Leyland Princess

The story

This time Harris Mann's wedge reached production almost as he drew it. The Princess was very roomy and rode beautifully on Hydragas suspension. Poor build quality in its early years spoiled a genuinely advanced car.

Inside

Wide velour seats, a deep dash and huge rear legroom. It was often compared to a big Citroën.

In period colours

Tap a colour to respray the drawing.

Meanwhile, in 1975

British Leyland was nationalised to save it from collapse, and Bohemian Rhapsody was number one.

Best-selling single of 1975: Bye Bye Baby by Bay City Rollers

Before you buy a 1970s car

• Rust is common in sills, wheel arches, front panels and the bottom of the doors.
• Check the wiring and electrics carefully, as they age badly.
• Many volume-selling cars still have good parts support, but badge-engineered and low-volume models can be harder to source.

General notes, not specific to this model. Check the model's own history before buying.

Rivals of its day

Picked automatically: cars on sale at the same time with similar size, speed and price.

See the real thing

These open in a new tab: the car on Wikimedia Commons, the interior and the badge as Google image searches.