Offshoot from aircraft manufacturer, setting up in cars in 1946 with a version of the prewar BMWs, which Bristol built under licence from Frazer Nash. The car unit was split from the main firm in 1960 when Bristol Aeroplane Co. joined the British Aircraft Corp. The company is best known for exclusive, low-production luxury sports cars, powered by large American engines. In 2011, it was announced that Bristol had gone into administration and production halted.