It was announced to the British public the day it went on display at the opening of the Geneva Motor Show 16 March 1950.

[4] The centre section of the body was carried over from the earlier TA 14[4] with minor changes but the engine and luggage compartments were new and accounted for the extra length.

[1] The 2993 cc engine was new and produced 83 bhp (62 kW) fitted with a single Solex carburettor and a compression ratio of 7.0:1.

Unusually, the engine incorporated timing gears at the rear of the cylinder block and a 7-bearing crank to increase smoothness.

[5] This was the first appearance of the engine that would power Alvis cars until the manufacturer withdrew from passenger car production in 1967, although modifications, when branded petrol returned to the market and higher octane fuels became available including increased compression ratios, would enable the power output to be progressively raised after 1953 until, fed by three SU carburetters, it reached 150 bhp (110 kW) in 1965.