Vanden Plas Tyres
Classic Vanden Plas Tyres
Vanden Plas Princess 4 Litre R
- Austin A120/135 Princess 1 (DS2)
- Austin A135 Princess 2 (DS3)
- Austin A135 Princess 3 (DS5)
- Austin A135 Princess 4 (DS7)
- Austin A135 Princess Landaulette (DM4)
- Austin A135 Princess Limousine (DM4)
- Austin A135 Princess Saloon (DS6)
- Austin A135 Princess Hearse/Ambulance
See the Austin A125-A135.
- Austin A105 Vanden Plas
See the Austin A105
- Austin A110 Westminster Vanden Plas
See the Austin MK2 A110 Westminster.
- Vanden Plas Princess 3 Litre
- Vanden Plas Princess 4 Litre R
- Vanden Plas Princess 1100
See the Austin Vanden Plas Princess.
- Daimler Double-Six Vanden Plas S1
- Daimler Double-Six & 4.2 Vanden Plas S2
- Daimler Double-Six & 4.2 Vanden Plas S3
See the Daimler Double-Six.
- Mini, Vanden Plas
See the Mini Tyres.
History of Vanden Plas
The Vanden Plas name is one of the oldest in the motor industry, dating back to the end of the 19th century. The coachbuilding firm of Carrosserie Van den Plas was formed in Belgium in 1898 by Guillaume van den Plas ( and his three sons, Antoine, Henri, and Willy, with bases in Antwerp and Brussels. An English subsidiary was established in 1913, named Vanden Plas (England) Limited. Guillaume's surname 'Vanden Plas' means "from the lake" in his native Dutch.
However, following the 1914-1918 War, this firm gradually foundered, entering receivership in 1923. A manager at Vanden Plas, Edwin Fox (along with his brothers Alfred and Frank), successfully acquired the name and goodwill of the company, relaunching it as Vanden Plas (England) 1923 Limited with Alfred as Chairman and Edwin as Managing Director. Operating from a former aircraft works at Kingsbury, north London, Edwin built an enviable reputation for the company, forging close links with Alvis and Bentley in particular.
In 1946, Austin’s Leonard Lord made an offer of £90,000 for the company, which the Fox family accepted, and Vanden Plas became a subsidiary of Austin. In 1960, BMC launched Vanden Plas as a brand in its own right and, by the middle of that decade, a credible range of three prestigiously-trimmed models had been formed: the ADO16-based Princess 1100, the Austin A110-based Princess 4-Litre R (successor to the Princess 3-litre), and the top-of-the-range Vanden Plas Princess 4-Litre limousine (the former long-wheelbase A135). Following BMC’s acquisition of Jaguar/Daimler the previous year, plans were now well-underway for Vanden Plas to assemble and trim the forthcoming Daimler DS420 limousine, which remained in production (latterly at Jaguar’s Coventry works) until the early 1990s.