Bristol Cars Saved By Frazer-Nash
Moribund marque is brought out of administration by new owners
Bristol Cars has been bought out by the Swiss company Kamkorp Autokraft, part of the Frazer-Nash group.
Bristol, which had to make 22 of its 27 staff redundant when it went into administration in March, will be revived to help showcase for its new owner's eco-friendly technology - Frazer-Nash showed an electric sports car concept back in 2009 called the Namir.
"Over the next few months we will start to reveal the details of our plans to combine Bristol Cars' tradition and iconic marque with Frazer-Nash's pioneering technology to showcase our cutting-edge electric and range-extended powertrains," said William Chia, the group's director of operations.
But present Bristol owners needn't worry that they've been forgotten, says Chia: "Owners and enthusiasts of the cars should be assured that, even though these are early days in our tenure of the brand, we are committed to providing them and their cars with the highest levels of quality, technology and service."
Another bit of British motoring heritage slips into foreign ownership. Not to sound ungrateful - I'm glad it's not gone altogether - but ther is something inevetable and also very disturbing about the way we do not seem capable of financing our domestic manufacturing industry.
I tell you what'd be great - Bristol is kept on as the big, quirky four-seater GT and Fighter supercar manufacturer (I'd love a redesign of the Blenheim though, to make it a kind-of latter-day version of the much-missed Aston Martin Virage Vantage, with a Viper V10), and for volume sales to bulk things out a bit, they release a small, affordable sports car capable of doing a track day under the Frazer-Nash name as a modern incarnation of this:
Frazer-Nash Research is actually part of the Kamkorp group, rather than the other way round, and they are based in Singapore!
Another bit of British motoring heritage slips into foreign ownership. Not to sound ungrateful - I'm glad it's not gone altogether - but ther is something inevetable and also very disturbing about the way we do not seem capable of financing our domestic manufacturing industry.
Frazer-Nash became Frazer-Nash-BMW due to their role in importing the cars into Britain.
The first Bristol cars used engines straight from the Frazer-Nash-BMW 328, taken in part as reparations, for their power.
It could be said that they've come home.
never really been my cup of tea although some of the models in the 50s certainly have something about em.
my gf's granddad used to be a test driver for them after the war until he retired and would spend his days blasting up and down filton runway in between planes coming and going!
whilst he wanted to be a pilot, many pilots seemingly wanted his job
800cc and electric hybrid power.
"The FN Namir is the fastest range extended electric car in the world with a top speed of over 187 mph (300kph) and acceleration from 0 to 100kph (62mph) in 3.5 seconds.
Frazer]Nash Energy Systems provide both the Battery Management System and Charger."
Now you guys go and buy their cars instead of big Mercs, etc. and they won't have to be saved again. It is all your fault. It is your fault TVR isn't around, it is your fault Marcos went POOF, it is your fault that Invicta isn't on the front page of Autocar and VEMAC hasn't sold in the UK. All your fault!
Kidding of course!
I suspect they will cease manufacturing the cars, - if you read the press release carefully it does make a lot about existing customers quality care and service...
Afterall from what I have read the service part of the business was profitable.
Regardless, good luck to the 'remaining 4' staff
I suspect they will cease manufacturing the cars, - if you read the press release carefully it does make a lot about existing customers quality care and service...
Afterall from what I have read the service part of the business was profitable.
Regardless, good luck to the 'remaining 4' staff
I doubt Bristol Cars will be back as we knew them. Why would you buy a company that went out of business due to lack of demand and start to build the same thing again! I guess a lot of the employees were specific to the building techniques of Bristol....I'll be happy to be proved wrong!
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