The virtues of the small car have been the answer to most motoring solutions, and it’s one of the few motoring genres that have been an affordable constant. Here are a variety of vehicles that were all under 12 feet (3.6 m) in length and that you could have purchased new in 1973.
Coming in at just over 9 feet (2.7 m) is the Bond Bug. Bought out by Reliant in 1969, the Bug weren’t particularly cheap but hugely entertaining to drive. The wedge-shaped microcar, with a lift-up canopy where mainly available in orange.
The Honda N600 was at the time, the smallest four-seater sold in the UK. It was powered by an even smaller engine than the Bond but only 1 second slower to 0-60. 1973 was the last full year of the N600. Honda, as the first-gen Civic took over as the brand’s entry-level car.
No surprise to see the recently announced Fiat 126 coming in as the third smallest car of 1973, 4 inches longer than the old 500 and in modified form remained in production until 2000. The first versions were powered by the same 0.6-litre engine as the 500, gaining in capacity as the car became plusher.
At the same length as the Fiat at 10 feet (just over 3 m) is the ubiquitous BL Mini. Its packaging layout was revolutionary and set the benchmark for the future of the small car. In 1973, the car had seen incremental trim changes but was outwardly similar to the original.
The MG Midget is just 20 cm longer than a Mini but had to go without rear seating. Relying on its handling rather than power, BL still managed to shoehorn a 1.5-litre Triumph engine in the later models. At the time the Midget cost as much as an entry-level Marina or Mini 1275 GT, but it was the ideal choice for sun-seekers on a budget.
Back to the world of three-wheelers, with the Reliant Robin. They made a lot of sense thanks to their advanced engineering including an all-aluminium engine, lightweight yet strong chassis and sparky performance. An agile car, it took advantage of the cheaper road tax bracket and could be driven by those with a full motorcycle license.
The most resolved and practical of these small cars is the Renault 5. 1973 was its first year of imports and its popularity steadily increased and by 1976 it had established itself as the UK’s best-selling French car. Utilising design features that were to become commonplace in 1980s car styling, the Renault 5 proved to be extremely versatile and was offered with seven different engines.
We wrap this diminutive round-up of small cars with another older design with a rear engine layout. The Rootes Imp was another innovative design, and tremendous fun to drive. By 1973, it was still on the shopping lists for many buyers, but in the era of the dawn of FWD superminis, the Imp was not helped by a troubled reputation and faded away in 1976.