The history of the British motor trade - take a drive back to 1952

To mark Queen Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, we take a drive through automotive history back to 1952 and look at some of the landmark changes in the industry that have led us to where we are today. The UK has long been a key player in the global automotive market and after decades of constant innovation, legendary cars, and advancement of technology, the Brits have left an enormous mark in the way the world creates, drives and perceives automobiles today.

There are too many iconic British cars to cover in one blog post, but we have tried to include some landmarks of British car manufacturing. Some may even make you look back and think, “my parents had one of those”.

1950s

1952 – Queen Elizabeth II is coronated at the age of 25, the 39th sovereign to be crowned at Westminster Abbey. Meanwhile fierce competition from American rivals drove the formation of the British Motor Corporation (BMC) which soon captured the largest share of the British motor trade from any single market player.

1958 – The Preston Bypass is opened as the first motorway in the UK. On 5th December 1958, 2300 drivers drove straight into the history books being the first to use the new ￡3 million piece of infrastructure.

1959 – BMC first introduce the classic MINI, a staple of British pop culture in the 60s and beyond. It’s space-saving?transverse engine?and?front-wheel drive?layout, allowing 80% of the area of the car's?floorplan?to be used for passengers and luggage?influenced a generation of car makers.

1960s

1960 – Harold Macmillan’s government introduces mandatory MOTs for motor vehicles ensuring safety of braking, steering, and lighting equipment.

1961 – Jaguar introduces what would become a true British icon – the E-type. This British sports car was reputedly named the “most beautiful car in the world” by none other than Enzo Ferrari and is often considered to be one of, if not the greatest, sports car of all time.

1962 - Pat Moss becomes the UK’s first female rally driver swapping horse riding for car racing and scoring MINI’s first international rally victory at the 2,500km?Tulip Rally in Monte Carlo.

1964 – Aston Martin made their debut in what would become a long running partnership between two brands synonymous with luxury, power, and beauty. Goldfinger was the first James Bond film to feature an Aston Martin, a DB5 to be precise.

1970s

1970 – The late 60s and early 70s saw the golden era of early modern sports cars. 1970 marked the beginning of manufacture of the Triumph Stag. If your mum or dad had one of these it would suggest they were more at ease cruising along the Cote d’Azur than popping to the local for a pint of mild.

1977 – Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Silver Jubilee and is presented a custom-built Rolls-Royce Phantom VI by the British motor industry to celebrate the occasion. ?

1979 – Vauxhall discontinue the Viva. The small saloon had done well to revive sales for the Luton-based manufacturer after several years of steady decline. After 16 years of production the Viva was pensioned off in favour of the Astra. ?

1980s

1980 – 1980 saw the launch of the Austin Metro. During its early years, the Austin Metro was Britain's most popular small car; often outselling the?Ford Fiesta.

1989 – The late 80s saw a huge surge in new car registrations as the UK economy saw record rates of growth and the nation’s appetite for newer and more advanced cars grew alongside it.?

1990s

1991 – Speed cameras are introduced to British roads. A camera installed on the M40 motorway recorded 400 instances of speeding within the first 40 minutes.?

1995 – The 90s enjoyed a revival of the sports car market after a brief period of hibernation throughout the 80s. The?MG F?two-seater roadster was launched in 1995, 15 years after the demise of the last volume MG sports cars.

1998 - Designed by racing car engineer Gordon Murray, the McLaren F1 becomes the world's fastest production car.

2000s

2000 – It was finally the end of the road for leaded petrol in the UK as the fuel was officially banned after a 20-year phase out period.

2002 – Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Golden Jubilee. A bespoke Bentley State Limousine worth ￡10 million was designed and built to mark the occasion. Among an array of safety features, Kevlar reinforced tyres were fitted to make sure the car is not at risk of picking up a puncture so the Queen could never arrive late to a royal engagement.

2004 - AutoProtect is formed and begins to offer value-added products to the market. In 2008 we go on to introduce SMART Protect to the market, a new cosmetic protection policy to maintain the appearance a vehicle.

2005 – MG Rover closes its doors after more than 100 years of manufacturing in the UK. MG Rover Group?was the last domestically owned mass-production car manufacturer in the?British motor industry.

2007 – The year marked 50 years of continuous production of the Caterham 7, a direct evolution of the discontinued Lotus Seven designed by Colin Chapman. The Caterham 7 still enjoys strong support and success to this day and is regarded by car enthusiasts as one of the signature sports cars of the 20th century.

2010s

2012 – The 2010s were a decade of relentless innovation in the automotive industry. Although not a British brand, it is hard to talk about such innovation without mentioning Tesla. Elon Musk launched his first all-electric vehicle, the Model S, in 2012.

2016 – On 29th January 2016, the last-ever classic Land Rover Defender rolled off the production line in Solihull after 67 years of manufacture. As climate change weighs in as the next big global problem, strict parameters for new car emissions being introduced in 2020 were simply unachievable for the Defender leading to its termination after more than 2,000,000 vehicles produced.

2019 – Four market-leading businesses within the automotive space join together to form AutoProtect Group. The new group formation brings a unique offering of products and services to the market to provide one cohesive business solution to retailers.

Today

2022 – The year that Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her Platinum Jubilee. The automotive industry in the UK and around the world has seen vast amounts of change in the past 70 years with yet more to come. Car supply challenges, inflation and new challenger businesses all promise to have an impact on the market in the future. We wait to see how it will all play out, and more importantly which vehicle the Queen will choose to travel in to mark her very special milestone.