Home Cars 10 Memorable Compact European Sports Cars

Cars

10 Memorable Compact European Sports Cars

Vukasin Herbez February 22, 2025

The small, nimble, light and affordable sports coupe was always a dream for most car enthusiasts. This combination is a mix between everything car guys and girls love – sporty performance, two-door body style, lightness, and precision handling. And, of course, affordable prices. Back in the day, European manufacturers competed for a place in this class and its position on the American market. During the `60s and `70s, lots of compact European coupes were sold in the US and some with considerable success. Today we will tell you about the best of them.

1. Fiat Dino Coupe

Back in 1967, Fiat introduced the Dino, a coupe and a convertible sports car that featured Ferrari V6 engine straight from the 246 GT Dino. The coupe was designed by Bertone while the convertible was styled by Pininfarina and the two cars shared the mechanics, engine, and performance but the design was different.

The Fiat Dino Coupe was also officially sold in America and we found one on the classified ads for as little as $15,000 which is the cheapest way to own a piece of Ferrari magic for Ford Fiesta prices. If you are a budget-minded enthusiast, you will look for the Dino Coupe since it is more common and affordable than the convertible. Also, look for a later 2.4-liter V6 version since it is better and faster than the early 2.0-liter model.

NEXT >>

2. Matra Bagheera

French company Matra is one of the most interesting automotive design and development outfits. For decades this firm delivers innovative solutions, new technologies and works with some of the biggest names in the industry. In the early `70s, in cooperation with Simca, Matra decided to produce a small sports car for the European market. Called Bagheera, this cool-looking three-seater was introduced in 1973.

Yes, you read it right, Bagheera had three seats up front and even though it was very compact and small, three people could sit comfortably next to each other. Unfortunately, the power came from quite diminutive 1.2 and 1.4-liter engines which didn’t provide very exhilarating performance. However, with three seats and French charm, little Matra Bagheera was a moderate success.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

3. Opel GT

In the late `60s, German brand Opel was one of the most popular economy car manufacturers in Europe. Since it was owned by General Motors, the design of all Opel`s models was approved or even styled by GM`s design department which meant that Opel models looked like scaled-down versions of Chevrolets or Buicks. This was exactly the case with Opel GT a sporty affordable coupe, presented in 1968.

Opel needed a sports car, based on its entry-level model – the Kadett, and in the mid-60s, it got approval from GM to introduce such a vehicle. The design was heavily influenced by Corvette and GM`s concepts from the mid-60s. Of course, with 1.3 and 1.9-liter four-cylinder engines, Opel GT didn’t have any of the Corvette`s power or performance but it had the looks. It was sold in America through the Buick dealership network and, interestingly, it sold well. More Opel GTs were sold in the US than in Europe during its five-year production run.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

4. SAAB Sonett

Even though SAABs were always known for its sedans or convertibles with turbo engines, during the `60s and early `70s, SAAB did produce sports coupe. As expected, strange, obscure and quirky just like the rest of the range. There were three generations of SAAB Sonett sports car. The first one was a racing prototype from the `50s but second and third were regular production models.

Designed on box chassis and fitted with the fiberglass body, Sonett was initially equipped with tiny SAAB`s three-cylinder two-stroke engine with just 60 HP. As you can expect, customers were disappointed with the poor performance but soon company fitted 1.7-liter V4 borrowed from Ford`s European division. The power grew slightly but V4 had much more torque. However, small Sonett still wasn’t a record-breaker. The production stopped in 1974 after less than 15,000 examples were made in all three generations.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

5. Lancia Fulvia Coupe

Today, Lancia is kind of a forgotten company, still active but with noting interesting in their lineup and selling rebadged Chryslers. But, back in the `60s, Lancia was an independent luxury manufacturer with very specific and highly respected cars that boasted very unique designs and technical solutions. So, when the company presented the Fulvia Coupe in 1965, the car world took notice.

The Fulvia Coupe was a little 2+2 two-door car with a narrow-angle V4 in the front powering the front wheels. This unique layout handled fantastically and with a small weight of the car itself, it presented vivid performance. Despite having from 85 to 115 HP, Lancia Fulvia Coupe was a rally champion and an extremely rewarding car to drive fast on winding roads.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

6. Ford/Mercury Capri

The success of the Mustang was very influential and inspired most American brands into offering a pony car model of their own. Even in Europe, the Mustang was pretty popular and common, but Ford wanted to explore the market further with a smaller, European version which would be cheaper and more suited to the needs of European buyers. This is how Ford Capri came to be in 1969.

Designed in the UK, the Capri was a European Mustang in every way. Using a “long hood-short deck” formula and semi-fastback styling, Capri looked great and had a fantastic stance. Despite being based on the standard Cortina floorpan and used the same engines, Capri looked like a thoroughbred sport or a muscle car and it was often confused for a US-built Ford. This affordable coupe proved very successful almost the same as the Mustang and sold in millions through its 16-year life span. It was also imported into the USA as Mercury Capri in the mid-`70s.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

7. Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV Tipo 105

One of the most iconic Italian sports coupes is the gorgeous Alfa Romeo Giulia Coupe, often called Tipo 105 Coupe for its chassis code. This was Bertone-designed two-door version of the legendary Giulia sedan which was Alfa`s main model during the `60s. Thanks to successful styling, wonderful details, peppy engines, and racing success, Alfa Giulia Coupe became popular as a separate model not just as a coupe version of a mass-produced sedan.

Introduced in 1963 under the name Giulia Sprint GT, this little Alfa stunned the car world with its sculptured lines and perfect stance. Under the hood was a small 1.6-liter four-cylinder twin-cam engine with an advertized 105 HP. The Tipo 105 had live rear axle and four-wheel disc brakes which were unheard of in the mid-`60s. Over the years, the power grew to 1.8-liters and 2.0-liters in later models. The final versions can be recognized by four headlights, wider taillights, and 2000 GTV badge. Those cars have 136 HP and glorious soundtrack thanks to high revving, all-alloy engine.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

8. MG B GT

One of the most popular and typical British roadsters from the `60s is the MG B. Introduced in 1962, B was a successor of the MG A which helped establish the roadster class in the US. For the standards of the day, MG B was a fairly modern car with unibody construction, roomy interior, and decent suspension and steering.

But, today we will tell you about its coupe version called GT equipped with a V8 engine which turned this small two-seater open-top into a proper V8-powered muscle car. Introduced in 1973, MG B GT V8 was powered by a 3.5-liter engine with 175 HP, a good figure for the early `70s standards. The car immediately became a strong seller because it combined the practicality of a bigger cabin and a trunk with the performance of the V8 engine. It achieved a 0-60 mph time of just 7.7 seconds.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

9. Triumph GT6

The GT6 project was started in the mid-`60s when Triumph realized that they needed a coupe version of their popular roadster. However, just putting the roof on Spitfire wouldn’t do the trick. They needed to extensively re-engineer the car and add a more powerful engine in for the chassis to cope with the added weight of the coupe body style. So, Triumph engineers installed a 2.0-liter six-cylinder engine with 106 HP and provided the GT6 with more power and performance than the similar Spitfire.

The GT6 was officially presented in 1966 and discontinued in 1973 after around 45,000 examples were produced. The GT6 was never as popular as the Spitfire but it was arguably a better car and a pretty cool-looking alternative to all other sport coupes on the market.

<< Previous

NEXT >>

10. Alfa Romeo GTV6

The Tipo 105 successor was the coupe version of Alfetta, which was introduced in the late `70s. This car (chassis code 116) had very advanced construction and suspension and featured several interesting details. First, it had a transaxle gearbox which vastly improved weight distribution, thus handling. Second, it had a De Dion type rear axle which helped to corner and driving dynamics. With a 2.5-liter V6 engine in the front, the GTV6 delivered some 160-170 HP and pretty vivid performance by the standards of the day.

Even today, GTV6 is known for its perfect driving dynamics, solid acceleration times and a fantastic soundtrack from the high revving V6. Interestingly, this car was sold in the USA and even sold with an optional turbo kit by Callaway performance which was good for a whopping 233 HP. The prices are pretty affordable and this could be a perfect started classic if you are into Italian sports cars.

<< Previous