For almost four decades, BMC and its successors were a major supplier of light commercial vehicles to Britain's businesses.
In the heyday of the 1950s and 1960s, BMC could boast a virtual monopoly on the supply of vans to the various utility companies, and well as having an enviable share of the private business market. However, later decades brought increased competition from both home-produced and imported rivals, and its grip on the market never really recovered. By the beginning of the 1990s, Rover was producing just one van – the Maestro – and within five years, the game was over... until the surprise emergence in 2003 of the 25-based Rover Commerce and MG Express vans.
Here's a chance to indulge in a little nostalgia...
Car-derived vans/pick-ups
Mating capacious rear bodywork to a standard car's front end and mechanicals has long been a cost-effective way for manufacturers to produce small vans for the lower end of the market. |
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Purpose-built vans/pick-ups
The formation of BMC in 1952 meant that Austin's vans gave way to the Morris range (although some of the Morris vans did inherit Austin engines). However, the Austin name maintained a presence in the van market for the next two decades through the practice of badge engineering. Sound familiar? |
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Light trucks
As had been the case with the vans, Morris trucks were also marketed as Austins following the 1952 merger. When truck manufacturer Leyland took control of BMH in 1968, the various Austin and Morris trucks in production were soon rebranded as BMCs. However, it would not be long before the Leyland name would adorn those vehicles that survived the merger. |
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Royal Mail vans
From the 1950s right through to the 1970s, BMC/BL – and in particlular, the Morris brand – had a virtual stranglehold on the supply of vans to the GPO (General Post Office) for use by the Royal Mail. Even today, the Sherpa's successors can regularly be seen in the service of the Royal Mail. |
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GPO Telecoms/BT vans
In many ways, the Post Office's purchasing policy for Telephone vehicles mirrored that for its Royal Mail vehicles, with Morris being the favoured brand, although during the 1960s the J2 was preferred to the smaller J4 in the mid-sized class. However, following privatisation and the formation of BT in the 1980s, less reliance was placed upon the products of the former BL, and by the following decade, the fleet was largely Ford-based. |
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Austin FX4
A different kind of commercial vehicle, the world-famous "London Taxi" was nevertheless marketed as part of BMC's commercial range, as demonstrated by the press photo at the top of this page. In these pages, you can also find out about a one-off FX4-based box-van that was assessed for Royal Mail duty. |
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Adderley Park
Initially the home of Wolseley, the Adderley Park plant later built some of BMC's commercial vehicles, including the FG truck and Morris Minor van. |
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Ward End Works (Drews Lane)
Ward End Works had built Wolseley commercial vehicles in the 1920s, and returned to van production in the early 1970s following the closure of Adderley Park. It is currently home to LDV Ltd. |
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In production
Some factory shots of various light commercial vehicles being built or assembled. |
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