Unicorns: The small-selling cars, now vanishing fast

Slide of We all know about the successful cars that pepper the bestseller lists. But what about the ones that sold less welI? In this story, we take a close look at them, and also dig out the specific derivatives of a model that are very rare (when did you last see a V8-powered Volvo S80 like this one?), and in some cases it was the model as a whole that wasn’t a success. And tell you how many survive on UK roads today. Climb aboard: Slide of Alfa Romeo Six (1979) You can count the number of successful Italian executive/luxury saloons on one hand, but the Alfa Romeo Six took the term ‘dismal failure’ to extremes. Built between 1979 and 1986, the Six introduced Alfa’s glorious V6 engine in 2.5-litre form. Despite a seven-year production run just 12,070 Sixes were made, not many were sold in the UK and data suggests that only two survive on British roads today, with another five registered as SORN (Statutory Off Road Notification). How to get one: Very rare obviously, Italian-market imports are probably your best bet and they cost from around £10,000. Slide of Talbot Tagora (1981) When it comes to spectacular failures, few motoring misjudgments can match the Talbot Tagora. Intended to take PSA upmarket, the Tagora proved hopelessly incompetent and after just two years the production line was stopped with under 20,000 made for the whole of Europe, just a few hundred of which were sold in the UK. Data suggests just one - in GL trim - survives on the road today, with another eight registered as on a SORN. How to get one: Almost impossible to get a UK-market example, but you can pick one up in the Tagora's native France from around £1600. Slide of Alfa Romeo 90 (1984) Despite the Six’s lack of sales success, Alfa Romeo replaced it with the 90 in 1984 (two years before Six production ceased). This time production lasted just three years and while more than 56,000 examples were made, numbers are dwindling. Data suggests there are two left on the road in the UK today, though eight How to get one: Almost impossible to do in the UK, but there are a fair few in Italy for sale, from £3400. Slide of Hyundai Stellar (1984) One of Hyundai’s earliest models in the UK (and indeed globally) was this Ford Cortina-inspired saloon. But sadly for Hyundai, the Stellar didn’t enjoy the buoyant sales of the Ford. Data suggests that just three remain on UK roads, with another 17 on a SORN. How to get one: Classic status has not been bestowed on this model, despite the rarity, and it looks like survivors will cost from £2500. Slide of Honda Legend (1986) Production of the fifth (and final) generation Legend ended in Japan in 2021, but Honda gave up on its flagship model in the UK well over a decade ago. Having given the model several decades to succeed you can’t say Honda didn’t try, but these V6-powered saloons and (in the early days) coupés were always among the rarest cars on the road. There are 528 left on the road, with another 456 on a SORN. How to get one: Early examples are very rare, but examples from the 2007 start at £2250. Slide of Hyundai S-Coupé (1990) While Hyundai’s long-lived Coupé that arrived in 2002 would go on to be a decent seller, its predecessor’s forerunner wasn’t such a hot little number. As dull to look at as it was to drive, the deeply unexciting S-Coupé was the antithesis of what a car with sporting pretentions should be – even in 114bhp turbocharged form. It looks like 11 are still alive in the UK, with another 36 on a SORN. How to get one: Survivors occasionally appear for around £4000. Slide of Alpine A610 (1992) Renault managed to shift over 500 GTAs in the UK, so when the car was heavily revised to become the A610 it was decided that this would be Renault’s flagship luxury model. Buyers got plenty of kit as standard but the £37,000 asking price was too high. Renault dropped it to £30,000 but still only 68 A610s were sold in the UK. Just 12 of them survive, though interestingly another 30 survive off the road, biding their time... How to get one: They start at around £25,000. Slide of Suzuki X-90 (1995) Everything about the Suzuki X-90 was comical: its design, its driving experience and the level of performance too. But perhaps the most comical thing of all about it was the sales figures – unless you worked for Suzuki. 107 X-90s remain on the UK road, though more than twice that number (274) are SORNed. How to get one: There's two at the time of writing, starting at £1500. Slide of Toyota Paseo (1996) For those who mourned the passing of the Hyundai S-Coupé, Toyota introduced the Paseo, which was built in the same mould. As such it offered mediocre performance to match the bland looks and driving experience. A 1.5-litre engine provided 89bhp for minimal thrills. 144 examples survive on the road, with another 207 on a SORN. How to get one: They seem to start at around £1500.