If "Van Den Plas" is originally from Belgium/Brussels it should be originally "van den plass" (not "plah") as in Belgian French, Flemish or Dutch

Sorry can't agree to disagree "Plas" is incorrect, it is pronounced "Plah" my father was manager of design and engineering development at the Vanden Plas in Kingsbury green for many years (his office was in the top floor of the office building you show at 02:06) the company itself pronounced it "Plah" if that is not enough for you have a look at this advert for the Montego VP (obviously not a real VP car but the name was the same) the parent company would not miss pronounce it own name in an advert !. www.google.com/search?sca_esv=2aa9b945258dbd75&rlz=1C1CHBD_en-GBGB941GB941&sxsrf=ACQVn08sKhTmrqwvNatHttd5hvgAWI918A:1708735666092&q=austin+montego+vanden+plas+adverty&tbm=vid&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwievJGz4MKEAxXXV0EAHbg2B3kQ0pQJegQIDRAB&biw=2134&bih=1087&dpr=1.2#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:96f92762,vid:SPQAd4XBX4I,st:0 I remember as a kid going for a ride in the VP1500 press launch car (VDP 74N) another thing that might be of interest is that my Dad designed the princess "P" the "Vanden Plas Princess" lettering and the red coronet that adorns the grill, I remember seeing the polished aluminium prototypes that he had fret sawed out of sheet to show his idea to the bosses (before he was management) I was hoping to inherit these but I found out when he died that he had given them to the Vanden Plas owners club

@@manutimeout4652 The name was originally Dutch and would have be Van Den Plas (Plas) BUT the company name became corrupted over the years and the correct pronunciation of the company name is "Plah"

I've always pronounced the name Van - as in the commercial vehicle, den - as in hovel and plas - as in lass. If you want to be pedantic be my guest, but the correct ppronunciation of fon den plarss will have people laughing at you rather than with you - especially if you're not laughing x

You're right, Tom, 'plas' as in glass

Rover and Triumph could still be here

They wouldn't listen to you 😂

Riley. Wolseley. Austin. Hillman. Roots. @@0898007

Every thing that British Leyland touched was a disaster,you've only got to look at the logo a plug hole.

@@donaldellis3609 _The plug hole of despair_

Every empire in history has fallen, Britain continues to go down hill year on year, just imagine in 100 years time what it will be like. The fact that Mohamed is the most popular boys name should be a clue

Thank the unions for the failure.

@@paulbriant4693 Absolutely correct, here in Australia we have virtually nothing left of our once mighty industrial manufacturing capabilities, the entire auto manufacturing has gone not a single vehicle is now made in this country, nearly everything that needs to be manufactured is now imported, all because never ending Union demands for entitlements and wage rises, back when Britain's Unions were gutting Britain's manufacturing it was the same here, the government dropped tariffs overnight by 25% allowing imported products a competitive edge and price to local manufacturing to give the Union controlled local manufacturing competition to stop the Union demands.

People always buy things from cheap manufacturers run by slaves. Who cares about how many people die from karoshi (dead because of hard work)? As long as it cheap, it sells.

You ain't seen nothing yet!@@paulbriant4693

Lived in Kingsbury and had a brown Princess (Morris 1300)as my first car. A shiny plaque inside said "Coachbuilt in Kingsbury" which we'll chuffed me. So did all the chrome trim, walnut and 'champagne white' carpeting, not bad for a 19-Yr old. 🎉

@@iconicshrubbery Very Posh. My first car in 1972 was a hand me down 1963 Vauxhall Viva from my Dad. We called it the Flintstone car because you could see the road underneath it through the holes in the floor!!

It might be silly but it is silent. But since you have a late vehicle, I don't suppose you'd know.

@@bobcornford3637 I may have a "late vehicle", but I'm a old man 😆... With decades of experience related to the car industry and Vanden Plas. The people I knew at BL back in the '70s said Vanden PlaSSS. Including the Belgians I knew. As best as I can tell, this linguistic puritanism really didn't appear until the modern naughties. Cheers

The "S" is silent.My father worked at Vanden Plas for more than 25 years. please follow this link to see the TV ad for the Vanden Plas Montego (not a real Vanden Plas car but) kzfaq.info/get/bejne/ibaBdMdlvai8ZH0.html

Thanks for being here Glen, glad you enjoyed it

Thanks Tony, glad you like them. I enjoy making them, only downside is I get so into the stuff I cover I end up wanting one! I’ll have to add Vanden Plas Princess 1100 to my list now.

BL under Michael Edwards concentrated on volume sales to preserve jobs. That meant focusing on Austin and Morris divisions at the expense of Triumph, MG and Rover. BL were backrupt by 1975 and reliant on government bailouts so short term political decisions took precidence overs long term viability. Triumph and Rover were profitable and could have thrived but were sacrificed to save jobs in the short run resulting in the eventual demise of the entire organisation. it's all so sad

@@DavidDavid-kl4ru - Rather bizarrely they actually ended up shutting down the viable good parts of the ramshackle motoring empire in order to save the utter no hope garbage that was Austin Morris.

in USA MG is just as missed, I ❤ and daily drive my 72 MGB GT

@@forestghost7 - That really was a terrible mistake by Micheal Edwards closing MG at Abingdon it was the only BL car plant that never had a strike. All done because of a slump in sales due to a short term high pound to dollar currency rate as a result of North sea oil.

Thanks Pete!

I’d love an Ambassador myself, good to read the insight into the units the police used as well. Thanks Mark

That’s right yes, it’s just a shame it wasn’t as successful over here.

The Roewe 75 Ext is fading out in China. You hardly see them anymore, mostly dusty, rusty and beaten.@@tomdrives

Correct! Got that one wrong. Only realised about an hour ago.. thanks for pointing it out.

@@tomdrives Well, it didn't spoil a very good video! Thanks.

The ambassador was a lovely car - but as you rightly say, it needed a 5 speed gearbox, a rev counter and a bit more grunt!

@@simonhodgetts6530 hi Simon thanks for reply, totally agree it had a economy meter , the auto choke used to play uo, but managed to get choke conversation kit on . Shame they took out the 6 cylinder e series block but I wonder in manual with twin carbs give that bit more go . Regards mark

I’ve been told by a well respected museum that it’s pronounced Plas but we can agree to disagree thank you for being here :)

Maybe it's a region thing... My father worked for VP for 20 years but people pronounce things differently place to place but pretty sure it's a silent S. Cheers @@tomdrives

​@@anthonytubeIts Dutch, "Plarrs" is closer to correct than the pseudo-French way.

@@anthonytubemy take is the “top-brass” in VDP and BL, were trying to curry an up-market image by using a faux-French pronunciation. That the whole lot of them ran such a massive organisation ( multiple organisations really ) into the ground casts significant doubt on the validity of many of their decisions - and this one, to insist on an ignorantly informed pronunciation is but one of the many ignorant and shortsighted decisions of BMC/BL. So there!

Got the pronunciation I used from experts at the BMM.

It's Dutch and is pronounced as you say it Tom.

I tried that with mine and found it all a bit too expensive!

Correct. The manufacturer pronounced it that way as can be seen on any of their adverts. It is a foreign word, but when pronounced in English-speaking, it is plaar. If we pronounced as per country, we would be calling a BMW a BMV like the Germans do.

Vanden Plaah I would say

Oh and one more thing. It's pronounced Vanden Plass, as in "glass". "Many people in English-speaking countries wrongly assume that the final 's' is silent, pronouncing the name as 'Vanden Plah'. The correct pronunciation (both in Flemish and in plain Dutch) has a rather sharp 's' at the end, as in the English word 'kiss'".

A wealthy merino sheep farmer friend of my father in Tasmania bought a RR 4 litre engine Vanden Plas in the early 1960s.the car was beautiful in its green paintwork.Previously the farmer had an Oldsmobile circa 1955,we had a black and white 55 Buick and prior to that the farmer had a 1948 white Buick, my father had a new 48 black Buick the same. I used to admire the Vanden Plas each time I saw it

My Dad worked for VDP and as a kid I once spent most of a day at the Earls court motorshow sitting in the back of a white limo watching telly while Dad worked on the stand 😁

Would like to see what Touring, Ghia , or the other Italian firms could have done with the Stag.

I had an 827 Vitesse, fit a sofa in the back. Easiest tip run I’ve ever done.

I think they actually only made the wing spars

That’ll be covered in another video

No, its different.

Wrong. It is a Dutch name, his pronunciation is exceptionally good for a native English speaker.

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Hi Mike, It’s a sort of potted history, i’ll be covering them individually very differently :)

The English company pronounced their own name "Plah" this may not be the original pronunciation of the name but it is the company name

No, not French, Dutch.

Maybe they were thinking of the Ilse of Man , then added an extra leg for good measure.

Nope, is Dutch, not French.

Corrected

How is it false when i didn’t at any point suggest coachbuilding was liked by Leyland… I simply said Vanden Plas as it was then was finished by Leyland pulling the plug in 1979.