Bricklin SV-1
The SV-1 was the brainchild of automotive entrepreneur Malcolm Bricklin. It was produced in Canada from 1974 to 1975 in less than 3000 examples. For a short while, the SV-1 was the best and most advanced American sports car. But as soon as the first cars started rolling from the assembly line, it was clear that the SV-1 was not as good as people expected (via BaT).
The idea was to produce a safe and fast sports car, as the name SV-1 (Safety Vehicle One) suggested. Bricklin designed the car with big bumpers, numerous additional features, warning sensors, power Gullwing doors, no cigarette lighters, an integrated roll cage, and many other things. But they all made it heavy and not very agile. The power came from a 360 AMC V8 engine, which could have been more powerful. Later, the company turned to a 351 Ford V8 but couldn’t deliver any actual performance.