Great Motoring Disasters Archives

Great Motoring Disasters: Lotus Europa S

Retro Motor team - March 26, 20250

Lotus only made 458 examples of the Elise-based Europa S and SE models during their four years on sale. So where did it all go wrong?

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: MG Rover CityRover

Retro Motor team - June 27, 20253

The woeful CityRover was a desperate attempt to keep MG Rover afloat. But it was lambasted on Top Gear and rejected by the British public.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: MG XPower SV

Retro Motor team - September 7, 20221

We remember the bizarre 'affordable' MG XPower SV supercar. Only around 80 were produced before MG Rover went bust.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: NSU Ro80

Retro Motor team - May 23, 20254

Modern Audis owe much to the 1967 NSU Ro80. The elegant saloon was ahead of its time, but a radical rotary engine proved to be its downfall.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Renault Wind

Retro Motor team - February 14, 20250

The Wind was a curious cabriolet that somehow survived when Renault culled its range in 2012. Don't tell anyone, but we rather like it...

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Rover 75

Retro Motor team - September 29, 20250

A handsome and competitive car that was sabotaged by politics and poor management, the Rover 75 deserved better. We tell its story.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Saab

Retro Motor team - August 7, 20252

Swedish carmaker Saab started a long, slow decline after it was bought by General Motors in 1989. We reveal how it all went so wrong.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Seat Toledo Mk3

Retro Motor team - May 16, 20231

The third-generation Seat Toledo completely failed to match the success of its predecessors. So what exactly went wrong?

Cars

Great Motoring Disasters: Sinclair C5

Richard Bremner - October 16, 20240

Sir Clive Sinclair's revolutionary electric trike for the masses wasn't quite the success he hoped for. We tell the story of the Sinclair C5.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Suzuki SJ

Retro Motor team - December 9, 20255

The Suzuki SJ was an affordable, capable and fashionable small 4x4. Unfortunately, it had a worrying tendency to topple over...

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: the struggle to replace the VW Beetle

Retro Motor team - October 9, 20252

Volkswagen spent many years and a vast quantity of Deutschmarks trying to replace the Beetle. We travel the rocky road that led to the Golf.

Great Motoring Disasters

Great Motoring Disasters: Triumph TR7

Retro Motor team - March 31, 20264

The radical, wedge-shaped Triumph TR7 was hobbled by poor build quality and industrial strife. But it certainly wasn't all bad.