No two-seater, mid-engined sports car in the world has had a longer life than the Esprit, on sale from 1976 to 2004. The car came about when Lotus founder Colin Chapman decided to update his Europa. Lotus Esprit 1975 But, instead of using his own stable of designers, Chapman chose a young Italian he met by […]

Italian-American racing driver Mario Andretti declared the Lotus 78 drove “like it was painted to the road,” and proved this Formula One car’s uncanny winning streak by driving it to four victories in 1977. Lotus 79 1977 But after trying its successor, the 79 with 30 percent extra downforce, he declared the old car felt

The French-born industrial designer Louis Lepoix was probably best known for his commercial vehicles and household products through his consultancy Form Technic International. Lepoix Ding 1975 However, at the 1975 Frankfurt Motor Show he unveiled a pair of astonishing electric cars. The Lepoix Shopi was, at first glance, a three-wheeler, although it actually had two tiny

Lamborghini’s Countach eclipsed even the company’s earlier Miura model as the ultimate exotic sports car. The Miura’s voluptuous looks had caused a sensation in 1966, and now the Countach did it again. Lamborghini Countach 1971 The car’s designer, Marcello Gandini at Bertone, was the same, but the Miura was broader and flatter in character. The

The impetus for Fiat’s attempt to create the safest possible city car came from the US. In 1970, the National Highway Safety Bureau announced its Experimental Safety Vehicle (ESV) project, to stimulate ideas for substantially safer cars to be on sale by 1980. Fiat ESV 1500 1972 Many carmakers responded with prototypes for evaluation: hardly

In 1974, US engineer and automotive executive John DeLorean set out to create an “ethical” sports car, shunning the cynical practices of General Motors, where he’d enjoyed a glittering career. Delorean DMC-12 1979 DeLorean chose Northern Ireland as the manufacturing base for this new enterprise, lured by nearly £40 million in British government regeneration funding. The

Frank Costin was an eccentric, chainsmoking engineer whose mastery of aerodynamics-gleaned in the aircraft industry-made him a godsend to racing teams like Lotus and Vanwall in the 1950s. Costin Amigo 1970 He became the “-cos” part of sports car firm Marcos with partner Jem Marsh; his aeronautical engineering expertise led him to take the unusual

With every dramatic surge in oil prices comes renewed interest in alternative fuels for cars; the intense focus on electric power by carmakers at the end of the first decade of the 21st century is nothing new. Copper Electric Runabout 1979 There was wide interest in bringing small electric cars to the market in the

Citroën had long plotted a genuine flagship model mixing the DS’s hightech logic with two extra facets: performance and prestige. Therefore, the opportunity to buy Italy’s Maserati in 1968 proved ideal for adding supercar experience to Citroën’s renowned design ideals. Citroën SM 1970 The result, in 1970, was the fabulous Citroën SM, a stunning combination

Britain’s most parochial maker of economy cars and an Austrian-born industrial designer put this adventurous car into mass production. Reliant was Britain’s biggest threewheeled vehicle manufacturer when, in 1963, it contracted Ogle Design-a leading product consultancy-to improve its image. Bond Bug 1970 Coincidentally, Ogle’s managing director Tom Karen had planned his own tiny three-wheeled fun car,