Black Magic VW: Gary’s Volkswagen Santana
When was the last time you saw a Volkswagen Santana? According to How Many Left? there are just seven left on Britain’s roads, making the 4-door saloon quite a rare sight. It was actually no more than a B2 Passat sedan, making the Santana some kind of retro Shatchback hero.
Amazingly, some 194,000 Santanas were produced between 1981 and 1985, before the Santana name was dropped in favour of the Passat saloon. Three years later, in 1988, the B2 Passat was replaced by the B3 and the Santana was banished, in the UK at least, to automotive history. In China the name may live on, but in the UK, you’re more likely to hear Santana on the Ken Bruce show than see one on parked on your local high street. Read more 
A game of Charades
Like a first kiss, everyone remembers their first car. Along life’s journey, learning to drive and getting behind the wheel of your own car is a significant event. It represents a coming of age, a rite of passage.
Personally I couldn’t wait to drive and I booked my first driving lesson the very day I turned 17. Four months later I passed my test and the road was finally mine. I’ll never forget the moment, just a few minutes into my very first solo drive, when I glanced across to the passenger seat and it was empty. A feeling of complete panic and horror washed over me as I realised it was just me now. The panic didn’t last long though and I went on to complete 500 miles of pointless driving over the next two days. It seems a world away now, a period of my life almost completely free of responsibilities and concerns. If nothing else, the fact that a litre of fuel cost just 40p in those days was somewhat of a bonus. Read more
What ever happened to…Top Gear challenge cars?
Love it or hate it, Top Gear is a great British success story. Messrs Clarkson, Hammond and May, along with the production team, have taken a little motoring show and turned it into a global brand. If I owned a hat, I’d doff it to them. But I don’t, so I won’t.
For me, Top Gear can blow hot and cold. The show is capable of moments of pure brilliance, but can also deliver periods of decidedly lukewarm output. For example, the ‘Star in a reasonably priced car’ feature is my cue to go and make a cup of tea and grab a Hobnob. Read more
What ever happened to…the Renault 9
Robert Opron designed some of the greatest French cars of the 1970s and 1980s. Actually scrub that, Robert Opron designed some of the greatest cars of all time. Period. A man could quite easily retire a hero having penned the designs for the Citroën SM and playing a major role in that of the Citroën DS. He was also responsible for the timeless elegance of Citroën’s less desirable but no less interesting CX and GS. As far as Citroën goes then, it is very much a case of job done Monsieur Opron. Read more
What ever happened to…the Hyundai Stellar
For many years, a Stella has been the central factor to a Friday or Saturday night out on town. A few too many and then it is off for a kebab before stumbling into a taxi to be sick. Classy. Before the advent of Skoda cabs in the 90s, there was a fair chance that the car to be sick in was the Hyundai Stellar. So for a few lucky fellows, a good night started with a Stella and ended in a Stellar. Excellent naming strategy by the boys in Korea there. Read more
What ever happened to…the Invacar
For many of the cars featured in this section of PetrolBlog, the spiral into oblivion has been a long and drawn out process. A story of rust and mellow uselessness as the body becomes tatty and the engine grows tired. Not so for this week’s entry. This little car, (and it was a little car), had to endure an ending rivalled only by a second-rate horror movie. Read more
What ever happened to…the Sao Penza
Can you remember what you were doing in 1991? Go on, cast your mind back nearly 20 years and have a think about what you did in the year the Soviet Union collapsed, the Gulf War started and Freddie Mercury passed away.
You would have blinked around 5.5 million times in 1991, so the chances are you might have missed a few events. Maybe you didn’t see Sweden winning the Eurovision song contest. Perhaps you missed out on Nirvana’s debut album, Nevermind. But there’s a very good chance that during one of those 5.5 million blinks, you missed the arrival and departure of the Sao Penza. Read more
What ever happened to…the Renault Fuego
As is becoming the trend for PetrolBlog, my earliest memories of this week’s forgotten hero stem from my childhood. Back in 1980, I believed that the world ended on the south coast of England and that English was the only language spoken. As such, I wrongly referred to the Renault Fuego as the Renault ‘Few-Go’. For years I lived in blissful ignorance of my mispronunciation whilst the motoring world pointed at me and mocked me for my foolishness. How was I to know that there was a land called Spain and in this land, the word Fuego translated to fire? But in a sad twist of irony for the Fuego, while I’m now old enough to pronounce the name, there are only a ‘few’ left in the UK today. So less ‘Few-Go’ and more ‘Few-Gone’ then? Read more
What ever happened to…the Isuzu Piazza
Over the course of time, the name of Lotus has become synonymous with many things that appeal to Joe Petrolhead. An evocative range of cars, with just a mention of the names Elan, Espirt, Elise, Evora and Exige bringing to mind images of lightness, delicacy, thrills and fun. Then there’s the rich motorsport heritage to add to the mix, culminating what is arguably the greatest sports car brand in the world. OK, so our friends in Maralleno and Stuttgart might wish to engage in a battle of fisticuffs over this claim, but when the carbon fibre dust has settled, Colin Chapman’s legacy would still carry a lot of weight in the argument. Which, based on Chapman’s vision, may not necessarily be a good thing… Read more
What ever happened to…the Renault 12
I’d clean forgotten about the Renault 12 until approximately 8.57pm on Saturday 10th April 2010. A Twitter-based discussion over the Triumph Dolomite veered off in the direction of old Renaults. Then, a small debate over the existence of the Renault 13 led me into the virtual path of the Renault 12, a car that has long since left the filing cabinet in my head. But now it is back. Read more
What ever happened to…the Fiat Strada
Remember the Fiat Strada?
If not, let me jog your memory…it was the car that bridged the gap between the 128 and the Tipo…built between 1978 and 1988…called the Ritmo everywhere other than the UK, US and Canada? Read more
What ever happened to…the Citroen GS
When I remember the cars my Dad drove when I was growing up, the cars that immediately spring to mind are the P6 Rover V8, the Lancia 2000, the Triumph Herald and the various Saab 900s. This is strange when considering we had one particular car for a lot longer than any of the aforementioned. Undoubtedly, it also took me on more trips to the seaside or Welsh mountains than any other. As a result of this, I probably associate Simon Bates and ‘Our tune’ with this car, listening as we did at the time, to Radio 1. Read more
What ever happened to…the Mazda Montrose
Over the course of time, car manufacturers have named many a car in honour of an illustrious or glamorous location. Ferrari Maranello, Ferrari Daytona, Porsche Cayenne, Opel Monza, Hyundai Santa Fe and Lancia Monte Carlo are just a few that spring to mind. In all cases, the manufacturer hopes to leave the owner in no doubt over the credentials of the car in question. Daytona, for example, takes you to the speedway, on a hot summer’s night, the sound of V8s and the smell of burning rubber. Stirring stuff you’ll agree. Then there’s Monte Carlo, which takes you to the French coast, twisty mountain-side tarmac roads, glitz, glamour and decadence. You get the point. Read more
What ever happened to…The Talbot Matra Rancho
It may not seem like it now, but the Talbot Matro Rancho was one of the most pioneering cars of the 20th Century. No seriously, it was.
If at first glance the Rancho looks rather like a Simca 1100 on stilts with a glass box bolted to the rear end, that’s because it effectively is. Originally badged as a Simca, the company took the 1100 pick-up, lengthened the chassis and produced a body made from polyester and glass fibre. OK, so even then, it was no looker and it had all the aerodynamics of Rik Waller wearing a chicken house, but it has a certain level of charm. Read more
What ever happened to…the Hyundai Pony
This week’s chosen car is the first generation Hyundai Pony. Like the Citroen Visa featured two weeks ago, you’re much more likely to see the commercial variant of the Pony than the car. Hence why it is a perfect candidate for the feature. The usual quick trawl of Auto Trader, Pistonheads and eBay has once again revealed that there isn’t one solitary first gen Pony for sale in the UK. This just about makes it rarer than a buyer for the Aston Martin Cygnet. Read more
What ever happened to…The Chrysler Alpine
Go on, admit it. You’d totally forgotten about the Chrysler Alpine hadn’t you? When was the last time you saw one? I’d hazard a guess that the last time I saw one was approximately 3:26pm on October 12th 1984. And it was a strange metallic orange colour. Or actually, it could have been rust, which was about to become a major problem for the Alpine (see later in the article). Read more
What ever happened to…the Citroen Visa
The Citroen Visa. In the eighties, they seemed to be everywhere. Today, you’re much more likely to see the diesel van with 200k miles on the clock than the little hatchback.
Launched at the Paris Motor Show in 1978 as a replacement to the Ami, the car enjoyed a decade of success, finally bowing out in 1988 after a massive production run of 1,254,390. In the 10 years, the Visa spawned various petrol and diesel versions, including a GTi and a monster Group B racer, the Trophee. Sales started slowly, but a subtle redesign in 1981 helped Visa sales to take off. The interior design, in particular the dashboard, was typically Citroen and suitably unique. Read more
