Discontinued Sports Cars Auto Fans Desperately Need Back

2. Lotus Esprit

From a variety of racetracks to the famous James Bond movies, the Lotus Esprit was one of the best sports cars of the late ’70s and ’80s. Colin Chapman conceived the Esprit in the mid-70s as the most ambitious Lotus project up to that date. With its new construction, an Italian designed body and a lightweight, consumers praised the Lotus Esprit for its handling and performance.

They ceased production in 1996 and Lotus has been without a replacement ever since. There were a few concepts of a 21st century Esprit, but nothing seemed to materialize in production-ready form. Many car fans want to see the Esprit come back since there is a space in the overcrowded sports car market for a legendary British brand.

3. Dodge Viper

There’s not much need to explain this one. The Viper is the quintessential American sports car thanks to its power, fantastic design and performance. As such, its demise has truly affected enthusiasts globally.

Everyone knows that Chrysler can produce another Viper. Most Viper fans hope they can find a financially stable model to do just that. Without the Viper, the sports car market is lacking a classic speed-fueled presence.

4. Chevrolet Chevelle SS

One of the most famous muscle cars was the mighty Chevelle SS. Chevrolet based it on a regular Malibu two-door sedan. It featured the biggest engines Chevrolet had to offer including the 396, 427, and 454 V8 motors.

Most performance car fans would like to see a new Chevelle with a rear-wheel-drive platform. Chevy could use the LS V8 engine and give it Corvette-level performance and retro styling. They could potentially build a sports car like this easily, so it could happen one day.

5. Mercury Marauder

Despite the fact Mercury never intended the Grand Marquis to be a performance car, Mercury decided to turn it into one. They did that by installing a highly tuned 4.6-liter V8 pumping out 302 HP. Then they also revised the suspension, gearbox and brakes. All those changes turned this sleepy, comfy sedan into a sharp muscle car.

But best of all, the performance was impressive for a big, heavy sedan with a 0 to 60 mph time of around seven seconds. Even though Mercury as a brand is gone, it’s hard to forget how cool it would be to see the Marauder again, at least in some shape or form. Perhaps it can return as a Ford in black with a thumping V8 under the hood.

6. Ford F-150 Lightning

In 1999, with the new, redesigned generation of F-150 trucks came the new Lightning. This time around, it was much meaner and packed more firepower. Ford installed its 5.4-liter V8 with a supercharger that was good for 360 HP at first and 380 HP later. That was much more than the previous model and more powerful than any truck on the market at the moment.

Also, the performance numbers were sublime. The Lightning could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in just five seconds and topped out at 140 mph. Incredibly, those figures were more suited to the Porsche 911 than a regular pickup truck that could tow a load just like any other F-150.

7. Dodge Stealth

The Dodge Stealth is another ‘1990s legend most mainstream sports car enthusiasts have forgotten, which is a shame. With its pop-up headlights, rear panorama glass, and big spoiler, the Stealth screams early ’90s car design. But there is much more about this car than contemporary nostalgia, as it’s one serious driving machine.

Under the hood is a 3.0-liter twin-turbo V6 producing 300 HP that sends its power to all four wheels over an intelligent AWD system. To be perfectly honest, the Dodge Stealth is basically the twin brother to the Mitsubishi 3000 GT. In fact, apart from the exterior design, those two cars are identical. They even produced them on the same assembly line in Japan and then imported to them to the states.

8. Lancia Delta HF Integrale

Lancia was always big in rallying, so after their Group B model S4 was banned, they wanted something that could work well on the street and the track. That’s how the HF Integrale was born. The main features of this model were a 2.0-liter turbo four-cylinder with 185 HP at first and 220 HP later on. They topped all that off with a permanent, well balanced all-wheel-drive system. The Delta HF Integrale is an utterly important ’90s performance car and a hot hatch because it was the first with AWD.

Also, it marked the beginning of the transition from the front-wheel drive, simple, economical hot hatches, to the high-tech, all-wheel-drive performance monsters of today. The combination of a powerful engine, sharp handling, great traction, and low weight was intoxicating for magazine testers, so the Delta HF Integrale received nothing but praise. Over the years, the Delta HF Integrale proved to be a successful concept on rally stages all over the world as well as with hot hatch fans.

9. Honda S2000

Although Honda presented it in 1999 and discontinued it in 2009, people considered the S2000 to be a ’90s model even though it debuted at the end of the decade. This model was a true driver’s car with all the important features. It was of lightweight construction with the ideal weight distribution. They gave it a powerful, rev-happy engine with razor-sharp handling. Those aspects culminated in an elegant, open-top package.

Under the hood was a 2.0 or 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine that produced 240 HP, which was the main selling point of the car. This little gem of an engine featured a 9,000 RPM redline. Also, it had four valves per cylinder and the famous Honda V-Tec system.

All that provided the power in high RPMs with a wonderful screaming sound. Thanks to its intelligent engineering and low weight, the S2000 provided respectable performance numbers and perfect handling, for which it received universal praise.

10. Mitsubishi Lancer Evo

One of the best examples of how to transform an ordinary car to a performance machine is the Lancer Evolution series. For decades, Mitsubishi produced fantastic rally cars for the road, which they based on the ordinary Lancer sedan.

However, when the Mitsubishi engineers installed a turbocharged engine, stiff suspension and capable all-wheel-drive system, the Lancer became the Evolution. In fact, it managed to outrun some much more expensive machines. The latest generation delivered almost 300 HP with a 0 to 60 time of 4.5 seconds. Sadly, this pocket rocket has been out of production for several years.

11. Mazdaspeed 3

The perfect example of an overpowered, brutal front-wheel-drive car is the legendary Mazdaspeed 3. Mazda based it on the plain old economy Mazda 3. However, the Mazdaspeed 3 was something quite different. Debuting in 2007, this hot hatch got its power from a 2.3-liter four-cylinder. It delivered 263 HP, which was considered a crazy number of horsepower to send to the front wheels.

However, despite the severe torque steer, the Mazdaspeed 3 was a capable, rapid car. Soon, it attracted many customers to the dealerships. That reintroduced Mazda as one of the prime affordable performance brands on the U.S. market, at least in that period.

12. Buick GNX

The ’80s are generally considered the dark age of muscle cars and American performance, but there were a few bright moments. One of the cars that restored faith in the muscle car movement in the ’80s was the mighty Buick GNX. The story of this model is an interesting one. As far back in 1982, Buick started experimenting with turbocharging its line of standard V6 engines.

Finally, the ultimate version they named the GNX, short for the Grand National Experimental, came out in 1987. It featured the same 3.8-liter turbocharged V6 but with 275 HP and a 0 to 60 mph time of 4.7 seconds. At that moment, the Buick GNX was the fastest accelerating production model in the world. At $29,000, it wasn`t economical. Of course, there’s a widespread legend that the owners paid for their cars just by street racing them for money. That could be a reason auto fans miss the GNX to this day.

13. Dodge Magnum R/T

Dodge never built a Charger station wagon or factory Charger convertible. In fact, this model was always a two or four-door car throughout its history. However, if you have an irresistible urge for a station wagon Charger, there’s a way to enjoy the power of the Hemi engine with the practicality of a long roof body. Just look for the Dodge Magnum R/T.

Equipped with a 6.1-liter V8 Hemi engine pumping out 425 HP and a glorious soundtrack running through its twin tailpipes, the SRT-8 was a fast, capable long roof. The design is typical Dodge. Since the rest of the mechanics are identical, you can consider it a station wagon Charger.

14. BMW 6-Series E24

When BMW introduced it in 1976, the new 6 Series was their offering in the Gran Turismo market. It was one of the most elegant coupes of the day. They gave it a recognizable design, four headlights, and a big BMW grille. Interestingly, they built the 6 Series on the 5 Series base featuring nothing but six-cylinder engines.

The 6 Series proved to be popular and spent over 13 years on the market. BMW managed to produce over 100,000 of them, which are still highly desirable on the classic car market. Better yet, they sold more than half of them in the USA.

15. Citroen SM

In the late ‘1960s, Citroen was flushed with cash. Through various stock market transactions, the company acquired famous Italian sports car manufacturer Maserati. The Citroen management thought it would be great if they could use Maserati`s powerful engines and sports car know-how to produce a luxurious, fast coupe. It would come with Citroen’s signature design and style.

That’s how the Citroen SM was born. The aesthetics were French with a hydro-pneumatic self-leveling suspension and front-wheel drive. However, instead of the underpowered four-cylinder engine, there was a 2.7-liter V6 from Maserati. It provided more than enough power for lively performance.

They marketed the Citroen SM in the USA, selling more there than in Europe. In America, the SM competed against the Mercedes SLC or Cadillac Eldorado in the personal luxury segment. Soon, the buyers praised its ride quality, smooth engine, and style. Unfortunately, the oil crisis and economic recession killed it, so they ceased production in 1974 after building more than 12,000 of them.

Which sports and performance car do we desperately need back the most? Hopefully, you’ll be able to find a model to satisfy your old-school sports car craving.