British Motor Museum

The creation of the British Leyland Motor Corporation (BL) in 1968 saw the bringing together of multiple motor vehicle companies and marques (Austin, Jaguar, Morris, MG, Riley, Rover, Standard Triumph, and Wolseley). With many of the companies having their own collections of historic vehicles, in 1975 a centralised Leyland Historic Vehicles department was created to manage these. The trust's complete collection, which included more than 25 vehicles, was relocated to the new centre. In 2015, the museum was temporarily closed for a £1.1 million refurbishment and rebranding to take place. Additionally, a new £4 million two-storey Collection Centre was built to house the reserve collection of the trust. The new Collection Centre houses about 250 extra vehicles, and is used for both BMIHT and Jaguar Heritage Trust (formerly the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust) cars. over forty more cars were sold off from the museum in 2006. The Women who made their Marque In 2024, as part of International Women's Day, the British Motor Museum launched an exhibition called "The Women Who Made Their Marque". The exhibition celebrates of women who have contributed to Jaguar and the other marques associated with the brand. Some of the women featured included: ==Vehicles in the collection==

This is not an exhaustive list — a complete list is provided on the centre's website. Due to space limitations, not all cars are exhibited at all times. • The very first Land Rover (1948) • The first and last production models of the Land Rover Freelander • Various Land Rover, Range Rover, and Rover P5 vehicles used by the British royal family and senior politicians • An SAS Land Rover • Prototype Land Rover 101 Recovery Truck • Shaun the Sheep Land Rover Defender • Land Rover Series 2 track wheeled off-road vehicle • Rare Land Rover Llama lorry • The millionth Land Rover Discovery 4 • The first and last production models of the Rover 75 • Rover Gas Turbine cars • The Metro 1.3 HLS as shown at the 1980 Motor Show • Metro 6R4 Rally Car • Various MG Speed Record cars • The first Mini produced: 621 AOK • The last Rover Mini Cooper produced (2000) • The Minis that won the Monte Carlo Rally during the 1960s • Various Mini based prototypes, such as the Minissima • FAB1 from the Thunderbirds film • An Ascari KZ1 show car from 2000 • Rolls-Royce Phantom • The last Aston Martin DB7 • Aston Martin V12 Vanquish • Sinclair C5 • Ford RS200 • The last production Austin Montego • Jaguar R1 Formula One racecar from 2000 • Nuffield Gutty prototype ==Research services==

The British Motor Museum offers a research and registry service for several British car marques. The Archive houses authentic historical records by many of the major car manufacturers, including a range of original factory ledgers which record the details of individual vehicles as they came off the production line. For a small fee, owners may send in their Vehicle Identification Number (VIN – aka chassis number) and/or engine numbers, and they will research the original production records for that vehicle and send back whatever information on the vehicle is available. This is a 'Certified Copy of a Factory Record' or more commonly known as a Heritage Certificate. This can include such details as a list of the options the car was ordered with, the original paint colour and any identification numbers that may be missing. This can be useful when applying for tax exemption or to obtain an age-related Registration Mark. ==References==