Austin Princess (1975 - 1982)
Last updated 4 April 2013
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Because the reputation of the Princess was just about on the floor by 1980, it was also decided that the facelift would be far-reaching enough to warrant a change of identity – and in the case of...
Introduction
The Princess truly is the car with no name. It was launched as as a series of three models, from Austin, Morris and Wolseley, then became the 'marqueless' Princess just six months later. And pretty much everyone just called it a 'Leyland'. It might have been a controversial car when new, but not because it it was a poor car. Far from it - the Princess was a case of the politics being more interesting than the product.
The Princess couldn’t have looked more different from the 1800/2200 series it replaced, even though it retained the same four- and six-cylinder engines and front-wheel drive. Lack of build qualityand reliability in the earliest cars let down an innovative design, although if a hatchback had been incorporated right from the start it might well have sold better better especially in export markets. More appreciated now than when current.