20 retro classics that go beyond parody
Creativeness thrives upon using past work as a launch pad. However, there’s a fine line between predicting a new trend and pastiche, and often the car industry has seen models fall foul of this line.
Sometimes, however, retro-inspired models make for fantastic cars in their own right.
Taking the best-loved elements of a well-loved classic car and reimagining them in a modern follow-up can also prove to be a very effective sales device.
Here are 20 retro-styled models that got the mix just right, presented in alphabetical order.
1. Alpine A110
The first car to bear the A110 moniker was a tiny, Porsche-baiting, two-door coupé.
First seen in 1963, the original Alpine A110 was not only a style sensation – thanks to the design of Giovanni Michelotti – but also a hugely competitive rally car.
Winning the Rallye Monte-Carlo in 1971 and bagging the inaugural World Rally Championship manufacturer title for Alpine-Renault two years later, cemented the marque’s competition legend.
The second A110, therefore, had pretty big boots to fill when it seemingly emerged from nowhere in 2017.
Deyan Denkov and his team at Alpine did a stellar job of mixing old and new, but the true masterstroke of the new Alpine was sticking to the lightweight, driver-focused ethos of the original.
2. BMW Mini (R50)
Long before the original Mini was discontinued, plans were afoot to replace the much-loved, feisty little city car.
The British public in particular latched onto the original Mini with a limpet-like grasp it never seemed to entirely release.
BMW noted this love for the UK’s best little car and, since acquiring the Mini rights from Rover in 1996, gave the project the development funds, space and time Leyland and MG/Rover never could.
The new Mini, which happened to coincide with a new millennium, was almost as well received as its progenitor.
Not everyone loved it, or even accepted it, right away, but by now most people have come to appreciate the 21st-century version’s engaging blend of great looks, handling and technology.
3. BMW Z8
Usually, automotive retro inspiration is triggered by a former commercially successful model, but that is not the case for BMW’s Z8. It was inspired by a financial flop: the BMW 507.
Admittedly stunning to look at, the Z8’s ’50s forerunner was nevertheless far too expensive and complicated to make, losing BMW a vast amount of money from every one of the meagre number made (just 252).
Clearly not learning from past mistakes, BMW repeated the process in 1998, pouring enormous amounts of money into developing a luxury roadster along the lines of the classic 507.
The Z8’s aluminium body and chassis were bespoke, but its BMW M Power S62 V8 engine was shared with the contemporary M5 (E39).
4. Eagle E-type
Just as the world came to appreciate the joy of Japanese manufacturers making classic-like sports cars that worked (see Mazda’s MX-5, later in this gallery), Sussex-based UK company Eagle was doing the same for Jaguar E-types.
Company founder Henry Pearman and his friend Paul Brace both started out as classic car fans, though through their own experiences, and that of their customers, the germ of an idea to rebuild Jaguars with modern quality and technology was planted.
Since its founding in 1984, Eagle has become one of the top names in resto-modding. Its products take the very best of Jaguar’s hardware, and re-engineer every aspect to the highest possible level of performance and quality. The same goes for the styling and trim.
Basically, these are the very best E-types Jaguar never made.
5. Ferrari 550 Maranello
Though he famously didn’t care for road cars, even those from his own firm, Enzo Ferrari did daily drive one GT.
The front-engined, rear-wheel-drive, V12-powered Ferrari 330GT 2+2 that Enzo reluctantly ran was chosen because he wanted to be sat in the lap of luxury – and if it was good enough for the company founder, it was certainly enough for the affluent masses.
Despite never thoroughly going away, the lineage of those elegant and beautiful 1960s 12-cylinder Ferraris effectively ended with the Ferrari 365GTB/4 ‘Daytona’.
Its spiritual successor, and therefore the successor to Enzo’s old ride, arrived in 1996 with the Ferrari 550 Maranello. Beautiful, luxurious and powerful, the 550 was, and remains to many, the ultimate GT to come from the Prancing Horse.
6. Fiat Barchetta
Despite modest underpinnings and parts shared with the Fiat Punto, the Barchetta was an intriguing and unusual 1990s roadster offering.
There certainly was no shortage of competition for the ‘little boat’ that, together with being front-wheel-drive only, limited its sales in the UK to just 751.
It fared a lot better elsewhere, with its mix of great retro-inspired looks (fared-in headlamps), neat handling and relatively low running costs all proving hugely appealing.
It sounds great while you’re giving it the beans, too!
7. Ford GT
Ford’s fiscal fisticuffs with Ferrari over its aborted buyout in the 1960s spilled over into Le Mans. The combination of UK competition expertise from Lola and the power and financial clout of Ford resulted in a winning combination.
To mark the firm’s centenary, Dearborn rebooted the legendary race-winning GT40 for the 2002 North American International Auto Show, with a limited production run of just 4038 GTs following.
The Ford GT was longer, wider and taller than the original, but made use of an inventive extruded aluminium tubular frame chassis.
Exotic materials used in the GT also included carbonfibre and magnesium. The end result was a reimagined Le Mans racer for the road that could actually accommodate the average-shaped human.
8. Ford Mustang (S197)
For the fifth-generation Mustang (S197), Ford added a heavy dose of 1960s Mustang fastback to the mix. A millennial reboot of the film Gone in 60 Seconds had introduced a new generation to the muscular magnificence of the original, so it made a lot of sense for the 2005 Mustang to evoke Steve McQueen’s old ride.
From its reveal – at the 2004 International Auto Show in Detroit – to its refresh in 2010, the range-topping Mustang GT was powered by an aluminium 24-valve 4.6-litre V8. There was a V6, too, but Mustang fans rightly held out for all eight cylinders.
The mix of modern tech and retro styling touches made this Ford Mustang the best for a generation.
9. Honda e
In 2017, Honda showcased its Urban EV Concept. The highly stylised compact design was very well received, largely due to its original Civic-aping lines.
The favourable response lead to a production version that seemed only mildly altered, at first glance, but was fundamentally re-engineered.
Despite looking retro, the technology deployed in the Honda e was cutting edge.
It featured five screens in the cabin that extended to the door cards, with the outer pair fed by exterior cameras that effectively replaced conventional wing mirrors.
It might only have had a 140-mile range, but that hardly mattered because this cute commuter was only ever developed as a city car.
10. Hummer H1/H2
Some people just love to play out the military fantasy. In much the same way as the popular ‘Wolf’ Land Rovers in the UK, the US take on the military vehicle for the road came in the form of the ‘Hummer’ H1.
Technically, the Hummer was a civilianised M998 HMMWV (High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle), Humvee to its friends, a staple of the US military since 1983.
Somewhat ironically, considering his green credentials these days, Arnold Schwarzenegger was pivotal in getting the Hummer for the road.
The former governor of California lobbied AM General and, in 1992, he got his wish.
Built on largely the same platform as the military version, the H1 gained a number of comfort, sound-deadening and trim upgrades to make the spartan war machine more every-day friendly.
11. Jaguar S-type
Looking like a cross between a 1960s Jaguar S-type and a stretched Mitsuoka Viewt, the rebranded S-type for 1998 was beloved by some yet derided by more.
That’s a shame, because if you’re not onboard with Geoff Lawson’s unashamedly retro styling, there’s plenty more on offer from this late-’90s Jag, including a great selection of powerful and efficient engines.
The S-type was built on Ford’s DEW platform, which was shared with the Lincoln LS and Thunderbird. That means plenty of refinement and rear-wheel-drive dynamics, the latter especially welcomed by those who shelled out for the supercharged, V8-powered R.
It might not have been as uniformly well regarded as its XF successor, but the S-type was nonetheless an important model for Jaguar.
12. Mazda MX-5 (NA)
Almost solely responsible for reigniting the world’s love affair with the small roadster, the Mazda MX-5 was the rebirth of the Lotus Elan Hethel’s M100 always should have been.
Hiroshima’s take on a 1960s Lotus took open-top motoring back to its heyday. The no frills, front-engine, rear-wheel-drive approach proved just as evocative in 1989 as it had been in the 1960s, the MX-5 selling by the boatload as a result.
Pop-up lights emerged from the snout of a neatly curvaceous body, designed by Tsutomu ‘Tom’ Matano, Mark Jordan and Shunji Tanaka at the suggestion of motoring journalist Bob Hall.
The original (NA) MX-5’s design hit all the retro notes, without coming across as old hat.
13. Morgan Plus 8
Any Morgan could really occupy this slot, but we’ve chosen the enthusiast favourite, the Plus 8.
With an ash frame that props up a body that apparently emerged from a Biggles comic, the Morgan Plus 8 has always looked retro, long before looking old was fashionable.
Technological updates came along from time to time, but the basic silhouette of the eight-cylinder Morgan has always remained.
Formerly Rover powered – BMW V8 from 2012 – the Plus 8 has been a staple of hand-crafted British sports car culture since its inception in 1968.
Discontinued in 2018, the Plus 8 was succeeded by the more technologically advanced, glued-aluminium platform Plus 6.
14. Nissan Figaro
Designing a car with inspiration from personal electronic items might sound like a ridiculous idea, and it probably was, but it was one that proved wildly popular.
Nissan developed a few postmodern models, with an eye on gadgets like a SMEG fridge or original Sony Walkman, for the 1989 Tokyo motor show. Significant inspiration was also taken from motoring milestones such as the Citroën 2CV, Fiat 500 and the original Mini.
The reaction to the cute creations on display lead to production versions of the Figaro, Pao and S-Cargo, all of which emerged from Nissan’s ‘new’ Pike Factory (formerly the Aichi Machine Industry plant).
Despite only being offered in Japan, many thousands of the Nissan Micra-based Figaros have since made their way to the UK as grey imports, which goes to show the demand out there for this diminutive car.
15. Plymouth Prowler
Despite having a name evoking images of someone hiding in the bushes at the bottom of your garden, the Prowler was actually a rather fabulous 1997 take on American’s hot-rod culture.
This wild, open-wheeled machine got the mix right of looking old but being cutting-edge underneath, something the oft-compared PT Cruiser didn’t manage.
The Plymouth (later Chrysler) Prowler was the brainchild of Chrysler design and international director Thomas Gale, who allegedly owned a ’32 Ford at the time and wanted to evoke some of its style in a modern product.
Along with Gale’s work, American custom-car design royalty Chip Foose apparently influenced the Prowler’s design.
16. Rover 75
As far as brands go, few evoke the ‘good old days’ quite like Rover.
The firm traded heavily on nostalgia towards the end of its life, which some might argue hastened its irrelevance.
But just before the debt collectors came calling, a retro-inspired mid-sized saloon gave significant hope of resurrection.
The Rover 75’s unashamedly retro design came courtesy of Richard Woolley, perfectly penned to appeal to both old-school Rover fans and modern executives after a change from the usual German or Japanese offerings.
Ironically, there were plenty of German parts underneath, but just as Honda had done previously, BMW’s parts upped the quality of this millennial Rover.
With a modified BMW Z fully independent rear axle from the 3 Series (E36), pioneered in the Z1, this Rover was as good to drive as it was to be a passenger in.
17. Singer 911
Just as Eagle transforms the look, performance and reliability of the Jaguar E-type, Singer does the same for the Porsche 911.
Headed by the former frontman of English rock group Catherine Wheel, Rob Dickinson, the LA-based firm is famous for its money-no-object reimagined 964s.
All Singer 911s see substantial bodywork, trim and mechanical improvements, the latter employing the expertise of Cosworth and Williams, among others.
Singer refers not only to the founder’s past life, but also to Porsche’s famous former race engineer Norbert Singer, who was responsible for the body design of the brand’s seven-time Le Mans-winning Group C racers.
Singer 911s not only demonstrate the raw performance potential of the 911, but also the wildly customisable nature of Porsche’s longest-running model.
18. Volkswagen Beetle
It’s hard to overestimate the importance of the original Volkswagen Beetle – and, with 21.5 million made, it was responsible for getting a significant percentage of the Earth’s motoring population mobile.
Technically, the Beetle got its follow-up in 1974 with the introduction of the original Golf, but for a more on-the-nose replacement, we had to wait until 1997.
To test the water for a retro-inspired ‘new Beetle’, Volkswagen showcased the Concept One at the 1994 North American International Auto Show.
The egg-shaped Beetle clone was so close to the production version to follow that VW was confident the car would be well received, which it certainly was, with another follow-up Beetle succeeding this one in 2011.
19. Volkswagen ID. Buzz
Volkswagen has been reinventing itself recently with the ID range of battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The most recent is the ID. Buzz, heavily influenced by the Type 2 Transporter.
Another example of a well-received concept making it to production, the Buzz was showcased at both the 2017 Geneva and Detroit motor shows, with full production following in 2022.
The design clearly heavily harks back to the Type 2, with a prominent (though optional) two-tone paint scheme and the large VW badges front and rear.
Obviously, there’s nothing else shared with the old air-cooled ‘bus’, though in ethos, the lineage is clear.
20. Wiesmann MF30
Wiesmann can be look upon as the German Morgan, handbuilding sports cars with distinctly pre- and immediate post-war appearance, yet with modern running gear.
The early Wiesmann models, the MF30 and MF3, both drew significant influence from the era, most particularly from Jaguar’s XK120.
The cars started out with BMW six-cylinder engines before graduating to V8s and even a V10. Now, an electric roadster is planned with zero-emission ‘Thunderball’ production slated to commence in 2024.
Aspiration doesn’t appear to be lacking at Wiesmann, because it’s also apparently planning on producing another model tagged ‘Project Gecko’ – in reference to the company logo – which will be a 200mph+ hypercar.
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