Since news broke last month of the upcoming general election, candidates have been debating (well, perhaps not all of them), responding to voters questions and generally giving us many enjoyably awkward moments on the campaign trail.
Great cars like great prime ministers share similar characteristics - dependable, good in a crisis and iconic. To put that to the test Lookers thought it would be interesting to look back at some of the cars that defined the Prime Ministers of days gone by. But who has the most interesting automotive history? Get ready to vote.....
Winston Churchill
According to a BBC poll Sir Winston was the greatest prime minister of the 20th century. The colourful leader, who held office twice, was credited with leading Britain to victory in the Second World War. Known for his iconic cigar and ‘V’ for victory salute, he was also closely associated with the Land Rover Defender. Back in 2012 a Land Rover which was built for the former PM’s 80th birthday, was sold at auction for £120,000. The 1954 Series 1 Land Rover was registered as UKE 80 in the name of the "Rt Hon Sir Winston Spencer Churchill KG. OM. CH. MP. Chartwell, Westerham, Kent".
Winston Churchill and his Land Rover Defender
Margaret Thatcher
The car industry featured heavily during Margaret Thatcher’s premiership. A hugely controversial figure, she is nonetheless acknowledged by experts as saving British Leyland with a £2.9 million bail out. This support saved brands such as Jaguar, Land Rover and Mini from extinction. The marques, once owned by British Leyland, are now thriving under foreign owners with models regularly featuring in most popular car polls (which is the best kind of poll in our opinion). The Iron Lady was pictured in many cars during her premiership, although fascinating secret papers released this year detail some concerns over her involvement in the launch of the Rover 800. Anyway, here is some 1983 footage of Mrs Thatcher driving the new Austin Maestro from Number 10.
