The origins of Vauxhall go back to 1857 when Alexander Wilson founded a company to build marine and pump engines.  The name comes from Vauxhall Gardens, which was near the factory in South London.  In 1863, the firm was bought by Andrew Betts Brown and renamed Vauxhall Iron Works.  The first car was manufactured in 1903 with production moving to Luton in 1907.  The company name was then changed to Vauxhall Motors.  In 1925, General Motors bought the firm and Vauxhall then became a major manufacturer of reasonably priced cars, as it is today.  In 2017, General Motors sold the company to Groupe PSA, with Vauxhall continuing to produce passenger cars and light commercial vehicles at its plants in Luton and Ellesmere Port.