What is a Leyland P76?
07/03/2013
Two Australians won the 2013 edition of the Beijing-Paris Rally after more than 12,000 kilometers, which were certainly exhausting, in a Leyland P76. At the award ceremony, Gerry Crown said that the P76 was the best rally car he had ever driven. And there should be no doubt about his experience, as he is 81 years old and has already won the Peking-Paris once before.
Hardly anyone in our part of the world knows the Leyland P76, of which just 18,007 were built between 1973 and 1976. It was the first and last Leyland vehicle to be individually designed and manufactured for the Australian market. In keeping with its aims, it was spacious and offered a huge trunk. The design was probably a compromise between specifications, local ideas and the hand of Michelotti, who was involved in Project 76 from 1968. Technically, of course, as many parts as possible had to be taken from other Leyland products; the Rover SD1 was the inspiration with its engine (albeit enlarged to 4.4 liters) and suspension components. The budget was tight and there wasn't even enough money for a creative name, so the project name was adopted.
"Anything but average" was used as the slogan for the advertising campaign and the car did indeed have advanced features such as rack-and-pinion steering, a glued-in windshield, McPherson front suspensions and hidden windshield wipers. The body consisted of hardly any more individual parts than that of the Mini, which made the car very strong. This design was in fact quite competitive, but due to the financial problems of the Leyland Australia subsidiary, it was never fully developed.
The car was less successful on the market than expected, despite good reviews and a very friendly reception from the Australians. Plans to sell the car in Europe were not realized.
Nevertheless, the P76 did achieve rallying honors, as in 1974 the Leyland won the Targa Florio section of the World Cup Rally and was confirmed in 13th place overall, which was immediately celebrated with a special "Targa Florio" version.
A comprehensive report on the 2013 Beijing-Paris Rally is currently being compiled and will follow soon.
