No less a personage than Top Gear presenter James May considers the Triumph Mayflower the ugliest car of all time. The first monocoque Triumph was designed by Leslie Moore who was the Design Chief at Mulliners (responsible for much of the coachwork for Rolls-Royce and Bentley) and was given an interpretation of Triumph’s pre-war razor edge…
Field of Dreams, Brian’s Song and Old Yeller make me cry. The late night commercial of various animals languishing in shelters while Sarah Maclachlan wails about something sad in the background brings me close. I am sure if the Chicago Cubs ever win a World Series in my lifetime I’ll cry like a baby or…
Searching for the meaning of life at an automobile auction is about as fruitful as searching for your soul mate on a nationally televised dating show. Nonetheless, after seeing all manner of cars cross the stages at the various auction houses at Scottsdale this past weekend I can’t help but think back to my teenage…
The original Austin-Healey 100 was successful from the start through the winning combination of the inimitable styling penned by Gerry Coker and the surfeit of torque provided by the Austin A90 engine. Not content to rest on his laurels – and aware that challengers like the Triumph TR2 were real threats in the marketplace –…
Tony Garmey has served as both driver and custodian for some of the most important cars ever built from the MG Flying Shingle built by Ken Miles, the Kas Kastner and Pete Brock designed Triumph TR250K, the original Costin Lister and the Fantuzzi bodied Ferrari 250 GT. That these significant vehicles found their way into…
It is not uncommon for car enthusiasts to collect books and most of them that I know are avid readers on a variety of subjects. Perhaps there is something about an appreciation for archaic automotive technology that also lends itself to a deep and abiding affection for the printed word. For as long as I…
Considered the Bill Graham of his day, John S. Inskip was one of the most renowned evangelical Methodist preachers in the 19th century and he is often credited with making the “tent revival” a part of modern American religious practice. His eponymous son failed to go into the family business and instead became a salesman…
A Michelotti MG? More than one. Really? Most of us never knew about the connection between the prolific Italian designer and MG from Abingdon. In a strange twist, Giovanni Michelotti – who would become famously associated with Triumph for his landmark work on the Herald, Vitesse, TR4, Spitfire, GT6, Dolomite, 2000 and Stag – found…
Before the Mini made its mark as one of the most iconic British cars ever produced, Sir Alec Issigonis had already established a sterling reputation for brilliance with the Morris Minor. The first car built in the United Kingdom to sell more than one million units, the landmark Minor has been hailed as a design…
Like Triumph, its Coventry neighbor, Singer Motors Limited started in business in 1874 as a bicycle manufacturer before turning to cars and commercial vehicles at the turn of the century. An established innovator in the industry, Singer brought to market the first practical small car that was an equal to contemporary larger cars (rather than…
