MG

The MG Magnette debuted at the 1953 London Motor Show with deliveries starting in March 1954. It was the first monocoque car to bear the MG badge. The Magnette was designed by Gerald Palmer, designer of the very similar Wolseley 4/44. While the Wolseley used the 1,250 cc engine from the MG TF, the Magnette was fitted with a newly developed four-cylinder 1,489 cc engine. In October 1956 the car received a facelift: the engine power was increased, a semi-automatic transmission became available and a so-called "varitone"-model was introduced, with a larger rear window and optional two-tone paintwork.

The Mark III, announced in February 1959, was nearly identical to the Riley 4/68)of the new Pinin Farina-designed midsize BMC saloon line. They both had truncated tail fins. The car featured BMC's 1,489 cc engine but, in the MG Magnette III (and its Riley sibling), performance was enhanced by fitting twin carburetters. The interior featured a walnut veneer facia panel, door cappings and leather upholstery as well as safety glass windows.

The Mark III was updated in 1961 as the Mark IV. A larger 1,622 cc engine was fitted, and the car had a longer wheelbase and wider track. To improve handling anti-roll bars were fitted front and rear. From the outside, the Mark IV was almost identical to the Mark III, apart from the remodelled and slightly less sharply pointed tailfins, a modification shared with its Riley sibling. The model continued to be listed untill May 1968 when the manufacturers announced that production had ceased with "no immediate replacement contemplated".