https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/concept-cars/fiat-topolino-made-serbia In the late 2000s Fiat was thinking about making a sub-Panda car, called Topolino. It was supposed to have the TwinAir engine (both NA and turbo versions), cost about €6500 in base version and be made in the Kragujevac factory.
Talbot Arizona. Actually, it reached production, but not under this name. We all know this car as Peugeot 309. I think it should've been introduced as Talbot, as it would extend the life of the brand (PSA group now doesn't have many brands, only 3) , and wouldn't make confusion in Peugeot lineup (it isn't logical that the 309 is 305 successor).
The problem with Talbot was that it didn't have enough clout to become the premium brand PSA was trying to set it up as, as the Tagora's failure showed, and otherwise was nothing more than Peugeot number 2 - which would have cannibalized Peugeot's sales if they had kept Talbot. Meanwhile, Peugeot needed a typical compact car, which the Arizona could be turned into. There wasn't really room for Talbot in the 80s.
I didn't know that the brand was supposed to be premium-ish, but Tagora was indeed a flop. IMO it didn't look too bad, but simply it wasn't popular. Its main rivals were Ford Granada and Renault 20/30. Other models were either outdated, low quality or unsuccesful. But, I think that Talbot could've been saved, maybe as entry level (which actually it was rumored to be in late 2000s). Also, it's interesting because there was few of Talbots in my city, but they are now probably something else.
The Tagora was priced above the Citroen CX and Peugeot 604, which probably was part of the reason why it was such a failure. As for the low-end idea, it could have worked, but PSA was too focused on such mid-market stuff as the Citroen AX and ZX, or the Peugeot 405 to care about a new brand. Also, low-cost brands weren't really a big thing in the 80s, and PSA already had the Citroen 2CV, Axel and Visa at the lower part of the market.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/aut...-modular-engine-from-two-to-twelve-cylinders/ Well, technically not a car, but in the 1960s General Motors was working on a modular flat engine that could come in various configurations, from a flat-2 to a flat-12. Prototype flat-2, flat-4 (for small cars), flat-6 (for the Corvair) and flat-10 (for cheaper fullsizes) designs were built.
Compared to what? A similarly-sized V8? Multi-cylinder flat engines have been done by various manufacturers, and the vibrations haven't been that bad.
Ferrari's flat twelve feels like it's bolted to your spine. Also, a ten cylinder engine of equal size to an 8 cylinder engine uses more fuel.
The Corvair did pretty well with a flat-6, so it would not seem so bad for GM to try and extend the idea.
In the 1960s Ford UK wanted to make an Escort-based compact coupe instead of the larger Capri. Here's an early concept sketch.
lmao i love how this thread is literally just you looking through google and copypasting images for exactly 2 other people to see
