British International Motor Show
The British International Motor Show was held regularly between 1903 and 2008, initially in London at Crystal Palace, Olympia and then Earl's Court before moving to the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham in 1976, where it stayed until May 2004.
It then returned to London, for July 2006 and July 2008, at the new location of ExCeL. The 2010 and 2012 shows were subsequently cancelled. The event is recognised by the Organisation Internationale des Constructeurs d'Automobiles. The London Motor Show relaunched at Battersea Park from 5 to 8 May 2016. The next London Motor Show took place from 5 to 7 May 2017.
History
Britain's first motor show[1]—for horseless carriages—was held in South Kensington in 1896 at the Imperial Institute under the auspices of Lawson's Motor Car Club.[2] The first British Motor Show organised by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) was held at Crystal Palace, London in 1903, the same year that the speed limit was raised from 14 miles per hour (23 km/h) to 20 miles per hour (32 km/h) by the Motor Car Act 1903 and two years before the formation of The Automobile Association. After the 1903 event it moved to Olympia in London, where it was held for the next 32 years before moving to Earl's Court, London from 1937 until 1976, except for the period of World War II during which time there were no shows.
From 1978 until 2004, it was held every second year at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Birmingham, with the 2004 event being held in May, rather than the traditional October, to avoid a clash with the Paris Motor Show.[3]
The July 2006 and July 2008 shows returned in ExCeL, London, prior to the cancellation of the 2010[4] and 2012[5] shows, due to the recession. Motorexpo, the World's largest free to visit motor show started in 1996 and is held annually at Canary Wharf in London, Brookfield Place in New York and Brookfield Place/First Canadian Place in Toronto. London Motorfair, an alternative London Motor Show, was held at Earls Court biannually from 1977 to 1999.
In December 2014, it was announced by Prince Michael of Kent, the cousin of Queen Elizabeth II, that the London Motor Show will return in May 2016, to Battersea Park. The 2016 London Motor Show featured the United Kingdom’s land speed record attempt car, known as Bloodhound, which is designed to reach 1,000 mph.[6] In May 2017, the London Motor Show once again returned to Battersea Park, featuring reveals from MG, David Brown, Nissan and Liberty Walk amongst others. Prince Michael of Kent was Patron once again, with brand ambassadors Tiff Needell, Ben Collins and Jodie Kidd.
Locations
Earls Court
The cars listed are those announced in the late summer lead-up to the show or during the show. Manufacturers did announce other cars at times to suit them and as that practice grew the public lost interest and the motor show finished its long run in the mid seventies.
Year | Show | New cars announced for this show | Photo |
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1948 | 27 October – 6 November 1948 Earls Court, London previous show October 1938 Attendance 562,954 |
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1949 | 28 September to 8 October 1949 34th International Motor Show, Earls Court[7] |
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1950 | 18 October 1950 – 28 October 1950
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1951 | 17 October 1951 – 27 October 1951 Earls Court, London. attendance was down sharply (375,000 from 480,000) because there were few new models and polling day for the General Election fell in the middle of the Show period. Purchase tax remained at its doubled rate and the choice models were export-only. |
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1952 | 22 October — 1 November 1952 Earls Court, London 37th International Motor Exhibition It is a buyer's market for the first time since 1938 Attendance 462,538 plus about 4,000 from overseas who entered free of charge |
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1953 | 21 October to 31 October 1953 Earls Court, London 38th International Motor Exhibition For the first time since 1938 foreign exhibitors included Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen Borg-Warner automatic transmissions were now available on home market cars Attendance 612,953 |
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1954 | 20 October to 30 October 1954 Earls Court, London 39th International Motor Exhibition USA sports car sales battle: MG, Jaguar, Sunbeam, Austin-Healey, Triumph Jowett and Lea-Francis do not appear New exhibitors Skoda and DKW Britain now makes more than one million vehicles a year and exports twice as many cars as her nearest rival, USA new models had been introduced during the year by: Standard, Morris, Singer, Austin, Rootes, and Vauxhall as well as Bentley along with Rolls-Royce's Silver Cloud Attendance 523,586 |
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1955 | 19 October to 29 October 1955 Earls Court, London 40th International Motor Exhibition Tubeless tyres are now fitted to all new cars new Standard Vanguard fits a heater as standard In Paris, as of this month, badly parked cars might be towed away Though British production increased its market share fell as Europe's industry became re-established Exhibitors:
Attendance 516,811, including overseas visitors 13,750 |
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1956 | 17 October 1956 – 27 October 1956 Earls Court, London 41st International Motor Exhibition Automatic gearbox available on larger cars and 2-pedal alternatives on small cars Total exports were running 13 per cent lower than the previous year but exports to USA and Canada were up 34 per cent and 28 per cent. Australia and New Zealand had clamped down on imports Exhibitors:
Orders taken at the Motor Show enabled Austin to return to a five-day working week Attendance numbers were not reported |
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1957 | 16 October 1957 – 26 October 1957 Earls Court, London 42nd International Motor Exhibition The previous Motor Show had been followed in November 1956 by the Suez intervention and consequent petrol rationing and collapse in demand leading to large lay-offs and 3-day working weeks BMC's chairman, Leonard Lord, announced that new models would be introduced as market conditions warranted. This would stabilise sales and employment within the industry and end deferral of purchases until the motor show.[12] All Jaguars but the Mark VIII may be ordered with disc brakes all-round British car exports lost first place to West Germany in November 1955 but (narrowly) regained it in August 1957 |
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1958 | 22 October 1958 – 1 November 1958 Earls Court, London 43rd International Motor Exhibition Vauxhall reported a substantial loss for its 1957 year but by April 1958 demand exceeded their production Neither Allard nor Lagonda booked stands at the show Exhibitors:
BMC announced "giant" earnings over the previous 12 months Vauxhall Victor (Pontiac) climbed from 11th to 5th place in cars imported to USA Attendance 534,422 |
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1959 | 21 October 1959 – 31 October 1959 Earls Court, London. Opened by Prime Minister Macmillan who noted that the industry now employed more than three-quarters of a million people and that 8 years ago there was one car for every seven families whereas now there was one car for every three and a half families. Seventy miles of the London to Birmingham Motorway would open next week. Work on the Birmingham to Bristol motorway was deferred to the summer of 1961. Standard and Rover held merger talks which failed. Standard sold its tractor plant to Massey-Ferguson Take-over stories were denied by Jaguar The Duke of Edinburgh pointed out that visitors to the Motor Show were asked by Scotland Yard to leave their cars at home and he thought that a delightful touch of irony The first drive-in bank opened in Leicester The entire year had many stoppages from strikes throughout the industry and lost considerable output Attendance:
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1960 | 19 October 1960 to 29 October 1960 Earls Court, London There were fewer new models than usual Ford's Consuls Zephyrs and Zodiacs were now available with optional front wheel disc brakes with power assistance and a conversion kit for existing cars Vauxhall engines larger and Hydra-matic gearbox available Opening Paris's Motor Show General de Gaulle paused by a Sunbeam Alpine The French German and Italian motor industries had sharply reduced order books partly caused by Detroit's new Compact models. Commonwealth demand sustained the British industry Reinforced plastic detachable hardtops became available for all Rootes models BMC opened a driving school at Abingdon to teach the special techniques required when driving a car in excess of 100 mph A credit squeeze reduced demand and for the first time since 1939 new cars were available "off the shelf" Attendance: 428,000 reported 12 months later |
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1961 | 18 October to 28 October 1961 Earls Court, London 46th International Motor Show In July more than 15,000 employees came back to Borgward's works in Bremen and received their last pay packets Between 1956 and the end of 1960 the number of commercial vehicles over 3 tons on British roads grew from 126,579 to 212,726 Auto-Union added a device which automatically added fresh oil to the fuel of their 2-stroke engines Uniform lighting of trunk roads was proposed A Montreal department store announced it was selling 850 cc Austin Sevens over the counter for eight dollars fifty cents deposit and three years to pay The Zagato coachwork stand exhibited a Zagato bodied Mini-Minor named Gatto beside a Bristol and an Aston Martin Attendance: 578,034 and a further 20,000+ overseas visitors |
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Year | Show | New cars announced for this show | Photo |
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1962 | 17 October to 27 October 1962 Earls Court, London 47th International Motor Show Summer trunk roads have a 50 mph speed limit at weekends A "spectacular" Whit Sunday has 70 miles of traffic jams It is proposed to fit all new cars with safety belts and require motor-cyclists to wear crash helmets First 28 miles of M5 opened One-year car tests to be compulsory The Paris salon opened in early October in the Palais des Expositions by government decree instead of the Grand Palais where it had been for more than sixty years. For the first time all French manufacturers are given pride of place instead of allocation by size of business and ballot. The British industry claimed this was a foretaste of the Common Market. The intended release of new British cars was delayed until Earls Court. However twin-paired headlights and lowered radiator shells were displayed but only on coachwork exhibits of Rolls-Royce and Bentley cars. It was expected that by the end of the year BMC alone would have exported 100,000 vehicles to Europe, more than 3 times as many as the Europeans would sell in UK Inertia reel safety belts were introduced Attendance: 474,086 and 21,199 more from overseas. It was noted the paid attendance was 103,948 less than last year |
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1963 | 16 October to 26 October 1963 48th International Motor Show Earls Court, London Purchase tax on new cars was slashed from 45 per cent to 25 per cent on 6 November 1962 A committee chaired by the Minister of Transport made up of representatives of the British Medical Association and the motor industry began talks to try to make the motorcar less lethal By March 1963 it became clear that not only were more cars being sold but they were significantly larger cars In April 1963 5-year old vehicles became subject to the MoT test. One effect has been an improvement in prices for cars less than 5 years old. France reported boom conditions for new car sales too The drop on purchase tax brought new buyers to the market for new cars and by midsummer it was clear the industry was in the midst of a boom Ford opened their new factory at Halewood in September At the end of the year BMC was reported about to announce a new 4-litre sports car with hydrolastic suspension and Rootes a 90 mph two-seater Hillman Imp Paid attendance believed to be in excess of 550,000 people. |
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1964 | October 1964 Earls Court, London Hydrolastic suspension for all Minis NSU began production of their Wankel engined car |
_ October 1964 |
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1965 | 20 October 1965 – 30 October 1965 Earls Court, London 70 mph limit |
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1966 | 19 October 1966 – 29 October 1966 Earls Court, London |
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1967 | 18 October 1967 – 28 October 1967 Earls Court, London |
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1968 | 16 October 1968 – 26 October 1968 Earls Court, London The opening ceremony was performed by Princess Alexandra at 10 am on Wednesday 16 October.[20] |
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1969 | 15 October to 25 October 1969 Earls Court, London Export sales were buoyant but from the previous winter home market sales tumbled, "dealers almost gave away cars" In the late summer of 1969 Rootes (Chrysler) announced plans for a complete new range of cars, British Leyland demanded easier credit In September Earls Court Exhibition workers threatened to strike. A request for a 44 per cent pay increase had been denied Britain's strike bedevilled industry is "in danger of being overtaken in technical innovation, styling, pricing and aggressive marketing". An observation on attending the Frankfurt Motor Show and after noting the new and highly advanced models from all the leading German manufacturers Britain's major manufacturers lifted their prices. VW and Daimler-Benz published their annual report to shareholders in UK newspapers By the beginning of October disputes had made nearly 30,000 car workers idle and at the opening of the Motor Show it was noted home sales were at a level 18 per cent less than last year Manufacturers complained this level was too low for them to continue investment in new plant and machinery The fear was expressed that the three major manufacturers owned by US companies might end new investment in UK The Riley label was defunct The day the show opened two UK major manufacturers had assembly lines at a standstill |
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1970 | 14 October to 24 October 1970 Earls Court, London 55th International Motor Show The intolerance of the British public to the motor industry's troubles was growing Sheet steel had been in such short supply imports were free of duty British makes on display: 28 Four hundred manufacturers of cars, components and accessories Import penetration is now around 15 per cent There are girls dressed as rabbits, as sailors and as Nell Gwynn and girls in "extremely inadequate" chain mail It was complained that the show was dreary, dirty and a pointless exercise and later acknowledged that it left a lot to be desired. "The world has moved but the show has not moved with it" It was agreed that Earls Court was no longer adequate Leyland confirmed it was in talks with VW and Renault and "other car firms" Imported cars took 17 per cent of October's sales |
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1971 | October 1971 Earls Court, London |
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1972 | 18 October 1972 – 28 October 1972 Earls Court, London |
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1973 | October 1973 Earls Court, London Seventieth show Face-lifts Turbochargerfs are under development for ordinary cars Fuel crisis UK industry's difficulties are not in selling cars but in making them |
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1974 | The Citroën CX had been launched a few weeks earlier at the Paris Motor Show |and was scheduled for inclusion in the 1974 London show. |It was withdrawn at the eleventh hour, possibly because the manufacturers |found themselves unable to schedule rhd production of the car till well into 1975.[23] |The model nevertheless went on to win first place |with motoring journalists voting for the European Car of the Year a few months later. |
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1975 | October 1975 Earls Court, London |
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1976 | October 1976 Earls Court, London Widely publicised as the last at Earls Court 67 makes from 16 countries More diesel cars displayed than ever before Imported cars now account for 43 per cent of all cars sold in Britain, Japan's penetration had reached 11.5 per cent SMMT advocated imports be restricted to 25 per cent in line with other EU countries Mitsubishi proposes assembly by Chrysler UK Between 1973 and 1976 car output declined in Britain by 27 per cent and in Italy by 26 per cent |
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Birmingham and Docklands
Year | Show | New cars announced for this show | Photo |
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1978 | The International Motor Show made its first appearance at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham, and attracted record crowds of 908,194.[25] | ||
1982 | The International Motor Show again appeared at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham during October of this year.[26] | The two most notable new launches were the Audi 100 and Ford Sierra. Other new cars included the Austin Ambassador, and MG Metro.[27][28] | |
1984 | 20 October 1984 – 28 October 1984 NEC, Birmingham. 17–19 October were reserved for professional visitors. The show saw a total of 696,183 visitors this year.[29] | Austin Montego Estate – the Design Council award-winning family estate from Austin Rover[30] Reliant Scimitar SS1 Dutton Rico[31] |
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1986 | 18 October −26 October 1986 NEC, Birmingham. | Jaguar XJ (XJ40) Renault GTA in RHD, British debut[32] |
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1988 | 22 October 1988 – 30 October 1988 NEC, Birmingham. | Jaguar XJ220 – debut of Jaguar's 220 mph (350 km/h) all wheel drive (AWD) super car concept vehicle MG Maestro Turbo[33] Middlebridge Scimitar[34] |
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1998 | 22 October to 1 November 1998 at the NEC, Birmingham. Saw the launch of two critical saloons from British car manufacturers. The then BMW boss Bernd Pischetsrieder made an impromptu speech about the future of the Rover Longbridge plant which would then lead to the sell of the brand in 2000 and its collapse in 2005. | Rover 75 – debut of the first (and last) Rover with the help of BMW Jaguar S-Type – all new executive car from Jaguar, retro in design like the Rover. |
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2000 | The International Motor Show remained in the Birmingham NEC during October. Honda made the news in claiming that it would have fuel cell cars on sale by 2003.[35] | ||
2002 | The 2002 show at the NEC, Birmingham featured the international | Bentley Continental GT MG SV TVR T350[36] |
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2004 | In 2004, the show, branded The Sunday Times Motorshow Live, was held from 27 May – 6 June, instead of the usual October. | Peugeot 407 (United Kingdom Introduction)[37] Peugeot 407 SW (United Kingdom Introduction) |
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2006 | The 2006 British Motor Show was held in July at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre in London's Docklands. It featured a nightly post-show rock music festival called Dock Rock. | Alfa Romeo Spider (United Kingdom Introduction)Aston Martin Rapide (United Kingdom Introduction) Bentley Continental Flying Spur Mulliner Driving Specification BMW M6 Convertible Chevrolet Captiva (United Kingdom Introduction) Chrysler Sebring sedan (Europe Introduction) Dodge Nitro (Europe Introduction) Ford Focus coupe convertible (United Kingdom Introduction) Honda Civic 3 door hatchback
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2008 | The 2008 British International Motor Show was held at the ExCeL Exhibition Centre in London's Docklands from 23 July – 3 August, and was the last regular British International Motor Show. The SMMT promoted an all new showcase of the latest electric vehicle models. "The Electric Vehicle Village" brought together one of the largest collections of zero emissions vehicles ever seen in the United Kingdom, with a display of more than twenty vehicles which are propelled solely by battery power.[38] The motor show displayed an number of high priced, high performance electric cars, such as the Lightning GT and Tesla Roadster. | Alfa Romeo Mito (World/United Kingdom Introduction)
Concept Cars:
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The 2006 British International Motor Show featured concerts by:
- 19 July, A-Ha
- 20 July, Van Morrison
- 21 July, UB40
- 22 July, Roxy Music
- 24 July, Simple Minds
- 26 July, Katherine Jenkins, with the National Symphony Orchestra of London
- 27 July, Jools Holland, and his Rhythm and Blues Orchestra
See also
Wikimedia Commons has media related to British International Motor Show. |
References and notes
- SMMT history including that of the motor show
- "British International Motor Show". Pietro Frua. – Source of show locations and dates
- ↑ The Times, Tuesday, Nov 14, 1905; pg. 7; Issue 37864
- ↑ Horseless Carriages. The Times, Monday, Feb 17, 1896; pg. 7; Issue 34815
- ↑ Jorn Madslien (24 May 2004). "Struggling motorshow in spring debut". BBC News.
- ↑ Julian Rendell (27 January 2009). "British motor show in crisis". Autocar.
- ↑ Tim Pollard (14 October 2010). "British motor show axed for good?". Car.
- ↑ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/cars/news/2016-london-motor-show-preview/
- ↑ Display advertisement, page 5, Gloucestershire Echo, 24 September 1949
- ↑ Display advertisement: Motor Show. The Times, Tuesday, Oct 03, 1950; pg. 4; Issue 51812
- ↑ The Triumph Roadster. The Times, Saturday, Oct 14, 1950; pg. 3; Issue 51822
- ↑ New Models At Motor Show. The Times, Wednesday, Oct 18, 1950; pg. 6; Issue 51825
- ↑ New Austin Seven. The Times, Monday, Oct 08, 1951; pg. 4; Issue 52126
- ↑ B.M.C. Change Sales Policy. The Times, Tuesday, Aug 27, 1957; pg. 8; Issue 53930
- ↑ https://www.autoevolution.com/news/morgan-plus-4-plus-up-for-grabs-looks-like-supervillain-two-face-110548.html
- 1 2 Cars Of Today by Stuart Marshall. The Times, Tuesday, Oct 19, 1965; pg. 4; Issue 56456
- 1 2 3 4 "Visitors' Guide: Hours and Charges; Opening Day; How to Get There (i.e. concerning the London Motor Show)". Autocar. Vol. 127 (nbr 3739). 12 October 1967. p. 59.
- 1 2 Basil Cardew (Ed.). Daily Express Review of the 1966 Motor Show. Beaverbrook Newspapers Ltd, London.
- ↑ Keith Anderson. Jensen. Haynes Publishing Group. ISBN 0-85429-682-4.
- ↑ "The cars : Mini development history". AR Online. 5 August 2011. Retrieved 22 August 2014.
- ↑ "About the FD Victor, Ventora and VX4/90". Vauxhall VX4/90 Drivers' Club. Retrieved 30 November 2013.
- 1 2 3 "Earls Court '68: Hours and Charges". Autocar. Vol. 129 (nbr 3791). 10 October 1968. p. 52.
- ↑ Braunschweig, Robert; et al., eds. (12 March 1970). "Automobil Revue '70" (in German and French). 65. Berne, Switzerland: Hallwag AG: 370.
- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 The Times, Thursday, Oct 12, 1972; pg. 29; Issue 58603.
- ↑ "World-wide comment: No Citroën CX at earls Court". Autocar. 12 October 1974. p. 18.
- ↑ Autocar Motor Show Supplement 19 October 1974
- ↑ Car Magazine 19 March 2009
- ↑
- ↑ 1982 in motoring#United Kingdom
- ↑
- ↑ "Près de 700.000 visiteurs à Birmingham" [Nearly 700,000 visitors to Birmingham]. Transporama (in French). Edegem, Belgium. 4 (31): 11. December–January 1984/1985. Check date values in:
|date=
(help) - ↑ "Story of the Montego". Maestro & Montego Owners Club.
- ↑ Mastrostefano, Raffaele, ed. (1985). Quattroruote: Tutte le Auto del Mondo 1985 (in Italian). Milano: Editoriale Domus S.p.A. p. 264. ISBN 88-7212-012-8.
- ↑ Liszewski, Nicolas. "Alpine V6 Turbo Mille Miles". Le site des amateurs et passionnés des Alpine Renault GTA (in French). Retrieved 2014-09-08.
- ↑ Büschi, Hans-Ulrich, ed. (9 March 1989). Automobil Revue 1989 (in German and French). 84. Berne, Switzerland: Hallwag AG. p. 400. ISBN 3-444-00482-6.
- ↑ Automobil Revue 1989, p. 401
- ↑ The Guardian 12 November 2000
- ↑ What Car? 22 October 2002 Archived 18 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ "Peugeot At The Sunday Times Motor Show Live 2004". May 12, 2004. Retrieved August 4, 2016.
- ↑ British Motor Show "Plugs In" To Demand For Electric Vehicles Archived 7 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine.
- ↑ Automóvil Panamericano, No. 163 (15 July 2008), p.20
External links
- The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders – Official website of the organisers
- The London Motor Show - Official website of the London Motor Show