British luxury cars are hit and miss. When they’re good, there’s absolutely nothing better than a slice of good old British luxury. there are quite a few. And for good reason!
There have been many misfires from the UK’s best brands, whether they’re unreliable, underpowered, poorly constructed, poorly designed, or repulsed because they’re just too ugly. Here are some British luxury cars you don’t want to get involved with.
8/8 jaguar mark 1
Everyone knows about the Jaguar Mark 2, but what about the Mark 1? It’s not as famous as its descendants, but there’s probably a very good reason for it. Jaguar has tried to solve this problem with his race-developed 3.4-liter straight-six. This gave the Mark 1 an amazing performance boost, but the power was just too much for the other components to handle. This made it a very dangerous car that actually killed one of its owners. Its particular owner was Racing his driver Mike Hawthorne. He had tuned his 3.4-litre Mark 1 beyond what was available at the factory.
Considering Hawthorn’s death, it’s no surprise that Mark 1 disappeared into obscurity. The Mark 2 was able to handle the power of his 3.4-liter (and later his 3.8-liter) engine much better than the Mark 1. This is thanks to a greater focus on safety, including disc brakes on all four wheels. Even without the killer reputation, the Mark 2 thrived and became one of Jaguar’s most recognizable cars.
7/8 Daimler DK400
There was once a time when Daimler ruled the roost of British luxury. Well that was up to his DK400 but it was unfit for royal duties and lost the company royal warrant!his 2 of his DK400s ordered by the royal family arrive months late It took some time. When they finally got there they were so underpowered that they had difficulty carrying Queen Elizabeth II and her entourage.
The DK400 performed reasonably well for other luxury cars, but its downfall at the Royal Theater completely ruined its reputation. The DK400 is hardly talked about these days. His loss of royal warrant for incompetence as a state car must be one of his big reasons.
6/8 Jaguar XJS
Ah, the Jaguar XJS. It is a famous car that precedes it. It was far more modern than the E-Type it replaced, but it suffered from reliability problems from the start. There was also consumption. Mix the two together and you have a recipe for disaster. In many ways this is a shame as the XJS is not a bad looking car. It’s not the most beautiful Jaguar that has ever existed, but it doesn’t make you nauseous with fear like the cars that come later.
Some people love XJS, but not many. Even true Jaguar enthusiasts are wary of the XJS. If you decide to own one, you could go bankrupt.
5/8 rover 800
Rover is one of Britain’s most prestigious brands. As a brand for public school-educated civil servants, it’s no surprise that it has a history of building luxury cars. The Rover 800 was an attempt to make the executive barges of the 80’s and 90’s. Rover turned to Honda to help develop the 800. Honda at the time he shared many components with the Legend. You might think that would make the 800 reliable, but you would be wrong. The 800 was poorly constructed and prone to failure. This seemed to get worse when the Honda Legend became as completely trustworthy as we’ve come to expect from Honda.
The 800 now has a certain amount of cult following, especially for the faster V6 powered Vitesse models, but most people avoid it entirely. Even hardcore rover enthusiasts often overlook the 800.
4/8 rolls royce camargue
Rolls-Royce has a reputation for making some of the classiest and most beautiful cars in the world. It’s an incredibly well-deserved reputation. But even Rolls-Royce makes mistakes sometimes. The Camargue is definitely one of them. You might think the two-door Rolls-Royce coupe would draw stylish lines, but the Camargue looks like his ’70s weirdness has been sliced through. Nothing looks elegant. It may have had Rolls-like running thanks to its common ground with the old Silver Shadow, but it certainly lacked Rolls’ elegant looks. Remember, this was the most expensive production car in the world at the time!
No one talks much about the Camargue, which is not surprising. This is the Rolls-Royce that even many Rolls-Royce enthusiasts don’t want to get involved with. Due to its ugly appearance, it has been hailed by many as one of the worst cars ever built.
3/8 Jensen SV-8
Jensen’s return should have been cause for celebration. The legendary British brand produced stunning luxury sports cars from the 1940s through his 1970s. This included the much-loved Interceptor and his pioneering 4-wheel-drive FF. SV8 was supposed to be his Jensen’s triumphant comeback, but it really wasn’t. His SV8 we got was poorly built and horribly ugly.it was so insulted that it bankrupted the company Also almost immediately. From 2001 to 2002 he built only 20 of his SV8s, and he left 18 more unfinished. SV Automotive bought unfinished cars in 2003, completed 12 of them, and then sold 12 of them to paying customers.
Time has passed, and even with the nostalgia brand attached, nobody still wants to interact with the Jensen SV8. No one wants anything to do with a car this ugly and shoddy. Equipped with his reliable 4.6-liter Ford Modular V8 as an engine, it could not diminish its reputation.
2/8 Vanden Plus 1500/1.5/1.7
Austin Allegro’s reputation is bad enough. Odd looking and unreliable, it was a fun figure in the automotive world for decades. So why would British Leyland want to make a premium version of it? It seems like a silly decision, but that’s exactly what they did. Enter Vanden Plas 1500 (later known as Vanden Plas 1.5 and 1.7). The Vanden Plas version of the Allegro was a cheesy “luxury” version with a silly front grille and an interior more suited to a conservative club than a car.
In a regular Austin Allegro you don’t see most people dead. When it comes to the Vanden Plas model, it’s amplified even more. This is seriously, seriously uncool car.
1/8 Aston Martin Signet
Aston Martin has had multiple notorious cars over the years. None are as infamous as Cygnet. Supposedly created in response to European Union directives on emissions, the Cygnet was the Badge Engineer version of the Toyota iQ city car. All Aston Martin has done is change the looks, give it a luxurious interior and sarcastically try to market it as “friendly” to owner Aston’s Martin supercar “luxury yacht” is. Yes, Aston Martin wanted existing owners to buy these and use them as everyday drivers!
As you can imagine, Cygnet sank like a lead balloon. Very few were actually sold at the time, and to this day people keep a wide distance from them. They do come up for sale occasionally, but rarely when they do.All in all, there’s no disputing that the Cygnet is the most embarrassing car in Aston’s Martin history. We’re all glad Lawrence Stroll isn’t trying this kind of nonsense again with the Aston Martin brand!