Princess (car)
The Leyland Princess, sometimes called the Austin Princess, was a larger-sized (by British standards) car produced by British Leyland in the United Kingdom from 1975 through to 1981.
The car was originally called the Austin / Morris / Wolseley 18–22 series. Later, it was given the name first used on the Austin Princess limousine of the 1940s and 1950s. It appeared in revamped form as the Austin Ambassador between 1982 and 1984.
The car was widely reviled at the time, but many enthusiasts feel able to differentiate between British Leyland's problems, and the car itself.
Controversial styling
Like many other controversial cars, the exterior styling was distinctive, innovative, and somewhat divisive. The Wedge, as it was often nicknamed, was indeed very wedge-shaped; the styling was all angles and slanting panels. This was in very much 1970s style as created by Italian stylists (see Lamborghini Countach for the production epitome of such style). Within BL the car was often referred to as The Anteater and, while it looked smart at launch, it dated quickly. The designer, Harris Mann, was also responsible for the Triumph TR7, another notably wedge-shaped car, as well as the decidedly non-angular Austin Allegro.
The Princess, unlike the Allegro, made it to production metal relatively unscathed and unaltered from Harris's original plan. The bonnet (hood) was a little higher, to allow for taller engines, but the biggest change from Harris's design involved the rear. Harris had intended the design to be a five-door hatchback, but management decided that the Austin Maxi should be the only hatchback in the range, making that its unique selling point, and besides, they thought the Princess's prospective buyers would not like a hatchback - even though, in the Rover division, the new Rover SD1 was being given a hatchback design. Consequently, the Princess received fixed rear glass and a separate boot (trunk), belying its appearance, which was to prove a sales-loser the Princess's entire life.
An estate version was also proposed, although unfortunately never made production.
Mechanical details
Engines fitted were typical and uninspired; the base engine was the 1800cc pushrod B-series engine, already quite long in the tooth and notably lacking in power, though torque was reasonable. The larger engine, fitted to upper models in the range, was a 2200cc E-series SOHC straight-6, very smooth and a much more modern engine, but still not hugely powerful. The Princess was a big car, and the engine choice gave lacklustre performance. This wasn't helped by the provision of only a 4-speed manual gearbox (a Borg-Warner automatic transmission was an option, but performance with this was by all accounts positively lethargic). Bigger engines and a 5-speed would have made the Princess a much more exciting car and helped sales. There is a huge amount of unused space under the bonnet of a Princess; they could definitely have fitted more of an engine in there.
Suspension used BL's Hydragas system, and was very soft and smooth; the intention was to offer as smooth a ride as the Citroën CX and this was almost achieved. The Princess's ride was excellent, and comfort in general was a selling point; the car was roomy, reasonably well-appointed for the time, the seating was comfortable, and overall the driving experience - provided you didn't care that much about performance - was excellent.
Launch in three varieties
Launched in March 1975, it was not originally named the Princess; the original designation was the unwieldy and uninspired '18–22', referring to the engine sizes available. For the first six months of its production life, it was produced in three badge-engineered variants, for Austin (the 1800 and 2200 models), Morris (similar designations to Austin) and Wolseley (simply badged 'Wolseley', with no model name). Dealer networks of the three brands had not been consolidated, and all three needed a new car of this size. The differences between the versions were minor.
The Austin variant was really the 'standard' one, with no styling changes from the original. It had square headlights and a simple, horizontally-barred grille. The Morris and Wolseley cars had a raised 'hump' permitting a larger, styled grille for each model; the Morris one was a simple chrome rectangle with 'Morris' in the lower right-hand corner, while Wolseley's had a centre-chromed vertical bar with a Wolseley logo on it, with narrower vertical bars, set slightly back, filling in the chromed surround. Both of these versions had four round headlights, and the Wolseley model was only available with the six-cylinder engine and luxury trim.
Leyland Princess
By September of that year, the absurdity of producing three identical cars was abundantly obvious, and the process of unifying Austin and Morris dealerships was advanced, so the three versions were scrapped and a single version, the Leyland Princess, was built henceforth. A crown badge was affixed to the point of the bonnet and the script word Princess was affixed to the grille, the thick vinyl-clad C pillars and the boot. This made the Wolseley — the last car to wear that badge — particularly sought-after by collectors of that marque.
Despite its favourable reception when it was launched, the Princess faced further problems. The model suffered from poor build quality, exacerbated by bitter industrial disputes, and it quickly developed a reputation for unreliability that would beset it for the rest of its production life. The styling, praised upon introduction, was soon labelled 'ugly'. While cars with unconventional or radical styling would always have their admirers, cars with a bad reputation, like the Princess, would always be considered unattractive. Most of its flaws were corrected over time, but the damage to its reputation was done.
Princess 2
In 1978 the Princess was revised to become the Princess 2. The ageing 1800cc B-series engine was replaced by new power units, the O-series overhead cam 1700cc and 2000cc. Power was scarcely improved despite the switch, and the six-cylinder 2200cc version continued unchanged. The Princess script was removed from the grille and C-pillars, and the boot lid lettering was changed. Minor improvements were made to the Hydragas suspension, and a new laminated windscreen was fitted. This was the total extent of the changes, bar some interior tweaks. Neither of the Princess's major flaws, the lack of a hatchback and the lack of performance, were addressed.
A special one-off customized estate version of the Princess was built in late 1978 to promote Triplex glass; it may still exist.
In October 1980 some more minor appearance changes were made, but this would be the last year of the Princess. This was badged as the 'Austin Princess' in New Zealand. Production had ceased in November 1981, though completely knocked-down kits of the car were still being assembled in New Zealand Motor Corporation's plant in Nelson until June 1982. The Austin Princess R, the last model sold there, was still on new-car price lists in 1983, and was available only in black to commemorate the end of local assembly of Austin cars.
The basic Princess design lived on for a few more years in revised form as the Austin Ambassador.
Today, and conclusions
Throughout most of the ’80s and ’90s a Princess was so undesirable as to be almost worthless. Consequently, few are now left in good condition, and most have long since been scrapped, although there are still some on the roads in New Zealand.
The oldest Princesses are as of 2005 now 30 years old, while the youngest are 24; definitely pushing into classic car territory. Enthusiasts argue that the Princess deserves recognition as a classic car, that its styling is notable. As they see it, ’70s style is now passing its stage of being merely outdated and tired and is now regaining recognition, so a Princess is now old enough to start pushing into fashionably 'retro', rather than just 'old'. Despite their rarity, prices remain low — the model has not yet reached the point of being considered a 'classic car'.
Those who own the few still on the road claim that they are comfortable and spacious, easy to maintain, and mechanical parts in the UK are cheap and readily available, although their handling and springing is almost comparable to an American, with tight cornering and manœuvring at speed.