British sports car manufacturer Bristol Cars has gone into administration, it has been announced.

The company has been operating from its Bristol-based factory since 1946, and has also got a showroom in Kensington, West London.

Tom MacLennon and Trevor Binyon from RSM Tenon were appointed as joint administrators on Thursday, and have confirmed that the company will continue to trade for the time being while it searches for a buyer.

Mr MacLennan said: "While there have been a number of immediate redundancies due to the financial position of the company, we are maintaining the sales and service operations so customers will continue to be supported.

"We would urge any interested parties to make contact with us as quickly as possible and are confident that we can secure the future of this iconic British brand."

The company started out building planes, and was renowned for engineering excellence at the start of its car-building career. Sadly a lack of investment in recent years has meant that the quality of its cars has dropped and unfortunately in recent years the company has been as noted for its West London showroom sign with its missing letters as it has for any of its models.

Bristol's current range is made up of the Fighter, Blenheim, Blenheim Speedster and Series 6, with the V10 Fighter T as its flagship.

The company has not released sales figures for the last several years, and has declined to offer cars to the medial for test drives, remaining as a niche brand. This is reportedly nothing new, as Bristol was owned by a media-shy former racing driver, Tony Crook, for much of its history. He is said to have only sold cars to customers he liked.