In 1911, the Ford Motor Company, which had been importing Ford Model Ts into the UK for several years, opened its first overseas plant at Trafford Park in Manchester. In 1920, after a decade of brisk sales in Britain and all over Europe, Ford was faced with a crisis -- a new law established higher tax penalties for larger-engine cars, and Ford's UK market share was suffering.
Ford responded by developing several prototypes for a Ford automobile small enough to avoid British tax penalties. Designers also predicted that the citizens of dense European cities would prefer a car smaller than the standard American Ford. The resulting Model Y Ford "8" went into production in 1932, and after a strong first year Ford UK's market share began to rapidly expand.
In 1938, the Ford E93A Prefect was introduced -- the first Ford from the UK to be marketed to Americans on a large scale. Internally, the compact 105E Anglia had a brand new overhead-valve engine and a four-speed gearbox, and externally, it was like nothing else on the road with it distinctive rear-sloping back window, frog-like headlights, and 'stylish' colours: light green and primrose yellow.
Despite appreciation for the well-designed car by a few automobile enthusiasts in America, the Anglia, which was a best-seller on the world's markets, failed to make a noticeable impact in the general US market.
Today, you still find them around, either in the hands of ancient enthusiasts who lovingly restore them to their original condition, or as chopped-top dragsters...
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