Rootes

The Hillman Imp was the Rootes Group's brave answer to the Mini, a rear-engined small saloon with an all-aluminium overhead-cam engine, built in a brand-new Scottish factory. A guide to why it was brilliant, why it struggled, the Sport, Stiletto and Chamois versions, its giant-killing motorsport record, and what an Imp costs today.

The Hillman Minx was the Rootes Group's bread-and-butter family car for nearly forty years, from the sidevalve saloons of the 1930s through the crisp Loewy-styled Audax Series cars to the last New Minx of 1970. A guide to the generations, the Super Minx and the badge-engineered cousins, what to look for when buying, and what a Minx is worth today.

The Humber Sceptre was the Rootes Group's compact luxury saloon, a wood-and-leather flagship built on humble family-car bones through three marks from 1963 to 1976, when it carried the Humber name into retirement. A guide to the Mk I, II and III, what made a Sceptre special, what to check when buying, and what one is worth today.

The Rootes Group was the family-run combine that built Hillman, Sunbeam, Humber, Singer and Commer vehicles from the late 1920s until Chrysler swallowed it in the 1960s. A guide to how two brothers from Kent assembled Britain's great badge-engineering empire, the pecking order of its marques, the classic Rootes cars worth knowing, and what each is like to own.

The Sunbeam Alpine was the Rootes Group's proper sports car, a comfortable, well-equipped two-seat roadster that evolved through five Series from 1959 to 1968 and put James Bond behind its wheel before he ever drove an Aston. A guide to the Series I to V, the Harrington fastbacks, what to look for when buying, and what an Alpine is worth.

The Sunbeam Rapier was the Rootes Group's sporting saloon-coupe for two decades, first as the rally-winning two-door Series cars of 1955 to 1967, then as the sleek fastback of 1967 to 1976 with the Holbay-tuned H120 at its head. A guide to both generations, the competition record, what to look for, and what a Rapier costs today.

The Sunbeam Tiger dropped a Ford V8 into the Alpine's body, an idea developed with Carroll Shelby's workshop and built for Rootes by Jensen in West Bromwich. A guide to the Mk I and rare Mk II, how the Tiger differs from an Alpine, why authentication matters so much, and what genuine cars are worth.