Welcome

Alternative Cars is a brand new magazine that showcases the very best the specialist car world has to offer, from the specials era via modern classics to the present day.

What does Alternative Cars magazine cover?
We’ve given a great deal of thought to defining the boundaries of what constitutes an ‘alternative car’. Some are an obvious shoe-in – anything made by the likes of TVR, Morgan, Lotus, Caterham and Noble are right at the heart of what we love. The same goes for Ariel, BAC and Ultima. But we also want to shine a light on some of the lesser-known British makers like Riversimple. Lotus is about as ‘mainstream’ as we’ll go.

Anything out of the ordinary, like the Lancia Hyena and Venturi Atlantique, are in our sights. Imports like Japanese kei cars are well within our remit, and so are off-piste offerings from mainstream car-makers. Past-masters like Marcos and Gordon-Keeble will be in the mix, too. There’s a core to what we’re about, but there will be some flexibility; we want the content of each issue to contain some surprises and show you cars you may never have heard of.

Just as important are the things we’ll be leaving out. We’re not at all fussed about keeping up with whatever the new McLaren is this week, and there’s already more than enough coverage about the latest BMW M cars and Mercedes-AMGs in the world so we’ll give those a miss too. Conversely, we will take an interest in Alpina and Brabus.

In short, Alternative Cars is the magazine we’d want to read, and one that we hope you’ll love too.

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  • TVR Speed 12

    TVR Speed 12

    You never fully appreciate what you have until it’s gone. TVR is a case in point: did we really know how lucky we were that the Blackpool based sports car had a place in the world? In its 1990s and early 2000s heyday, it provided a steady stream of the most exciting sports cars you… Read more

  • Suzuki Cappuccino

    Suzuki Cappuccino

    My first memorable experience with an Alternative Car happened in 2000, when at eight years old I ‘purchased’ my first sports car on Christmas Day. As a child, I would become obsessed with cars through Gran Turismo 2 on the original PlayStation, and it all began with me heading to the East City and blowing… Read more

  • FrancoSbarro

    FrancoSbarro

    His creations defy belief as much as description, and are often the standout stars of the Geneva Motor Show each year. Franco Sbarro’s eponymous motor cars exist in their own little bubble, and in many ways they mirror their creator in being enigmatic and hard to pigeonhole. Over the past half a century, he has… Read more

  • Westfield relocates

    Westfield relocates

    There’s a fresh start for Westfield and sister company Chesil as the new owners move into a new site in Bicester, Oxfordshire. The old site in Kingswinford, West Midlands, has been home to Westfield since the 1980s. Speaking about packing up the old factory, MD Nigel Trilk commented: “So many great cars were built in… Read more

  • Our top 5 from the NEC Classic Motor Show

    Our top 5 from the NEC Classic Motor Show

    With hundreds, if not thousands, of cars all under one roof, the NEC Classic Motor Show is one of our favourite weekends of the year. Taking place in November, it’s the traditional curtain-call event and one that attracts all corners of the classic car world. Narrowing down our three days at the show to five… Read more

  • Jaguar XJS re-incarnated

    Jaguar XJS re-incarnated

    What do you get if you cross a lifelong appreciation of Jaguars with a fascination for 1930s cars from the likes of Delage and Delahaye? The answer, if you’re possessed of the skills to realise such a thing, is the Jaguar Royale Special. John Barlow has been designing and building specialist cars since the 1980s. … Read more