Hatchbacks were the big trend of the 1970s. Within a few years almost all small cars had adopted the front-engine, front-wheel drive layout and the semi-estate body style with three or five doors to add practicality. Fold-flat rear seats provided even more versatility. The seats...
Small cars became big news. With more and more people living in cities, and traffic overwhelming the road networks of London, Paris, and Rome, tiny cars were one solution for beating the traffic jams—and their size made parking much easier. There was no real consensus...
Mini is now a fully fledged car brand encompassing estates, coupes, sports, and racing models, but at its heart lies a revolutionary small car, based on a design conceived by Sir Alec Issigonis in the mid-1950s. Now owned by BMW, the firm continues to build...
The 1950s was a decade when a lot of people who had only dreamt of owning a car actually managed to do so for the first time. For some, economy was important, so they either bought something second-hand, or even ultra-frugal microcars, such as the...