The PA version of the Velox and its more upmarket sister the Cresta, were launched in 1957 at the London Motor Show as successors to the Vauxhall Fourteen. It was a radical departure from its predecessors; it mirrored North American styling trends with fins, acres of chrome and wrap-around glass.

The Velox was the cheaper of the pair with painted mouldings instead of steel or chrome, and the wheels had plain hubcaps instead of full-size shiny discs. The Cresta had a flashy bonnet mascot but the Velox made do with a plastic version.

A three-speed, all-synchromesh, manual gearbox with a column gearchange was standard equipment on the Velox but an overdrive unit, or the GM “Hydramatic” automatic transmission, could be fitted as an option.

The PA was replaced in 1962 by the PB – the last Velox. The PB was a bigger car but much more restrained stylistically than the model on display here, having lost the fins and excess chrome. It signalled the end of the transatlantic era for Vauxhall.