Let’s be totally honest here, if I wrote that the most popular cars out of those that applied to display at Goodwood’s Classic Car Sunday Breakfast Club were from Austin, MG, Jaguar and Triumph, you probably wouldn’t’ be surprised.
These cars make up the bulk of Britain’s motoring heritage and, as a result, are the most abundant among collectors and car lovers in this part of the globe. But they aren’t the only brands from the British Isles that have made it to Breakfast Club this year.
Take DeLorean, now just squeezing into our classification as the pre-tax marker moves to the start of 1982. Or Jensen, which didn’t just make Interceptors, but many, many other slightly weird and often wonderful machines. Or even the predecessor to Jaguar, SS, which made a car called the Jaguar, that would eventually become the name of the company. Or how about AC, which you’ll instantly no doubt associate with the Cobra, but which is represented by the Aceca, the Ace and even the oh-so late-'70s and wildly rubbery 3000ME.
It’s a reminder that without the UK, the car industry would probably have a very different landscape today, and also leaves a little sadness that so many of these brands have slipped away.
Photography by Toby Whales, Joe Harding and James Lynch.
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Breakfast Club
Breakfast Club 2022
Classic Car Sunday