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  1. Five cars that put England on the map
  2. Jaguar E-Type, Greatest car ever?
  3. Aston Martin DB5, Bond's finest
  4. Range Rover, Original Chelsea Tractor
  5. Mini, Small but perfectly formed
  6. Lotus Seven, Sports car blueprint

Mini, Small but perfectly formed

Ah, the Mini. Is there any car with as instantly recognisable a silhouette? It's a total cliché talking about the Mini's cult status these days so we'll keep this brief, but you absolutely cannot have a list of the best English cars without referring to it. Produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC), and later MG Rover, the Mini had an incredible 41-year lifespan between 1959 and 2000. It was, of course, replaced by the BMW MINI in 2001 - though some argue that the newcomer's relatively bloated proportions don't stay true to the original brief.

It was the Mini's almost miraculous use of space that first made it famous. The car came about as a result of the need for a practical small car due to fuel rationing in the late 1950s. Its front-wheel drive chassis wasn't new, but it had never been employed in a car so small before, or to such good space liberation and handling effect. A myriad of body styles appeared alongside the original two-box saloon - including the wood panelled 'Countryman' estate, a pickup truck and a van. Oh, and there's the small matter of the legendary Cooper S version, which achieved fame thanks to its successful Monte Carlo Rally exploits in the early '60s.

Mark Nichol