During the mid-1950s, Alvis faced a major challenge.

Its long-standing coachbuilders, Mulliner and Tickford, had been absorbed into larger motor manufacturers and were no longer available to supply bodies.

At the same time, the attractive Swiss-bodied Graber versions of the Alvis Three Litre had demonstrated that buyers wanted a more contemporary design than the rather traditional "Grey Lady" saloons.

To solve both problems, Alvis adopted an updated version of the Swiss Hermann Graber design, but arranged for production by Park Ward, the prestigious Rolls-Royce and Bentley coachbuilding subsidiary.

Park Ward's modern pressed-steel manufacturing methods offered higher quality, greater consistency, and improved production capacity than the earlier Willowbrook-built TC 108/G.

Mechanically, the TD21 continued with Alvis's well-proven 2,993 cc inline six-cylinder engine, but it received a redesigned cylinder head and a higher compression ratio, increasing output to approximate...