indeed, for example, Britain was king of roadsters...

Yep, this video was a very important 5 minutes of history.

Partially agree about the UK motor industry. I think Korean cars are pants bought by people who cannot afford a decent car from a reputable maker. You only have to look at the resale price on Kia and Hyundai motors to know that the cars are undesirable.

insert name here Its 5th biggest car comany in the world

insert name here This means not all buy Korean cars just for price. Plz research its price tags sold in US..... Recent hits such as Kia Telluride its almost 47k. Ur just biased and narrow insighted.

Did he fuck! He was out by at least 20 years!

Now it's just a lowest common denominator crapfest.

people always believed TV is BOX of Lies.

Exactly. I never watch TV now, ever. I find everything i want to watch on video sharing websites now.

Jeff Jones yawn!

MM0SDK Incredible if true.

What's more, it didn't even take 40 years (I know that's how old this video is.)BLMC/AR/Rover was gone by 2005, barely 25 years after the first Hyundai Pony reached Britain for sale, although it has to be said this car is hardly the reason. By 2005, of course, as today, Hyundai/KIA sell competitive vehicles worldwide in almost every segment of the marketplace. It certainly would have been hard to believe in 1977, although BL was already in big trouble by the time Turnbull sat down with Bastable. Since the 1960s, each decade brought further rationalization of marques and tempered expectations, right up until final shutdown.

Me, as a 13 year old in 1980.

@@RoadCone411 the Pony actually was competitive. In ugliness it was more than a match to anyone, but in terms of reliability it outclassed all affordable competitors. Typically a car that took some maintenance at pre-mot servicing, so no electric issues.

Crazy but sad

@@RoadCone411 in the other video the chief of hyundai said his gain with GT was britains loss. GT also had a run in with lord stokes at BL and thats why he went to work in south korea. GT also took a bunch of BL engineers with him as well to south korea as well as some BL supplied new state of the art pressing equipment.

South Korea dominates also the world mobile phone market with Samsung /LG Phones and other electronics. And they are only a part of the consumer division from Samsung or LG corporation ! Deawoo and Hyunday Heavy industries crank out container/bukcarriers/ tankers/LNG ships very efficient and fast on a production line. Hyundai and Kia cars are in the top 10 lists of most reliable cars wordwide. South Korea has become an economic powerhouse the last 20-30 years. Dismissing Vietnam as possible future economical powerhouse would be a big mistake.

@@obelic71 Man! I remember seeing at least 15 Kia's a day come back to the dealership here in Georgia for the transmissions dropping out between 100 to 400 Miles on the odometer right when Kia was released in the USA interesting when they became "reliable" I still have a 1967 Plymouth Barracuda on the road and a 1990 Dodge Omni still beating Mustangs like they always have

@@TTimpreza Remember the US has mostly automatic transmissions. The rest of the world uses mostly manual transmissions who last the liftetime of a car. Automatic transmissions are a serious enginering/reliabilty headache for smaller cars. The Ford Fiesta f.e was a disaster in the US with its automatic transmission. In the rest of the world the Fiesta with its manual transmission is a huge succes. And yes those older US, European and even some classic Japanese cars are still almost indestructable. Only a tinworm infection and accidents can kill them. Nowadays modern cars die by design when electronic parts are out of stock 6 years after the last of that model left the assemblyline at the factory.

40 years isn't that short though. Tesla is around a lot shorter and made a lot more progress.

To compete in the markets it does and get to where it is today it really is a sign of amazing business sense. As shown in the vid, they came from nowhere and have such a huge part of the global market today and these are brands people trust who back up their engineering with crazy warranties (remember when Kia slapped 7 years on all new cars?) which was brilliant marketing. The Hyundai Pony and the Kia Pride. Who would have thought they'd have less to what we've got today?

UK made the same leap!! but backwards... any 'UK' car is now Indian/German owned

@@MacXpert74 Tesla has spent at least 10 years not mass producing anything. And even now, their quality control seems to be at the same level as when Hyundai first started exporting cars.

@CarEnthusiast At least 10 years not mass producing anything? That’s nonsense. They started in 2003 and introduced their mass produced Model S in 2009. And this was an expensive car, so not focussed on getting the highest production numbers. Not really comparable to Hyundai in that sense. Build quality isn’t terrible, but could and should be improved on, as I ready mentioned previously. But that doesn’t take away anything from what I said originally. The progress they made between 2003 and 2009, so only six years, to create the complex and completely revolutionary Model S, was a big achievement. Hyundai’s progress in comparison was much slower. Their cars were produced in higher numbers, sure, but even after 15+ years their quality was still pretty poor. Just look up the Hyundai Pony from the 80s. Pretty shitty car. And their cars were not anything special for at least 30 years since they started. Only in the last 10 years or so, we see good cars coming from them. To be clear, I‘m not saying they’re a bad company, but their progress is not all that remarkable compared to others.

I think you're right, these Korean manufacturers are nothing more than a flash in the pan. The might and ingenuity of British engineering will make sure we're still on top long after we are gone. *yikes*

I take it you are quoting someone from the era? Otherwise it doesn't make sense, as Hyundai is now a major car manufacturer and BL have gone the way of the dodo

@@pit_stop77 *golfclap*

LOL. 😂 Exactly my thoughts when I saw this video. Equally bland as a Marina, probably equally uninspiring to drive, but at least you had confidence you would reach your destination without something breaking down. Hyundai is currently operating the biggest car plant in the world, while BL is long gone. Although almost any cheap car of the late 1970s would rust badly and the Hyundai Pony was no exception.

@@volvo480 It was based on the Marina as Hyundai bought the rights and machinery for making that car when BL stopped making it. I had a 1978 Marina 1.8 HL/TC and it was an excellent and reliable car and fast for the day and certiany not bland to drive. The destruction of the car industry and all other industries in the UK and west was DELIBERATE and part of the Elites globalist New World Order - One World Government DICTATORSHIP agenda. That is why they are flooding our countries with immigrants and refugees and allowing free movement of people within the EU and world in order to get rid of countries and bring down everyones wages and conditions as well. It is also the reason that every corrupt TREASONOUS political party is ignoring the vote to leave the EU as well. The debt/austerity SCAM is also part of this as is the conning everyone into the house buying Mortgage Ponzi Scheme SCAM. Google Paisley Expressions and the Jesus, Hitler and Wizard of Oz post on there just now exposing all of this and how we have always been getting lied to.

Ugly as sin

I was thinking Austin Princess too.

Bit Audi esq 70's style too

As an rabid Hyundai Pony fanatic, I find this hard to believe. I had a 1987 Civic for a bit, and in comparison to my 1987 Pony, there were quite a bit of quality differences. I would still take an MK2 Pony over the same year Civic if not only for the fact that it is RWD and that is a hell of a lot of fun to drive around in the snow.

A very interesting observation. These vehicles never made it to the USA, and Hyundai didn't enter this market until 1986. And even 20 years the KIAs in particular were not taken seriously. But you know what hard work, perseverance and determination do? I was in a parking lot yesterday and noticed a new crossover vehicle that I had not seen with a striking new golden/green color. I checked the badge and it was a KIA. I complemented the owner on her car as a quick look at a distance I had thought it was a higher-end vehicle. Not only did their build quality and reliability increase greatly, they have gotten to the point where they are not afraid to take their own path.

I find it hard to believe he could get one NEW in the mid 80s. Because by 86 or 87, the excel was the main car and was like up to the carolla of the same era. NOT still stuck in the 70s.

I don't take kindly to being called a liar. What the fuck is it with people? Surely nobody is this anally retentive or petty? The boss was name Kris Jacobsen. The company was Contract Finishing UK Ltd in Bilston. The car was a Pony. In silver. The year must've been 87 or 88 because I started in the May of 87. He had owned a number of new cars over his career and mentioned to me that the Pony was the only one he was fully satisfied with on delivery because of no faults or fuck ups. Then as now I was interested in cars and motorcycles and so was he so we talked about them occasionally. I'd like to further validate this truthful anecdote by telling you what fucking colour socks he was wearing on the day he told me but I don't remember.

he was 51 during interview but i think he looked older than that

The engine was a Mitsubishi, it liked to rev high if you had the 1.4L version. The 1.6 made only 4 more HP, but 14 ft. lbs of torque. Either way I would take a 1.6L over a 1.4L any day. I can also say that the Ponys I saw in Korea vs the ones I owned here (Canada) had a significant quality difference, favouring the export models.

@@the_kombinator And had a bloody good heater .

@@keithrose6931 Haha when they didn't burst. Last Pony I took apart died that way. It was only a few months ago... Got a block out of it :D

not labor cost but government support if govt is against business (Labour), they destroy even profitable companies quite fast

& labour relations. New factories were set up in the '60s - Linwood, Speke, Halewood & did not prosper. Bridgend has failed because Ford in general has declined so much. Honda will close because it has also failed in Europe (though not elsewhere).

Power of the Unions and poor industrial relations here in the UK during the 70's. Attitude too... In Britain us (employees) & them (management) attitude and antagonistic manner between the two parties, that's when local politics didn't interfere! In the meantime in Germany much better cooperative attitude allowed VW to turn their ailing air-cooled rear engined model range into something front wheel drive and much more innovative and prosper.

It was Pre-Thatcher unions....

@@Avrelivs_Gold it was the damn unions striking every 5 minutes in the Pre-Thatcher era....

I've still got one. 4G63 swapped, but even before that, these cars saw me through college and uni for pennies in the early 2000s. When one broke down (or more common, the floorboard and brake lines rusted out) I would buy a new one and swap all the good bits from the old one. Still have quite the stock of trim, driveline, and even engines ;)

Sadly the UK car industry was a dead man walking even in 1977. The writing was on the wall.

Another one bites the Duster

should have bought a Hyundai and get 2 year extension on the 5 year. That covers part + labor!

Poty Kia is so terrible with warranties. Otherwise I like them. I have a trajet as a campervan

You never see one for sale now, I liked the excel. They're just all rust now.

I missed out on one down the street from me it was highly original 30k miles and had the blue interior

These pick ups were very popular in Greece...Also Greece was the first market in Europe Hyundai entered.

Those pickups were VERY popular with farmers...good sellers here in the UK

certainly

A reminder that you didn’t have to be a toadying lickspittle to present a television show back then.

@@numberstation teehee, excellent comment as always sir! Another cup of tea?

ren hoek Yes please, milk no sugar, in a white enamelled tin mug🧐

Best comment of the day! 😂

I used to repair video recorders. Pop off the front panel of a cheap own-brand VHS machine from about 1992 and you would often find a Hyundai machine inside. (Actually I still repair video recorders, but that's another story).

Yeah they're still around!

Exactly and with Kia's help as well both companies have overtaken some well known marques from Japan in terms of volume of sales and their quality of their products keeps improving.

@@basshead. Based on what? 2001 car?

@@latinethicalhacker I've got a 2002 Accent as a winter car. Pretty great car for that task. I also have a 1987 Pony, which is faster than whatever @basshead is driving ;)

@@the_kombinator I daily my 2007 Hyundai Coupe. I love this machine. Absolutely love it.

Same applies to Samsung. Back then, they were purveyor of cheap electronics and now they are one the leading electronics manufacturers of the world.

@@volvo480 i agree ( replied by Samsung S7 )

Looks a bit like Leslie Crowther !!

It may have been laughed at and not taken seriously when it was first sold in the UK, but this car was probably better than any Marina/Ital. Which is terribly sad, of course.

And Americans STILL CAN'T. Hoon-die.... I keep laughing when I hear it.

My thoughts exactly! It takes practice to be able to say it correctly without any apparent effort, as George Turnbull does here.

And nowadays British presenters still insist on pronouncing "Tesla" as "Tezla." I don't even like Teslas, but it irks me every time I hear it.

The correct pronunciation is Hyun-day. ....2 syllables. Any 3 syllable version is wrong....I thought the guy representing Hyundai got it almost right in the video.

Mr. Turnbull observed alot of Korean culture while he was in Korea. I'm sure he gained a lot of their respect and showed them a hint of what an English gentleman is.

They were a little slow compared to the Japanese in being considered alongside the VWs or Fords, at least in Europe. But they have been very big for quite a while, even if the products have been "competitive" on anything other than price only since the early 2000s.

@crazyclive genisis the luxury car.

yes

Hyundai were manufacturing the Cortina under licence from Ford at the time, so did reuse some components in the Pony.

The mk2 pony, looks like a blown up micra.

The Korean and Malaysian manufacturers were always going to be at an advantage using proven Western technology (Mitsubishi in the case of Hyundai and Proton, Mazda for Kia, Daihatsu/Toyota for Perodua, GM for Daewoo and Mercedes for Ssangyong). Most of these had formidable reputations for building quality mechanical components and it guaranteed the Koreans a decent reliability baseline. Indeed it was in the early 1990s when some of these companies started building their own engines that quality dipped for a while. Those Stellars in particular were very popular on the minicab circuit as a cheaper alternative to the Nissan Bluebird, which was the Skoda Octavia of its day.

Perhaps the cost of living is the core problem? It's far cheaper to produce a car in Korea than the UK (labour, housing etc is very expensive in the UK) so it's obvious that the Koreans have an advantage

@@kierancurtis8545 That certainly was the case in the 1970s, however it's a common misconception that Korean costs are significantly lower than European costs in 2019 - they are much the same these days.

I never knew the Steller was based on a Cortina! Fascinating. I knew the Pony was basically a redesigned Marina though. There's an excellent documentary on here about when they were first being built. The factory was so cold a lot of the machinery was frozen solid!

And like the Princess, it had the lines of a hatchback with the practicality of a saloon!

Actually, the Pony was derived from the Mk II Ford Cortina. Hyundai made Cortinas and the big German Fords for the Korean market. The later Hyundai Stellar was little more than a reskinned Mk IV Cortina with Mitsubishi running gear.

@@yossarian6799 Morris marina according to a Morris documentary program.

@@yossarian6799 Turnbull bought alot of tooling & jigs from British Leyland when setting up the very first Hyundai production line for the Pony

It was a heavily revised Marina, Mk. 2 Cortina front suspension and Mitsu Colt drivetrain. Good eye.

@@stanwbaker does look like the marina coupe with 2 extra doors

Indeed! An look what Thatcherism brought us now! A booming country with an industry better than in almost any other country. The UK is economically China's greatest rival! No wonder, in China the unions have nothing to say either!

Our car industry was forever hamstrung by the very traditions, heritage, factories, workers & pomposity they bizarrely prided themselves on...

So was Spain which makes the Seat.

Morris Marina everything except for the body panels, Mitsu engine & transmission, and a few heavy suspension bits from the Cortina which they were building under license.