The Welbike and the Corgi The Indian Papoose is a small folding motorcycle based on the Welbike, which had been developed during WWII for use by commandos who were parachuting behind enemy lines and needed a way to quickly get around. The original Welbike was designed at Station IX, or the “Inter Services Research Bureau”…
The Sunbeam Alpine Introduction The Sunbeam Alpine name was first used on a car that pre-dates the car most of us think of when the name Sunbeam Alpine is mentioned. The first Sunbeam Alpine Marks I and III (1953-1955) were two seater roadsters based on the Sunbeam-Talbot 90 saloon and which were created specifically for…
The Last African Flying Boat is a vintage documentary covering the recreation of an aerial tour from Egypt to South Africa by flying boat. The film includes footage of the first flying boats in Africa as well as more modern examples, and the insight into the difficulties of traveling across Africa are well documented. The…
A Short History of the Peel Trident The Peel Engineering Company retains the unique distinction of being the only automobile manufacturer to ever set up on the Isle of Man. The company started out making GRP boats and motorcycle fairings in the small town of Peel on the island’s west coast, before branching out into microcar…
A Short History of the Brough Superior SS100 The Brough Superior SS100 is a motorcycle that needs no introduction to anyone with even a passing interest in motorcycle history, although the term “superbike” wouldn’t be coined for many more decades the SS100 was the first real superbike. George Brough introduced the SS100 in 1924, the name…
A Brief Introduction to the Crosslé 90F The Crosslé 90F is an open wheeled racing car developed specifically for the Classic Racing School based at the legendary Circuit de Charade in Clermont-Ferrand, Auvergne, Central France. The fact that the Crosslé 90F looks like a 1960s era Formula car is no mistake – its basic design…
A Short History of the Land Rover Defender The Land Rover Defender first appeared in 1983, as the Land Rover One Ten, followed a year later by the Land Rover Ninety. The Defender badge didn’t make its first appearance in 1991 to differentiate the more classically styled Land Rover from the relatively new Discovery model. The…
Introduction The MGB Roadster is the quintessential British sports car that never attempted to be the quickest thing on four wheels, rather it focussed on being enjoyable to drive, to tinker with, and to own. The humble MG is a good example of what made the British car industry a dominant force in the world of sports…
The Jaguar E-Type (known as the XKE in some former colonies) has been voted the most beautiful car in history more times than any other – and whilst there’ll never be a genuine consensus on something as fickle as taste, the E-Type is the car many of us would show to any arriving aliens as…
A Short History of the Austin-Healey 100/4 The story of Austin-Healey is the stuff of motoring legend. The original version of the car was called the Healey Hundred, and it was designed to use mass-produced Austin A90 road-car engines, gearboxes, axles, and suspension – with a beautiful svelte body designed by Gerry Coker. The Healey Hundred…
Brough Superior (pronounced “bruff superior”) was famously dubbed the “Rolls-Royce of Motorcycles” – a moniker that was unofficially endorsed by the British carmaker after a senior executive visited the factory and came away deeply impressed. The two major model iterations built by Brough Superior were the SS80 and the SS100, the “SS” standing for “Super Sport”…
The BSA Rocket Gold Star was one of the best performing motorcycles in the world when it was introduced – and funnily enough it wasn’t actually invented by the engineers at BSA. The early 1960s were a tumultuous time in the British motorcycle industry, with many of the large marques taking a step forward with their engineering –…
