It would have been all too easy to fill a gallery of mid-engined cars with Ferraris, Lamborghinis and other assorted exotica.
But mid-engined doesn't have to mean unattainable, so here we bring you some of the landmark mid-engined cars since they first arrived in the early 1960s. Sure, there are a few exotics in here, but you'll also find affordable sportsters, intriguing rarities, a few total duffers, and even one or two concepts to remind you of what might have been. Let's take a look:
Bonnet Djet (1961)
The one that started it all; the world's first ever mid-engined road car. It used Renault running gear and was made by Matra, which took over the project when Bonnet couldn't pay its bills.
De Tomaso Vallelunga (1964)
A mid-engined De Tomaso might sound exotic, but this 'supercar' packed nothing more pokey than a 1.5-litre Ford Cortina engine. The Vallelunga looked great but could manage just 112mph. Just 58 were made between 1965 and 1967.
Ford GT40 (1965)
When Ford was thwarted in its attempt to buy Ferrari in 1963, it retaliated by creating a car that would thrash the Italian outfit at Le Mans – which the GT40 did no fewer than four times.
Lamborghini Miura (1966)
When the prototype was unveiled at the 1966 Geneva motor show, Lamborghini reckoned it could sell maybe 20 examples of its Miura. Seven years later, 763 examples had been built, each with a 3929cc V12 in the middle.
Unipower GT (1966)
The first affordable British mid-engined sportster, the Unipower featured Mini mechanicals and was beautifully made, but it was too costly to survive and just 75 were produced in two years.
Porsche 914 (1969)
Despised by Porsche afficionados but great to drive and very costly when new, the 914 was fitted with a tuned VW 411 powerplant that displaced 1.7, 1.8 or 2.0 litres – a few were fitted with a 2.0-litre flat-six from the Porsche 912. Over 100,000 Porsche 914s were made.
Clan Crusader (1971)
With its rev-happy Hillman Imp engine and lightweight glassfibre bodywork, the Crusader was fast and economical – but it also cost about 40% more than an MG Midget. Despite this, 315 were built before the company went belly up.
De Tomaso Pantera (1971)
With its 5.8-litre Ford V8, this is the relatively affordable Italian supercar. But like most of its ilk, the Pantera (Italian for Panther) was shockingly badly built, although it still looks fabulous. More than 7000 were made in a 21-year production run.
Maserati Bora (1971)
Designed and built at a time when Citroen owned Maserati, this was the company's first mid-engined car. Styled by Giorgetto Giugiaro, the car looked great but never sold especially well; between 1971 and 1978 just 571 were sold.
Fiat X1/9 (1972)
Arguably the first affordable mid-engined sportster, the X1/9 was designed by Bertone and used Fiat 128 running gear. That initially meant a 1.3-litre engine and a top speed of just 99mph; from 1978 a 1.5-litre unit was fitted.
