British Motor Holdings

British Motor Holdings Ltd
Industry Car industry
Fate Merged in 1968 with Leyland Motor Corporation
Predecessor Jaguar Cars
British Motor Corporation (BMC)
Successor British Leyland Motor Corporation
Founded 1966
Defunct 1968
Headquarters Longbridge, Birmingham, England, UK

British Motor Holdings Limited (BMH) was a British motor company known until 14 December 1966 as British Motor Corporation Limited (BMC).[1]

Contents

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History

The Wilson Labour Government (1964–1970) came to power at a time when British manufacturing industry was in decline and decided that the remedy was to promote more mergers, particularly in the motor industry. Chrysler was already buying into the Rootes Group, Leyland Motors had acquired Standard Triumph and Rover and had become a major automotive force. The British Motor Corporation (BMC) was suffering a dramatic drop in its share of the home market. In 1965 it purchased Pressed Steel (a car body manufacturer), and in the third quarter of 1966 purchased Jaguar Cars. To recognize the changed nature of their business the company name was changed to British Motor Holdings on 14 December 1966.[2]

From the perspective of Jaguar, the sale came about because Sir William Lyons, the managing director and founder of Jaguar Cars Ltd, was nearing retirement, and did not have a viable succession plan for his company. His only son John Lyons had been killed in a car accident in 1955, and his other board members were of a similar age to himself. Another factor was that bodyshells for Jaguar production were fabricated by Pressed Steel, a supplier critical to Jaguar Cars and now controlled by BMC.

From the perspective of the BMC, Jaguar Cars was attractive for a merger because it had had success in the US market, and was thereby hugely profitable at a time when BMC lacked the funds to invest sufficiently in modern production facilities or new models.

The marques

BMH thus inherited a plethora of British automotive marques:

Merge with the Leyland Motor Corporation

In January 1968, BMH's short life came to an end. As it still struggled to make significant profit, it merged with the prosperous Leyland Motor Corporation to form the British Leyland Motor Corporation (BLMC).

Sources and further reading

  1. ^ British Motor Takes That New Label The Times, 15 Dec 1966; pg. 17 Issue 56815
  2. ^ "What is BMH?". Autocar 127 nbr 3730: page 1. 10 August 1967.