I've only ever had three Vauxhalls and one was an early FB of 1962. The others were a Senator MK1 and a Cavalier MK3. The FB was well-received in its day. The styling was, after the perceived excesses of the F-type Victor, absolutely right for the somewhat plain and minimalistic fashion of the early 1960s. I can't honestly say that I ever really liked it; either the one I had, or the model in general. I have always thought the original Victor with its extravagantly swage-lined flanks, wrap-around front and rear screens, dog-leg front pillars, exaggerated rear overhang and lavish chrome-plated detailing to be a tour-de-force in stylistic terms. I am quite aware of its deficiencies as regards durability and utility, but to achieve such a wonderfully well-proportioned and dramatic result with what was a rather small body was extraordinary.

The third generation Victor was the FC or '101', so named, it was said, because it embodied 101 improvements over the FB. Without being any larger it had considerably greater space within, using curved side window glass for the first time and having exaggeratedly full-width styling from front to rear and top to bottom. It is another Victor design which I have always liked.

The FD Victor, introduced in 1967, was a very different car in every respect. The styling was perfect in every detail. It was certainly transatlantic in style, as was the original F-type, being very similar to contemporary Chevrolets. It suffered nothing for being reduced in scale. Such was the beauty of the sculptured 'coke-bottle' shape that the FD needed no adornment and the grey Victor 2000 seen at the show looked absolutely superb. There isn't a detail which I would change. The interior was great too. The FD had the first truly new Vauxhall engine since the short-stroke E-series 1508cc and 2262cc engines were introduced in the early 1950s. The Viva 1057, 1159 and 1256 engines were all Opel Kadett-derived. It looked exciting, being a slant-4 OHC unit with toothed belt drive for the camshaft, in 1600 and 2000 versions (1599cc and 1975cc) and 72bhp and 88bhp respectively. Surprisingly, the base specification continued to offer a bench-type front seat and a column-change 3-speed transmission, although few were sold in that configuration. Most FDs came with individual front seats and the optional 4-speed floor-change 'box. Road test reports were generally positive, although the engines disappointed as they lacked power, having poor breathing at higher engine speeds and were none too smooth. The renowned engine tuner and former VX4/90 FB racing driver, Bill Blydenstein, could remedy the power-deficit problem with a reworked cylinder head. Sadly, Vauxhall hadn't completely shaken off their reputation for prodigious rusting of the bodywork and the FD was really rather bad in that respect, with both the inner and outer front wings rusting away notably badly, in addition to all of the usual rust spots in the sills and rear wheel arches. Another problem was the premature snapping of the toothed camshaft drive belts. This would result in valves hitting pistons and expensive engine rebuilds. It was early days for toothed belts and things did improve. The slant-4 Vauxhall engine had a long career and would be enlarged to 1759cc and 2279cc for the Victor FE. It was also used in the Bedford CF van and formed the basis for the twin-cam Lotus 1973cc unit fitted the the 1974 Elite 501, later enlarged to 2174cc, for the MK2 and also used in the Excel, Eclat and Esprit.

The FD suspension was a significant change from the old FC. It had double-wishbone coil-sprung front suspension and a coil-sprung rear axle on trailing arms with a Panhard rod. This promising design was found, in practice, to be less than perfect and some testers found the FD to be rather 'wallowy'.

The FE Victor was a development of the FD, except that it had the floorpan of the Opel Rekord, so wasn't a pure Vauxhall, although, as mentioned, it continued to use the Vauxhall slant-4. The Chevette and Cavalier were Opel designs in their entirety, as even the 1256cc base engine was of Opel origin. It follows therefore that the Victor and Ventora FD models were the last true Vauxhalls. If only the engines had been smoother and more efficient in their performance and the bodywork had been better protected against rust, they might have made a greater impression than they did. They had a 3 year head start on the Cortina MK3 and were arguably far better-looking than the Fords - I certainly think so. 

The real test of a car body style is whether it looks better in its simplest form or with bright paintwork and adornments such as extra chromework, vinyl roof covering and fancy wheels. The most basic Victor FD looked just superb, whereas the Ventora, whilst undoubtedly remaining an attractive car, was an example of gilding the lily. There are some cars that, irrespective of their practicality or performance, are simply a pleasure to stare at. The Victor FD was a fairly average family car of its day, but I challenge you to name another medium-sized saloon which is such feast to the eyes.

Ventora FD (3294cc straight-six)

Also pictured are a Victor FE and two more FDs.