Cars you didn't know existed until very recently.

[Jim Bergerac]

Aren't the new Micras made in India on the cheap too?

The newest ones are built in France and related to the Clio. The one before was Indian made.

[Ghosty]

[cros]

At least they went back to independent rear suspension

What did they have before Mr Peel? (You're getting me all excited here, surely not the humble leaf spring...)

To my uncultured eye that Honda looks vile.

[Lacquer Peel]

Torsion beam like a 1974 Golf

[pshome]

So i walk down the road and there is parked this:

 

the high quality chromium badge identifies this as "Indigo SW"

 

 

of famous Tata brand.

 

 

 

Never ever seen or heard about this car before, didnt even know Tata sells cars in Germany.

It does look rather decent.

 

[Tayne]

That could be rebadged as a CityRover Touring!

[Timewaster]

That could be rebadged as a CityRover Touring!

 

That was the Tata Indicar No?

[Tayne]

I thought it was the same car, but it turns out the Indigo is a slightly bigger, posher version.

 

I don't think many people would pick up on the difference after you'd gotten busy with the longship badges and enamel union jacks.

[Timewaster]

TRUE. Shitty Rover wasn't exactly aimed at people who know cars.

 

At least not new anyway.

[Dick Cheeseburger]

What's the SW for?

 

Shit wagon?

Shite worthy?

Slippery wibbler?

Slightly wank?

[vulgalour]

I saw a Royal Mail van earlier today, badged as a Peugeot Partner, the size of a Bipper but was jacked up like a 4x4.  An internet search has left me none the wiser.  Quite a new thing too, must have been four years old at the very most.

[Ghosty]

They're Dangel(?) conversions, RM buy them for rural work. 

Aren't they usually LWB Partners though?

[somewhatfoolish]

the high quality chromium badge identifies this as "Indigo SW"

 

indigo.jpg

 

Presumably the bloke fitting the badges was pissed or so slow he was walking around the ship fitting them enroute to yoorp.

[Cleon-Fonte]

Yeah, it'll be a Dangel-converted Peugeot Partner, which are quite popular with RM in rural areas. 

 

 

Until now I never knew they'd made an offroad version of the Peugeot 306, so that's one for this thread.

 

 

 

[Tayne]

I once met a chap with a Skoda Octavia wagon that looked like that 306.

 

It wasn't the Scout, he'd just cocked up the sizes on his winter tyre order and fitted them anyway.

[vulgalour]

Same shape as that first one Cleon posted there, same height, on steels that looked too small and a fair amount of mud up halfway up the sides.  I'm not exactly out in the sticks here but there is a lot of farming and horsey types so I imagine there must be some terrible private drives RM have to navigate.  Nice to know Dangel are still going.

[twosmoke300]

Peugeot trekka! Used on the Isles of Scilly by the post office too

[chaseracer]

Peugeot trekka! Used on the Isles of Scilly by the post office too

 

 

RLY?

 

[Lacquer Peel]

The RM Partner Treks aren't 4wd, they are jacked up two wheel drives with an optional mechanical LSD.

[Supernaut]

The Kia KM450.

 

 

 

 

Hmm, looks familiar doesn't it? Yup.

 

 

It's a licensed Kaiser Jeep M715. Still listed on Kia's website.

[Spottedlaurel]

Stumbled across this gormless Micra thing today. At first I thought someone had been busy with some DIY surgery but it turns out to be a JDM production model. There's a whole slew of bizarre retro Micras including three different ones with Vanden Plas ADO16 front ends!

 

Tango is a new one to me.

 

The ADO16-esque version sounds like the Bonito:

 

Nissan March (K11) Bonito by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr

 

Nissan March (K11) Bonito Cabriolet by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr

 

Then there’s the Bolero and Rumba:

 

Nissan March (K11) Bolero & Rumba by Spottedlaurel, on Flickr

[cros]

I'm a liar, I knew they existed, just didn't think anyone would be cunt enough to buy one until I spied this tub of gargoyle's spunk today.

 

30 grand.

[vulgalour]

It's difficult to think of anything as contrived as the Aston Martin Cygnet, it's a whole different sort of thing to the weird world of Micra variants above.    Then there's the price!  I understand why they exist, I just don't understand why anyone bought them.  They're somehow worse and more pretentious than a Vanden Plas Allegro.

[Timewaster]

There was some directive to limit a manufacturers average emissions.

Ferrari got away with it by claimimg to be part of Fiat, others did similar things.

 

The Cygnet was Aston Martins attempt to bring down the average CO.

 

Who the hell bought them is anyone's guess.

[17-Coffees]

I found out that Mercedes will still sell you a Euro 3, no thrills G-Wagon...if your a military buyer.

 

Likewise, the G-Wagon LAPV...

[vulgalour]

Hobbycar B612, which looks for all the world like someone did a Supermarket Sweep of 90s continental European car manufacturers, is amphibious and has hydropneumatic suspension.

 

 

 

 

 

Then, when hunting out pictures for that which looks something like the result of a love triangle between a Renault Safrane, Alfa Romeo 164 and a Renault Scenic, I stumbled across this ridiculously adorable little thing.

 

 

It's a one-off called the Martin Stationette from 1950.  It's pretty amazing.

 

 

 

[Negative Creep]

More of a "cars I thought existed but didn't", but I've just found out Lanica's entire range now consists of one car that's only sold in Italy. What a sad end to a great marque.

[Lacquer Peel]

What car is it? Ypsilon?

[Timewaster]

You can bet that won't be replaced for such a small market. Looks like it's the end of Lancia

[Negative Creep]

What car is it? Ypsilon?

 

 

Yep

 

 

With such stunning good looks I simply cannot understand why no one buys them............