5 British car brands you’ll probably never see on American highways

The Brits continue to lead the way when it comes to making high-end, high-quality automobiles, and many of their brands remain popular here in the States. They gave us Land Rover, Mini, Aston Martin, Bentley, McLaren and Jaguar, to name a few. Each of those brands has its own personality, and although you may not see them all on the street every day, chances are you’ll have passed each of them from time to time.

But there are plenty of UK brands you’ll never see on American highways. This includes Vauxhall, which started a century ago and is still making cars today. Morgan produces incredibly attractive 1940s-style roadsters that will definitely turn heads. The Peel is credited with being the smallest production car ever made. Briggs Automotive Company produces amazing custom-built one-seater supercars. And Marcos is famous for building its previous models with a wooden chassis.

We’re not saying it’s impossible to see any of these cars on American roads. But most of these brands are in small quantities or custom manufacturing. Therefore, in most parts of the states, it is rare to see one of these vehicles in person. And if you’re interested, we explore other UK brands in our post about rare British cars with great looks.

Vauxhall calls itself “the UK’s oldest surviving car brand” and it’s not hard to believe, considering it’s been making cars since 1903. Cars were made in Britain even before then, but Vauxhall is the oldest company from that era still in existence.

The engine of that first car, introduced in 1903, would have only one cylinder and a crank power of only 5 horsepower. But just a few years later in 1910, the company introduced the Prince Henry, one of the world’s first sports cars. Its engine can produce up to 21 hp of power and can reach an astonishing 100 mph.

Of course, the company has seen a lot of changes over the years. Looking at its range of models from the past to the present day is like taking a stroll through the history of the automobile. Vauxhall would be purchased by General Motors in 1925, but despite being owned by an American corporation for 92 years – until it was purchased by PSA Group (now Stellantis) in 2017 – Vauxhall has always been a decidedly British brand. It manufactured military vehicles for the British Army during World War I and the Churchill Tank during World War II.

But this old company is not stuck in the past. Its current models use all the cutting-edge features found in modern cars. There is an EV version of each model, and a whole range of electric vans.

Morgan has created a line of luxury cars that, at least on the outside, look like they’re straight out of the 1940s. The interiors of its models include modern features like climate control and push-button start, but the controls for these features are styled in a way that matches the vintage aesthetic. The models are mostly convertible, which potentially increases the overall pleasantness of the ride. The Morgan SuperSport is an example of how the brand blends the past with modern technology.

Don’t think you’re going to be testing one of these automobiles like some unsuspecting farmer. Instead, Morgan offers an “experience drive” with a “brand ambassador”, like any real decent carmaker would. And you can drive one of these experiences for the low price of £195, or $262. Want to see what it would be like to ride as a passenger in one of these cars? Well, it’s only £120, or $161. what a bargain!

Morgan does have a presence in the US – but only 12 dealerships in total, so it’s very rare to see one of their vehicles on a US highway. But just because you live near a dealership doesn’t mean you have the opportunity to take one of those experience drives. The website shows that some dealerships do not have any Morgan models. Those who have are only a handful.

The 1960s were a weird and wonderful time in the car world, one reason being the proliferation of three-wheel microcars – small cars that usually ran on moped engines and had enough room for one person. Peel launched its microcar, the P50, in 1962. It was the smallest production car ever made, and it still holds that title. It was only 54 inches long, 39 inches wide, and weighed 130 pounds. There was no reverse gear, but you could lift it from the back. It had a 4.2 hp 49 cc motor that could reach 40 mph. Only 50 were built between 1962 and 1965, and 27 of them still exist. They’re not very safe, but that didn’t stop one YouTuber from driving them fast around the Nürburgring race track.

Peel launched a two-seater, the Trident, in 1964, but it looked completely different from the P50. It still only had three wheels, but it had a glass dome on top that reminded us of George Jetson’s car, only with wheels. Only 75 Trishuls were made.

But the story of these cars would not end with the creation of the last Trident. The original Peel Engineering Ltd closed down in the 1970s, but now a company called P50CARS is taking over, producing faithful recreations of both the P50 and Trident, except that the electric motor is now an option. These are made in small numbers as kits or factory manufactured.

Briggs Automotive Company, or BAC, builds the world’s only single-seater street-legal supercar. The Mono is designed to look like one of those formula race cars, with the driver’s seat being the only seat in the car, making it perfect for rich introverts who like to go fast – 0 to 60 mph in 2.7 seconds. Overall, this thing looks like it’s escaped from a race track, although it’s completely street legal, at least in the UK, so, if you like driving something that leaves others confused and staring with a mixture of confusion and envy, then this is the car for you.

BAC celebrated the production of its 100th car in 2019, which may seem like a significant milestone after a company has only been producing vehicles for a few weeks. However, BAC had been in business for ten years at that time. The slow production speed is due to the fact that each car is made to order and customized for each customer. No two BAC Monos are exactly alike. The seat and steering wheel of this car are specially designed to conform to your hands and backside. The automaker will also give you a tailored racewear suit with matching shoes and gloves along with a customized helmet. We couldn’t find prices on the company’s website, but a throttle house The YouTube video lists the base price as $250,000. This is probably one of those instances where you can’t afford it if you have to ask.

The first Marcos model came out in 1959 and was, well, a bit odd looking. It appears to have the body of an open-wheel Formula 1 race car with the top of a regular sports car. But that wasn’t the strangest thing about it. It had a wooden chassis covered with a fiberglass body. That’s right, the chassis was made of laminated plywood. One of the company’s founders, Frank Costin, came from an aircraft design background and applied what he had learned to car design. The result was a very fast light small sports car. That first model was appropriately named the “Flying Splinter”.

Successful models will look much better than the first ones. But using the wooden chassis with the Marcos brand won’t be a one-time thing. It continued making cars in this manner until 1969. Apparently, some owners of older models have tried to strengthen the chassis with steel. people are over Marcos Heritage Call these “cowboy repairs” and warn against them, saying, “Don’t try to improve the wooden chassis; it’s a masterpiece, it works very well just the way it is.”

The last Marcos produced was the TSO GT in 2007. However, the brand is back with the upcoming Manticore, which will be revealed in the fall of 2026 with a naturally aspirated engine, six-speed manual transmission, and a targeted top speed of 200 mph.