Hillman Minx

It took a bit of a double-take to recognise this car. I thought I was familiar with the Minx as my Great Aunt had had one when I was little. Hers was tan in colour but had a big, friendly oval grille with a thick, chrome edge. After digging around on the internet I discovered my first instincts were right. Only the first couple of model years had the grille like the Dinky, the photo at the bottom right is of the car most people will remember as a late forties/early fifties Minx.

However the car in the photo is not a Hillman. Its an Isuzu. Isuzu made Rootes Group cars under licence for the Japanese home market. Nissan made Austins and Hino (now a truck maker) made Renaults.

Another interesting fact about this car is that it is designed based on a Studebaker. You learn so much on the internet.