Britain's mighty atom, the Mini Cooper, has a huge reputation out of all proportion to its size. The Mini was created by the fertile mind of Alec Issigonis and modified by John Cooper to become known as the Mini Cooper in 1961. Giant killing in motorsport, particularly in the Monte Carlo Rally, built the enduring Mini Cooper legend and today the car is back in production and popular around the world. 1994 will, once again, see Paddy Hopkirk campaigning a Mini Cooper in the Monte!

Reproduced for the first time in over 50 years, the classic tale from the birth of modern motor sportBehind the Scenes of Motor Racing is a tale of sporting chivalry, heroism and humour — but also one of tragedy through the loss of so many of the author’s friends and colleagues among the young drivers of the day.Ken Gregory, at the time “Britain’s most famous manager”, not only raced himself, but also became a racing car constructor with the Kieft Company, ...

Take a trip down memory lane, looking at all the familiar cars your Dad knew and loved.Good old Dad and his good old Dad's car. As solid and dependable as the man himself, if a little less balding, Dad's car was almost a member of the family, whisking you to exciting days out, or just to visit boring relatives in distant parts of the country to the chant of 'are we nearly there yet?'Like the man behind the wheel, Dad's car made you feel safe and secure, bec...

Beginning life in 1887 as a bicycle manufacturing company, The Triumph Cycle Company went on to become today's Triumph Motorcycles Limited. Since motorcycle production commenced in 1902, the Triumph factory has produced thousands of classics designs and is regarded as being producers of some of the world's finest motorcycles,from the original Bonneville in 1959 to today's models. The Triumph name is one of the most enduringly popular names in motorcycling. It is an evocative title, one tha...

Goodwood in the sixties epitomised all that was good about the British motor racing scene. It was a circuit where anybody could have a go, and yet the established greats like Stirling Moss would be there too. It was a circuit where Minis rubbed shoulders with Ferraris and Ford Galaxies, MGBs diced with Triumph TRs and Morgans, and clubman's races were as keenly fought as RAC Tourist Trophy events. Most of all Goodwood was accessible and informal: spectators with no special privileges could...

Scalextric, the ultimate boys' toy, arrived in toyshops in 1957. The first-ever electric slot-car system, with uncontrollable tinplate cars running on heavy rubber track, it brought the speed and glamour of motor racing to suburban living rooms. Classic marques of the day such as Aston Martin, Jaguar and Lotus featured in the early '60s scalextric sets, and over the years that followed all the classic Formula 1 battles were re-created in schoolboy form, followed by sports cars, rally cars,...

The split screen, the indicators poking up like perspex orange fingers, the notoriously rust-prone floors, the pootling exhaust note… just some of the much-loved characteristics of the Morris Minor or Morris 1000. Designed by Sir Alec Issigonis back in 1948, in a sense it was Britain’s answer to the Beetle – a bulbous little creation that was also Britain’s first mass-appeal car. Between then and 1972 when production belatedly ceased some 1.6 million were built. There were variants like th...

Fully illustrated throughout, The Supercar Book is a sumptuously designed guide full of everything you could ever want to know about the best supercars on the planet.From number-one bestselling author Martin Roach, The Supercar Book is a must-have for all boys and their dads (plus petrol-head girls and mums!) interested in fast cars.With an introduction from F1 racing legend David Coulthard, as well as contributions from the biggest names in the field, this tour de force st...

The Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow & Bentley T-Series were a revolutionary step forward when launched in 1965. Here's the full story, including related coachbuilt cars & the Silver Wraith ll, Corniche & Camargue.

A beautifully illustrated guide that takes the reader through each Lamborghini production model and some of the most significant concept cars. It presents a thorough base for anyone who wishes to understand more about the history and depth of the company, and how the model line developed and evolved. There are specification sheets for each model and the history and development of the company is covered, from Ferruccio Lamborghini's origins in manufacturing tractors, to producing some of th...

Aston Martin is now more than a century old – and what a century it has been.Since its birth in London on the eve of the First World War, the company has experienced the highs of racing triumph – most famously in the 1959 Le Mans 24-hour race – and the lows of bankruptcy, yet throughout it all has been in the first rank of British marques.Published in association with the Aston Martin Heritage Trust and written by enthusiast Richard Loveys, Aston Martin...

The R-Series BMW MINI had a lot to live up to. Launched in 2001, it was riding in the wake of the classic 1959-2000 Mini. At the time, BMW were going to have to create something as special and innovative as its longstanding predecessor in order to silence the naysayers. And they did. Since its launch in 2001, BMW's modern MINI has become the pinnacle of small yet funky family cars in the premium small (and sometimes not so mall) car segment. Now in its third generation, having unveiled the...