HOW RIVAL TO THE MINI CRASHED AND BURNED

Scotland has an impressive history of pioneering car production since the late 19th century, holding the distinction of producing the first-ever automobile in the UK.

the company responsible was arrol-Johnston, a partnership between locomotive engineer George Johnston and Sir William arrol, whose company was behind the construction of the Forth Bridge.

the firm built cars from 1895 until 1931, first at camlachie, in Glasgow’s East

End, before production switched to Paisley. the manufacturer’s first model was a six-seater wooden-bodied vehicle called a dogcart, a rudimentary car with a 10 horsepower engine, started by pulling on a rope. another dogcart was produced by rival manufacturer albion Motors, which operated from 1899 to 1972, and earned an international reputation for reliability. clydeside-based albion moved into making buses and trucks which found NO GO: Closure of the Linwood vehicle plant sparked protests markets as far away as australia. Further west, a sprawling factory was built by the Rootes company at linwood, Renfrewshire, in 1961, which would go on to produce a range of vehicles, including the iconic Hillman Imp.

the small car with its engine in the back was inspired by the Suez crisis of 1956, which enforced the need for more economical vehicles.

linwood would go on to produce 440,000 vehicles such as the Hillman avenger, chryslers, Singer chamois and Sunbeams.

Eventual owners Peugeot talbot closed the plant – which had employed thousands at its height – in 1981.