| | Marina development story (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-06) |
 | | As envisaged at the beginning of the accelerated development programme, the Morris Marina would provide BLMC a perfect competitor in the fleet market and if you were an optimist in the company at the time, the feeling was that the Marina offered nearly everything the Cortina did, but in a more compact package. |
 | | Because sales of the Morris Marina had never lived up to the heady expectations of it made during its development, the decision was made that the new car should follow the Cortina upmarket into the 2-litre class. |
 | | As it was, sales of the Marina continued to hold up well during the Seventies, generally holding third or fourth in the UK sales charts, but it did not disguise the fact that marketing-led development was no substitute for genuine product development and as time went on, the Marina's shortcomings were becoming increasingly evident. |
| dspace.dial.pipex.com /town/way/yuw18/austin-rover/marinaf.htm (4887 words) |