www.bahrainthismonth.com 42 April 2021 THE BRITISH AUTOMOTIVE JOURNEY Dick Potter takes us through the UK’s illustrious role in the world of motoring. The British involvement in the automotive industry has been at the forefront of the motoring sector for decades. This involvement has led to the creation of some of the most iconic cars in the world-such creations including Land and Range Rovers, Aston Martins, Bentleys and the Austin Mini. Other leading UK brands over the years have included Daimler, Jaguar, Lotus, McLaren, Morgan and, of course, Rolls-Royce. The UK is also a major manufacturing base for some of the world’s most recognised brands including Honda, Nissan and Toyota. The UK embedded its tentacles in the automotive industry near the end of the nineteenth century. In 1885, Gottlieb Daimler patented a design for a new petrol-based engine, whilst simultaneously befriending London-based engineer Frederick Simms who acquired the British rights for the engine design and associated patents. In 1893, Simms formed the Daimler Motor Syndicate Limited. Despite the young UK automotive industry finding such footing, the Locomotive Acts of the nineteenth century impeded its growth, ironically due to restrictions on the use of cars on public roads - which were eventually eased in 1896. Whilst early British vehicles were based on the designs developed in Germany and France, the first all-British four-wheel car emerged in 1900 with a vehicle designed and built by Herbert Austin. In 1901, Austin launched Birminghambased Wolseley Motors Limited which remained the UK’s biggest car producer until 1913, when and until Henry Ford opened his plant in Manchester. Other major players included Rover and Humber, both of which were based in Coventry and by 1922 an astounding 183 motor companies were operating in the UK. By 1944, 90 percent of motor vehicle production was controlled by the British Motor Corporation (BMC), Ford, Rootes, Standard-Triumph, Vauxhall, Rover and Jaguar. In 1955, the UK had emerged globally as the second largest car manufacturer and had also become the world’s largest exporter of cars. As German, Japanese and American vehicle production grew from economies recovering after the Second World War- the UK’s status as a major manufacturer declined - the contribution of higher labour and production costs, when compared to other countries, did not help. The 1950s and 1960s saw the beginning of a major consolidation of UK production caused primarily by a steady decline in the UK’s position in car manufacturing. In 1952, the Nuffield Organisation merged with Austin to launch BMC. The Nuffield Organisation had been formed in 1938 with the merger of Morris Motors, MGS, Wolseley and Riley. At its founding, BMC controlled 40 percent of the UK market. BMC and Jaguar merged in 1966 to form British Motor Holdings (BMH), while Leyland-Triumph purchased Rover and Chrysler UK acquired Rootes in 1967. By 1968, the British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC) was formed from the merger of LeylandTriumph-Rover and BMH. motoring
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