Tag Archives: Vanden Plas

Petite Prestige

Posted on by
Reply
The upcoming launch of the Aston Martin Cygnet, combined with the current cost of fuel, makes this a good time to consider past attempts at frugal luxury cars. Sam Skelton pits four of the most interesting attempts against the Cygnet to see which is best. In a test with a difference however, none of them has been driven... Words: Sam Skelton. Group Test: Vanden Plas 1500 vs Panther Rio vs Avon-Triumph Acclaim vs Rapport Ritz vs Aston Martin Cygnet Introduction We've all been there. Sitting Read more [...]

Austin Maestro Vanden Plas

Posted on by
Reply
Smooth operator... If you're not likely to put your foot down often, a Vanden Plas is probably the best Maestro in the real world. You get lovely wood cappings, leather trim if you go for a later one, or a digidash if your favoured variants are pre-84. Power steering was a later option, and automatic transmission was available for those who like myself prefer the lazy life. Some readers may question my logic in reviewing this car in addition to the MG1600 and 1.6 Mayfair, but trust me on Read more [...]

Rover SD1 Vanden Plas EFi

Posted on by
Reply
A refined ruffian As regular readers of From The Captain's Chair will know, I'm not entirely new to SD1s. They hold particularly powerful memories for me, and are able to turn me misty-eyed at the turn of a key. Having been overwhelmed by Keith Adams' early 3500 manual, I wanted to try an automatic - I'm lazy, and I wanted to find out if the auto was as good as I thought it would be. I also hoped that my second taste of the SD1 would be in EFi form - is there a huge difference in the way they Read more [...]