Part of a three-pronged attack on the medium car sector, the LM11 was to be BL's new mid-sized saloon, based heavily on the upcomng LM10 (nee LC10).
LM11 was originally planned to sit closer to the LM10, performing a similar role to the hatchback that the VW Jetta does to the Golf, or the Orion to the Escort. As can be seen from the images below, the LM11 grew to become a true Cavalier/Sierra rival - and did so in a rather clever way...
To see how they all fit together, go to Meet the family...
| LM11 styling models | |
As can be seen from this model, the LM11 saloon started off as a notchback LM10 - and although it's not an unpleasant design, it would have had a more limited market appeal than the car than finally hit the shelves in 1984...
A booted Maestro, pure and simple, and although this full-size clay model looks
clean and appealing,
there were doubts about the appeal of the car. Designers at Longbridge and Solihull
were tasked with
giving the car more presence on the road, thereby making it a true force in
the medium sector of the
market...
The rethink resulted in a Roger Tucker design for the front and rear, which
gave the car an entirely larger
look. Note the rather clumsy rear side window treatment, Ambassador-style note
treatment, and
unaltered LM10 centre section... (With thanks to the Heritage
Motor Centre at Gaydon).
...but not before this fully-engineered model was produced. Note the Maestro
dashboard, 13-inch wheels
and smart rear lamp clusters. The rear end treatment is far cleaner and possibly
more appealing than the
rather fussy arrangement which was devised for the final model...
Alternative frontal treatment was devised for the LM11, too - a much cleaner
solution
than the Maestro. The following three pictures were taken at the Longbridge
Round
House Studio in November 1981. The pre-Chris Greville Smith Montego LM11 front
end
design looks clean. (Picture Stephen Harper)
A flush grille for this proposal. (Picture Stephen Harper)
Is there a touch of Ford of Europe with this one? Stephen Harper is photographed
with
the full-sized clay model. (Picture Stephen Harper)
The Roger Tucker/Ian Beech effort was given the nod, and developed into a full-size
prototype - and then
okayed for production in 1981... Roy Axe changed very little of this design,
but the tweaks he made were
certainly effective in tidying up this effort.
| LM11E, the estate version | |
Two tailgate proposals in one - these three photos were taken at the Longbridge
Exterior Studio, November 1981. The two alternative studies for the Montego
LM11
Estate by John L Asford (upright Volvo style) and Steve Harper (Mercedes-Benz
fastback style, closest to camera). (Picture Stephen Harper)
Double-sided clay model more fully dressed up. Note the body-coloured C-pillar
on this
model. (Picture Stephen Harper)
Further work on the double-sided model at the Kremlin, and it looks quite close
to the
final production car, save a few details. Steve 'Topper' Clarke taking sections
of the
clay model for draughting.(Picture Stephen Harper)
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