Star cars of 1974

Every year throws up its share of star cars that stand out from the herd. Some are just outrageously quick or exotic, while others move the motoring game on for millions of drivers unaware of the importance of the car they’re driving. Let’s cast our minds back 50 years to 1974 and find out what this year had to offer the motoring firmament.

Super-star car

As we’re talking star cars, let’s begin with the biggest brightest arrival of the year – the Lamborghini Countach. Even for a car that is now so familiar to us as a feted classic, it’s easy to see why the Countach caused so many sharp intakes of breath when it was unveiled at the 1974 Geneva Motor Show. In its original LP400 guise, the Marcello Gandini-styled shape was pure and unadorned by wings and bulges, but the trademark scissor doors were there.

Following the Miura was never going to be an easy task, but the Countach LP400 did it with ease, and went on to see the model remain in production until 1990. The mid-mounted V12 was placed longitudinally, unlike the transverse arrangement in the Miura, while the low-slung style was claimed to help the 375bhp Lambo to a 200mph top speed. The reality was around 180mph, but nobody was counting when confronted with the dramatic looks of the Countach.

Compact heroes

At the other end of the scale, three new models were being launched from a company that would play a big part in the future of Lamborghini. Back in 1974, however, Audi and Volkswagen had their eyes set on volume sales rather than supercars. The Audi 50 was a brilliant supermini to rival the Renault 5, yet it wasn’t as warmly greeted as the German firm might have hoped. A year later, when it was rejigged as the Volkswagen Polo it became a runaway success and the Audi version was quietly dropped.

VW enjoyed plenty of plaudits with its two cars for 1974 – the Golf and Scirocco. Sharing the same floorpan, they offered buyers a brilliantly practical hatch or an affordable coupe, depending on your needs and budget. Both went on to enjoy huge sales and the Golf is arguably one of the most influential cars of all time.

Safety champion

One of 1974’s arrivals that deserved to change the way we viewed cars was the Bricklin SV-1, yet it sank within two years and after only ,3000 cars had been built at its New Brunswick factory in Canada. The brainchild of Malcolm Bricklin, the Safety Vehicle 1, hence SV-1, was intended to prove you could enjoy a sports car and world-beating safety at the same time.

The idea was sound and the SV-1 featured large impact-absorbing bumpers and a substantial steel safety cage around the passenger compartment. However, car’s gullwing doors proved difficult to make work properly and they were far from safe if the car rolled over. Reliability was another issue due to a new workforce not used to making cars, but the final nail was money, or the lack of it from poor sales and overspending on development.

Sharp… but not very successful

Panther had even less money to spend on developing its cars, but that never stopped company boss Robert Jankel from giving his imagination free rein. The results in 1974 were threefold with the wild one-off Lazer roadster that took angular styling to a whole new sharp-edged level. Power came from a 4.2-litre Jaguar engine and there was seating for three.

If the Lazer failed to sell, Panther was undeterred as it had the Ferrari-powered FF up its sleeve as a retro roadster. Styled like giant Lotus 7, the FF was a hit by Panther standards by notching up 12 sales. However, it was left to the company’s DeVille range of coupe, convertible and limousine models to bring in the dosh thanks to a total of 60 being built between 1974 and 1985. Its outlandish 1930s-inspired looks, Jaguar 4.2-litre six or 5.3 V12 engines, and gadget-packed interior drew in a broad selection of customers, including Elton John and Oliver Reed.

A symbol of French pride and a ‘Czech Citroen’

A very different breed of celebrity took a shine to Citroen’s new for 1974 CX saloon. As the DS bowed out gracefully, French President Valerie D’Estaing adopted the bold new Citroen to symbolize his modernising approach to French politics and society. It was a good match as the CX retained all that was great about the DS but in a thoroughly modern car with greater comfort, space and performance than its predecessor. Still a remarkable car to drive, it’s little wonder the CX went on to sell more than 1 million in its 16-year lifespan.

Tatra’s 613 was no less sensational than the Citroen CX when it was launched in 1974, but few on the western side of the Iron Curtain would know about this air-cooled V8 machine. It was a rare sight even in its homeland of Soviet era Czechoslovakia, but it could reach 125mph thanks to excellent aerodynamics and that 3.5-litre engine mounted at the back.

Boxy but fun

The Tatra remained in production until 1996, which was only three years more than the Volvo 200 Series that also arrived in 1974. This archetypal brick of a Volvo saloon and estate might not have won awards for its debonair styling, but it won plenty of sales thanks to its relentlessly practical, durable nature. Anyone willing to look past the set square styling quickly found a car that drove with more verve than the looks suggested. A rear-drive chassis offered some driving fun, while the 264 version came with a punchy 2.8-litre V6 motor, or you could have waited till 1977 for the downright odd but intriguing 262C coupe styled by Bertone.

One other notable arrival in 1974 was the Fiat 131. This was Italy’s answer to the Ford Cortina and it was a fine handler with peppy engines. Fiat built on this solid base with later twin-cam Supermirafiori versions and the brilliant homologation 131 Rallye in 1976. It may not have had the show-stopping spectacle of its Countach countryman, but the 131 generated 1.85 million sales for Fiat during a decade of production. It made 1974 a very good year for Fiat then and for classic car fans today.

Which is your favourite star car of 1974? Let us know in the comments below.