HEON STEVENSON
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments v
Preface ix
Introduction 1
Part OneFamily Marques: Engines of an Industry
1. Austin: You invest in an Austin 33
2. Ford: Made with care by Ford of Britain 49
3. Hillman: A better buy because its better built! 82
4. Morris: People feel strong about Morris 93
5. Reliant: Make your family self-reliant 102
6. Singer: Motorings most elegant experience 106
7. Standard: Theres a real V.I.P. car 117
8. Vauxhall: Everyone drives better in a Vauxhall 125
Part TwoLuxury and Sporting Marques: Aspiration and Escape
9. The Bond Bombshell and Other Specialists 155
10. Aston Martin and Lagonda: Body beautiful (with a nature to match) 163
11. Bentley: Take a Bentley into partnership 169
12. Daimler: Prestige motoring in the modern manner 173
13. Humber: Luxury with a capital H 181
14. Jaguar: Grace
Space
Pace 190
15. Jensen: Pianissimo power 200
16. MG: Safety Fast! 205
17. Riley: Riley for Magnificent Motoring 212
18. Rolls-Royce: The Best Car in the World 220
19. Rover: One of the worlds best engineered cars 225
20. (Reliant) Scimitar: Join the GTE set! 237
21. Sunbeam: For people with a ZEST for living 242
22. Triumph: Triumph put in what the others leave out 249
23. Vanden Plas: Prestige without ostentation 260
24. Wolseley: Buy wiselybuy Wolseley 267
Part ThreeImported Marques: Britain Embraces the World
25. Volkswagen, Renault and Citroën: Special Cases 279
26. Alfa Romeo to Wartburg: Importers Spread Their Wings 294
Conclusion 309
Appendices
1. Year Letter Suffixes of Car Number (License) Plates 321
2. United Kingdom Purchase Tax Rates for Four-Wheeled Passenger Cars 322
3. The Value of the Pound 19581970 (2001) 323
4. The Value of the U.S. Dollar Against the Pound: Exchange Rates (19581970) 324
5. UK Car Production, Registrations, Exports and Imports (19581970) 325
6. Imports of Cars from Selected Countries (19581973) 326
7. Exports of Cars to Selected Markets (19581970) 327
8. Leading Automotive Advertisers (JanuaryMay 1968) 328
9. Division of Advertising Expenditure by Media Category (JanuaryMay 1968) 329
10. Car Manufacturers and Importers Advertising Agencies (19581970) 330
11. Contemporary Estimates of Advertising Expenditures by Marque and Model 337
12. Ages and Incomes of Owners of New Fords (1963) 357
Notes 359
Bibliography 381
Index 401
Description
During the 1960s, the automobile finally secured its position as an indispensable component of daily life in Britain. Car ownership more than doubled from approximately one car for every 10 people in 1960 to one car for every 4.8 people by 1970. Advertisers, who once needed to promote the joys of motoring as well as the particular pleasures of the individual product, no longer needed to wonder whether the potential customer (let alone society at large) might be content with no car at all. It was during this time that the question changed from Do we need a car? to What car shall we have?
This well-illustrated history explores the many types and trends of ads issued by both domestic car manufacturers and importers in three main sections: Family Marques: Engines of an Industry, Luxury and Sporting Marques: Aspiration and Escape and Imported Marques: Britain Embraces the World. Twelve appendices provide information on various topics ranging from the value of the pound in 195870 and imports of cars from selected countries, to car manufacturers and importers advertising agencies, and approximate monthly press advertising expenditures. Over 180 advertisement illustrations are also included.
About the Author
Heon Stevenson has written for several British classic car magazines and has also written extensively on advertising and automotive history. The owner of a Triumph Spitfire and Vauxhall Victor 2000, both from 1968, he is a member of the Society of Automotive Historians and an Individual Friend of the History of Advertising Trust. He is the author of American Automobile Advertising, 19301980 (2008) and lives in Cambridge, England.
Reviews
Meticulously researched and well presented...fascinating...detailedClassic Car Mart
Extremely scholarly work...an amazing piece of scholarshipThe Automobile
Informative...a good bookClassics Monthly
meticulously researched and well presented...fascinating...detailedClassic Car Mart; extremely scholarly work...an amazing piece of scholarshipThe Automobile; informative...a good bookClassics Monthly; what a brilliant book!...fabulousClassic Cars; gives great insight into the world of selling cars via the printed page...enlighteningThe Sacred Octagon; fascinating...thorough...well illustrated...thoroughly and impartially recommendedNewsletter of the History of Advertising Trust; a book of the richest scholarship, most engagingly presented...a veritable trip down memory lane...desirable and entertainingThe Flying Lady