There’s nothing those of us working on the new mezzanine level here at MotorMartin Towers love more than a long running debate over favourite cars and motorbikes and it would appear that we’re not alone with this as news has reached the Towers that Britain’s most influential car bosses have teamed up with Auto Express – the UK’s biggest selling weekly car magazine – to name the Best of British. Excellent news.
Auto Express have shared with MotorMartin that following a rigorous voting process, the original Mini was named as the best British-built car of all time, seeing off competition from the Jaguar E-Type and Land Rover Defender.
With a shortlist of 75 models that rolled off production lines in the UK, judges were given the unenviable task of picking their top 10 based on sales, groundbreaking design or unbeatable performance.
Votes were received from industry big-hitters including Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer and BMW’s sales and brand board member Ian Robertson.
The results highlighted the sheer diversity on offer from Brit-built models with the top 10 including economy runabouts, all-terrain tackling off-roaders, two-seater sports cars, record-breaking exotica and even a humble family saloon.
Auto Express Editor-in-chief Steve Fowler explained to MotorMartin that: “This survey is a reminder of how many iconic cars Britain has produced over the years. So many of our Top 50 cars redefined segments and pushed the boundaries of what was possible. The spirit of innovation which created models as diverse as the Mini, E-Type and Defender continues today and the British automotive industry should be proud of its achievements and confident of the future.”
Best of British Top 10 in full
Mini
Jaguar E-Type
Land Rover Defender
Aston Martin DB5
McLaren F1
Range Rover Mk1
Ford GT40
Caterham/Lotus Seven
Ford Escort Mk1
Lotus Elise
For the full results visit www.autoexpress.co.uk/best-british-cars or pick up last weeks copy of Auto Express, out Wednesday April 19 and have a browse, after all, this is a great opportunity to celebrate the design and engineering talent that runs through all of these great British cars. Why not send in your own top ten to MotorMartin afterwards?
Where will you go?