Three-quarter Front View of a Gold, 1983, Austin Metro Vanden Plas Mk1 , on display at the 2023 London Classic Car Show
The Metro is a supermini car, later a city car that was produced by British Leyland (BL) and, later, the Rover Group from 1980 to 1998. It was launched in 1980 as the Austin mini Metro. It was intended to complement and eventually replace the Mini, and was developed under the codename LC8. The Metro was named by What Car? magazine as 'Car of The Year' in 1983 as an MG, and again as the Rover Metro in 1991. During its 18-year lifespan, the Metro wore many names: Austin Metro, MG Metro and Rover Metro. It was rebadged as the Rover 100 series in December 1994. There were also van versions known as the Morris Metro and later, Metrovan. The Austin Metro was introduced in October 1980 with the Vanden Plas being added to the range in April 1982. It was powered by the 'A' series 1275cc 60bhp engine with either a 4-speed all-synchromesh manual or optional 4-speed automatic transmission. Hydragas suspension, rack and pinion steering and servo assisted front disc and rear drum brakes were fitted. Externally the Vanden Plas received bronze tinted glass, laminated windscreen, bright inserts to the front and rear screen rubbers, black wrap around bumpers, bright finished front grille surround with grey central bars, bright finished door and tailgate handles twin door mirrors, coachlines with 'VP' motifs on each rear wing, glass tilting/removeable At the time of its launch, the Metro was sold under the Austin brand. From 1982, MG versions became available. During 1987, the car lost the Austin name, and was sold simply as the Metro. From 1990 until its withdrawal in 1998, the Metro was sold only as a Rover. Although the R3 generation Rover 200 (introduced in 1995 and smaller than previous 200 models) had originally been designed as a replacement for the Metro, it was not marketed as such after its launch.[4] The Rover 100 finally ceased production in 1998, being outlived (by three years) by the original Mini that it was meant to replace. 2,078,218 Metros of all types were built
Size: 5452px × 3512px
Location: Olympia London Hammersmith Road London W14 8UX
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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