Thursday 22nd October 1998
The opening of the British Motor Show at the NEC, Birmingham saw the launch of two critical saloons from British car manufacturers – Rover 75 and Jaguar S-Type.The then BMW boss Bernd Pischetsrieder made an impromptu speech about the future of the Rover Longbridge plant which would then lead to the sell of the brand in 2000 and its collapse in 2005. A dozen or new models from AC, Caterham, Jensen, Lea Francis, Lotus, Marcos and Westfield make their world debut at the show, whilst the Ford Focus made its UK debut.
