Description
Author: Kenneth Day, Hardbound, 375 Pages, F667 ISBN: 9780854296675, 2nd Edition, 1989 - Second-Hand book in excellent condition !
Say the name Alvis and immediately images of luxury performance cars of yesteryear come to mind - for nearly 30 years from 1919 the Coventry-based company built cars of advanced design to the finest engineering standards. Up to 1930 Alvis cars secured outstanding
record-breaking and racing successes at Brooklands, in the Le Mans 24 1 lours race, and in the Tourist Trophy races in Ulster. Alvis's advanced front-wheeldrive cars set a precedent for what many years later would become accepted design practice.
Unlike many British car manufacturers the Alvis company survived, through diversification. As described in this third edition of a best-selling classic, Alvis lives on as a flourishing world-class engineering company at the leading edge of technology in both civil and defence industries, and at the centre of Britain's drive for exports. A major employer in Coventry, it is still British-owned, and is the sole survivor of the 86 car manufacturers established between 1919 and 1925 — albeit no longer making cars.
The company's success can be traced back to its founder, T.G. John. This brilliant Welshman had a wide engineering experience, and his small team of engineers had backgrounds in heavy transport, aero engine manufacture, and naval and commercial shipbuilding. This expertise enabled
Alvis to enter acro engine and armoured vehicle manufacture, to make a major contribution to the Second World War effort, and to ensure the company's future prosperity.
The cars live on, with 3,000 members worldwide in the Alvis Owner Club and Alvis Register. The company cherishes its own collection of cars which is part of the heritage of Coventry, and serves to remind everyone of its illustrious motoring past, while also looking to the future.
Kenneth Day, President Emeritus of the Alvis Owner Club, has owned seven Alvis cars including three Speed Twenty Fives, driven most of the models produced by the company, and visited Alvis owners worldwide.
