Prior to 1925, when Vauxhall was taken over by General Motors, the company was renowned for producing handsome, finely engineered cars that put it on a par with Bentley or Sunbeam.

Laurence Pomeroy's tenure as Chief Engineer saw the firm produce some of the truly outstanding designs of the Edwardian period, commencing with the 20hp Prince Henry in 1910.

A larger (4.0-litre) version of the Prince Henry's four-cylinder side-valve engine was developed for its successor, the D-Type, which is perhaps best remembered for its role as a WWI military staff car.

With the return of peacetime production at the end of The Great War, the D-Type's successor, the 30-98, proved itself to be one of the greatest of all fast tourers, and in 1922 Vauxhall matched its great rival - the Sunbeam company of Wolverhampton - in offering an alternative, smaller and less expensive car - the 2.3-litre 14-40hp M-Type.

The latter featured a four-cylinder detachable-head engine, 3-speed in-unit gearbox, a single-p...