Here it is, the dream car that launched the company that makes dream cars of modern times:

This is where it all began, the BMW 3/15, first in a line that was to produce the sleek executive cars we know so well today. And the really funny thing is that it wasn’t a BMW at all.

In fact, it’s an Austin 7, which a small German company named Dixi had begun to manufacture under licence in 1927. The Austin 7 was produced in large numbers in Britain and was the equivalent of America’s Model T Ford.

BMW were already making engines and motorbikes at the time and they purchased the Dixi factory in 1929, continuing production of the company’s only model but renaming it as the 3/15. Effectively, it was BMW’s first car and so it can be said that Britain gave the German company the start it needed to get into automobile production.

Much water has flowed under the bridge since then and BMW have grown to be the giant we know now. There were times when things did not go so well, however; at the end of the war, the drawings for the BMW classic sports car, the 328, were taken and became the basis for the post-war Bristol and Frazer-Nash cars. And, in the late fifties, BMW came so close to bankruptcy that they nearly sold out to Daimler Benz.

At the last minute it was decided to soldier on and their next model, the 1500, saved them. Developed into 1600 and 1800 models, it was the car that set the look of all subsequent BMWs and put the company on the road to success.

But let’s not forget their humble origins in the little Austin 7.

In the mid-sixties, Enzo Ferrari was looking for a way to compete with Porsche by selling a smaller Ferrari that used existing components. There was an existing V6 engine, designed for Formula 2 and, after some persuasion from others about the ability of customers to drive mid-engined cars, Enzo allowed the Dino to be produced in 1968.

This was the Dino 206, the dream of every boy racer at the time - an affordable Ferrari that looked great and, thanks to its aluminum 2 liter engine and lightweight body, performed like a grown-up Ferrari. Many, including myself, consider its Pininfarina-design to be the best ever for a mid-engined car.

In 1969, the Dino was re-designed with a 2.4 liter V6 and was known as the 246 GT. This model continued in production until 1974 and was available as an open spyder after 1971. Not surprisingly, the car was very popular and a total of 3,761 were built.

As I have said before, I like small cars for their handling and cheekiness. In all the years since the Dino’s era I don’t think I have seen or heard of any small car with quite the desirability of the Dino. And I say that even though I am no great Ferrari fan. The darn thing is just so pretty!

The Wikipedia has an article on the Car of the Century, an award decided upon in 1999, apparently. Usually these Something of the Century awards go to the most unlikely contestant imagineable but I find myself unable to argue with the judges’ decisions. They have chosen with considerable discernment and understanding, it seems to me.

The winner was the Model T Ford, probably the best-known car of all. And in that it really stakes its claim - it was the first to be mass-produced and made motoring available to millions. Since it changed the face, not only of the automotive world, but of twentieth century living, it deserves this accolade.

Next up was the Mini; and who would argue with that? The Model T may have changed lives but the Mini altered the design of cars from the moment of its first production. Few indeed are the modern cars that do not have a similar engine layout to the Mini’s. And, apart from that, it was one of the most fun cars to drive ever invented.

Third place is more difficult to predict but I think it has gone to the right contender: the Citroen DS. Interestingly, Citroen had three possibles in the twenty-six nominees, any of which would not have been a bad choice. But the DS was just so ahead of its time that it deserves its place. It announced aerodynamics as the way of the future, introduced the idea of pneumatic suspension and looked futuristic among other cars of its time.

Isn’t it interesting that none of the winners are the supercars and street racers of our wildest dreams? When it comes to real success, we need to look at the cars that impacted upon society, that affected millions of people. I am just glad that there remains a place for the special and limited edition cars.

Every shoolboy’s dream in the sixties, this one. Produced between 1959 and 1967, the Mk II was the best-looking Jaguar of all, in my opinion, beating even the universally-admired E-Type. It is perfectly proportioned and every detail fits with the rest of the car.

Legend has it that it was the result of American criticism of the previous 2.4 and 3.4 models as underpowered and, if this is true, the Mk II certainly answered in style. For the time, a top speed of 125 mph and acceleration to 60 mph in 9 seconds was very good. And the performance made it immediately the choice of both the British police force and gangsters; watch any late-50s/early-60s cops-and-robbers movie from England and you will see the car in action.

The engine, the same as powered the D-Type to its victories at Le Mans, was the Jaguar straight-6 available in 2.4, 3.4 or 3.8 liter versions. The handling was good and the Mk II quickly became the car to beat in saloon car racing of the early 60s, until Mr Cooper souped up the Mini and showed everyone how fast it could go around corners.

Jaguar made over 80,000 Mk IIs so there is no shortage of them on the classic car market. And it was a classic from the moment production ceased. The Mk X that followed it looked like a Mk II with an angular trunk attached and lost the balance so apparent in the earlier car. And never again have Jaguar produced a car so timeless in looks; it is clearly a product of the 50s but so pretty that it can never age.