for the Colleges’ use, MG will supply a number of surplus models for students studying motorsport and engineering qualifications. These cars will enable pupils to practice new skills learned in the classroom and improve their practical automotive knowledge. Matthew Cheyne, Head of Sales and Marketing for MG Motor UK, commented: “Partnering with two local colleges provides an excellent opportunity to identify and develop talented individuals and inspire them to consider a career in engineering.” Steve Dourass, Business and Community Manager for South and City College Birmingham, added: […]

The exemplary work of Liverpool-based Briggs Automotive Company (BAC) has been given the royal seal of approval by their Royal Highnesses, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. At the University of Manchester’s National Graphene Institute (NGI) on Friday 14 October, BAC founders Neill and Ian Briggs showcased their highly acclaimed Mono supercar to Prince William and wife Kate Middleton.

The Benjafield Racing Club gathered at club member Jonathan Turner’s home at Bowcliffe Hall in glorious sunshine on Saturday for the one-off Yorkshire Buccaneer event. Local enthusiasts and car owners enjoyed a day of Yorkshire-themed action at the unique MSA-approved rally, attended by a total of 41 rare historic cars. Every year the club hosts a special event based in the home county of a randomly chosen member. Jonathan was selected this year and he welcomed fellow club members to his home for a day of pre-war motoring with a strong Yorkshire theme running throughout day, from the Yorkshire tea served at the start line to the Yorkshire Pudding served at the evening banquet.

Aston Martin Racing continues its dominant GTE Am form in the FIA World Endurance Championship, following both pole position and a class victory in the 6 Hours of Fuji for its #98 V8 Vantage GTE. After starting the 6 Hours of Fuji in pole position, Pedro Lamy (P) drove a clean series of opening laps and quickly set about creating a healthy lead. After both Paul Dalla Lana (C) and Mathias Lauda (A) had completed their first stints at the three-hour mark, the trio had amassed a lead of over one lap.

Hallmark MINI driving fun combined with zero tailpipe emissions. With the introduction of the first plug-in hybrid model by the British premium brand, this will soon be a reality. The series development process for this car has almost been completed. It features a combustion engine and an electric motor enabling purely electric propulsion for the first time in a MINI. This marks the beginning of a new phase for MINI, and offers a glimpse into a future that is charged with excitement for MINI customers and those drivers yet to experience the thrill of a hybrid. Head of MINI brand management Sebastian Mackensen and Head of MINI series management Peter Wolf offer insight into this new near-series test vehicle, and explain how it retains go-kart feeling in the true spirit of a MINI during a test drive of this model.

Pure McLaren has announced its inaugural ice driving experience, taking place in January 2017. Set against the backdrop of northern Finland, 200 miles into the Arctic Circle, Pure McLaren Arctic Experience will be the only ice driving programme in the world to offer the thrill of the multi-award winning McLaren Sports Series.

Morgan owners and fans from around the world are invited to join together on the 26th & 27th of August 2017, at the Malvern Three Counties Showground for Morgan Run For The Hills. Held in association with the Morgan Sports Car Club, Run For The Hills is the annual Morgan event for 2017 and promises to be the biggest gathering of Morgan cars since the centenary celebrations back in 2009. Thousands of Morgans will return home in style for two days and nights of live entertainment, Morgan themed events, trade stands and much more. As with any Morgan event, we’ll be celebrating all things British and championing craft throughout. With lots more entertainment and activity announcements to come, this is an event not to be missed by any Morgan aficionado!

This year The Classic & Sports Car Show will honour the Jaguar Le Mans hero that never was – the incredible XJ13 – and the man forever associated with it, Norman Dewis OBE. On entry to this year’s event, visitors will be greeted in the Palm Court area by this iconic prototype, which this year celebrates its 50th anniversary.

Bentley Motors enjoyed an exciting and successful weekend at the 18th Jochpass Memorial and Historic-Rallye in Bad Hindelang, Germany. A total of ten Bentley teams competed with their historic Bentleys in the world-renowned classics event between 6 and 8 October, including the Team ‘Blower’, R-Type Continental, Speed 6 and a Bentley 4,5 Litre Le Mans.

Lookers Jaguar Land Rover West London celebrated the launch of its luxurious new £12m showroom with a special event featuring the first showing of Land Rover’s New Discovery in the capital.  Loyal customers and VIPs were in attendance, including the awe-inspiring explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes and ‘Great Escapes’ star and marine explorer Monty Halls. Constantly juggling TV, biology and charity projects, Monty Halls came to Lookers West London last night especially to spec his new Discovery having attended the exclusive unveiling event at Packington Hall last month. Monty said: Land Rovers have been a part of my life for some 30 years, from my time in the Marines to the expeditions and TV projects they have supported me on.  I can’t imagine living without a Land Rover.  And with more equipment (and children!) to carry around with me on projects […]

The Rolls-Royce VISION NEXT 100, codenamed 103EX, today made its North American debut at the historic Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, California. 103EX is the marque’s first ever pure ‘Vision Vehicle’ and defines the future of luxury mobility. It presents an intriguing and aesthetically dynamic vision of the future of luxury mobility – a completely personal, effortless and autonomous Rolls-Royce experience, wrapped in a design that ensures a ‘Grand Sanctuary’ for its occupants and a ‘Grand Arrival’. 103EX is one of four visionary creations announced by the BMW Group in Munich on 7 March 2016, as it launched its centenary celebrations.

British Car Day® is hosted annually by the Toronto Triumph Club, Ontario, Canada on the third Sunday of September. Since its inaugural event in 1984, it has grown in leaps and bounds, and this year drew around 1,000 British cars and 8,000 spectators, with room to grow even bigger. British Car Day® is open to vintage, classic and current British manufactured vehicles, including motorcycles. The event is the largest, one-day, all-British car event in North America, with visitors from Ontario, the northeast United States, the Maritime provinces, Quebec, and Manitoba, representing membership in 100 British car clubs. This year they celebrated six anniversary cars: • MGTA, 80 years, displayed by Rick Clark. • Triumph Roadster, 70 years, Michael Walton. • Morris Minor 1000, 60 years, Alan Brand. • Triumph GT6, 50 years, Warren Beech. • Jensen Interceptor, 50 years, Mike Lewyckj. […]

Expert judges – including the UK’s leading reviewers and booksellers – have now met to debate the 2016 Royal Automobile Club’s Motoring Book of the Year, and a shortlist of finalists has been chosen and includes works on unsung racing drivers and individual historic racing machines; an extraordinary history on a marque which made just five cars; the life story of a vintage car detective involved in many important ‘barn finds’; and even an intriguing novel based on a real-life Bugatti. The winner of the annual Award, now in its third year, will be announced during a unique literary evening devoted to automotive and motor sport publishing, at the Club’s historic Pall Mall home on 2 November. The event will also welcome several world-famous writers to talk about their work and debate the future of automotive book publishing. There will […]

Our Video of the Week this time actually isn’t from YouTube! I know, amazing isn’t it? It is actually from the KXII Channel 12 television news station in Texas, and is a video of the 2016 Vintage Triumph Register National Convention. Quoting the story, which can be found in its entirety here, Triumph car owners from all over gathered at Tanglewood Resort this week for the 2016 Vintage Triumph Register National Convention. Dave Pilcher, who helped organize the convention, said he hasn’t met a stranger. “I met a guy today from England who drove my car over to the airport for me – and I just met him,” said Pilcher. “We’re all one big family.” Pilcher said he owns four Triumph cars, all of which he brought to share with 250 people. Eight even came from England all the way […]

Veteran cars planning to tackle the annual journey from Hyde Park to Brighton this November will need to be in more than just top mechanical condition… they will need to look the part, too. On the day before the Bonhams Veteran Car Run supported by Hiscox leaves London’s Hyde Park (that’s Saturday 5th November with the Run itself starting at first light on Sunday, 6th November) more than 100 veteran cars will take part in a Concours d’Elegance. The glittering showcase is a major highlight of the free-to-view Regent Street Motor Show, an annual event staged in one of the world’s most prestigious shopping and lifestyle destinations situated right at the heart of the nation’s capital city.