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YEARCARCAR 19 70s CAROFTHE Bythe start of the newdecade, CotY had established itself asacredible arbiter of good, bad andindifferentcars, with manufacturersofwinners increasingly using the award asapowerful marketing tool. The automotive landscape waschanging, with hatchbackmodels starting to makedeeper inroads into the market, and Japanesemanufacturersʼ cheapand durable offerings challenging those that were often not, from Britain andEurope. Butwith hindsight,the most prescientmove –atleast forsmaller cars–was thegradual uptakeoffront-wheeldrive.So, it ʼs fitting that ourfirst contendershould be 1970ʼswinner,the Fiat 128. Whilethe Minihad popularisedfrontwheeldrive morethanadecade earlier,the 128 wasthe firsttocombine it with the other key technologies that were in their ascendancy: asingle-overhead-camfour-cylinder engine, transversely mountedinline with itsgearbox; MacPherson strut suspension; unequal-length driveshafts to help countertorquesteer;a frontmounted radiator withathermostatically controlled fan; frontdisc brakes; andrack-andpinion steering. With this combination, Fiat ʼs legendaryengineer,DanteGiacosa, notonly created the template foralmost all modern front-drive cars,but alsoacar that wasultraspacious,with 80% of its footprintdevoted to passengersand their luggage. Fiat 128s arehugelyrareinthe UK nowadays, thankstotheir bodyʼstendency to crumble at the firstsign ofasalt-encrusted Britishroad. 82 Classic&Sports Car February2024 From top: basic 928shape remained unchanged; V8 went quad-cam from 1985; cabin felt futuristic for’78 From top: clever‘self-cleaning’ lights; torquey4520cc V8; Merc’s massivewheel and flat seats aren’t sporty
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Three very different machines represent the ’70s, with the big Benz lastingonly eight years to the Fiat’s16and the Porsche’s 18 From left: Fiat wasatthe top of its game in the early ’70s; transverse engine and ’box; interior is remarkably spacious forsuchasmall car Butthereare still good examples in Europe, hence whywehave Tonvan Zijl ʼs mintPositano Yellow first-series 128 with us,which heʼs drivenacross from The Netherlands.“It drives likeamodern car,” laughs Ra y. “Remarkably space-efficient–itevenhas thespare wheel under the bonnet.Irecall that in 1970 it won CotY byabig margin over the similarly laid-out Autobianchi A112.”Mattquicklywarms to the 128ʼsdriving characteristics: “It ʼs so precise, withalovely gearshift andgreat vision; compact andsprightl y, too .” Steveisalsoafan: “A spacious, air y, sweet-handling carthat belies its age.Brilliantly styled, giventhat it hadtobe boxy.Nice,uncorrupted steering andaprecise, old-schoolFiat gearchange.Loved it.” No pressurefor ournextcontende r, then. The Mercedes-Benz W116 Sonderklasse was launchedin1972, butitwasnʼt untilitreceived the large r, 4520cc M117 V8 engine the following “A spacious, air y, sweethandling car that belies its age,with uncorrupted steering andaprecise, Fiat gearchange.Lovedit” year that the 450SE/450SEL becameaproper CotY contender forthe 1974 title,beating the Fiat X1/9 andHondaCivic into second andthird respectively.And with safety beingaprime CotY focus,the big Merc had all the right answers. With its heavilyreinforced body structure, crumplezones frontand rea r, padded dashboard andribbed wraparound rear-light lenses that reduced dirtbuild-up, the 450 wasnʼt justalarge,powerful luxurysaloon, butagreatcar in whichtohaveacrash.Stylist FriedrichGeiger ʼs conservative design had awelcome dose of modernity,and featured sophisticated, all-independentsuspension, with anti-dive,zero-offset geometryand new reartrailing arms,plushydropneumatic struts on topmodels.Byearly 1970s standards,the 450SEwas an urbane-lookinghot-rod, too – something the CotY judgesclearly warmed to –producing 222bhp,and witha0-60mph time of 8.5 secs on the waytoa130mph topspeed. Howeve r, theresponse from ourcollective today is less enthusiasticafter driving Gohar Raja ʼs recently acquired late-model450SE.“It says ʻtankʼ on thefuelgauge andthat about sums it up ,” says Matt.“Arethe seats meant to movearound likethat? [Apparently so…] It ʼs likea tray on four springs.Nofun in corners, butasmashing,smoking oldbarge .” Steve recalls the big Benz from early roadtests: “It February2024 Classic&Sports Car 83

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YEARCARCAR

19 70s CAROFTHE

Bythe start of the newdecade, CotY had established itself asacredible arbiter of good, bad andindifferentcars, with manufacturersofwinners increasingly using the award asapowerful marketing tool. The automotive landscape waschanging, with hatchbackmodels starting to makedeeper inroads into the market, and Japanesemanufacturersʼ cheapand durable offerings challenging those that were often not, from Britain andEurope.

Butwith hindsight,the most prescientmove –atleast forsmaller cars–was thegradual uptakeoffront-wheeldrive.So, it ʼs fitting that ourfirst contendershould be 1970ʼswinner,the Fiat 128. Whilethe Minihad popularisedfrontwheeldrive morethanadecade earlier,the 128 wasthe firsttocombine it with the other key technologies that were in their ascendancy: asingle-overhead-camfour-cylinder engine, transversely mountedinline with itsgearbox; MacPherson strut suspension; unequal-length driveshafts to help countertorquesteer;a frontmounted radiator withathermostatically controlled fan; frontdisc brakes; andrack-andpinion steering. With this combination, Fiat ʼs legendaryengineer,DanteGiacosa, notonly created the template foralmost all modern front-drive cars,but alsoacar that wasultraspacious,with 80% of its footprintdevoted to passengersand their luggage.

Fiat 128s arehugelyrareinthe UK nowadays, thankstotheir bodyʼstendency to crumble at the firstsign ofasalt-encrusted Britishroad.

82 Classic&Sports Car February2024

From top: basic 928shape remained unchanged; V8 went quad-cam from 1985; cabin felt futuristic for’78

From top: clever‘self-cleaning’ lights; torquey4520cc V8; Merc’s massivewheel and flat seats aren’t sporty

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