Austin Apache

A car based on the Austin 1300 but with the addition of a larger boot and extended restyled front was built by Leyland South Africa for a South African market. It’s used various parts from the before mentioned Austin 1300 as well as the Triumph 2000 and ended up being a similar size to the Triumph Dolomite.

British Leyland / Austin Zanda

There’s no denying the Harris Mann concept that debuted in 1969 was a looker, even by today’s standards. Which in the emerging wedge era was saying something. Also to be fair at the time of British Leyland it’s amazing it look this well balanced and didn’t have most of its flair taken out by having to use the parts bin like so many others of the time.

Innocenti Mini

What do you call a Mini when its wearing a Bertone styled body? The Innocenti Mini. Now you’d be expecting this to be an alternative from a separate company offering a “modernised” Mini which by 1974 was 15 years old. But this alternative was effectively offered by British Leyland who built the Mini at the time and owned the very Italian sounding marque Innocenti.

Townscar / Minissima / Elswick Envoy

In the era of the “wedge” every car designers was trying to introduce it to every model. William Towns brought this philosophy to the mini, with the Townscar concept of 1972. While the body may have been right up to date (this was the 70’s) the underpinnings were taken straight from the car it was suggested it would replace, the Mini if you hadn’t guessed.

Austin AR6

When you talk about “what might have been” then British Leyland/Austin/Rover had more chances of success than failure. A brand generally loved by the UK but failed to keep up with the competition and relied too much on nostalgia and being “British” rather than investing in new cars. One example of that, which to be honest by 1984 may already have been to late, was the final AR6 concept.