Highlights

McLaren Special Operations (MSO), McLaren Automotive’s bespoke division, has been brought together with McLaren Motorsport under one management structure, headed by its new Managing Director, Ansar Ali. The new single department will combine the creation and marketing of McLaren’s rarest vehicles together with growing the MSO Defined portfolio aimed at series production cars. In a further change, the new single department will report into Jolyon Nash, Executive Director – Global Sales & Marketing. The integration of MSO into the Sales & Marketing department brings McLaren’s bespoke division even closer to retailers and customers and also brings all the revenue generating areas of the company together. 

Originally published in 1964, Bruce McLaren’s autobiography From the Cockpit is a classic motor racing memoir. So scarce and expensive are original copies that Evro Publishing, in collaboration with McLaren, is reissuing a facsimile version for all fans to enjoy. In his own words, Bruce describes his inspiring climb up the ladder of motor racing success, culminating in the inception of Bruce McLaren Motor Racing Ltd in 1963. Engaging to read, his book provides fascinating insight into not only his accomplishments but also his unique character, charm and tenacity. In his own words, ‘Life is measured in achievement, not in years alone.’ After overcoming childhood illness, McLaren began competing with a modified Austin Seven and in 1958 became the recipient of New Zealand’s first ‘Driver to Europe’ scheme. Driving for Cooper, he won the 1959 United States Grand Prix to […]

Staff at MG Motor are celebrating this week, after British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) driver Ashley Sutton took home the coveted Jack Sears Trophy in his MG6 at Brands Hatch (Sunday 2 October 2016). The award, which recognises the highest scoring rookie driver in the championship, was especially poignant this year given the fact that Sears, who was the first ever winner of the BTCC Trophy, died in August aged 86. The battle for the Jack Sears Trophy went down to the wire this year, with the Essex-born racer still unsure of clinching the title until the finish line. While he just had to complete the final race of the season to secure the title, with three laps to go Sutton experienced unexpected vibration issues. Taking no chances, the Triple Eight Racing team called the Number 116 MG6 back to […]

Robert Boston has sent in this group of photos of the Atlanta British Car Fayre that was held in Norcross, Georgia, a few weeks ago. This is the 16th year of the event and Robert says that there were nearly 400 cars and bikes in attendance. This event is held every year on the first Saturday after Labor Day.

The Classic & Sports Car Show will once again be celebrating the artistic side of the automotive industry, with a wide range of artists set to exhibit at the Alexandra Palace event from sculptors and photographers, to painters and digital renderers. Tim Layzell, the UK-based artist who created the supercar-themed poster for the event, will showcase some of his eye-catching pieces at the show, taking place 28th – 30th October. As a motorsport fan and former competitor, his passion for racing is evident in his ‘pop-art’ style paintings, which give a different perspective on the automotive world.

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars supported Mission Motorsport at the charity’s annual invitational track day, held this year at the Goodwood Motor Circuit. Mission Motorsport was set up to aid in the recovery and rehabilitation of those affected by military operations by providing opportunities through motorsport. More than 50 servicemen and women and their families were given the opportunity to be chauffeured around the glorious Goodwood Motor Circuit in a Rolls-Royce Wraith Black Badge, the most powerful Rolls-Royce in the world. Also displayed was the new Rolls-Royce Dawn, presented in Midnight Sapphire with a Mandarin leather interior.

Bentley’s design team, under the leadership of Director of Design, Stefan Sielaff, has collected the ‘Team of the Year’ award at the prestigious Automotive Brand Contest, hosted by the German Design Council. The judging panel praised the team’s ‘passion, expertise and joy’ in creating outstanding models, and noted how Bentley’s design approach is successfully future-proofing the luxury brand.

The new Aston Martin DB11 has won the T3 Design of the Year Award, presented annually to the world’s best technology products. Now entering its 10th year, the T3 Awards is one of UK’s biggest and most prestigious technology awards and celebrates the most transformational products and people each year. Voted for by T3 readers, the Design of the Year Award is presented to the ‘most pleasing looking device, or one that reimagines what a product of its type can look like’.

The 37-foot Aston Martin AM37 powerboat made its world debut at the Monaco Yacht Show today, marking the luxury British brand’s entry into the nautical world. The new day-cruiser is offered in two versions with the AM37S expected to reach speeds of 50 knots. The AM37 is the result of two years of research and development, challenging the status quo of the nautical world and combining the best in innovative technology and bespoke craftsmanship. The AM37 was a true team effort, bringing in the most experienced Aston Martin designers to style and create a truly unique product. Aston Martin’s master craftsmen who worked on cars such as One-77, Aston Martin Vulcan and the new DB11, provided their automotive experience, which was reinterpreted onto the boat with outstanding results.

The New Discovery embodies Land Rover’s drive to go Above and Beyond, combining British desirability with an unstoppable spirit of adventure. It’s an authentic, three-row, seven-seat SUV with unbeatable capability and versatility.  The new Land Rover Discovery will go on sale from Spring 2017 priced from £43,495 /$49,990 (OTR). Everyday ingenuity has been at the heart of the Discovery attracting more than 1.2 million customers over the last 27 years. The fifth-generation model benefits from Land Rover’s strong, safe and light full-size SUV architecture, delivering comfort and adaptability like no other.

Land Rover has revealed the New Discovery seven-seat SUV by breaking a Guinness World Record for the largest LEGO structure ever built. Long-term Land Rover Discovery owners Bear Grylls, Sir Ben Ainslie and Zara Phillips took part in the dynamic live reveal of Land Rover’s most versatile model around a 13-metre high LEGO version of London’s Tower Bridge.

Our Video of the Week this time around focuses on The Camel Trophy and the Land Rover participation in that event. The Camel Trophy was held yearly from 1980 and 2000 was an extremely challenging off-road trial. Quoting from the Wikipedia entry on the Camel Trophy … The Camel Trophy began in 1980 with a transit of the Trans-Amazonian highway, subsequent events have been called “the Olympics of 4×4”. They were all about adventure and exploration. Over the next eight years, the expeditions crossed Sumatra, Papua New Guinea, Zaire, Brazil, Borneo, Australia, Madagascar (the first north-south crossing) and Sulawesi before returning to the Amazon. These grueling tests of human endurance brought together teams from around the world in the hope of triumphing in some of the most treacherous off-road conditions imaginable. Teamwork and camaraderie were crucial. The competitive element came […]

Eight of the UK’s major car brands united today at the Eiffel Tower in Paris on the eve of the key international motor show to demonstrate the diversity and quality of cars currently produced in the UK. Senior executives from British-based manufacturers, including Aston Martin, BMW MINI, Honda, JaguarLand Rover, McLaren, Nissan, Toyota and Vauxhall, were joined by Mark Garnier MP, the British Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for International Trade, to promote the strength of the UK automotive sector to a global audience. The UK automotive industry has undergone unprecedented growth in recent years – thanks to competitive business conditions, tariff-free trading and significant investment in new models and facilities. Car manufacturing achieved a 10-year high last year and British-built cars have never been so popular, with a record 1.2 million cars exported to more than 100 countries. Already in the first eight months of 2016, that total looks set to be beaten this year, with exports reaching almost 900,000 vehicles – 13% ahead of the same period in 2015.1

Aston Martin has commenced production of the highly anticipated DB11 for UK customers, the first core car launched under the luxury carmaker’s six year ‘Second Century Plan’. With the first DB11 coming off the Gaydon production line today, first deliveries to customers will take place during October. Aston Martin President and CEO, Dr Andy Palmer, who will personally assure the quality by inspecting the first 1,000 cars, said: “It’s an exciting moment for the entire company when the first car of a new model goes into production. The DB11 is a special car and it heralds the start of a new and exciting era for Aston Martin.” The new DB11 is the first in a line of seven new models to be launched over the next seven years, in line with the company’s ‘Second Century Plan’, which takes the 103-year-old […]

This report has come in from Eric Gibeaut on the Sunbeam Tigers East / Alpines East United meet that was held in Atlanta a couple of weekends ago. We had a great time at our United Sept 8-11. 70 Sunbeams from all over the USA were there, and we had our concours in conjunction with the Atlanta British Car Fayre on Sept. 10. The location was the small town of Norcross which shut down all of their streets to host several hundred British cars which were parked in front of the local shops and restaurants. Really a unique car show with perfect weather! Our club also had several local driving tours to various points of interest as well as an autocross with awards presented at the banquet on Sunday night. The following photo is the Hagerty Insurance Company’s MKII Sunbeam […]

Veloce Publishing has released a new buyer’s guide to the much loved Sunbeam Alpine. Rootes’ Sunbeam Alpine sports car was the flagship of its car range. In the Sunbeam Alpine: All models 1959 to 1968 by Chris Barker, all the various models and production changes are described and illustrated in detail, along with what it’s like to own, drive and live with an Alpine – one of the best engineered, stylish and practical cars of its time, and still satisfying to drive today. If you’re thinking of buying an Alpine, this book will help you decide which model you really want, and learn exactly what to look for when you go to view a car. By using a thorough points-based assessment, you can decide with your head – not your heart – so you can make the right decision, and pay the […]

McLaren Automotive has already revealed that one of the key strategies of its TRACK 22 business plan is the development of a Pure Electric Vehicle (or EV) to one day sit in its Ultimate Series. Meanwhile, a Pure EV based on today’s McLaren P1™ is now available but only to a limited group of potential customers … those under the age of six. At least that’s the official guidance. The diminutive McLaren P1™ differs from its larger brother in two important areas. Firstly, it has a central driving position, just like the iconic McLaren F1. Then secondly, the young will be able to experience what adults never could: an open-top McLaren P1™. Yet cleverly the design still retains McLaren’s signature dihedral doors. And like every McLaren, its acceleration is startling. The zero to maximum speed dash takes just two seconds.

A rotary engine that is said to be more efficient and reliable than regular rotary units has been created by British firm Advanced Innovative Engineering (AIE). The Lichfield-based company demonstrated its 120bhp engine at the 2016 Low Carbon Vehicle event at Millbrook late last week in a custom-built open-top sports car. The 650S rotary engine is said to be half the size and half the weight of the equivalent four-cylinder piston engine, and benefits from patented technology including a so-called Self-Pressurising-Air Rotor Cooling System.