The British Motor Show Compilation 1949-1959 Pt 1.

A plethora of famous British makes and models from the halcyon days of motoring covered by Pathe.

[@eldorado62]

Right on, Paul. My dad had a 1955 Super Snipe. Big 6 cyl: engine, 7 main bearing crank. You could put that thing into high gear, & with a bit of slipping the clutch, the darned thing could pull away from a standstill. In 3rd gear it would run up past 75 mph. Don't know what top speed was, my dad never ran it up there. I do remember the early Hawk's with the side-valve 4 engine. Later, they went to OHV. The early Snipes were also side-valve. They were great cars, well made, & totally reliable.

[@wingedpaner00]

thanks for posting this up! its amazing how the pitch was so different back then

[@zaphodbeeblebrox6627]

And here comes the Duke of Gloucester.. a proper chinless wonder if i ever saw one.

[@mrjimhoward]

Thanks...well done. Boy has Britain fallen behind.

[@bokhans]

And the worst haven’t started yet. Brexit will be the end to the U.K. in so many ways, the rich have failed the nation. An out of date royal family with a prince on the run from justice, one year later and still he has not talked to legal authorities about the rape of a child in USA. House of Lord where rich and religious leaders inherit political positions! Madness. people need to understand the empire is gone!

[@alanoconnor6921]

All the Morris cars came with a complimentary bus timetable,,

[@HITHEREFOLKS]

well done ! thx 4 posting these lovely memories!

[@grumpywine]

My first car as a young 19 year old lad in 1969 was a previously owned 1961 Jaguar Mark X. I learned a lot about the excentricities of British cars and loved it and within two years had my first brand new car...a 1971 MG GT. My daily driver now is a 2000 something North American Slug but I keep my sanity (and my so called "youth" through a recently acuired 1972 MG. If it's not running when I die, I'll request to be buried in it. Cheers from British Colkumbia, CANADA (ex Montreal Quebec)

[@ADMIRALSCORNER]

Those were the days!

[@studebakerranch4907]

The second car I ever owned was a 1954 Sunbeam Alpine, left hand drive with 4 speed shifter on the column. One feature was when shifting into reverse you pulled the knob out, then pushed forward & down until the shift lever hit your right thigh, then you know it was in gear. I still have the original parts manual & a couple of goodies from it for old times.

[@armjos1]

Love the Austin Atlantic

[@johnwh1039]

Can imagine how spritely the average 50s car would be towing that huge caravan - they built them 'substantially' in those days, not out of plastic!

[@405liner]

Great days! Thank you :-)

[@chatham43]

...my first car was a Ford Capri, which was loosely based on the Ford Mustang, but not as powerful(1600). My sister owned a Triumph Spitfire which was similar(or looked similar) to your MG. Anyway, thanks for your comments, best wishes from ye olde England and happy driving.

[@jbu999]

20 years later questionable mergers and labor strife had crippled the British auto industry. It’s a shame, those were great marques and great cars.

[@eldorado62]

I remember my dad buying a 1951 Ford Prefect in the early '60's for 3 pounds. He didn't like the bloody thing after he bought it, so he chopped it up & sold the wheels & tires for a fiver! Tell that to people today & they'd think you were crazy. But it really was like that back then. You could pick up a 1952 A40 for about a tenner, & the darned thing would run. And if they broke down by the roadside, anyone with a bit of mechanical knowledge could fix the damned thing & be on your way. Not today

[@jupiter912]

I've lost count of the number of Minis I bought .Most of them I got for twenty quid. I even had a Mini badged as an Austin Seven made before they named it Mini. I cut it up for scrap and sold the engine on. It was a minter in Speedwell Blue. Now what would one of those be worth today?

[@paulbroderick5358]

Now you are talking! I learnt to drive in an early 1950's Humber Hawk. I could work on that car with a couple of spanners, srewdrivers and a hammer! It had a side valve engine so adjusting the tappets was a chore but could be done. It had style, a quality so lacking in todays autos.

[@can-cruiser]

nice video.. thanks for posting..cheers..

[@hugebartlett1884]

So full of hope and ambition then. We were going to flood the world with our cars,and make the nation prosperous again. But something went badly wrong later,due to mismanagement and greed and sheer laziness.

[@MrRobster1234]

The "MG Magnette" at 5:40 is actually the new MGA. There are a lot of brutes, both male and female slamming the hell out of the doors just like now. What a great way to slowly break down a nice car...

[@ernestopaglia1]

You're right. It's an A, not a Magnette.

[@BradfordtheEclectic]

and he's right about the slamming of doors! (Applies to many/most cars as well.)

[@fidelcatsro6948]

wow!!! those were the days thanks for sharing a piece of automotive history!! how the hell did they display an xrayed Hillman minx 2:28 car?

[@jupiter912]

The Minx displayed on the Hillman stand at the Earls Court Motor Show was a cutaway exhibit with Perspex sections added and was known as "The Ghost Minx". A brilliant piece of publicity for the time. Imitated by many car makers since. Today the British car industry seems to have given up the ghost!

[@fidelcatsro6948]

@@jupiter912 oooh so it was a plastic mimicry!! ingenius!

[@brianknowles1727]

Great cars and designer's bad management let the side down

[@jupiter912]

What bright spark thought up that square steering wheel? And the even brighter spark who sanctioned putting it into production.

[@jupiter912]

Where did it all go wrong for us?

[@knut-hinrichqwalter2463]

Please ask the biggest british undertaker:British Leyland!

[@Paul-md8de]

To many years under torie government

[@jupiter912]

@@Paul-md8de I remember spending a very pleasant visit to Longbridge back in the day. Looking at the Allegro line in full production . (That's right, the one that bent in the middle if you jacked it up). We enjoyed a very enjoyable meal in the Elephant House as I recall .... Maybe they should have stuck to cooking.

[@saggo1712]

Doesn't the Morris Minor stand out from the bunch?

[@fairalbion]

The government export drive after WWII prevented people buying cars on the domestic market, hence the commentator's "..if you can get one" references. The opportunity cost of the restriction was the low economic activity in the home car market & its related ancillary businesses. And, come to think of it, there was the lost tax revenue, that would otherwise have been generated from those activities.

[@SimonFurber]

Triumph Mayflower 😂😂.

[@boobayloo]

the wheel is on the wrong side of the vehicle...

[@SimonFurber]

1959 is probably the last year before the British motor industry rot began.

[@MegaMick1966]

this film was when we were great britain not broken britain

[@garydunn3037]

Low prices and low petrol consumption were the only things these "Aweful" cars hadgoing for them. They were all as drab and dreary as the British skies. Dull, and Grey.or white or black. Take your pick, as Michael Miles used to say.

[@allanarmstrong4333]

Back in the day thay did the job. Yes by todays cars thay are not as reliable. Whats dull about a mk 2 jaguar. or a e type . take your pick my mk 2 aint dull. Also they did have other colours apart from dull gra y, black or white as you put it.

[@Mike8981]

What a daft thing to say. Shame about the spelling too. lol

[@jaysonflesher8666]

they may well be drab and dreary but lets be honest todays cars aren't exactly inspiring

[@Mercmad]

You got that right as the roads are invested with boat loads of boring little trolleys.