A nation assembled late, undone twice, and rebuilt on the memory of both.
The BMW 2002 went into production in January 1968 as the larger-engined derivative of the 1966 1600-2, itself a shortened New Class saloon. It used a two-litre version of the M10 engine, and the range grew to include the fuel-injected tii, the Touring hatchback, a Baur TopCabriolet and, in 1973, Europe's first turbocharged production car.
The Opel Manta A is a rear-wheel-drive German coupé launched in September 1970. Built by Opel on the Ascona A platform, it offered a clean two-door, three-box silhouette and competed directly with the Ford Capri. It was never sold in the UK under Vauxhall until the Manta B. Its name comes from the manta ray. 498,553 were built before 1975.
The Audi RS 2 Avant is Audi's first RS model and first high-performance Avant — a limited-edition, jointly developed Audi-Porsche estate car built on the B4 platform from March 1994 to July 1995. It features a modified 2,226 cc inline-five turbocharged petrol engine producing 315 PS and 410 N⋅m, paired with a six-speed manual transmission and quattro permanent all-wheel drive. Assembly occurred at Porsche’s Rossle-Bau plant. Approximately 2891 units were built, including only 180 right-hand-drive examples.
The E21 is the first-generation BMW 3 Series. Paul Bracq designed it. It launched in June 1975. It ended production in December 1983. It replaced the 02 Series. It was built exclusively as a two-door sedan or coupé. It did not offer a Touring variant. Six-cylinder models used quad round headlights. Initial engines were carburetted four-cylinders (1.6 L, 1.8 L, 2.0 L). Fuel injection debuted on the 320i in late 1975. The 323i introduced fuel-injected six-cylinders in 1978.
The Opel GT is a front-engine, rear-drive two-seat sports car. Its first generation (1968–1973) began as a 1965 styling exercise shown in Paris and Frankfurt. It used Kadett B mechanicals and Brissonneau & Lotz bodywork. Erhard Schnell styled it as a fastback.
The Volkswagen Golf Mk2 is the second-generation hatchback successor to the Mk1, launched in Europe in September 1983, Britain in March 1984, and the US as a 1985 model. It was Volkswagen’s highest-volume seller from 1983, with German production ending in late 1992 and approximately 6.3 million units built. It was offered as a 3- and 5-door hatchback, with inline-four petrol and diesel engines ranging from 1.05 L to 1.8 L.
The Karmann Ghia is a stylistic intervention on Volkswagen’s existing platforms — not an engineering evolution. Its value lies in how cleanly it reimagined utilitarian packaging as elegant form. It succeeded commercially because it offered visual distinction without demanding mechanical compromise. It is worth knowing about as a case study in automotive branding before branding existed.
The Volkswagen Golf Mk1 is the first generation of Volkswagen’s small family car. It succeeded the Beetle. It was styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro’s Italdesign and debuted in Europe in May 1974.