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Gaining a secure foothold in the luxury car segment is a Herculean task.
Start-ups and mainstream carmakers face an uphill battle and even brands normally associated with opulence are sometimes caught off-guard by new rivals or a change in customer expectations. The nameplates that get it right reap the rewards; the others are consigned to the automotive attic after a few short years of disappointing sales. Production figures don’t always tell the full story, though.
Exclusivity sells on this echelon of the industry and companies sometimes have a lot to gain by limiting volume. The term “hand-built” has a ring to it that “mass-produced by robots” doesn’t.
Join us for a look at the luxury cars that have faded from our collective memory. Some flopped while others were intentionally built in small numbers. Either way, they’re rare sights in 2020.
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Iso Rivolta Lele (1969)
Iso Rivolta’s Lele was a multinational 2+2 coupe with an Italian design signed by Marcello Gandini and a muscle car-like exhaust note from the Chevrolet-sourced V8 under the bonnet. Not everyone liked its proportions but Iso managed to sell 285 units until 1974, a respectable number for a low-volume carmaker. The last 165 cars got a Ford engine following a disagreement between Iso and Chevrolet.
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Monica 560 (1973)
French industrialist Jean Tastevin hoped to pick up where Facel Vega left off when he assembled a team of designers and engineers to create a super-saloon. Chris Lawrence designed the chassis and installed an evolution of a V8 developed by Ted Martin, though the final version settled for a Chrysler-sourced, 5.6-litre eight. Vignale-trained stylist Tony Rascanu gave the car an aerodynamic, fastback-like design that would undoubtedly earn it the contentious four-door coupe label in the 21st century.
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Monica 560 (1973)
Tastevin named the car Monica after his wife, Monique, and presented the model at the 1973 Paris motor show. He knew the oil embargo would hinder its career but nonetheless launched production in rural France and priced the car on par with a Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow. Faced with a litany of problems, Tastevin ended production in 1975 and shuttered the brand. Historians disagree about the number of 560s made and no one involved in the car’s development has cleared the confusion. Most estimates hover around 17 examples, which makes even low-volume hypercars look a little mundane.
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Maserati Quattroporte II (1974)
Citroën owned Maserati just long enough to put a V6 engine in the SM and fund the development of a second-generation Quattroporte. Neither brand had money to spare – Maserati was put into liquidation in 1975 – so the need to save cash was the project’s guiding light. As a result, the then-new Quattroporte was closely related to the SM under the Bertone-designed sheet metal. It was front-wheel drive, it was powered by a V6 engine and it featured a hydropneumatic suspension.
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Maserati Quattroporte II (1974)
The second-generation Quattroporte was a little bit slower and less powerful than the original, V8-powered model but the fact that it existed at all in the wake of the 1973 oil embargo was a real treat. Unfortunately, financial issues caught up with the saloon and it was not homologated on the European market. The 12 examples built between 1974 and 1978 were somewhat ironically shipped to the Middle East.
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Rolls-Royce Camargue (1975)
Rolls-Royce broke with tradition when it commissioned Italian design house Pininfarina to draw a big, stately coupe named Camargue in the early 1970s. The firm normally kept design work in-house but it hoped paying for Italian DNA would spawn a coupe with a little bit more flair. The end result was controversial; some loved it, others hated it but no one could ignore it. The sheet metal hid Rolls-Royce’s time-tested 6.75-litre V8 and a General Motors-sourced automatic transmission.
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Rolls-Royce Camargue (1975)
Autocar called the Camargue “the most expensive Rolls-Royce saloon yet” and praised its “very advanced automatic air-conditioning system,” which took years to develop. 530 units were sold between 1975 and 1986 and a majority of the production run ended up in the United States. An additional, customer-requested example was built with a Bentley grille and matching emblems.
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Alfa Romeo Alfa 6 (1979)
Alfa Romeo’s plans to introduce the 6 in 1973 derailed when the oil crisis made the idea of driving a big, fuel-thirsty saloon unpalatable to all but the wealthiest motorists. Executives consigned the project to the automotive attic until the late 1970s, when the oil market had seemingly settled. Alfa Romeo made several changes before launching production but the first 6 that drove off the line already looked dated.
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Alfa Romeo Alfa 6 (1979)
The carburetted, 2.5-litre V6 was a real gem of an engine but its high fuel consumption raised eyebrows even in 1979. 1983 brought styling revisions (pictured), Bosch fuel-injection and an available turbodiesel but the improvements were too little, too late. 6 production ended in 1987 after Alfa Romeo built approximately 12,000 units.
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Lincoln Continental turbodiesel (1983)
Although the Continental is one of Lincoln’s best-known models, the European-flavoured diesel-powered variant is remembered as an obscure footnote in the nameplate’s decades-long history. Mercedes-Benz sold every diesel it imported into the United States, much to Lincoln’s annoyance, and even some it didn’t bring – the grey market was booming in the early 1980s. Cadillac had jumped on the diesel bandwagon, too, though its models were not nearly as successful. Decision-makers decided the best way to keep customers in the fold was to offer the diesel engine they were leaving to find.
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Lincoln Continental turbodiesel (1983)
For the 1984 model year, Continental buyers could choose between a 4.9-litre, 140bhp V8 and a 2.4-litre turbodiesel straight-six built by BMW and tuned to 115bhp; it was the same unit that powered the 524td. Lincoln charged $1235 (around $3000/£2500 in 2020) for the German engine. As it turned out, Mercedes-Benz buyers didn’t want a Lincoln and Lincoln buyers didn’t want a diesel. The option disappeared after 1985.
The surprisingly competent Mark VII was available with diesel power, too.
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CXA CX (1985)
Citroën unceremoniously left the American market in 1974 and hasn’t returned since. Although the NHTSA regulated hydropneumatically-suspended cars like the CX (pictured) out of the United States, Dutch businessmen Andre Pol and Malcolm Langman gave the model a chance to shine when they formed CX Automotive (CXA) in the early 1980s. Their team carried out numerous modifications (like installing side-marker lights and sealed-beam headlights) to make Citroën’s flagship compliant with American norms.
Upmarket features like real wood trim were sometimes added as well. The cost of buying a CX, modifying it and shipping it to America was extremely high so CXA charged about $30,000 (around $71,000/£59,000 in 2020) for a legal, homologated model in the United States. It sold a handful of examples and turned its attention to the XM when CX production finally ended in 1991.
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Volvo 780 (1985)
Volvo renewed its ties with Italian coachbuilder Bertone to transform the 760 into a coupe named 780. Unveiled at the 1985 Geneva motor show, its proportions were easier on the eyes than the 262C’s and it was not available with a vinyl top. It wore sharp, sporty lines that fit in well with the rest of the Volvo range and fell in line with what buyers expected in that era. Inside, leather and wood trim helped it live up to its flagship positioning. It stood proud as one of the most exotic cars ever released by Volvo.
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Volvo 780 (1985)
Globally, engine options included a V6, a turbodiesel and a turbocharged four-cylinder. Historians disagree about the number of 780s built; Volvo pegs the total output at 8518 cars but some claim the accurate number lies in the vicinity of 10,000 units. Regardless, 780 production ended in 1990 and it wasn’t replaced until the first-generation C70 – which Bertone played no part in – arrived in 1996.
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Chrysler TC by Maserati (1987)
Expectations were high when De Tomaso-owned Maserati and Chrysler began developing a car in the 1980s. Those patiently waiting for a shapely, Italian-bodied sports car with a big American heart (something along the lines of the De Tomaso Pantera) were sorely disappointed. The two unlikely partners came up with the Chrysler TC by Maserati, a convertible whose lines were too similar to the LeBaron’s. Chrysler unveiled the model in 1987, began taking orders in 1988 and started deliveries during the 1989 model year after several costly delay associated with the decision to build it in Italy.
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Chrysler TC by Maserati (1987)
Early examples of the TC by Maserati received a turbocharged, 2.2-litre four-cylinder Chrysler engine but the 1990 model year brought a 3.0-litre V6 borrowed from Mitsubishi. An updated version of the 2.2-litre assembled by Maserati with a Cosworth-built, dual-overhead cam cylinder head was optionally available but seldom selected. Underwhelming performance, an anonymous design and a high price tag of approximately $35,000 (around $70,000/£57,000 in 2020) were not solid foundations to build a luxury car on. Only about 7300 units were made by the time production ended in 1991. In an odd twist of fate, Fiat purchased Maserati two years later and salvaged Chrysler in 2014.
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Lexus ES (first generation, 1989)
Toyota initially envisioned the original Lexus LS as its flagship model. Executives decided it deserved its own brand after looking at the results of market research, especially in the United States, but they didn’t want it to stand on its own so they Lexus-ified a Camry into the ES. It made its debut alongside the LS at the 1989 Detroit motor show and it was positioned as a smaller, cheaper alternative to the LS.
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Lexus ES (first generation, 1989)
Lexus began selling the ES in September 1989, a month after it received the first 1000 examples of the LS. Both models were popular and the newly-minted firm had logged 16,000 sales by the end of 1989. The second-generation ES arrived in 1991 with a Lexus-specific design inside and out.
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Acura Vigor (1991)
Honda-owned Acura positioned the Vigor between the Integra and the Legend. Its main rivals were rear-wheel drive but engineers decided to install the 176bhp, 2.5-litre five-cylinder longitudinally (north-south) to improve weight distribution without sending power to the rear wheels.
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Acura Vigor (1991)
On paper, this layout delivered the best of both worlds. In application, it remained a compromise and not a very exotic one. Acura replaced the Vigor with the TL during the 1995 model year. The 2.5-badged model carried on with the five-cylinder engine while the 3.2 gained a V6 shared with the bigger Legend.
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Mazda 929 (1991)
Also known as the Serenia, the 929 is such an obscure model that it has even fallen off the radar of some dyed-in-the-wool Mazda fans. The 1991 redesign brought a much more elegant look and features like four-wheel steering to help the 929 stand out in a growing field of rivals. The only engine available was a 190bhp, 3.0-litre V6 that spun the rear wheels via an automatic transmission.
Mazda priced the 929 at $23,500 in 1992, which represents about $43,000/£35,000 in 2020. It wasn’t the company’s most expensive model, the RX-7 kept that distinction, but it slotted in the same range as premium Japanese cars like the Acura Vigor. The 929 remained an underdog and it retired after the 1995 model year, by which point its price had increased to $35,795 (around $60,000/£50,000 in 2020).
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Lincoln Mark VIII (1992)
Introduced in 1992 as a 1993 model, the Mark VIII represented the ultimate expression of Lincoln’s approach to luxury during the 1990s. It shared its basic platform with the seventh-generation Mercury Cougar and the tenth-generation Ford Thunderbird but it received a striking, futuristic design inside out and out. It came loaded with dual airbags, a memory function for the power-operated driver’s seat and an air suspension that lowered the ride height at high speeds. Lincoln charged $36,640 for it (about $65,000/£54,000 in 2020) in 1993, which was a fair price considering its high level of equipment.
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Lincoln Mark VIII (1992)
The personal luxury coupe segment collapsed during the 1990s and the Mark VIII fell with it. Sales ended in 1998 after Lincoln built a small batch of Collector’s Edition models decked out with gold-like emblems on the outside and wood trim inside. Each buyer also received a set of .999 silver ingots.
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Mercedes-Benz CL (first generation, 1992)
The W140 Mercedes-Benz S-Class outsold the two-door CL (called C140 internally and launched as the SEC) by a wide margin. The big coupe shared its name with an Australian locomotive, which was fitting considering it was heavy, powerful and its list of standard features was longer than a train.
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Mercedes-Benz CL (first generation, 1992)
CL buyers could choose between a V8 and a mighty V12, but its career was tainted by a general drop in demand for four-seater coupes built for all-out comfort, not flat-out performance. Approximately 26,000 units of the first CL were sold globally between 1992 and 2000. Its more graceful-looking successor, the C215-generation CL launched in Germany in 1999, was nearly twice as popular.
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Mazda Millenia (1994)
Mazda looked ready to follow its Japanese competitors into the luxury car segment when it announced a sub-brand called Amati in 1991. It was scheduled to launch in 1994 with a three-car line-up consisting of the 300, the 500 and the 1000. The latter should have received a V12. This ambitious project burst at the seams in 1992 when the Japanese economy caved in and the American economy fell into a recession.
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Mazda Millenia (1994)
Amati’s entry-level model became the Xedos 6 while the mid-range car turned into the Xedos 9, which was sold as the Millenia in the United States. It replaced the 929 at the top of the Mazda range during the 1995 model year and stayed there until 2002. Here again, brand recognition played a big role in keeping luxury buyers away. Mazda’s emblem lacked the prestige of a Mercedes-Benz three-pointed star or a Lexus L-shaped emblem. The company left the premium segment in North America after the Millenia retired, though it’s slowly returning to it as it gradually moves its cars upmarket.
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Tatra 700 (1995)
Tatra’s final passenger car, the 700, was the first one it developed after the Iron Curtain fell. Its rear-engined, wind-cheating saloons spent decades serving the Czechoslovakian government so they couldn’t (and didn’t need to) lean too far towards decadent luxury car territory. The tables turned after Tatra landed in the free market and suddenly found itself in the same arena as Mercedes-Benz and Audi.
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Tatra 700 (1995)
Executives found no better way to break ties with their communist past than to unveil the 700 – an evolution of the 613 with a 3.5-litre air-cooled V8 mounted behind the rear wheels – at the Hilton Hotel in Prague. Sales were lower than expected, partly because many still associated the name Tatra with the old communist government’s cronies, and Tatra allegedly lost money on the few examples it managed to sell. Production ended in 1999 after Tatra built less than 100 units; the final number is lost to history.
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Cadillac Catera (1996)
Cadillac’s first attempt at taking on its European rivals with a compact model, the 1982 Cimarron, ended up hurled into the darkest lockers of automotive history. The firm gave the segment another shot when it released the Catera in 1996 as a 1997 model. It wasn’t born with a Cadillac emblem on the grille; it was a badge-engineered Opel/Vauxhall Omega with a new-look design and market-specific tweaks.
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Cadillac Catera (1996)
At the time, the Cadillac line-up still consisted primarily of softly-suspended land yachts so the Catera, which was marketed as “the Caddy that zigs,” stuck out like a black sheep. Many buyers consequently overlooked its qualities (it drove reasonably well by most accounts) and headed straight for German and Japanese brands more commonly associated with sporty saloons. Production of this Opel-built Cadillac ended in 2001 after approximately 95,000 units were sold on the American market.
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Lexus HS (2008)
Lexus ticked two boxes with the HS it introduced at the 2008 edition of the Detroit motor show. First, it positioned the car as its entry-level model. Second, it made it exclusively available as a hybrid. Parent company Toyota noticed the average Prius buyer had a high income so Lexus reasoned it could easily profit from this trend. The use of so-called environmentally-friendly plastics to build interior parts were supposed to increase its appeal among motorists who wanted to go green and tell the world about it.
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Lexus HS (2008)
American buyers weren’t interested in a small hybrid Lexus and sales peaked at 10,663 units during the 2010 calendar year before embarking on a free-fall. Sales ended in 2012 after about 21,000 units of the HS found a home in the United States. It fared a little better in its home country of Japan.
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Hyundai Equus (2009)
Few examples of the first-generation, Mitsubishi-derived Hyundai Equus left South Korea. The second-generation model unveiled in 2009 was developed with the American market in mind and sales started for the 2010 model year. Hyundai proudly presented it as a budget-friendly alternative to the Audi A8 and the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, among other flagship four-doors for those who had it made.
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Hyundai Equus (2009)
Hyundai learned the hard way that motorists who want a new A8 but can’t afford it buy a used one, not a value-packed Korean car. Name recognition is extremely important in this segment. Outside of its home country, the Equus carried on quietly until it retired in 2016. Its successor, the G90, inaugurated the Genesis sub-brand when it arrived in showrooms for the 2017 model year.
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Aston Martin Cygnet (2010)
Aston Martin’s decision to badge-engineer the Toyota iQ into the Cygnet was rooted in panic. The company faced jaw-dropping fines if it didn’t comply with the strict emissions regulations coming into effect across the European Union in 2012. Its range of high-horsepower machines put it at odds with regulators and developing a fuel-sipping city car from scratch would have been costly, time-consuming and ultimately useless. Giving Toyota’s Smart-punching model a shot of Botox was the easy way out.
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Aston Martin Cygnet (2010)
593 units of the Cygnet were made between 2011 and 2013, a number that fell well short of the 4000-unit annual goal set early on. It’s largely forgotten in 2020; there a handful zigzagging through the posh parts of big European cities and, since 2018, there’s an enthusiast drifting around the British countryside in a widened, heavily-modified example powered by a Vantage S-sourced, 430bhp V8 (pictured). It was commissioned by a customer and Aston promised it would remain a one-of-a-kind model.
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