The best and worst automobiles of the 1970s

Films, fashion, music: the 70s had been a mixed bag certainly. The very same is correct for automobiles of that decade. We appear at the greatest and worst motors.

Wasn’t the 1970s a fascinating decade of contrasts?

In music you had disco fever at one intense and punk at the other, although the globe of fashion embraced almost everything from woolly jumpers and flares to tracksuits.

It was a comparable story with automobiles. Alongside the hideous, woefully built disasters that appeared for the duration of this period were some of the most iconic cars of all time.

Best: Ford Granada

What’s not to love about the Ford Granada? Making its debut back in the early 1970s as a replacement for the Zephyr, it swiftly attracted a loyal following – as evidenced by the quantity of devoted owners’ clubs nowadays. Whilst it could never be classed as a lovely car, it had a rugged handsomeness that made it a lot more Jason Statham than Orlando Bloom. This hard look produced it the best selection for smash hit Tv series The Sweeney. The comparatively smooth styling of the Mark I, which was accessible in saloon, estate and fastback versions, gave way to the squarer Mark II in the late 1970s.

Very best: Vauxhall Chevette

A basically amazing small car. Having produced its look in 1975, the Chevette was created for the subsequent 9 years and is broadly credited for assisting to transform Vauxhall’s dubious reputation for creating rust-prone machines. It was versatile – a point illustrated in the catchy Tv ad which claimed the little supermini was “what ever you want it to be” – and fashionable enough to appeal to a wide selection of potential owners.

Greatest: VW Golf Mk1

Can it genuinely be 40 years because this iconic machine produced its debut? Originally developed as a replacement for the Beetle, it nevertheless appears just as fashionable right now as it did 4 decades ago – and you certainly cannot say that about many automobiles from this period. The GTI version that arrived later in the decade is widely credited with becoming the original hot hatch. More than the following decade it would battle for supremacy with hot hatches from rivals such as Ford and Peugeot.

Worst: Austin Allegro

Regardless of getting accomplished cult status in some quarters, the Allegro was a strange beast that suffered from poor build high quality. It also looked slightly odd, especially when compared to the sleek, sexier hatchback look promoted by Volkswagen in the identical period. On the optimistic side, this modest household automobile sold nicely and boasted some quirky design features, such as the rather peculiar rectangular steering wheel with rounded sides that appeared on early models. In a lot of ways the Allegro, which was created during the 1970s and early 1980s, bore the brunt of general dissatisfaction towards British Leyland, which suffered industrial-relations difficulties all through the era.

Worst: Reliant Robin

Now prior to owners of these quirky machines start off bombarding me with hate mail, let me very first say that this 3-wheel machine is a design classic. If this piece was highlighting iconic automobiles of the final century it would be higher up on the list. However, the so-referred to as plastic pig did have some concerns. For instance, weight limits meant the early versions couldn’t reverse, the doors would crack if caught by the wind, and there were even reports of steering wheels detaching from the chassis. 

Worst: Ford Pinto

This was a cracking seeking machine that was hugely well-known. Nonetheless, it was also a single of Ford’s most controversial vehicles and the subject of considerably fevered discussion more than the years. It had sleek very good looks and laid claim to becoming 1 of the greatest-selling vehicles of the 1970s. Nevertheless, the Ford Pinto will forever be linked to safety issues and legal actions surrounding the design and style of its fuel tank, following reports of it bursting into flames if involved in rear-end collisions.

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The best and worst automobiles of the 1970s