During the months following the Metro in October 1980, the UK was quite plainly gripped by "Metro Fever". Like the Mini before it, the aftermarket producers soon cottoned on that there were several gaps in the Metro range that needed plugging. Most notably, the lack of a range topping performance version as well as luxury version was seized upon by the specialists, who soon began concocting their own versions.
Like the Mini before it in the Sixties, due to its popularity, the Metro soon spawned a plethora of after-market variations on the theme. From Left to Right: Wood and Pickett Metro Plus, Frazer Tickford, Standard 1.0L, Janspeed Metro Turbo, Wood and Pickett Laser Metro, Turbo Technics Metro and Rapport Metrosport Cabriolet. Austin-Rover soon produced similar variations, investigating hot normally aspirated and turbocharged MG models and finally, in 1994, a cabriolet version of the Rover version. Factory Vanden Plas versions could not answer the luxury of the W&P and Frazer Tickford, but at £12,000 for the latter in 1982, it is unlikely that Austin Rover would have wished to deal in such frivolities.
| Fast Metros |  |
The performance Metros were soon to appear - two shown in this gallery went down the forced induction route, which back in 1980 was seen as the ultimate way of extracting more performance from a "cooking" engine. Most notably, John Cooper also got in on the act, producing his Metro Cooper - the idea was a good one, the badge was a special one - why, it must be asked did Austin Rover not persue the plan? The answer came six months after the launch of the Metro Cooper when the MG Metro 1300 made its first appearance to the public in June 1982.
Janspeed Metro
Experts in performance exhausts and forced induction soon produced this off-the-shelf solution to the question of the go-faster Metro... |
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John Cooper Metro
John Cooper Garages soon found a niche in the Metro range, and plugged it with this sporting version. Without doubt, this Metro sported the most evocative name of them all... |
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Turbo Technics Metro
Another off-the-shelf turbocharged Metro... |
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| Luxury Metros | |
During the Sixties, both Wood and Pickett and Radford made a healthy living from building luxury Minis - this spirit was revived shortly after the announcement of the miniMetro in 1980, when both Wood and Pickett and Frazer Cars built their own highly specified versions. Prices were astronomical and their shelf lives were somewhat shorter than their predecessors. They did, however, pre-date the Vanden Plas badged Metros - and no doubt showed Austin Rover that there was room for upward expansion from the existing top-of-the-range 1.3 HLS.
Frazer Tickford Metro
A new company produced its own slant on the luxury Metro, but employed Aston Martin-Tickford to style its body addenda... |
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Wood and Pickett
The converters, who made their name in the 1960s by adding everything but the kitchen sink to Minis, were back... |
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| Convertible Metros | |
Crayford Metro Politan
Natural successor to Crayford's Mini and Allegro conversions, the Metro Politan followed the same principle as Rapport's Metrosport. |
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The Rapport Metrosport
Rapport made the Metro into a summer fun car, long before Rover got around to producing their own version... |
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