MarineAqua45 So many missed opportunities. It's sad.

MarineAqua45 ..... Good of you & good for the British people... that you speak up so that ...the Elites' Nepotism role in the downfall of the British Motor vehicle industry...is make known... to the world over... & for the future generations.... Let's hear what the.... Lords & the Nobles of the British Empire... have to say....

+MarineAqua45 This will perpetuate the argument but the Them and Us still exists in the UK, probably more so now than ever. I'd love to make a dramatic film chronicling just about every industry that once thrived in England/UK and mixed in the urban decay of thousands of towns, factories and railways for starters.

Whenever there is social class division, things like this will happen.. but here again, whoever call for classless society will be condemned as a ..'communist' trying to ...spread & share .. poverty...

Us and them.... And after all we're ordinary men....

pink safty googles you mean ??

Robert Parkes unions, socialist labour rule and them going on strike is what saw them out of the industry!

We ended up producing fucked up cars and a workforce blighted by strikes and trade unions, let's not forget completely misguided, ignorant and detached management.

yes we fucked it right up

We had it all making JUNK the fact of he matter.

Well, if someone at BMC had designed better carburettors for the MG....those Zenith Strombergs were horrid to tune.

MARKLAR51 I thought that was Peugeot that did that lol (reference 307cc top gear)

Nope that was part of the R and D section very hush hush 😀

FIAT (Fehler-in-allen-Teilen = errors in all parts)

@@nigeh5326 funny, that guy who measures the tolerances of the gear, is either drunk or doesn't know how to use a dial gauge...

@@dr.johannesmunch891 Yes I noticed that..

Thank you for sharing your story.

Thank YOU for a lovely vid! Cheers, Les.

Les Reed it would appear you’ve completely forgotten the “leftie Red Robbo strikes” fella,!🇬🇧🇬🇧

One man was smoking a pipe..

Tony Russell Yes, he will look very dapper as he’s choking to death because his tie got caught in machinery.

@@boataxe4605 That's likely a clip on. Factory regulations, you know.

They did their home gardening in a three piece suit and tie.

It’s something that screams the word “ class “ the beauty of being British

Yeah, it was a combo of a LOT of problems, run by elites that had NO clue as to what marketing or quality control meant...union issues...somewhat, but France had strong auto unions, and they are going strong...

I think on the surface it looked like bad management. However, when you take a closer look you soon realise that all the decisions were made to De-industrialisation Britain. A slow process of social and economic change purposefully caused by the removal of industry and to re-apoint to the then developing world as part of world government policy.

@@davesmith-rs1yo Agreed, same thing happening with the yanks. Must be some kind of Anglo idiocy.

@dave smith Spot on, limits to growth. Globalisation control of the worlds resources by a few.

@@davesmith-rs1yo It seems so, Especially with all manufacturing here migrating to Europe with EU grants. From the 4th largest in the world to one of the smallest would take some incompetence.

VW do it all the time with badges.....Skoda, Seat, Audi......doesn't hurt them. All about convincing people they 'want' it. In fact even after the emissions scandal, punters still pay very good money, often more than they can really afford, to buy into the brand and line the coffers of a giant who, well did what they did.....to them, and all of us.

The management couldn't compete with the soviet financed unions

RobGordon35 Oh no. The British car and motorcycle industry committed suicide in a big way. Lousy management conservatism and lack of desire to deal with quality issues killed the industry.

@Winning Grinn Left wing government and the unions did it in cooperation. Just as they did with the Swedish ship building industry and still continue to do with every business they intervene in...

Ok. Rob. You discribed it but you didn't explain anything. And the replies were pure rubbish. Kids: their sales went down! No one was willing to buy those cars! It's embaressing to watch those well-shaved alcoholists roboting on metal parts, when you know in the end, that they were building cars that no one was willing to buy! And the only car that made well on the counter was not providing any income. The Mini was well priced but never the less they didn't earn money with it.

@@malcolmcog dont forget the Krauts. I bet they payed the Soviets... Kid, Do you really believe that?!?

Indeed I have a 2002 Vauxhall Astra bought new. Galvanized body panels, hardly any rust even now.If only they had built them like that back then.

1980 Opel Kadett-D series base (aka Vauxhall Astra Mk1) had the same issue.

Interesting

Was this notably worse for BMC than for other marques?

@@thrunsguinneabottle3066 Fiat we’re pretty bad for rust back then but Minis and 1100’s were absolutely the worst from our experience.

You can blame Tony Benn for all of it. BTW Leyland trucks is still a very successful truck builder. Their factory at Leyland is the most efficient truck plant in Europe.

He didn't help that's for sure.

+hoffwell Owned by who?

Owned by PACCAR of America. Ironic it ended up American really. Had Mr Benn allowed the loss making Standard Triumph to die or be bought by the yanks (that's what he really didn't want) we might still have had UK large car maker. Leyland Motors (the truck company had their arm twisted to buy and "save" Standard T. They then bought other hopeless car companies and a once very strong truck maker was fatally weakened then had to be nationalised.

and tractors

i was last month in Wolfsburg, Germany... visiting the VW factory, over 60.000 workers.. in one plant alone... check out the Autostadt...

You poor fella I had a rover of sorts it had Austin parts on it everywhere you looked it was a completely unreliable piece of Shat, this car was from the later part of the 90s. Saying that a 2007 Mazda was a rot box.brilliant engine and reliability but it just rotted away 😂😂😂😂

BMC cars compared with Ford, Vauxhall had a much better reputation for corrosion remittance. The Ado16 had some rot issues but still better than the Cortina and Escort. Later on the Aalegro, Marina and Princess had much better corrosion resistances than equivalent Chrysler, Ford and Vauxhall of the 70s.

The Rotodip coating is a very hard one but does nothing towards preventing rust. I found this out with my first Mini.

@@angelsone-five7912 No, as it included a Zinc Phosphate coating it would have given it some level of corrosion resistance., the limitations of cars of the time compared with today in resisting tin worm has much more to with design to eliminate rust traps and the sealants available today than the coating and painting process.

most of rust is caused road salting during snow getting into wheel wells. That’s why in the seventies the cars that come from Italy and japan because the climate is different, rusted the more than any British cars. They fixed that with Plastic wheel well shields. I think the first car had them fitted was Austin princess .

@@englishjack5112 Princess would / may be the first UK car but the Volvo 200 series (launched 1974) had front and rear plastic liners and some of the earlier Volvos had a steel sacrafical liner that was designed to protect the structure and be replaced when it rusted through in the harsh Scandi winters. The sort of thing I would imagine a Swede doing when changing to winter tyres. I also recall my father saying that for the Arrow and Avenger to meet Swedish legal requirements for corrosion resistance the Scandi spec cars had extra underseal and some additional panels and I wonder if they were some form of wheel arch liner.

Sad to see it come undone. Great engineers, a dedicated workforce and loyal buyers -- squandered.

Wtf ! Advantage ? Like circular steering wheel instead of rectangular one ????

Mine's a 1980 - retro'd to chrome bumpers, daily driver and tons o fun

I've got a 1956 Healey "100" BN2 and a 1963 Healey 3000 BJ7.

Back in the day LHD Austins had been assembled in the ex-Yugoslavia. Had reputation of reliable daily drivers.

I liked the Austin America when young. My big brother told me scathingly that it was junk. I guess he was right about the company in the 1960s.

"some" is the wrong word; "few" seems more proper.

Mark Bartlett just thank Red Robbo and the leftie Labour Party fella,!,,THEY sunk this company,,🤮🤮🤮🇬🇧

David Boulton No they ruined it, but it would have been salvageable had major reforms taken place? Thatcher sunk it to the bottom of the ocean by selling it off to her mates in BAE who in turn, asset-stripped the company & sold it on to BMW.

Hillman imp anybody?

@@MarineAqua45 they first made up a monopolist (leyland) that then became too big to anything: to be guided, to be reformed, to be shrunk-to-health -thanks to the company-intern wars and hateredon each other and as well as the labour units, and in the end it was too big to fail, as its failure killed the whole coal/steel-sector and THEN Thatcher wasn't willing to save or salvage them. what for? I'd then have to ask you?!? A unwilling, uncolaborative bunch of well-shaved alcoholics? That made cars with horrific failure-rates? that noone really was willing to buy?

As a U.S. citizen, I'm shocked and saddened to hear and obvious fake "American" like yourself thinking you can convince any actual "American" that you're the "real thing". Try "American English" instead of "British English" if you want to have a better chance of lying effectively about your "nationality" or "citizenship" as you post online making ridiculous claims about the "reliability" of "contemporary" so-called "British" vehicles which by and large are just as shitty as they've always been and have the same "shorted electrical systems" and "poor fit and finish" and "bits falling off" they always have had. They're just less "known" because they're now limited to "luxury cars" and most of the junk gets "exported" to places like "America". Which also hasn't changed much since the "good old days" when "British" cars were "imported" to the U.S. and sold through "distributors" but what HAS changed is that now there are U.S. dealerships for junk "British" cars and few "British" cars see a "2nd owner" after being LEASED rather than PURCHASED by the first "owner" with "trade-ins" being "scrapped" or "wholesaled" to "dismantlers" who "specialize" in "imports" in the U.S. and reduce "imported" cars and "SUVs" (like your Range Rovers) to "parts" because that's really the only "profitable" way to "sell" used "imported" cars that have shitty reputations and plummeting "resale value" due to those shitty reputations. And since most "Americans" that MIGHT be "interested" in a "Jaguar" or "Range Rover" are either "millennials" or "retirees" that either have "family members" with previous "experience" with "British cars" or had personal experience with them "back in the day" when you couldn't give away a late-model "pre-owned" Jaguar or MG or Range Rover being "offered" for sale by a "private seller" much less get a "lender" to finance the purchase of a USED British vehicle, the only solid "market" for "British" vehicles in "America" is "expatriate" so-called "British citizens" and "Anglophiles" who feel some "obligation" to "buy British" but also "buy often" and don't DRIVE like "Americans" on average do and therefore don't have "problems" everybody else who does expect a new car to be "perfect" and to "last" at least as long as the "finance period" without needing "major repairs" and with "normal maintenance".

+DEEREMEYER1 Sir I really think you need to use all your energy and anger towards helping GM right now...

The only reason the remnants of the British motor industry still exist is because of the infusion of cash, engineering expertise and modern production methods brought by foreign ownership. Still no British car is a worldwide world class top seller.

@gixeff 750 Only by an inch.

How where those cars when you owned them?

I must say I chuckled when I got to that bit. But British cars of that era resisted rust much better than Italian and French cars. later Japanese cars weren't much good at resisting rust either.

@@jonathanbywater2063 A joke.

@@jonathanbywater2063 Probably British climate haves to do with it too. In Romania you could see even in 2000 FIAT 1800 automobiles and they wheren't destroyed by rust.

More that than. It was obsolete already 60 years ago.

my dad had one of those 1100s

American motor industry has gone down the toilet like all the cheeseburgers the fat f**ckers eat !

@@2000mk1 I miss the Independents. Much better cars than practically anything the Big Three has put out. Also, I quite like English cars myself.

ha ha

U could make a fair bit if u knew which guys to bribe at the factory. I remember back in the 80s or early 90s a group of workers at Land Rover were arrested for nicking everything needed for a Range Rover as they were building their own. I think they got caught smuggling an engine out.

Nige GSX14 just imagine getting caught

jerrmie

its more like watching the Titanic leaving the habor..

It's so sad and a poor reflection on the people in charge throughout the years that they were so incompetent as to let the demise happen and continue until the end.

@@chrisdixon849 Militant unions didn't help. A guy called Derek Robinson led 523 walk outs at Leyland Birmingham in a 30 month period. I'd say that's probably not going to be very good for business.

@@rob5944 absolutely Rob, it was all like a perfect storm coming together to to conspire to the destruction of the once, i want to say great, British motor industry, but actually when you look at it, not through rose tinted specs, i'm not now sure with the passage of time that it was that great, unfortunately it littered through out with crass stupidity and naivety. Yes, it was great as in massive, which as it turned out simply means a greater fall. ☹️

It’s like a manufacturing snuff film.

I used to have an early post-war Morris Minor and whilst it had some rust, it is still going strong with another owner so perhaps your Austin was not undersealed properly if it rusted so quickly.

Quality, or a total lack thereof.

German engineering, 1mm + /- is to much space

@@Arltratlo German engineering is the most overrated phrase in the whole car industry. The wiring harness in my Dad's Mercedes straight up biodegraded. Let's not pretend that they're perfect, like anyone else.

Interesting. Haven't heard this story before.

Malcolm Coghill That doesn’t surprise me as that bastard was a member of the Communist Party Of Great Britain.

i never was in the Midlands, only Southern England and Scotland, and it seems i didnt miss anything importent!

+Beer Bibber Part Nationalised arnt they? Not sure, just had the impression.

I'd never buy another German car. My Audi was the most expensive and unreliable car I've ever owned.

@@MyDyerMaker What year?

@@zeeteavathepipe3184 '05 Bought it with 32k miles

German engineering is the most overrated phrase in the whole car industry. The wiring harness in my Dad's Mercedes straight up biodegraded. Let's not pretend that they're perfect, like anyone else.

Lucas, the prince of darkness

But otherwise the car was good?

As a automotive electrician tradesman, Lucas equipment was almost as good as Bosch equipment of the same era. The only real quality letdown was soldered diodes in some alternators getting dry joints. Bosch had the diodes press fitted.

Tony Doggett I think if you ask most people they will tell you the greatest two weaknesses of British cars of this era were rust or what you call rot And the electrical system.

Robert A IF IMPORT TARIFFS HAD BEEN CONSISTENLY HIGHER THEN IT WOULD HAVE BEEN LESS FOREIGN IMPORTS AND JOBS HERE WOULD HAVE BEEN MORE SECURE AS WOULD THE MARKETS FOR BRITISH MADE GOODS.

At all, because the other countries where the British goods were exported to would have imposed the same duty. Import tariffs are a double-edge sword. The main problem of the British car industry was gross mismanagement and shoddy, gullible workforce stirred up by mad Red Robbos in the Unions.

"Quality and craftmanship" don't belong in the same universe as British Leyland

@@bandombeviews6035 True but JUNK does.

@Charlie K Not even in 1960?

Eric Peterson why do Americans drink piss weak beer because they can’t handle the strong warm beer...

@@simonhiggins8694 Dont be mad... he's right. Lucas electricals was diabolical rubbish.

Lucas , patent holder for false contacts and short cicuit , or Lucas the Prince of darkness...

Lucas: The inventors of darkness 😆 😆 And I can vouch for that fact, I’m only 25, but I have a 1968 MG 1100. The wiring smoke is a particular feature I like, it warms the car better than the Smiths Heater! 😆

Well Britain does lead the jellied eel industry so kudos

Bet your LR has let you down.Mine has, LR Disco 4 bought new in 2016.

I totally agree - up to the 1960's some gorgeous looking cars - eg Pininfarina designed MG 1300 etc . In comparison the Nissans and Toyotas were ugly mingers, but never was the expression 'beauty is only skin deep' so apt!

Rose tinted memorys there Alison as i remember them.

It is a shame.

You go away, don't insult U.K

Les Reed what are you talking about?

Ha! It wasn't like that back then either.....or ever, in fact But back then, they just didn't know any different or better.

Britain make more cars now in less factories that are better quality, Japanese and German efficiency

I hope it doesn't happen and hoping we can hold on to Obama Care over here.

Oh yeah. I have great medical insurance, but get taxed on it because Obama Care decide it's too good. My doctor quit practicing in his '40s due to all the increased intrusion on the business side of medicine. No doctors around me take new patients so I had to join a Concierge Practice where I have to pay a large chunk of change just to say hello every year. Thanks Obama Care!

I used to live near the Cowley site. It was massive. Then Thatcher started selling off parts to other countries. They had Honda engines for a while. Many men who spent their life working for the factory had to take redundancy and then take jobs such as shelf stacking in supermarkets. When many made the most of only finding low paid work, Tories made their lives more difficult, such as constant VAT increases and making 18 year olds in a bedsit pay same poll tax as lord in a manor, while giving rich tax cuts

Hopefully not.

La1 bastards, I truly hope u guys get someone like trump to turn ur country around, I love small British sports cars , and miss seeing new ones at a dealer ship over here

Morris Major?

It was well on it's way to falling, making there junk that it was at the time. Before the UK joined the then EEC.

Nothing beats the new car smell. Funny, never thought that each brand has/had a different scent. Eau de Jaguar. They can probably bottle that and sell it now.

+King Rose Archives You could make that! Soak Connolly leather and Walnut sawdust in Alcohol and you got it! LOL!

I quite liked the smell of Rexine on a baking-hot summer's day. Until my poor legs made contact with it.

As a child in the 1950s I found the smell of leather in my father's Austin A40 made me feel quite unwell. I was pleased when he changed to a Ford Zephyr without leather upholstery.