The rebirth of a British classic car

published 28 April 2011

Automotive history is littered with British car companies that "burned brightly for a few years before going to the wall", says Richard Yarrow in Metro. Bristol Cars became the latest to fall when it went into administration in March. Attempts to revive fallen brands such as Jensen, Connaught and Marcos have faded away even more quickly than the originals. This year, Alvis is attempting to buck the trend.

The Coventry-based firm sold expensive and high-quality vehicles from the 1920s to 1967. The reformed Alvis Car Company, based in Kenilworth near Coventry, is to make the elegant, four-seater, 4.3-litre Alvis the fastest non-supercharged production car of its day, covering 0-60mph in around 11 seconds, says David Williams in The DailyTelegraph. The 1938 classic has been designed and engineered from the original technical drawings.

Alvis owner Alan Stote says that the first car will be hand- built over the next 18 months, and that two or three cars a year will be produced after that time for a cost of about £180,000. Anyone lucky enough to find an original at auction would have to pay in the region of £400,000-£450,000, says Williams.