The Forgotten Cars Thread

[TexRex]

One good thing came out of Chrysler buying AMC (besides Jeep printing money for them and all the badly needed production capacity they got from AMC). The Renault 25 gave AMC the Renault/Eagle Premier, which gave Chrysler the cab-forward LH platform which finally gave them a competitive and up to date line of cars: Eagle Vision, Dodge Intrepid, and Chrysler Concorde, LHS and 300M. Sadly Plymouth never got in on the action.

I maintain the 300M is one of Chrysler's most visually appealing modern offerings. The Pacifica minivan is in there, which feels strange, but so is the 200.

 

[Populuxe]

I maintain the 300M is one of Chrysler's most visually appealing modern offerings. The Pacifica minivan is in there, which feels strange, but so is the 200.

Oops, I made a mistake. The 300M was from the second generation of the LH platform, so it was even further removed from its Renault 21/25 origins.


The first generation of the LH was still full of some very attractive cars, though, especially the two stretched LHs, the New Yorker and the LHS. And in keeping with the spirit of this thread, they are almost entirely forgotten today.


Dodge Intrepid


Eagle Vision


Chrysler Concorde


Chrysler LHS


Chrysler New Yorker

 

[Tornado]

I almost bought a 300M. Test drove one and thought it was actually really good for what it was. It definitely didn't drive as big as it was. The last car Chrysler was able to design before the bad times started. I liked how it looked and it certainly seemed well put together enough considering they only cost like 6 grand at the time, but everything it did the direct Cadillac equivalent did at least a little better so I ended up going in that direction.

One good thing came out of Chrysler buying AMC (besides Jeep printing money for them and all the badly needed production capacity they got from AMC). The Renault 25 gave AMC the Renault/Eagle Premier, which gave Chrysler the cab-forward LH platform which finally gave them a competitive and up to date line of cars: Eagle Vision, Dodge Intrepid, and Chrysler Concorde, LHS and 300M. Sadly Plymouth never got in on the action.

It also gave them the AMC engineering staff that effectively replaced Chrysler's engineering staff and AMC upper management who were immediately intertwined into Chrysler's. m doubt the company would have lasted long enough for Mercedes to stripmine it if Renault hadn't been so desperate to unload everything for just the cost of the factory.

 

[Ze Elephant]

I have very fond memories of one of those first generation Intrepid's. My sister had one for her first car, bought at auction after the owner couldn't pay a towing bill. It had sludge for oil and no maintenance done do it for many years. My dad cleaned and fixed it up and rattle canned it all one color. My sister drove the wheels off of it for a few years before it was done in when an F-150 t-boned it. The sucker was creeping up on 300k miles and after being t-boned it still drove to the junkyard on its own 4 wheels.

 

[Joey D]

Same. My parents bought an Intrepid brand new in 1994 and I just remember it had a CD player in it, which was super novel to 7-year-old me. It was a green and silver ES model and I remember my dad was proud of himself for having the dealer throw in a spoiler for it. Then the first gust of wind came when the trunk was open and it cracked him in the head. I remember spending the night in the ER because of that.

...wow it's weird how a car can bring up some really old memories.

 

[TexRex]

Yeah, that's incredibly handsome.

With all this Chrysler LH talk, it'd be a little weird to not bring up the Lamborghini Portofino.

 

[StreetHawk555]

There was a Plymouth model of the LH cars called the "Accolade" that was originally planned but never saw production.

 

[05XR8]

Saw one on the road, same color/trim. Forgot it's like a hat to the back.

 

[TexRex]

Saw one on the road, same color/trim. Forgot it's like a hat to the back.

 

[Tornado]

I always thought it was weird that they made the JA cars look so similar to the Vision and Concorde. Like I don't know if they are actually the same headlight assembly, but they threw me when I was a kid when I saw a Stratus front end on a much larger car.

 

[GranTurNismo]

1977 Rolls Royce Corniche. One of the most forgotten 'Royces. This example in Le Mans blue is simply stunning.

 

[GranTurNismo]

Some old, forgotten Alpina models.

1973 Alpina 2002 tii Touring. Stock horsepower was unchanged, though it did gain a 5-speed manual, a sportier suspension, and a 75%-locking LSD.

1990-1991 Alpina Z1. Power was bumped up to 200hp. Only 66 produced.

1982-1988 Alpina B7 Turbo Coupe. Produced 330hp, 116 made.

 

[MedigoFlame]

I'm sure every other country will think this isn't anything forgotten or uncommon, but late 2010s, I don't see many diesel BMWs. (For good reason) Didn't realize we got a diesel 740Ld in the US and the current generation G30 5-series had a one year only 2018 540d. The G30 540d is pretty rare as it was post dieselgate. I've only seen one show up at my work.

Kind of enjoy reading about certain powertrain variants that have failed in the US.

 

[7up747]

Rusted like HELL even brand new or few years old. Also nobody want to drive luxury VW.

EDIT: Also

 

[Tunerguy21]

EDIT: Also

Always liked the Probe. My uncle had a friend with one when I was really young, and I thought it was the coolest thing. Probably the first sports car--or even just sporty car--I got to be in. While I would prefer an MX6 (especially after owning one), I would have absolutely zero issue with the Probe. V6 only though. Gotta have the KL.

 

[GranTurNismo]

1985-1987 BMW 333i. I know the name "333i" sounds unfitting, but this was an actual BMW production car, exclusive to the South African market. This was the closest E30 you could get to an M3 without actually getting an M3; it was powered by a 3.2L I6 making 194hp and 210 lb-ft of torque, with a 0-60 time of less than 7 seconds. 333is were fitted with Alpina wheels, 5-speed manual transmissions, LSDs, and disc brakes. Only 204 were produced.

 

[UltimateYosh]

1985-1987 BMW 333i. I know the name "333i" sounds unfitting, but this was an actual BMW production car, exclusive to the South African market. This was the closest E30 you could get to an M3 without actually getting an M3; it was powered by a 3.2L I6 making 194hp and 210 lb-ft of torque, with a 0-60 time of less than 7 seconds. 333is were fitted with Alpina wheels, 5-speed manual transmissions, LSDs, and disc brakes. Only 204 were produced.

South Africa got quite a few high-performance E30s because they didn't sell the M3 at all there.

 

[GranTurNismo]

On the topic of sporty South African exclusive cars of yesteryear... here's the 1984-1988 Ford Sierra XR-8. As the name may suggest, yes, it has a V8 under the hood. Being the only production-model Sierra to have a V8, it was powered by the 5.0L Windsor making 216hp and 270 lb-ft. It also featured 4WD. Only 250 units were made in the five years it was produced, and all units were white.

 

[GranTurNismo]

1960 Edsel

Usually when car enthusiasts hear Edsel, they're reminded of the radically-styled and frankly, ugly 1958-1959 models. But the much more conservative looking 1960 Edsel (final year the brand existed) gets far less attention. The 1960 model year was a completely new car but only 295 were made before production ended. Ford issued coupons to customers who purchased 1960 models valued at $300 to $400 toward the purchase of new Ford products to offset the decreased values after the announcement of the end of the Edsel program on November 19, 1959.
​

 

[TheCracker]

1985-1987 BMW 333i. I know the name "333i" sounds unfitting, but this was an actual BMW production car, exclusive to the South African market. This was the closest E30 you could get to an M3 without actually getting an M3; it was powered by a 3.2L I6 making 194hp and 210 lb-ft of torque, with a 0-60 time of less than 7 seconds. 333is were fitted with Alpina wheels, 5-speed manual transmissions, LSDs, and disc brakes. Only 204 were produced.

Italy and Portugal got an E30 even closer to the M3 due to their taxes on cars over 2ltr. The 320is.

Slightly detuned (189hp and 155 lbft torque compared to the M3's 197hp and 177 lbft) M3 four-pot (S14) and the same Getrag gearbox. An LSD and uprated suspension. It even had an M3 instrument cluster. Unlike the M3 it was available as a 2 and 4 door.

 

[Populuxe]

Nissan 200SX SE-R. This is a forgotten little gem. Sold from '95 to '98, it was based on the Nissan Lucino, a 2-door coupe version of the B14 Sunny/Sentra. FWD with the classic SR20DE engine if you opted for the SE-R model, GA16DE if you got the base or SE model.

 

[ScottPuss20]

C O R R A D O

 

[MedigoFlame]

Honestly forgot that there was an Infiniti Q50 Hybrid. Electric motor paired with a VQ35. It does seem like Nissan/Infiniti doesn't do well with hybrids in the US.

 

[SPhilli911]

C O R R A D O
View attachment 933391

If only these things were easier to find these days, I'd love to own one. Can't remember the last time I've even seen one.

 

[Vegard]

Slightly detuned (189hp and 155 lbft torque compared to the M3's 197hp and 177 lbft) M3 four-pot (S14)

It was a de-stroked S14, not de-tuned.

 

[dragster666]

Opel Astra opc xtreme 2001 damn is this thing forgotten. Essentially it was the Opel Astra DTM race car for the road i believe that the car was a test car of some sort sad that thing didn't make it to the road. This thing had gullwing doors and rims that look like that they were taken from a NFS game. I believe that the engine was the same as in the Race car with increased max RPM limit to reach 300 k/mh. Remade it into Assetto Corsa today as a mod its a pretty fun car to trash around the track.

 

[ZGBox]

Seat Exeo (2008-2013)

​

Basically an Audi A4 (B7) with a spanish front-end, it acted as a stop-gap in some european countries; all of the Exeos were FWD and came with a good array of engines, with the top of the line 2.0 TSI, a 2.0 TDI in various guises were also available. The station wagon was called the Exeo ST and it became very, very popular with the highway police in Italy and quite popular with rental companies.

 

[VXR]

Also got the superior cabriolet dashboard, although I was gutted it didn't get updated head units with aux-in because I was hoping for an easy OEM swap for my Symphony 6-disc changer and got disappointed.

 

[GranTurNismo]

I'm sure every other country will think this isn't anything forgotten or uncommon, but late 2010s, I don't see many diesel BMWs. (For good reason) Didn't realize we got a diesel 740Ld in the US and the current generation G30 5-series had a one year only 2018 540d. The G30 540d is pretty rare as it was post dieselgate. I've only seen one show up at my work.

Kind of enjoy reading about certain powertrain variants that have failed in the US.

My friend has a 2011 335d, and it's the only one that I see on the roads near me. I guess that could also count as a "forgotten car". I had no idea these made 265hp, I would've expected less.

 

[Gotbeefboy564]

I forgot about these special edition Corvettes think this was the first one that I’ve seen.