Tråd: Bristol biler er konkurs

Bristol biler, best kjent for sin quirky utvalg av Chrysler drevet håndlaget biler har blitt satt inn i konkurs.

Grunnlagt i 1945 da Bristol Aeroplane Company sammen med AFN, som gjorde Frazer Nash biler, sin tidlige modellene som var drevet av sine egne motorer og biler som 400 omtalt elegant aerodynamisk karosserier; motorene var så vellykket at i 1950-to-liters versjon drevet Formel To Coopers.

Fra 1960 Bristol ble drevet av ex-racer Tony Crook som tok noe eksentrisk utsikt av business aldri tillater betydelig veien tester og knapt gjenkjenne media som helhet. Årlig omsetning var så liten at ingen offisielle tall ble registrert.

Selv om fabrikken var i Bristol var det et enkelt show room i West Kensington (London) ikke langt fra utstillingssenteret Olympia, med service i nærheten Chiswick.

Crook selges ut til Toby Silverton i 2000, men et tiår senere er den harde virkeligheten av å holde en spesialtilpasset bil business flytende slo hjem og 22 av Bristols 27 ansatte har blitt gjort overflødig. Utvinning spesialister, RSM Tenon er håp om å finne en kjøper.

Bristol Cars, best known for its quirky range of Chrysler powered hand-crafted cars has been put into bankruptcy.

Founded in 1945 when the Bristol Aeroplane Company teamed up with AFN, which made Frazer Nash cars, its early models were powered by its own engines and cars like the 400 featured sleek aerodynamic coachwork; the engines were so successful that in the 1950s the two-liter version powered Formula Two Coopers.

From 1960, Bristol was run by ex-racer Tony Crook who took a somewhat eccentric view to running the business never allowing substantial road tests and barely recognizing the media as a whole. Annual sales were so small that no official figures were ever registered.

Although the factory was in Bristol there was a single show room in West Kensington (London) not far from the Olympia exhibition center, with servicing undertaken in nearby Chiswick.

Crook sold out to Toby Silverton in 2000, but a decade later the harsh reality of keeping a bespoke car business afloat struck home and 22 of Bristols 27 employees have been made redundant. Recovery specialists, RSM Tenon are hopeful of finding a buyer.