Geek Out! What if…?

Alternative history is a topic that could fill an entire bookshop, or maybe half an internet. You know the sort of thing, often based around thought provoking exercises in imagining a world where we hadn’t had landmark events like the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand, the Cuban Missile Crisis or the first time Ant met Dec.

I sometimes run alternative histories in my head but, unsurprisingly, these have a car-based spin. Maybe it’s a parallel universe in which Aston Martin rather than Ferrari becomes the pre-eminent sports car maker of the 20^th century and the most enduring presence in F1. Or a world in which its clever thinking and interesting design made the biggest force in the US car industry not GM but AMC. Or a Sliding Doors moment that leads to Rover one day buying BMW and not the other way around. In case you’re interested, in all of these worlds we also still have Saab.

The other day, however, I started working through another piece of fantasy based around a specific model. In this case, the revolution in everyday cars that could have been delivered by a spacious, practical, affordable, thoughtfully designed and sweet handling machine confected by the brilliant minds that gave us the original Range Rover. That’s right, it’s the Austin Maestro.