There's a much-used phrase: they were far simpler times back then. A fine illustration of that is this Frazer Nash Mille Miglia. Imagine owning a car today that was capable of competitively contesting not one, but two sporting disciplines. Half Toyota GR Yaris, half Aston Martin Vantage GTE - they simply don't exist.
Yet back in 1954, this particular roadster took on both the RAC Rally and the British Empire Trophy at Oulton Park within weeks of each other. It wasn't alone, either. In the early '50s, mass-produced sports cars such as the Jaguar XK120, TR2 and Healey 100 were all expected to be equally at home charging up Rest and Be Thankful or dodging the oil drums dotted around Silverstone's airfield circuit. There was certainly no need for a two-car garage.
Not that the average austerity-ravaged British driver of the post-war era could afford such a high-ticket item as the tailor-made Nash. If a TR2 at £900 all-in was seen as an indulgence, then the £3307 (£2250 less 10% ex-works, plus 66% Purchase Tax) price-tag of the Mille Miglia was a sign of good fortune beyond the wildest imagination of the majority of the nation. The fast and glamorous XK120 roadster was barely £1500; could a handbuilt car from Isleworth really be twice as good?
To be fair, it's not dissimilar to comparing a suit bought on the high street with a bespoke item from Savile Row and, truth be told, the Frazer Nash was probably closer to a Jaguar C-type in its attributes, value and scarcity. You can almost envisage the company's owners, the Aldington brothers - Harold, known as 'Aldy', Bill and Donald - dressed in beautifully cut, double-breasted pinstripe suits with tape measures draped around their necks, enquiring: "Would Sir prefer his Frazer Nash to be a High-Speed, or a Fast Tourer?"
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Mick WALSH
'Had someone said that this worn-looking titan would win the most famous old-car event, we would have laughed'
ALFA ROMEO STELVIO QF
Rewriting the rulebook on what an SUV can do, and how it can make you feel
FLOATING INTO THE FUTURE
Citroën's DS-replacing CX was at a cutting edge so sharp it still looks fresh today, and it had the drive to match - as five superb survivors reveal
"It's a car for posing in really"
Broadcaster Michael Buerk reflects on more than three decades with his beloved Jaguar E-type S1 3.8 fixed-head coupé
HONDAS DECK THE HALL
The Japanese firm's Los Angeles collection is now on public display for the first time in two decades
ABSOLUTELY buzzing
Honda's Si Civics brought agile, cheap fun to motorists long before the Type R name got anywhere near a hatchback
THE FEMININE TOUCH
In 1955, General Motors styling guru Harley Earl brought 11 talented women into the male-dominated world of automotive design. What was their lasting impact?
Out on a limb
Panther's innovative Solo 2 was something completely different, both for its maker and the sports car market
Restyles with substance
Panther Westwinds blended a passion for pre-war designs with modern-era mechanical usability and remarkably fine coachbuilding
Dead ringers
The Maserati Kyalami and De Tomaso Longchamp share much, having emerged from the same stable, but are poles apart at heart