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Origins
The 12/50 of 1923 turned Alvis from promising newcomer into a serious sporting marque. Its overhead-valve 1.5-litre four was strong, free-revving and famously durable — cars still race today on original components — and the chassis balanced beautifully, whether under a duck's-back polished-aluminium sports body or sober touring coachwork. The model announced itself by winning the 1923 Brooklands 200-Mile race, beating pure racing machinery with what was recognisably a customer's car. Around 3,700 were built through 1932 alongside the six-cylinder cars that followed, and the 12/50 became the backbone of the vintage movement in Britain: affordable enough to use, tough enough to survive, rewarding enough to love. If one car defines the phrase 'vintage light car', this is the one the phrase was coined for.
Alvis 12-50 Sportsman's saloon · Thomas's Pics · CC BY 2.0
