1957-'61 Vauxhall Victor

By the mid-'50s, the success of imported cars on American shores was too great to ignore--even at monolithic General Motors. Yet at the same time, there was nothing in the production pipeline that was small enough to compete. There didn't need to be: GM owned two companies that built small cars--English Vauxhall, and German Opel. Starting in 1958, Vauxhall Victors were available through Pontiac dealerships in the States.

The Victor was imported, but unlike rear-engined VWs and Renaults, it hardly seemed foreign: Available as a four-door or wagon, Victor looked for all the world like a three-quarter-scale American GM car. From jet-pod bumpers to Britain's first wrap-around windshield to budding tail fins, it was amply clear that designer David Jones' orders were coming from Detroit. Owners expecting traditional English accoutrements inside (i.e., bucket seats, a floor shifter and warm wood trim) were disappointed. An American-style column shift, bench seat, and a styled, wood-free instrument panel showed U.S. influence.

Suspension was typical GM as well: coil springs and wishbones in front, live axle on leaf springs aft on a 98-inch wheelbase. The existing 1,507cc four was given a stiffer block, a new head and a better intake manifold to net 48hp (competitive with the 50hp Austin A50 and the Morris Oxford). Top speed was 75 mph. At least the Victor had unit-body construction: Vauxhall had a hand in pioneering the build method in the '30s.

Victors cost £729 ($2,041 in 1958 dollars), including U.K. tax, which accounted for a third of the price. Even so, Victor sold well at home; 80,000 were built in its first year of production, and 145,000 before the facelifted Series II was launched. Yet despite these strong sales, Vauxhall was criticized in the press and by buyers for making a car that was too American in look and feel.

A facelifted version, known as Series II at home, was rushed into production for 1959 despite Detroit's wishes: The styling was cleaned up slightly, with some ornamentation removed and other bits smoothed over. A Series III, for 1961 only, reconfigured the dash and tweaked details. The Series II and III sold a quarter-million copies, and spearheaded a sales boost that Luton could barely keep up with: more than 390,000 Victors sold before an all-new model was launched for the 1962 model year. Briefly, it was the most exported car built in Britain. Yet less than 27,000 Series IIs and IIIs, and possibly a handful of redesigned '62 Victors, made it to the States before the plug was pulled.

While Vauxhall's own records are vague, other sources put American consumption at around 1,700 cars a month early on. That sounds like a lot of cars, but with 3,500 Pontiac dealers, that works out to one car every other month per dealer. Less than impressive. Another 27,000 or so Victors filtered over in the intervening years, until GM stopped the suffering in 1962.

Hindsight shows myriad reasons why Vauxhall didn't soldier on as Opel did. First, sedans started at $1,988; wagons were $2,400 throughout its run. No Pontiac stickered for under three grand in those days, so Vauxhalls seemed a bargain, but anyone who shopped around knew better. You could buy a full-size V-8 Ford, Chevy or Plymouth sedan in the gulf between sedan and wagon; a VW Beetle started under $1,600. Plus, the trip to 60 took an excruciating 26 seconds, according to Road & Track; the quarter mile arrived in just over 22 seconds. On the Interstate, that makes you a pylon. And then there were build quality issues: When even the notoriously cozy Fleet Street press of the '50s was calling Vauxhall out on their slapdash assembly, you know there's trouble.

And then there was GM's own upcoming range of compact cars: the Pontiac Tempest coupe doubled the Vauxhall's power even in four-cylinder form and cost just ten percent more; the 100,000 Tempests sold in '61 made the Victor superfluous.

The Victor had a rich life beyond the States in North America, however: Canada did rather better with it (along with the badge-engineered Envoy sedan and Sherwood wagon), and the lineup continued (with two subsequent redesigns) through 1966, selling another 40,000 or so cars through Vauxhall's ultimate North American demise.