These Are Your Favorite Cars From Obscure Brands
Fifteen truly unique automobiles from brands that never made it to the mainstream
Every once in a while a car company will crop up seemingly out of nowhere and deliver a truly unique vehicle that nobody else could have dreamed up. We love it when that happens, even if it's fairly rare. Earlier this week we asked all of you for your nominations for best car from a brand that never ascended to mainstream acceptance, and you did not disappoint. There are so many phenomenal cars on this list, some that many of you have probably never heard of. It's a great exercise in stepping outside of your normal boundaries. We don't all have to drive Toyotas or whatever. Maybe try a Pegaso, or a TVR.
So here they are, the fifteen best responses to the prompt. Click through to see the best of the best, and if there's one we missed, be sure to drop it in the comments below. We're always looking for more obscure cars that haven't gotten their due.
Unequaled, Unrivaled
Peerless/Warwick GT
Worthy of the Palace
the 1964-1966 Imperial, a very handsome and stately redesign from the overwrought 1961-1963 models, in response to the Lincoln Continental.
Bizzare, innit?
After Ferrari's "Palace Revolt", head engineer Giotto Bizzarinni kind of turned into Italy's Carroll Shelby, in that he designed a new car featuring a sleek Italian styled body, but powered it with proven American pushrod power.
Using the Chevrolet 327 (The "5300" in the name) it produced 365 HP. The engine was intentionally placed as far back over the front axle as possible, to improve weight distribution and handling. The car could accelerate 0–100 km/h (62 mph) in less than 7 seconds, and attained a top speed of 280 km/h (174 mph).
The Giorgetto Giugiaro influenced Bertone styled aluminum body, was striking in its day and still looks amazing today!
It even made for a decent race car, as in 1965, a Bizzarrini won its class at Le Mans and finished ninth overall.
Caterwho?
I don't know how "obscure" they are, but certainly not mainstream. The Caterham 7 is a car distilled down to driving perfection in my opinion. A buddy of mine campaigns one in autocross and riding along in the Cosworth-engined beast was the only time I've ever gotten really car sick just from the g-forces. The acceleration, deceleration, and handling of that car is just unreal.
Marcos Motors. No Refunds.
Anything from Marcos Engineering, but the Mantis and Mantara are my votes. Fairly obscure brand. Unique styling, powerful yet reliable engines
Gorgeous? I Don’t Know About That. Cool? Absolutely.
The Ultima GTR has a special place in my heart. It's gorgeous.
A What?
Obscure to normal people? Or obscure to car enthusiasts?
AMS Murtaya. Japanese powertrain, British design, American specs, Italian-sounding name. Also the size of a Miata, but has AWD with front and rear LSDs, driver controlled center dif, 6-speed manual, and turbocharged boxer engine (300-400hp usually).
After AMS folded, MSC built them, and then ALS. Just under fifty exist out there in the wild.
It separates the car enthusiasts from the normal people: normal people usually dismiss it as a Miata with a body kit or a Lotus (especially from the back), whereas the enthusiasts know their cars well enough that they have no clue what it is.
A Homer
The Allard J2X
Spain Is The Weirdest Place
Anything by Pegaso, but the Z-102 Thrill is especially nice.
Big Cat Beats Big Snake
The (Bill Thomas) Cheetah back in the Sixties. Basically an engine surrounded by fiberglass where thanks to its Chevy 327 mated to a Corvette trans, it hit 215mph and it crushed the Shelby Cobra at the quarter mile. But Chevy lost interest after a very short production run, so it's ultra, ultra rare.
A Noble Choice
I'm going to go with the Noble M12, a passion project, mid-engined sports car running a Ford V6 engine that received rave reviews in its day:
IYKYK
If you know, you know.
Scarab, No The Other One
I always liked the Scammell Scarab. It was like a Reliant, but done right. It didn't topple in the corners, and it actually could haul shit.
Venturi
My two obscure faves are the MVS Venturi, from France's homegrown super car maker and the Unipower GT, a mid engine sports car with a Mini Cooper drive train from a forklift company.
Mosler Consulier GTP
I had such hopes for this car (Mosler) when I was in my late teens/early 20 a million years ago.