Detroit (North American) Auto Show opened
Monday 13th January 1997 Detroit (North American) Auto Show opened. Production cars introduced included the Chevrolet Corvette C5, Chrysler Concorde, Dodge Durango, Ford Escort ZX2, Mercedes-Benz CLK, Subaru Forester, Toyota Sienna, and the Volvo C70 convertible.
The last Jaguar XJS, a blue 6-litre V12 coupe rolled off the line at Browns Lane
Thursday 4th April 1996 The last Jaguar XJS, a blue 6-litre V12 coupe rolled off the line at Browns Lane. The ultimate incarnation of a run that lasted an amazing 115,413. The XJ-S was launched on 10 September 1975.[4] The development of the car had begun in the late 1960s as project XJ27, with an…
Production of the Ford Orion ended
Sunday 19th September 1993 Production of the Ford Orion ended. A total of 534,239 Orions were sold throughout the car’s 10-year life. Orion Mark I: In the early 1980s, Ford’s model line-up and image was changing. The company’s older saloon line-up was replaced mainly by hatchbacks, from the Escort to the Granada and the new…
Goran Eliasson of Boras, Sweden achieved 88
Sunday 24th May 1987 Goran Eliasson of Boras, Sweden achieved 88.87 mph on two wheels of a standard Volvo 760 at Anderstop.
Geely (officially Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co
Thursday 6th November 1986 Geely (officially Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co., Ltd), a privately held global automotive group headquartered in the city of Hangzhou, in south-east China’s Zhejiang province, was founded. The group entered the automotive industry in 1997 with its Geely Auto brand. It sells passenger vehicles under the Geely Auto, Lotus, Lynk &…
Pietro Frua (70) was one of the leading Italian coachbuilders and car designers (AC Frua, Maserati Mistra, Glas GT) during the 1950s and 1960s, died
Tuesday 28th June 1983 Pietro Frua (70) was one of the leading Italian coachbuilders and car designers (AC Frua, Maserati Mistra, Glas GT) during the 1950s and 1960s, died. Frua’s professional career began at the age of 17, when he joined Stabilimenti Farina as a draftsman.[1] At the age of 22, he became Director of…
Hannu Mikkola and Arne Hertz won the Lombard RAC Rally with an Audi Quattro
Wednesday 25th November 1981 Hannu Mikkola and Arne Hertz won the Lombard RAC Rally with an Audi Quattro. Mikkola’s rally career spanned 31 years, starting with a Volvo PV544 in 1963, but his most successful period was during the 1970s and 1980s. The 1970s saw Mikkola a frontrunner in many international events, usually in a…
Pete Brock won the Australian Touring Car Championship
Tuesday 8th August 1978 Pete Brock won the Australian Touring Car Championship. Brock was most often associated with Holden for almost 40 years, although he raced vehicles of other manufacturers including BMW, Ford, Volvo, Porsche and Peugeot.
The world’s longest ever rally, the Singapore Airlines London to Sydney rally, started in Covent Garden, London
Sunday 14th August 1977 The world’s longest ever rally, the Singapore Airlines London to Sydney rally, started in Covent Garden, London. The race was won at Sydney Opera House on 28 September by the British team of Andrew Cowan, Colin Malkin and Michael Broad in a Mercedes 280E. They were followed home by team-mate Tony…
At 2
Wednesday 27th June 1973 At 2.00 pm the last Volvo P1800 rolled off the production line at the Lundby car plant in Sweden. The 1986 cc, 135 hp, 4 cylinder ES model with a top speed of 115 mph (185 km/h) and capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) in 10.8 seconds,…