Princess (car)

Austin 18–22 Morris 18–22
1975 Austin 1800 (ADO71)
Overview
Manufacturer	British Leyland
Also called	Austin & Morris, 1800 & 2200
Production	March to September 1975
Designer	Harris Mann
Body and chassis
Class	Large family car (D)
Body style	4-door saloon
Powertrain
Engine	1.8 L B-Series pushrod straight-4 2.2 L E-series SOHC straight-6
Transmission	4-speed manual all-synchromesh 3-speed automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	105 in (2,667 mm)
Length	175.4 in (4,455 mm)
Width	68.1 in (1,730 mm)
Height	55.5 in (1,410 mm)
Chronology
Predecessor	Austin 1800 and 2200
Successor	Princess

Wolseley Saloon
Overview
Manufacturer	British Leyland
Production	March to September 1975
Designer	Harris Mann
Body and chassis
Class	Large family car (D)
Body style	4-door saloon
Powertrain
Engine	2.2 L E-series SOHC straight-6
Dimensions
Wheelbase	105 in (2,667 mm)
Length	175.4 in (4,455 mm)
Width	68.1 in (1,730 mm)
Height	55.5 in (1,410 mm)
Chronology
Predecessor	Wolseley 18/85 and Six
Successor	Princess

Princess
1975-1978 Princess
Overview
Manufacturer	British Leyland
Also called	Austin Princess (New Zealand)
Production	September 1975 - July 1978
Body and chassis
Class	Large family car (D)
Body style	4-door saloon
Powertrain
Engine	1.8 L B-Series pushrod straight-4 2.2 L E-series SOHC straight-6
Chronology
Predecessor	Austin 18-22 Morris 18-22 Wolseley Saloon
Successor	Princess 2

Princess 2
Overview
Manufacturer	British Leyland
Production	July 1978 – November 1981
Body and chassis
Class	Large family car (D)
Body style	4-door saloon
Powertrain
Engine	1.7 L O-Series SOHC straight-4 2.0  L O-Series SOHC straight-4 2.2 L E-series SOHC straight-6
Chronology
Predecessor	Princess
Successor	Austin Ambassador

The Princess is a family car which was produced in the United Kingdom by British Leyland from 1975 until 1981 (1982 in New Zealand.) The car inherited a front-wheel drive / transverse engine configuration from its predecessor, the BMC ADO17 range. This was still unusual in Europe for full-sized family cars and gave the Princess a cabin space advantage when compared with similarly sized cars from competing manufacturers.

The car, which was given the design code ADO71, was originally marketed as the Austin / Morris / Wolseley 18–22 series. In 1975 the range was renamed "Princess". This was a new marque created by British Leyland although it had previously been used as a model name on the Austin Princess limousine from 1947 to 1956. The Princess is often referred to, incorrectly, as the Austin Princess. Although this name was not used in the UK market, it was used in New Zealand. The car later appeared in revamped form as the Austin Ambassador, which was produced from 1981 until 1984 and only ever sold in Britain.

Princess sales, although initially strong, were tailing off by the end of the 1970s, primarily because of quality and reliability issues. Also, some of its competitors had gained a versatile fifth door which the Princess lacked, and the medium large-car sector fell victim to a poor economic climate further compounded by the OPEC oil crisis of the day. It was somewhere between the Ford Cortina and Ford Granada in terms of size, being designed to compete with more expensive versions of the Cortina as well as entry-level versions of the Granada.

Total production amounted to 224,942 units.

The car was launched to critical acclaim on 26 March 1975 as the 18–22 Series, "the car that has got it all together". The number designation 18–22 referred to the engine sizes available carried forward from the 1800 cc and 2200 cc BMC B-series-engined BMC ADO 17 "Landcrab". For the first six months of production three badge-engineered versions were produced: Austin, Morris and Wolseley. The Austin model bore the original "design intent", featuring trapezoidal headlights and a simple horizontally-vaned 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 Wolseleys had a chrome grille with the traditional illuminated company logo, with narrower vertical bars either side set back within 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 velour trim. Apart from their bonnet and headlamp designs, and of course their badging, the Austin and Morris models were virtually identical.